Quote Originally Posted by Weedhound
Personally....I love HID lighting. I think it's one of BEST...if not THE best investment you will make. DON"T skimp here.....I'll go with cheaper nutes before I go with lesser lights....seriously. There just isn't any replacement for actual lumens etc and your plants will know the difference and thank you for it many times over.

You will spend X time, energy etc etc on these plants as they grow. They will take however long to finish....(3-4 mos) and during that time you can double your yield JUST by using quality lighting vs "less than ideal" ....you do nothing else...assuming plants are healthy and such (pay light bill maybe...but it will be worth it) Not only will your yield be lesser if you use anything less than the best (HID) , your plants may take longer to finish according to some experts.

Amount wattwise.....a 250 watt HPS (I'm going to assume you are buying ONE light for both flower and veg....that would be HPS although metal halide HID lighting is better for vegging....we won't go there) will cover a 2 x 2 area of plants.....a 400 watt will cover a 4 x 4 area. In my opinion...good grow lighting is like computers. Buy more than you think you'll need....you 'll find something else to put use it for in no time at all.
some people swear by CFL's:wtf: but if you want fully developed crops use HPS or MH bulbs:greenthumb: