not another tent question!

hey hemps and hempettes i am currently on my second go-a-round with cfls and like most noobs i went out and wasted money on shitty lights. Dont get me wrong its some real quality ganja but im not getting those dense fat nugs/yield that i so desire. Ive been looking at HTG supply because ive read good things on RIU about them and also greners (sp).but htg seems a bit more organized to me. anywho i was originaly going to buy a 250 hps, i then realized a 400 watt is only 2$ more!!! my only concern atm is heat. im looking at the 400 watt hps bubbleboy kit.(http://www.htgsupply.com/Product-HTG-400w-Small-Bubble-Boy-Tent-kit.asp) i have restricted height in the basement at 72inches or 6 ft....

below are the tent sizes options, the 400 39x39x79 will NOT fit in my basement,sad day, though i plan on moving in the nxt 2 years so hopefully height wont be a problem in the future

250bubble 23x36x63 tent size

400bubble 22x36x63 and 39x39x79 tent sizes

will the 400 watt kit be cool enough in a 22x36x63 tent? im just torn between the choice of 250 and 400 watt especially if its only a 2$ difference!!!
i mean common sense tells me yeah itll be fine,its a kit thats why they sell it. i just have never had an hid before and i dont know how hot they really do get. will the 2 fans in the kit it comes with be sufficient? or should i order an extra fan or 2? if so what kind?

other questions/concerns of mine start when u start to consider add ons to the kit, what would u pick?

reflector
[TABLE="width: 260"]
[TR]
[TD]4 Sided Horizontal Reflector ($0.00) COMES WITH KIT OR SUBSTITUE with[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]MaxWing Reflector ($35.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]Euro Reflector ($59.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]Mini Sunsoaker Reflector ($63.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]SuperNova Reflector ($63.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]QuadRay Reflector ($63.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]CoolTube 6 Reflector ($70.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]EasyCool 6 Reflector ($80.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

bulbs..... are htg bulbs reliable or should i upgrade? which conversion bulb is the better choice?[TABLE="width: 260"]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]HTG Supply 400w HPS Bulb Comes with kit or upgrade ($0.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]GrowBright 400w HPS Lamp ($4.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]AgroMax 400w HPS Lamp ($36.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]Hortilux 400w HPS Lamp ($56.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]GrowBright 400 watt MH Conversion Bulb ($8.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]AgroMax 400 Watt MH Conversion Bulb ($27.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]SunMaster 400w MH Conversion Neutral Deluxe ($17.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
flange/coupler i believe flanges are the metal ''holders'' for fans, am i right? wtf are couplers? are couplers the piece for ventilation?


[TABLE="width: 260"]
[TR]
[TD]None ($0.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]4 Inch Cooling Flange ($5.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]6 Inch Flange and Coupler ($8.50)[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]


[TABLE="width: 260"]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
bubble boy
Bubble Boy:
[TABLE="width: 260"]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]2 - Single Shot Bubble Boy ($0.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]2 - Bubble Boy 4 Banger ($10.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
1 plant set up for free? or a four plant set up for 10$ extra? basically i want to know is it a reliable dwc system or is it not worth the upgrade, ive yet to try out hydroponics and i cant wait to get the sysytem and try it out

Reflector Hanger: which would u pick[TABLE="width: 260"]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]1/8" Rope Ratchets 75lb Max ($0.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]HiLo Reflector Hangers ($1.00)[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="width: 22"][/TD]
[TD="width: 168"]Steel Wheel Reflector Hangers ($2.00)




Are there any other things that i should consider getting or not getting?

any advice/tips on hid lights i should know before i get my first hps?

ive heard bulbs are the most common thing to break. Why? any advice or tips on installing/switching bulbs. i only know of arch eye and dont look at the light if ur bulb breaks.

any tips on hps in general, i dont know a lot so i plan on reading manuals to learn how to properly turn on/off the ballast.

