Which HPS should I keep?

D

dirtyoz

Well-Known Member
Quick question here.
I messed up on my order, I wanted an HPS and a MH conversion bulb that could share the same hood with an S51 sodium ballast that I built myself. Not at the same time of course. Anyway I ended up ordering an Agrosun 430w red sodium that says "with more blue and red" and an EYE Hortilux 430w enhanced spectrum Super Hps.
I dont need two, so I want to send one back and get the MH conversion bulb instead.
Which HPS should I keep.
Thanks
 
SHOTTY6868

SHOTTY6868

Well-Known Member
HORTILUIX BULB IS IN MY OPINION THE BEST BULBS MADE. HIGHLY RECOMMEND BECAUSE YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR IN THIS WORLD.:fire:
 
SHOTTY6868

SHOTTY6868

Well-Known Member
AS LONG AS THE BULB IS LOWER THAN THE BALLIST WATT. SO U CAN PUT THE 400 IN A 430 BUT NOT A 430 BULB IN A 400 WATT BALLIST:idea::clap:
 
D

dirtyoz

Well-Known Member
Man, that really sucks. I really dont want to go back to my 70watt halide flood and 100 watts of cfl. I guess I'll just have to spring for a nice S145 with a heatsink or fan. I guess since they didnt send my MH conversion bulb, I can just take this s51 back to the shop (that I work at) and get a separate MH setup for veggin. I really dont like the idea of the MH conversion anyway.
My grow closet is 8 sq. ft. with an 8' ceiling. Do you think putting that 70w MH flood in there too is even worth doing?
My temps 18" from the lid is about 82 Deg. F with the 430 going. and ballast in the closet too.
 
U

UserFriendly

New Member
dirtyoz said:
Man, that really sucks. I really dont want to go back to my 70watt halide flood and 100 watts of cfl. I guess I'll just have to spring for a nice S145 with a heatsink or fan. I guess since they didnt send my MH conversion bulb, I can just take this s51 back to the shop (that I work at) and get a separate MH setup for veggin. I really dont like the idea of the MH conversion anyway.
My grow closet is 8 sq. ft. with an 8' ceiling. Do you think putting that 70w MH flood in there too is even worth doing?
My temps 18" from the lid is about 82 Deg. F with the 430 going. and ballast in the closet too.
Click to expand...
I've seen a bunch of people say they run MH lamps on an HPS ballast..... no conversion necessary.
 
SHOTTY6868

SHOTTY6868

Well-Known Member
i would not run a mh bulb on a hps ballist under any circumstance. they require a different sort of electricity and it would be dangerous to do that. as far as the mh cool conversion bulb is good and does a really good job for vegging. if you have a 430 watt ballist you can run a 400 watt hps from start to finish but not a mh from start to finish.
 
U

UserFriendly

New Member
Hps ballast is capable of running a mh bulb, The thing is there's an ignitor in an hps ballast, This ignitor will decrease the life of the mh bulb, So it will work, Howver it will shorten the life of the bulb.

A switchable ballast, (RUNS BOTH MH AND HPS) is just an hps ballast with an on off switch for the ignitor, So when ya flip the switch to mh you really just shutting off the ignitor. This allows you to run an mh bulb safely on a hps ballast without decreasing the life of the bulb.

Again a SWITCHABLE BALLAST is just an HPS with a on off switch for the ignitor. When its set on mh the ignitor is doesnt get powered, When its on the hps side it does.

Also switchable ballast shouldnt even cost anymore maybe 10$ but thats all, I just purchased 4 1k switchables a few months back same 224$ as the normal 1k hps ballast!
Click to expand...
- Blazeoneup

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=105659&highlight=mh+hps+ballast

I went to my hydro store last night because my POS Grow Bright 1000W MH conversion bulb went bad and I needed a good bulb to veg under before I leave town for a few days. They were out of 1000W MH conversion bulbs but the guy told me I could use a 1000W Hortilux Blue MH bulb and my HPS ballast would have no problem firing the bulb. I was told the only difference in the ballasts is the MH ballast has no igniter. Since I was in a bind and had no other option I went ahead and spent the $180 on the bulb and took it home to fire it up.

Amazingly enough I turned on the light and fired up just fine, better than the shitty Grow Bright bulb I had before that was designed to work in a HPS ballast. My question is are there any negative effects to running a 1000W MH bulb in a HPS ballast? They guy at the store said it shouldn't be a problem for either the bulb or ballast. I'm not to worried about it because the ballast is new and they offer a 1 year, no questions asked replacement policy so if it does fry the ballast, I get another for free.

If anyone has any input on the safety factor of this setup please chime in.
Click to expand...
- texasluv

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=78742&highlight=mh+hps+ballast

Actually a HPS ballast will fire a MH bulb safely...the problem is that the ignitor will shorten the life of the MH bulb since it's not designed for that surge of electricity. If you're using it 24/7 this becomes a mute point since it's only started 1 time.
Click to expand...
- MTF-Sandman

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=59178&highlight=mh+hps+ballast
 
J

jnuggs

Well-Known Member
I thought you could run a 430w bulb on a 400w ballast, but not a 400w bulb on a 430w ballast? That way you less voltage running to a bigger bulb. Just wouldn't get all your lumens.
I suppose I could be wrong though! Good luck! Peace.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top