*WANTED* UVB Growers with experience

Ok I have heard all the hype about UVB lights and I'm convinced! I only have about 10 days left till harvest and am wondering if it would be worth the effort at this point? There is so much information about this floating around but no definative answers to questions such as:

Best most efficient units to use and where to get them? Walmart, home depot, pet shops?

CFL vs Bulb type - whats the dif? expected penetration distance?

Is heat going to be an issue?
- What distance to keep from plants?

How long and when is it best to turn these lights on?
- Should I leave them on for 12 hrs?

I plan on grabbing one of these as soon as I can get these questions answered.

Thanks in advance for reading and contributing.

C

The issue with UVB supplementation is that we are talking about a VERY narrow bandwidth of light. Most UV is either UVA or UVC, the former being useless and the latter harming EVERYTHING in its path. Since UV is so high energy it's difficult to create using traditional lighting methods, at least with any real control.
Most growers will use a cheap metal halide bulb to add UVB light, cheap because you don't want the glass envelope to absorb too much UV, like higher end bulbs do. However, this will be costly both in terms of space, electricity and excess heat. Really an option if you have the cash and space.
The alternative is UVB fluorescents for reptiles, either CFL or linear. The issue with these is that the UV does not penetrate far into the canopy and they are quite costly. Around $40 for one ZooMed ReptiSun 10.0 and we are not talking about large bulbs here... my setup for 6 plants would have cost hundreds to outfit with them.
Some people claim that black lights will do the trick... they don't emit UVB, only UVA. Some people swear by them but being fluorescents, they still are not the best choice for many grows. But I encourage you to try, they aren't that expensive (get the linear bulbs at Home Depot by Phillips, not crappy, pre-packaged ones for stoner-pads) and it couldn't hurt.
UVB supplementation is a great idea and if you have the resources then congrats... for most people however, it simply is not worth it.

... especially 10 days before harvest!

Thanks for the reply NortherLights, I appreciate your comments.

So if im getting what your saying correctly, would I be better of at this point to just switch from the 400w hortilux eye hps to the crappy MH conversion bulb?

Since MH bulbs emit less photosynthetically available light (high Reds or high blues) than HPS, you may be better just keeping them going with what your doing. Some people say switching to the metal halide for the last week or two is helpful but I can't confirm that one directly. The one grow I did that had no other to compare it to since I changed my methods so drastically between grows. No reason you shouldn't try though, it's not going to hurt and worse case scenario, you delay harvest by a few days at most.

either way, let me know how it turns out....

Thanks again, I posted a pic into the gallery. Thats with 10 days still to go, gave it a chop a few days ago and tasted it today. Not even at 100% and 10x better than the crap I can find around here.

If you want to go with a reptile light for a little bit of trichome production use a florescent reptile light 10%UVB . Get a long bulb.48" is the best. they run about 40watts i think.
If you want to make sure that your trichomes get filled up with thc then use a much stronger suntan light,or a psoriasis treatment bulb. Use your uvb light for only 5 hours in the middle of the light cylce. Try to place the bulb moderately close without burning it. UVB does not travel far in those reptile lights, so if you do decide to swing that way don't expect a large sq. foot area to be affected.

Great already grabbed a reptile florescent at 2' - my box cant handle a 4' till next grow. So your basically saying that the reptile light will fill the trics with thc, then why would I need the suntan or psoriasis bulbs? How long would I use those for?

Thanks for your feedback.

C

munch box said:

If you want to go with a reptile light for a little bit of trichome production use a florescent reptile light 10%UVB . Get a long bulb.48" is the best. they run about 40watts i think.
If you want to make sure that your trichomes get filled up with thc then use a much stronger suntan light,or a psoriasis treatment bulb. Use your uvb light for only 5 hours in the middle of the light cylce. Try to place the bulb moderately close without burning it. UVB does not travel far in those reptile lights, so if you do decide to swing that way don't expect a large sq. foot area to be affected.

