1. Determine the size of your growing area. Here are some guidelines for lighting coverage in your growing area. You may exceed these recommendations by quite a bit: you can’t have too much light in your indoor garden (especially HPS light), however, you can have too much heat. I recommend venting your light. Consider the amount of space your plants need and fill that area with light based on the diagram below.

400w – approx. (3’x 3’)-(3’x 4’) OR 9-12 square feet.
600w - approx. (3’x 4’)-(4’x5’) OR 12-20 square feet.
1000w – approx. (4’x 5’)-(5’-8’) OR 20-40 square feet.

2. Determine what kind of light you need. If your growing area has no outside light, metal halide (MH) provides the most energy to your plants. If you have a strong source of natual light (such as a greenhouse or sun room), high-pressure sodium is the best supplement. Special lamps can enhance and broaden spectral output and improve spectral balance. Enhanced metal halide lamps provide up to 38% more yellow-orange-red light while sodium can be augmented with up to 25% more light in the blue spectrum. A metal halide is good for veg and a high-pressure sodium is the best for flowering. If you can affored both then just get a hps and it will work. If you can’t affored any of them then your best bet would be to get some cfls.

3. Determine the reflector style you prefer. When choosing a reflector consider the area you would like to cover and the required light intensity of the plants you are growing. Keep in mind that a deep reflector will concentrate the source on your garden below. A shallow reflector will disperse light over a wider area but it will be less intense where is falls. Choose a system with vents and a tempered glass lens to eliminate heat build-up in your garden room. A lens also protects the lamp from dust and water.

4. Choose the correct lamp. Lamps must match the type (HPS or MH) and wattage of the ballast. You cannot use a metal halide lamp in a sodium system or vice versa. Choose a conversion lamp if you want sodium light and have a metal halide system or have a sodium system but want a halide spectrum. Two-way ballasts use both a HPS and a MH lamp, just select the correct wattage.

If I made any kind of mistake then please let me know and I will change it.

__________________

Nobody has anything to say? Tell me something.

__________________

Two way ballasts are called switchable ballasts because they have a switch for MH or HPS depending on what bulb you are using. There is no need to get the more expensive conversion bulbs anymore.

MH is best for VEG

HPS for Flowering

Optimally, you have light movers and 2/3 of your wattage is HPS and 1/3 is MH.

The next best thing is MH for VEG and HPS for flowering.

You can use HPS for everything but the plants are not as robust as if they were done under MH exclusively for VEG.

Thanks man for the info. Maybe someone will read this and learn something. Happy growing.

__________________

Good Info.

I would add the larger wattage systems adds more heat so think about aircooled and ducted and sealed hoods. I have an in-line Eco-plus fan which pumps 440 cfm's of air through dual 1,000 watt hoods (glass and sealed). It allows me to get my plants as close as 10 inches without burning them. It also allows me to cool the room without losing CO2 enrichment.

HID is the way to go.

I am seeing more and more CFL and ghetto set-ups which look like fires waiting to happen not to mention the marginally shitty weed it produces.

The first thing I hear is "heat" with HID and I ask "are you using fans or any type of ventilation ?" That takes care of heat issue and if they get a blank look when asked about ventilation or air movement, they are clueless and need to read more.

The next is cost of electricity.

By the time you add up all of the mickey mouse CFL's and turd fixtures, you have a recipe for disaster (fire) not to mention you are probably burning more watts versus a good HID system because you added another $5.00 chinese fixture with questionable wiring waiting to bite you in the ass.

Nobody ever discusses the cost of replacing 4 to 6 bulbs on a T-5 CFL system which would pay for a new HID system. That part is never discussed and there is a good reason.....kids and vendors preying on kids.

This is generally how the shit starts and growers end up getting busted.

RULE NUMBER ONE: Do not tell anyone about your grow. If you have the need to brag, then do not grow. It is that simple.

You are welcome.

I am a firm believer in the K.I.S.S. PRINCIPLE.

K.I.S.S. = KEEP IT SIMPLE SHITHEAD

MH FOR VEG
HPS FOR FLOWERING

You are very right about this. Too many young kids grow and then show all their firends, they get cought.

__________________