Slow grow. Does my light suck??

[Mr. Clandestine]

Most hardware stores sell HPS and MH BULBS, but you have to remember, an HPS bulb (regardless of how small the wattage) will NOT run off of a standard light socket, even if the mogul bases (bottom screw-in part) is the same size. Even if it's just a 100w HPS bulb. The reason for this is because standard incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent lights operate off of an uninterrupted current that is provided by the power cord via the electrical outlet. But HPS and MH bulbs operate by supercharging compressed gases inside of an arc tube, and actually require an ignitor (as well as several other components) in order to light those gases. So don't waste your money buying an HPS bulb unless you have an HPS ballast to light it up. It won't work without a ballast. That's why I recommended either building one yourself, or ordering one online.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's a common misconception for low-watt HPS bulbs. Take care, and best of luck in your lighting endeavors. :jointsmile:

[justanotherbozo]

well how much room do you have in your grow area?
and if its the light i think it is i would just take it back.

and is your electric bill a big issue?
if so i would take a trip to lowes and pickup a few 300W Pre-ballasted CFLs and watch that Fother Mucker grow. :thumbsup:

i shop a LOT at Lowes, much of my stuff comes from there including most of my CFL's and i've never seen a 300watt cfl there. shit, i've never even heard of a 300watt cfl, equivalent yes, actual no.

[justanotherbozo]

Most hardware stores sell HPS and MH BULBS, but you have to remember, an HPS bulb (regardless of how small the wattage) will NOT run off of a standard light socket, even if the mogul bases (bottom screw-in part) is the same size. Even if it's just a 100w HPS bulb. The reason for this is because standard incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent lights operate off of an uninterrupted current that is provided by the power cord via the electrical outlet. But HPS and MH bulbs operate by supercharging compressed gases inside of an arc tube, and actually require an ignitor (as well as several other components) in order to light those gases. So don't waste your money buying an HPS bulb unless you have an HPS ballast to light it up. It won't work without a ballast. That's why I recommended either building one yourself, or ordering one online.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's a common misconception for low-watt HPS bulbs. Take care, and best of luck in your lighting endeavors. :jointsmile:

what he said, everthing he say's here is true so listen up.
if your new to growing and on a budget, buy cfl's, you can buy them one at a time for under ten bucks and, you can buy them locally, and, because you'll be using several smaller blubs rather than one BIG bulb, you can tweak your light spectrum. keep in mind though that you need to look at the ACTUAL wattage and not the equivalent wattage. also look at the color of the light (and i don't mean the bulb, they're all white lol), that will be printed right on the plastic part of the bulb (that's the ballast housing) and it will say something like 6500K, or 3000K, or 2700K etc..., the K stands for Kelvin and it refers to the spectrumor temperature of light the bulb produces.
in veg (which is where your at right now) you want mostly blue light (blue is at the high end or 5000 to 6500K), not ALL blue, but at maybe a 4 - 1 ratio, watt for watt.
when your ready to flower, switch to mostly red (the low end, 3000, 2700 and 1900K).

in the meantime, start reading the FAQs, you'll gain a lot of respect around here if you show a willingness to find your own answers to simple questions. that's not to say you shouldn't ask for help when your stumped, just don't be stumped 'cause your too lazy to look for the answer, be stumped 'cause you can't find the answer.
if you show a willingness to help yourself, people will be more than willing to help too
anyway,
peace, love, dope