UVB BULBS

[Dogznova]

Oldmac you are clearly getting better results then we did with uvb. The reason I asked hydro or dirt is. With our strain the flowers will produce more trich when done in a hydro setup then done in a dirt setup.

We currently are getting better results using the method you talked about in the other post. We tried supplemental uvb and I think my uncle got up to about 4 to 6 hours a day (not sure thou). How many hour per day is good for uvb supplemental lighting?

Personally I would rather be in your shoes. When the correct M Method and bulbs are released you will have it dripping of your flowers. Althouugh can you get much more on there now.

[oldmac]

For Dogznova and anybody else interested,

First: WARNING UVB light is dangerous to your eyes, skin and health.
DO NOT go into your bloom room while it is on.

In the pure T5 set up I used there where 6-4' T5 2700K fluorescents, driven to VHO levels (85watts/bulb) using an IceCap ballast.
I used 2-4' T5 Zilla desert 50 fluorescent bulbs that only come as NO (normal output, 28watts) but of course I overdrive them to VHO levels of 85watts.
That's 3X normal for at least 3 times the output.

How long to use them each day is very strain dependent. The above bud (NLxJackHeher) was the result of abt 2 hours per day. Some of the pure indicas I have tried made good use of up to 4 hours a day, but at a certian point you get no more Trichome prodution or increase in potency. So far my observations indicate that equatorial sativas and high altitude indicas like much more time then other strains. And if you think about it, that makes perfect sence since those are the areas that recieve the most natural UVB light.

I honestly have not experimented enough with the pure T5 setup, I used the frame and 4-T5s to build a hybred LED/T5 light.

Curently I'm using the 2-T5 Zilla bulbs to suplement a 1kw HPS light, again just a few hours in the middle of the light period.

[Dogznova]

Great info. I'm not sure witch bulbs my uncle tried (I will have to ask him). I do know they weren't T5's. Maybe the uvb bulb was not strong enough (you think?). Don't get me wrong he was getting some extra trich production with the uvb bulb, just not as much as he is getting now with the red.

Thanks for sharing Oldmac :thumbsup:

[Rusty Trichome]

With UVB, doubtful anyone will convince me that it's inconsequential, and I wouldn't participate in this thread if I hadn't had personal experience and a result worth mentioning.

But I'm a little dubious that a single-point in the UVB spectrum is the desired course, but honestly...I like what my wide UVB spectrum provides. At worst, it costs me about $1 a month to run the light. At best it reminds the plant that production of THC and CBD's is still important for it's survival against the harshness of the sun's rays. (at least the UVB and UVA) IMHO, this gives the plant more aromatics and likely improved effects. (although quantifying potency is truly subjective, as CBN, CBD and THC levels can fluctuate within a given strain)

I'm not at all slamming the LED theology...but I am of the opinion that, like ph, nutes and seasonal light spectrums, there is an effective UV range. :thumbsup:

As previously stated a couple of times...safety before stupidity. Use proper care if adding this light to your growroom.

[Bubbleblower]

Thank you all for your thread guys! I have found this lamp and starting to use it!
1 lamp per 1 meter ^2 This will provide a highland uv b or equatorial UV b
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Few questions (I have many).

According to technical data this lamp is 260nm to 320nm, but according to the spectograph it peaks at like 305nm and has a much broader range. How can I find out what all these lamps really emit (nm, range and mw/cm2)?
It would be usefull to know to get the right full spectrum and to not destroy the plants.

Also I wonder how much of sunlight is UV(-B) in desert and high altitude areas and how that changes throughout time.
Preferably in an exceptional good year (like you have in wine).
Typically "98.7% of the ultraviolet radiation that reaches the Earth's surface is UVA".
How much UV do high THC areas get and how much of it is A or B? It would be nice to have a kind of light schedule per region and it would make sense to imitate that, because that is what the plant is adepted to and what should prevent burning.

It seems like you only need little UV-B and I wonder if there would be UV leds (at a normal price) that have enough of it.

Finally, sand reflects 25% of UV and snow 85%. How much would the foil in a growroom reflect?

I did find this in my search for answers:TEMIS -- Clear sky UV index and ozone at a location
Now I still don't know anything, but it was fun playing with.
Imagine growing your plants there; 100% guaranteed you will get high.

[gr8budz4me]

Hello herb lovers,

These UV-B posts are always interesting threads to read... thanks for everyone's input. I am just getting into my garden herb hobby after a several year hiatus but several years ago I did some experimenting with supplementing my HPS and CFL bloom closet with UV-B. In 2005 I did tons of googling and I found a link to a scientific study on the effects of UV-B lighting on marijuana. The study definitely showed a cause and effect of greater THC production on the study group plants that were exposed to UV-B during their growth. This study was done using UVB medical T12 fluorescent style lamps and they cited a particular Philips T12 bulb. I wish I could find the same study and if anyone knows where it can be found I'd love to read it again.

The nice thing to me about this Philips bulb (in addition to the study citing that it works!) is that it produces very little heat and operates in a standard fluorescent fixture and with a 4 foot length it fits perfectly into my 2' x 4' x 8' bloom closet. My bloom closet already had a 600w HPS with a Hortilux bulb and a six lamp HO T5 fixture mounted on the back wall of the closet. I placed the UV-B lamp between the 600w and the fluoros approximately 8" from the plants. I started with a couple hours of exposure and slowly ramped up the exposure to about five hours per day. I was growing THSeeds' "The Hog" and "Hash Plant," and "White Widow" in dirt at the time. Within a few days I noticed a visible difference and at harvest all of the varieties were at least 20% more dank and smelly than my previous grows of the same strains when you compared buds.

