ok, i got 3 used 250watt HPS. awesome price-under $100 w/bulbs! these are my very first HID lights. the black thing is the igniter, the white is a capacitor, got a socket, and a heavy thing full of copper with a bunch of wires coming from. i don't know what the fuck i'm doing here. they came looking like this. i'm waiting to hear from you guys before i mess with them.

the yellow wires are for different voltages. i'm on a 120v circuit, so i take the 120v line and the COM line(the only yellow w/o voltage) and connect it to a stripped extension cord? so what wire is the + and the -? how should i enclose this. off the ground, wall mounting is best? i will also need to extend the socket. what gauge wire should i use? i have a fancy multimeter. never used it. what tests should i preform?

who's gotta good link for DIY reflectors?

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Did you get that from amazon?

-Alex

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I can't see the leads well enough to advise further, but I will give you a little break down. On any AC(alternating current . house voltage) cicuit there is no +/- to worry about. From what you stated, you will be hooking a black(hot) conductor to the 120v lead and the white(neutral) conductor to the COM lead. The ground wire is normally green(sometimes bare) and should be ran and bonded(connected) to the metal frames of all equipment in the ciruit. If this doesnt work I will need some more input to be of any help. Remember to turn the breaker off before attemping to wire anyhting and stand clear when fisrt powered on.

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good intructions.
I would pm Graf or Kindprincess for any further questions.
I know they both had projects dealing with the same thing in the not so distant past.

Did you get it wired yet?

My next reflector I think i'm going to make myself. I'm pretty familiar with using a metal break. That's the real deal, just gotta figure out the right angles.

thanks smokerE, willie. fuck i hate work because i want to get this bitch fired up NOW and i don't have time. maybe i'm just pussy. i do have some ammo cans big enough to fit this. great tip on that one.

here's a diagram of the existing wiring. sorry for few details and overall crap quality. do MH need an igniter, thought that was just for HPS. no? but i could get a conversion bulb and run 1 MH in veg and 2 HPS in flower. S50 ballast btw.

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I'd pay someone to wire that if I had limited knowledge.

True on the Igniter for HPS. Pulse start MH are a different topic though. As far as convertion bulbs go, you are better off supplementing the HPS lighting with CFLs than using conversion bulbs. They are expensive and waste energy. For the cost of a conversion bulb you can normally buy a new MH fixture and keep your effeicency. For my main rooms, I mount the ballast on a board with a fan keeping them cool. The cooler the ballast the more lumens and lifespan from your lamps. HID bulbs go dim with age,so replacement after 3 crops is a must.

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