well guys thanks for reading and to all of your responses in advance,happy growing

[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

I'd buy a secret jardin dark room ii, I have a dr150 and its great. Who knows if that htg tent is light proof I bet not. http://www.greners.com/i/grow-tents.html

dont be shy,Any one? how big is your tent and light? how many fans do you use?

hey i use a 5x5x6 tent with a 1000 wtt hps and a 3x3 grow tray. it holds 25 5 inch pots with clones in them. i have a 6 inch turbo fan for exhaust and a 6 inch inline fan for fresh air. total i $675.00 in hardware and then the seed game begins. i have spent more money in seeds than in grow stuff. so dont be a seed hore.lol but for my first harvest saved me over $1000.00 in smoke that i would have bought from someone else that is doing what i am doing.so be that it may i sent a lil to get a lot..so just look at the investment to the spending on smoke.. actually just sit with a calculator and add up just one month of what you would buy and then just think of how much u can put to your grow room.. the tents are great but do not have any insulation so keep that in mind when placing it and the winter months so recirculate your hot air for heat.. a lot of tent tips being learned every day. good luck and KEEP ON GROWIN...

Heat is always an issue with HID's so I would recommend getting the cool tube reflector. You can get some flexi duct and hook up one of the supplied fans to cool only the light. So the light cooling would be on it's own closed system, meaning air from outside sucked in and blown through the cool tube and right back out of the tent. Then you can use the other fan supplied for an intake. I would then get another fan and filter setup. I would NOT recommend a duct fan for pulling air through a filter. It does NOT work well. So a blower style or inline impeller syle fan is best for pulling air through a filter. DWC is a pretty simple but effective setup and for only $10 bucks I would upgrade to the four banger. As far as the light bulb I would look at the options available in detail and find out which one has more lumen output and more lifetime, and make a decision if you want to spend the extra money. More Lumens = More Yeild. As for flanges and couplings I would just get what comes with then find out what you need and make a trip to the local hardware store.

im currently running a 400w cooltube in my Lighthouse brand tent (3 w x 1.7 d x 5 H) <----ducting---6in can fan----cooltube. Temps are beautiful, 76-80 lights on 66 lights off. I am in the NE portion of the US and the outside temps are getting lower and lower.

But to answer, your question, I'd DEFINITELY go with a cool tube if you're going over 250w.

I bought my first hid light system from htg years ago.
400watt lumitek. I used it in a secret jardin dr80.
I think they discontinued that tent, but I recommend a wider
Tent. And don't forget a 6" fan. I'd go with 6" at least because
If you decide you like growing, you will surely buy a bigger
Light in the future. I also have a cooltube for the 400,
But if I could go back, I'd have bought Something like the
Big Kahuna.
Just make sure your tent exhaust holes will fit the
the fan and ducting you choose. You can use reducers,
But it's not as efficient. IMO.

thanks for the feed back guys!! i believe ill be getting the easycool6'' reflector. doesn't the glass make you lose a few lumens? im thinking of individually purchasing them and maybe a jardin tent sepperatly since its all the rave. the ten htg has is Agromax. have any of you used this company before? are the agromax tents light proof? they claim to be so im not sure if i wanna go else where and purchase a seperate tent. the ballast is Agromax as well so if any of you have used it in the past lemme know how it worked out for ya so i dont waste more money... im gonna do the math and see what sounds right... i dont mind spending some extra money because id rather have what i need...i plan on upgrading later once i move but i figure start small and go bigger....well im off to search for reviews thanks with all your help so far!!!!

i just checked out greners....none and i mean none of their tents will fit in my basement..well the smallll ones will...so hopefully this htg agromax is and if not.....hopefully some duct tape can fix it

well it seems as if the htg supplies are a okay......what do you guys reccomend for hanging your reflectors

well guys it looks as if im getting the tent''best choices hydro hut''(48x24x60) and fans from amazon are ''hydrofarm'' fans any good?ill be getting hydrofarms 400cfm fan and ill be getting the ballast,reflector and bulbs from htg i decided on upgrading to the mh/hps 400 ballast.wish me luck,gonna order this week and get ducting from a local hardware store

I use a GL 80 with 2 250 watt HTG grow lights one digital and one magnetic with the stock reflectors. I vent it with an HTG 4" fan pulling thru a can carbon filter.