Fast forward almost four years later and here I go again... I got rid of ALL of my shit several years ago & I have a buddy who now bought his own pad and we set up a closet at his place with similar dimensions for a bloom space. This time we're using a Quantum 1000w dimmable digital ballast with a Solar Max Dual Arc bulb and an eight bulb T5 fixture loaded with five bloom and three grow spectrum lamps. I'm really looking forward to seeing the girls EXPLODE with flowers under this full spectrum barrage...

Now for the UV-B... If only I wasn't SUCH a fucking pothead I might be able to remember something but for the life of me I coudn't find the place I ordered the bulb from years ago or remember what the model of lamp it was... lol...:stoned: Any-hoo... I did another round of exhaustive research and found the model of the bulb: Philips FS40T12/UVB. These bulbs are used for the treatment of psoriasis and other skin ailments. They are to be used under medical supervision and some suppliers don't readily sell them to just anyone. When I bought my bulb in '05 I had to send the sales dude a fax with a statement that I wasn't using them for medical purposes or where humans would be exposed to their radiation. When he asked me what I was going to use them for, thinking quickly on my feet I told him that I grew culinary herbs for area top end restaurants and the supplementing of UV-B in the grow light spectrum made the herbs develop more of their natural oils and consequently, their flavour and aroma were enhanced. Whew! He thought it was interesting and asked me to fax him the disclaimer and sold it to me.

If you search the bulb make and model number above you can come up with sources for purchasing. They sell for around $75 per bulb and they have to ship them in a special container that some charge $25 for in addition to the shipping if you buy less than a box of six. Another very good attribute of these lamps is that unlike many of the zoo UV-B bulbs for reptiles, they produce very little heat.

I can't stress SAFETY enough... you really need to limit your exposure and especially protect your eyes. This can be very bad voodoo folks... Serious bidness... Proper placement so that you don't look at them and they don't shine on you as you enter the grow space is the way to go. Also, a closet door trigger style of switch is your best bet of all. UVB should be reserved for more experienced growers that have all the other factors under control in their setup. UV-B isn't necessary to grow great pot but using it will improve things. Mother Nature knew now I do too...

Peace!

[oldmac]

I can't stress SAFETY enough... you really need to limit your exposure and especially protect your eyes. This can be very bad voodoo folks... Serious bidness... Proper placement so that you don't look at them and they don't shine on you as you enter the grow space is the way to go. Also, a closet door trigger style of switch is your best bet of all. UVB should be reserved for more experienced growers that have all the other factors under control in their setup. UV-B isn't necessary to grow great pot but using it will improve things. Mother Nature knew now I do too...

Peace!

Hello gr8budz4me,

Very nice post, good heads up on the bulbs. I quoted just your safety warning because it really should be repeated, often.

Excellent idea about using a closet door trigger switch, a safety switch like that might make it idiot proof, and thats a good thing.
Looks like you got a good handle on light issues.

Good luck to you and your partner on your grow. Keep us posted.

[sd6515]

yeah good "safety tips" and "idea" about the trigger as they have all been mentioned in this thread about 100 times, in fact this thread seems pretty dead as this last post was just a summary of this thread plus some mis-information about the reptile uv-b bulbs getting hot, they're cfl's so yeah they get as hot as them but nothing more.

Also as far as extensive googling, if you just google uvb and growing you get several reports, a couple videos, and basically every growing forum out there. It was a nice long post but unfortunately it was just exactly the same info that has already been beaten to death in this thread repeated, the only new info in there is the fact that you can spend $100 on a bulb that you have to make up a story to get if you can get it, you have to sign a waiver pay by credit card and wait for it to arrive, instead of a $15 bulb that you could buy a couple if you want in cash, which is a plus, not have it shipped to your address, a huge plus and have it that night for less. Besides if your room is 4' then these wont fit width ways b/c with the fixture they go in it is over 4', I know I got screwed when I was high setting up my room and I made it exactly 4' b/c the floros were 4' and I had to have them on an angle before I got my HPS.

Just seems like this thread has completely died out when new posts become summaries of the thread and nothing more.

[Rusty Trichome]

Also as far as extensive googling, if you just google uvb and growing you get several reports, a couple videos, and basically every growing forum out there. It was a nice long post but unfortunately it was just exactly the same info that has already been beaten to death..blah, blah, blah...
Just seems like this thread has completely died out when new posts become summaries of the thread and nothing more.

And the content you added to our knowledge-base is...? (nada) Come back when you've got something to add, and don't bother thanking us for the insight...we know you appreciate it. :thumbsup:

[sd6515]

And the content you added to our knowledge-base is...? (nada) Come back when you've got something to add, and don't bother thanking us for the insight...we know you appreciate it. :thumbsup:

Read the thread first genius I STARTED it RFLMAO:thumbsup::jointsmile:

Try reading the whole thread before you chime in that I have contributed nada when I started this thread over a year ago LOL, Aug 07, and I've been watching the whole thing degrade since. I've been using uvb for more then 10 grows now and have not learned anything extra from the same stuff we started this thread with being repeated :beatdeadhorse:ostexcuseme::S2: