MH or HPS? which do you prefer?

[growdatpurp]

I was wondering which light to get, metal halides or hp sodiums. which one do you guys prefer and why?

growdatpurp Reviewed by growdatpurp on 01-09-2007. MH or HPS? which do you prefer? I was wondering which light to get, metal halides or hp sodiums. which one do you guys prefer and why? Rating: 5

[HiProGlow]

MH is better for vegging. HPS is best for flowering. If you can by a switchable system and use the bulbs which best suit the stage your plant is in. If you can't buy a switchable go for the HPS because it can be used for the whole grow successfully! Peace!

[xcrispi]

crispi prefers hps. cause hes a cheap bastard -n- can use it start to finish.
peace
crispi

[rollone]

I'm not a cheap basterd by any means when it comes to my plants, and I'd still purchase an HPS over swicthable's.
MH has it's uses. Very good light for veg. added uv, and what ever else I might not completly be aware of. However it lacks weight by itself. Using MH for a complete cycle is silly in my mind. I weeded out...hehe...all the MH equipment about 6-7 years ago when I switched to CFL's for veg.
What a couple of these bulbs can do in such a short amount of space is simply awsome! To think you can supply an entire bedroom sized area with healthy clones that were taken from a plant under afew of these is a very real wake up call if I say so myself.
So that was the main reason for the switch over to CFL's.

HPS on the other hand isn't all that bad for veg. i'd dare say roughy 50% if not more of indoor growers do use HPS to veg. even if only for a short amount of time. I Myself would veg. under an HPS for about 2-3 weeks, to help fill in the clones abit. Rarly did I have to veg for anymore time then this....(12 days average if i remember corret.

I could have gone the route with using a switchable. But to be honest over the years i've tried soooo many combinations from lights to space, nutes. systems, ect. I just never got around to using them. I'm confident though you could produce a beatiful mother under an HPS bulb. Done this many a times. Other then the normal growing pattern of cannabis, I've never noctied stress, or stretch!:jointsmile: GL

[HiProGlow]

So, you're saying that CFL's have worked better for you than a MH bulb? One MH bulb= 38,000 lumens. How many CFL's do you have to use to equal that? I'm going to do the math- If you used one CFL that puts out 1600 lumens you'd need almost 24. One bulb compared to 24....hmmm. Each 1600 lumen bulb is 26/32 watts...that's 624watts whereas the typical 38,000 lumen MH bulb can run off of a 400watter...um....just seems more practical to use a MH and supplement with a few CFL's, or is it me? Peace.

[bejay]

have seen both mh and hps produce good results used for both veg and flower, a switchable ballast would probably be best but if you was limited to one or the other would probably use a hps.
flouros are great for starting clones and even vegging for a short amount of time while they will not have the lumens of a mh or hps its more efficient for alot to use a few small flouros when the plants are small as they take up less space and use less electric, then the plants can be thrown under a hid for longer veg or flowering.

[FreeVenice]

How important are HPS bulbs? This guy I know is just using a G.E. crystal clear bulb (100w) he got at Home Depot. he is also using a G.E. plant light (120w), and a couple of Flo's. are HPS really nessasary?

[HiProGlow]

HPS=bigger, denser buds.....CFL=smaller, thinner buds, but buds none the less! Peace!

[FreeVenice]

HPS=bigger, denser buds.....CFL=smaller, thinner buds, but buds none the less! Peace!

Now thats a good reason to change. . .

[FreeVenice]

the whole HPS set up is kinda pricey tho. . .

also i have a random question about temp. and venting. Do the plants need constant air flow (does a fan always need to be on) or is that only durring flowering? My buddy is using a closet with no vent, he hase a fan but doesnt know how often to turn it on. he is in the veg. state right now and doesn't know how to aproach the air temp/humidity in the closet. he says it doesn't get to hot in the closet since he is only using Flo's right now. he only turns the Crystal bulb on when he is hame with the door open. What should I tell him to do?