200w cfl. Thinking of switching to 150w hps

AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
Thinking of switching from:
200w cfl - 10,000 lumen (50 lumen/watt) to
150w hps (199w actual power used) - 16,000 lumen (80 lumen/watt).
40% increase.

If temps run too high, I can always switch back. (low-71f, high-81f)
Cost is $60.
 
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turbobuzz

turbobuzz

Well-Known Member
Go for it. Let us know how the temps go. I've thought about trying the same thing, but afraid of the heat for my situation
 
AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
turbobuzz said:
Go for it. Let us know how the temps go. I've thought about trying the same thing, but afraid of the heat for my situation
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I gonna do it. Get it today, and install it tonight right before "lights on". Will update temps.

Crap. They had to order it. Won't get it until Monday.
 
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RedWhiteBlueGreen

RedWhiteBlueGreen

Well-Known Member
That does sound interesting dude - would love to know how it ends up performing. Certainly, 40% lumen increase for no extra power cost sounds damn cool!
 
AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
Yeah, I
bamboofarmer said:
I'm considering doing that too. 60 bucks sounds cheap. I thought it would cost more.
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Saw the same one online for $55, but wanted to pick it up tonight though. Unfortunately, the hydro shop had to order it.out of stock. They said they had one used for $25! But it sold yesterday.
 
dluck

dluck

Well-Known Member
There's a grower on here that did that same thing...got a Sun System 150 watt HPS for $60 on the zon...only thing is it has a built in ballast .
 
AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
dluck said:
There's a grower on here that did that same thing...got a Sun System 150 watt HPS for $60 on the zon...only thing is it has a built in ballast .
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Is that bad? What's the downside to a built-in ballast? Reviews from growers on Amazon are mostly good. I'm assuming the ballast is elec and not mag?

That is the light I was looking at (Sun System), from my local hydro shop.
 
dluck

dluck

Well-Known Member
AfgooCBD said:
Is that bad? What's the downside to a built-in ballast? Reviews from growers on Amazon are mostly good. I'm assuming the ballast is elec and not mag?

That is the light I was looking at (Sun System), from my local hydro shop.
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Ballasts produce heat and most lighting systems have the ballast separate from the bulb base and usually outside of their grow space but with proper ventilation you should be fine .
 
TheYokel

TheYokel

Well-Known Member
AfgooCBD said:
Is that bad? What's the downside to a built-in ballast? Reviews from growers on Amazon are mostly good. I'm assuming the ballast is elec and not mag?

That is the light I was looking at (Sun System), from my local hydro shop.
Click to expand...
I've had mixed results with a 150w back in college.

I tried the small canopy thing and it just didn't produce as much as the CFLs were because of light distribution. You haven't said how big of an area you are lighting, so I'm not sure if that would be an issue.

I also tried a vert grow where I remote ballasted the bulb and hung it open air in my closet (dangerous as shit, imo). I hung the bulb vertically down in the middle of my closet and had 8 small plants growing in a circle around the bulb. I had to rotate the plants once or twice a day, but I got over double the harvest verting the 150w.
 
AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
TheYokel said:
I've had mixed results with a 150w back in college.

I tried the small canopy thing and it just didn't produce as much as the CFLs were because of light distribution. You haven't said how big of an area you are lighting, so I'm not sure if that would be an issue.

I also tried a vert grow where I remote ballasted the bulb and hung it open air in my closet (dangerous as shit, imo). I hung the bulb vertically down in the middle of my closet and had 8 small plants growing in a circle around the bulb. I had to rotate the plants once or twice a day, but I got over double the harvest verting the 150w.
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2' x 2'. Starting week 6. Is switching lights from cfl to hps a good call right in the middle of this grow? Or should I just let it finish with the cfl? (I'm thinking probably 11-12 weeks total, maybe). hps might help the center section to really fatten up.
 

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dluck

dluck

Well-Known Member
AfgooCBD said:
2' x 2'. Starting week 6. Is switching lights from cfl to hps a good call right in the middle of this grow? Or should I just let it finish with the cfl? (I'm thinking probably 11-12 weeks total, maybe). hps might help the center section to really fatten up.
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It would be a great call...do it...you'll like the results !
 
AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
RedWhiteBlueGreen said:
That does sound interesting dude - would love to know how it ends up performing. Certainly, 40% lumen increase for no extra power cost sounds damn cool!
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Although one guy on an Amazon review said this: "This light is supposed to be 150 watts, correct? Yes and no. Well it draws 3.3 amps continuously and given the equation watts=ampsXvolts, watts=3.3X120 so watts is actually around 390. In other words, VA=390 which is what most power companies will charge you for while your product will be consuming 150 "watts" which is true. You are paying the same as you would be running a 400 watt electronic ballast."

Don't know if the above quote is accurate, as another review said: "I compared this to my 150w hps Hydrofarm fixture even swapped bulbs... The sun 150w hps draws significantly less amperage than the hydro farm. Sunsystem = 1.5a or less after 60 min running. Hydrofarm = 3.8a or MORE after 60 min running"

And: "Doesn't get too hot, puts out a fair amount of light, consumes less energy than I thought it would and my plants are responding well to it."
 
AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
Didn't want to spend that much. Maybe after running the 150w and checking temps (winter/summer), that 250w would be a nice upgrade, if the temps will be ok. But that would be nice to dial it in.
 
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AfgooCBD

AfgooCBD

Well-Known Member
Temps are the same with the hps, about 10 deg warmer than the room. Currently 70f (morning) in the cab, the hottest being 78f (probably the first hour it was on) . Good times!
 
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