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santan booth lights will work, they produce much more consistent UVB in larger quantities. Reptile lights MIGHT work. Not nearly as well as suntan booth lights. suntanbooth lights work the best from what people have been saying. I've been looking into suntanbooth lights, and they seem to be the best way to go. Reptile lights do NOT work as well as suntan booth lights. I would NOT recommend using reptile lights or lizzard lights if you are expecting large, big results. Use suntan booth lights work MUCH MUCH BETTER than reptile lights, ecspecially small reptile lights. Do not buy a short reptile light. suntan booth lights wotk the best. if you buy a reptile light make sure it is 10% UVB and a LONG 48" floro. 2 footer will NOT work very well, and might not work at all. USE A SUNTAN BOOTH LIGHT!!!!!!!!!! Reptile lights do not work very well. tanning bulbs work the best.tanning bulbs work the best. tanning bulbs work the best. tanning bulbs work the best. I tried to explain it as clearly as i can for you. any more questions your going to have to pm me, i won't be posting anymore. too many haters.and hater mods.

i just got me a used tanning salon bed. I plan on taking it apart and mounting the lights to the side of my walls. Any suggestions?

Hey, nice thread , couldn't resist to share a little info I read earlier.
if heat isn't an issue tanning lights are good or a higher watt reptile spot.
BUT if you need max UVB for the least heat the Mega-Ray EB 60 watt Flood UVB Lamp is a nice choice.Or Zoo Med has a power sun 60. The reason I only
say 60w is they are the least heat if I read correct. Maybe you'd have to put the ballast out of the room, but at 20" you get over 10 times the UVB as
the floro tube. They are 75 bux. Maybe if I throw 2 up in my little room on a side I can see if there is a difference. cheers all.

So suntan bulbs work the best?

hey thats cool....I'd be interested in your setup and results. thanks for posting....and give us updates if you can? thanks again!

wafflehouselover said:

i just got me a used tanning salon bed. I plan on taking it apart and mounting the lights to the side of my walls. Any suggestions?

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I found this UVB light from a lead by human8.Normally I would say don't go with the MV bulb it doesn't put out any more UVB than a floro. I try to tell skunk his 300w light is not the way to go but he just won't listen. Now listen carefully...... The light bulb human8 is talking about is the "flood" light. I found a way better one.The "ZOO" edition light that can ONLY be sold to zookeepers and authorized care takers of animals and shit. ITS GOING TO BE TOUPH TO BUY.Very strong lamp looks like it would kick ass in the grow room. Thier website advertises this 60 watt lamp pushes out up to 300 microwatts per cm2. Mega-Ray Zoo Externally Ballasted EB 60 watt Lamp Kit - 120 volt - ReptileUV way more than the pissy "flood" lamp, which by the way gives off (50 uv/cm2)UVB . Same as the floro 36" 30watt reptisun 10.0 i picked up for a dub.Bottom line...If you can find a way to get the ZOO edition then get it. Thanks for the lead human8.

munch box said:

I found this UVB light from a lead by human8.Normally I would say don't go with the MV bulb it doesn't put out any more UVB than a floro. I try to tell skunk his 300w light is weak but he just won't listen. Now listen carefully...... The light bulb human8 is talking about is the "flood" light. I found a way better one.The "ZOO" edition light that can ONLY be sold to zookeepers and authorized care takers of animals and shit. ITS GOING TO BE TOUPH TO BUY.Very strong lamp looks like it would kick ass in the grow room. Thier website advertises this 60 watt lamp pushes out up to 300 microwatts per cm2. Mega-Ray Zoo Externally Ballasted EB 60 watt Lamp Kit - 120 volt - ReptileUV way more than the pissy "flood" lamp, which by the way gives off (50 uv/cm2)UVB . Same as the floro 36" 30watt reptisun 10.0 i picked up for a dub.Bottom line...If you can find a way to get the ZOO edition then get it. Thanks for the lead human8.

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Looks great, are you using this? What kind of heat does it produce?

I would like to buy it. Unfortunatly I'm not a zooligist. Has anybody had any success ordering that bulb from canada before?

Im goint to go ahead and order it now.

100th post!

Bah you have to call them to verify your a zooligist? Wtf is that.

the bulb is too strong for hobbyists. maybe if you try and just make it sound like you know wtf your talking about you could get lucky. who knows. chances are they just want your money.good luck. let me know how it goes.