when is it too much lighting for a house?
- Thread starter Turm
- Start date
jondamon
Well-Known Member
It depends entirely on where you live.
In the UK for example, 1kw of electric per hour per bedroom is the allowance before any red flags may appear. Even then though it may just be a phone call from the energy provider to see why you are using the amount.
So in a 2 bedroom house that would mean above 48kwh of usage per day.
In the USA though this figure is different due to using home AC which can eat up the kwh's.
You may be able to find an average usage of your street on your utility providers website.
J
In the UK for example, 1kw of electric per hour per bedroom is the allowance before any red flags may appear. Even then though it may just be a phone call from the energy provider to see why you are using the amount.
So in a 2 bedroom house that would mean above 48kwh of usage per day.
In the USA though this figure is different due to using home AC which can eat up the kwh's.
You may be able to find an average usage of your street on your utility providers website.
J
Turm
Active Member
Isn't UK really strict/cracking down though?
jondamon
Well-Known Member
People tend to forget that energy providers supply energy at a cost to the end user. As long as you pay it should be fine.
However I couldn't say for definate as I personally only use a 400w hps.
The UK cracking down on what exactly? Energy usage?
IMO its more about the power companies finding greener means for producing electricity.
How can the average home of 2 adults and 2.4children reduce what they're using???
Here the power companies still have the average household using 3300kwh per year. I was using almost twice that before I even began growing.
J
Turm
Active Member
I meant more so in how harsh they are out there compared to the states in legal view point. Hopefully some people state side decide to chime in.
joe blow greenthumb
Well-Known Member
Too much lighting? When its dark, of course!
Turm
Active Member
I'm talking more so in power consumption / surges. I keep my grows 100% sealed
Turm
Active Member
What's your lighting setup?
70's natureboy
Well-Known Member
Start a part time welding business in your garage. Do very little welding. I think 3k is pushing it. Maybe with a gas stove, fridge, dryer, no tv or computer, you could go a little more.
Turm
Active Member
How long have you been growing for? Whats the most light you had going at once? Lol i know nothing of welding.
Rak on Tur'
Active Member
It's dependent on the power provider, we have one here (MEA) who would flag users at 1200$ a month for a residence. The other two in the area do not.
One individual in Anchorage had 16k watts in a 1800 sq ft building, unforntinatly he got told on by a pissed of ex wife.
One individual in Anchorage had 16k watts in a 1800 sq ft building, unforntinatly he got told on by a pissed of ex wife.
Turm
Active Member
lol damn 16k, no thank you. I can't imagine my bill will get much over 250$ a month. To run 3k in lights 12/12 is only 100$ a month roughly.
twostrokenut
Well-Known Member
Ever entertain the idea of using LED's or induction/plasma? When I used to live in a non medicinal state as long as the bill got paid they didn't care.....same with my ISP they supposedly monitored bandwidth and could reneg the bill based on excessive usage....they just chill in the office playing call of duty I reckon.
Turm
Active Member
the whole reason why i want to do this is so i can do one solid run and not have to grow again for a 1-2 years, I want to be able to have people over at my house again. Its looking like my old ladys grandparents are going to move in by the end of the year and I don't want them around it when its that serious. (I work from home and we refuse to put them into an old folks home) I currently use 1k with co2, want to add 2k more. I'm also wondering how to get around 3.5k watts to run in a basement without blowing a fuse as well. (Done my homework but looks like I'll have to hire and old friend to set up a separate independent breaker. I dont entirely trust myself with all the wiring)
I also suffer from severe PTSD (my old lady suffers from anxiety as well) and we HATE pharmaceutical drugs, I grow anti anxiety strains mostly.
After all that is said and done, I will continue to grow very small scale just because this is a hobby to me. So then I will finally entertain the idea of LEDs and maybe have fun with CFLs in my closet just to see what I can get with them.
kermit2692
Well-Known Member
cfls are great for veg...lower your bills and heat
Turm
Active Member
I start my girls off on a T5 8 bulb mix spec, they love it
Short and bushyRak on Tur'
Active Member
I can only coment on my state with certanty, but realisticly 3k watts is really small. One way to check is to look at busts in your area, read the cases online, then look for the grey areas in how the police found out.
on the east coast my parents electricity bill is almost $450 a month and nothing is grown at the house. so if you're in the north east and dont plan on even having a bill over $250 i would think youd be fine, but a red flag might appear if you go from a $70 bill to $250.
twostrokenut
Well-Known Member
No bro I am talking large scale LED's or induction hanging right up there where your thouie is, not some swirleys in a closet. I totally understand not wanting to switch from what works for ya, just suggesting a problem for your dilemma. 4 thouies cost me like 600 bucks to run in the summer with an AC, light cooling/intake/exhaust fans and a dehumidifier here in California so you are worried that if your power bill spikes from like 150 up to 500 or more a month you might get busted. You could get Plasma TV's in every room and turn them all on if someone comes to investigate?
I agree with checking into local busts. Before I moved to cali, my local east coast county busted a HUGE indoor in a triplewide.......they got busted on the odor and the sheriff was all like "these weed growers are getting technical growing plants indoors with lights to avoid detection".
I agree with checking into local busts. Before I moved to cali, my local east coast county busted a HUGE indoor in a triplewide.......they got busted on the odor and the sheriff was all like "these weed growers are getting technical growing plants indoors with lights to avoid detection".
Turm
Active Member
new spot I'm moving in 1st week of august at latest, so shouldn't have to worry about that.