Help!!

[hasnfe4]

My ballast box on my 400w HPS blew up today, and I need a quick fix. My plants are currently in flowering (six ladies) and I just started the 12/12 cycle. I now have a measly 100w fluorescent bulb shining on them, but I need something I can get at a neighborhood Lowe's, hardware store or Home Depot. Any suggestions to help my plants reach the finish line?

hasnfe4 Reviewed by hasnfe4 on 08-04-2008. Help!! My ballast box on my 400w HPS blew up today, and I need a quick fix. My plants are currently in flowering (six ladies) and I just started the 12/12 cycle. I now have a measly 100w fluorescent bulb shining on them, but I need something I can get at a neighborhood Lowe's, hardware store or Home Depot. Any suggestions to help my plants reach the finish line? Rating: 5

[stinkyattic]

How tall are your plants?

A set of at least 4- 4', 2-bulb, 80w each shop light fixtures fitted with 'daylight' T8 bulbs will get half a dozen plants to harvest if they are flowered SHORT and trained to lie flat. Keep your air moving in there too.

You can't replace your HID?

[hasnfe4]

How tall are your plants?

A set of at least 4- 4', 2-bulb, 80w each shop light fixtures fitted with 'daylight' T8 bulbs will get half a dozen plants to harvest if they are flowered SHORT and trained to lie flat. Keep your air moving in there too.

You can't replace your HID?

Thanks for your reply...Plants are about 4-4.5 feet high.

I picked up two 300W CF bulbs and rigged them as a temporary solution...going to order a replacement HPS setup online. What is the max a setup like this could maintain the plants until the unit arrives?

[stinkyattic]

For a short time, on the EXACT same lighting schedule, you should not really have any problems- However, your plants are much too tall for shop lights alone and what I'd do is run shop lights up top and then hang the big ass CFLs down in among the plants. Flourescents of any sort need to be REALLY close to the canopy, but if your plants are very tall, side lighting is a necessity.
Try to just get your new light ASAP and IMVHO spring for a 600, because you shouldn't be running a 400 over plants that tall either unless you do the 'lollypop' or 'pistilwhipt' pruning on them so tht the canopy is effectively only about a foot deep.

[hasnfe4]

OK...some of the things you bring up are gibberish to me. Only my second ever indoor grow (first one was almost 10 years ago). Pardon my ignorance, but I know nothing of the pruning techniques you speak of.

My area is a simple closet that contains the boiler and hot water heater, about 5.5 feet by 5.3 feet. The 400-watter worked really well for the last grow, and I figured the same would do just fine for what I currently have. And the two 300W CFs seem to provide a similar amount of light than the HPS I once had.

Are you saying that once my new unit arrives that I should also use the CFs to supplement the light?