The problem with these repeated tent questions is that they almost always concern heat. Yet, not one person mentioned a dimmable ballast.

Buy a 600 watt dimmable ballast and a cheap 600 hps bulb. Or a 400 watt dimmable ballast and a cheap 400 watt bulb. Likely, you'll be able to turn it up in the winter and turn it down in the summer.

It's the best choice.

hockeyrichard said:

well guys it looks as if im getting the tent''best choices hydro hut''(48x24x60) and fans from amazon are ''hydrofarm'' fans any good?ill be getting hydrofarms 400cfm fan and ill be getting the ballast,reflector and bulbs from htg i decided on upgrading to the mh/hps 400 ballast.wish me luck,gonna order this week and get ducting from a local hardware store

Click to expand...

Good choices. Hydrofarm Makes good stuff.
I don't know what a Dimable ballast is, but maybe
Look at one. Good luck man. Don't forget ph meter,
And ppm meter. : )

I do have a ph meter from Hannah,however I'm short on funds atm so I will not be getting a dwc system afterall because I wanna be able to afford a nice ec/ ppm meter....my 3gallon smart pots are working out quite nice for the time being,I figure i can expand later

Do they make magnetic and digital? Where could I find a reliable dimmable? I think I should be ok using a cooltube,if I need an extra fan I can get one......

http://www.ebay.com/itm/160711593756?hlp=false&var= for a combo

Lumatek, galaxy, phantom, and quantum are all good ballast makers. They are all digital and most of them are dimmable. https://www.google.com/shopping/pro...&sa=X&ei=oISFUMYc8LzRAZDjgZAP&ved=0CEwQ8wIwAA

Yah said:

I'd buy a secret jardin dark room ii, I have a dr150 and its great. Who knows if that htg tent is light proof I bet not. http://www.greners.com/i/grow-tents.html

Click to expand...

I have the agromax tent from HTG 39x39 79 its a good tent strong material I love the duct holes and the 3 doors to get access to the interior strong poles BUT NOT light proof the zippers let light leak inand the metal corners will likley be bent making your entire tent strucure be a bit askew I actually had to return the first one because the corners were so crooked

its ok but if I were tent shopping today id look at secret jardin or gorilla tents

Sencha said:

The problem with these repeated tent questions is that they almost always concern heat. Yet, not one person mentioned a dimmable ballast.

Buy a 600 watt dimmable ballast and a cheap 600 hps bulb. Or a 400 watt dimmable ballast and a cheap 400 watt bulb. Likely, you'll be able to turn it up in the winter and turn it down in the summer.

It's the best choice.

Click to expand...

Thats what I do

hockeyrichard said:

thanks for the feed back guys!! i believe ill be getting the easycool6'' reflector. doesn't the glass make you lose a few lumens? im thinking of individually purchasing them and maybe a jardin tent sepperatly since its all the rave. the ten htg has is Agromax. have any of you used this company before? are the agromax tents light proof? they claim to be so im not sure if i wanna go else where and purchase a seperate tent. the ballast is Agromax as well so if any of you have used it in the past lemme know how it worked out for ya so i dont waste more money... im gonna do the math and see what sounds right... i dont mind spending some extra money because id rather have what i need...i plan on upgrading later once i move but i figure start small and go bigger....well im off to search for reviews thanks with all your help so far!!!!

Click to expand...

If youre gonna go cooltube get one with the reflective material on the inside of the tube it will help keep the heat some and then attach wings to control spread zone