Hey maphyr.. the pics look like they are coming along great.. got a couple more questions about the cmh 400. How far would you keep it away from the plants
. And with 40,000 linens you think 4 smaller scroged plants would do good? Also does that run with a magnetic ballast. I don't know much about setting it up.. would the ballast have to be for a hps bulb or mh because there's a difference there right? The last thing I need is to spend all that money and it doesn't set up correct. If you can help me out with all those questions lol thank you.. and what's the. Deal with the Retro white also..?
How far would it keep it away from the plants? I think that depends on the grow area. I've seen grows where the bulb is 6inches above the canopy but the bulb was air cooled with a fan. You'll just have to see what works for you, closer the better but you don't want to burn so find the optimal position.
I'm not sure if 1 bulb will be enough for 4 plants, I'd personally run at least 2 bulbs if I was doing 4 plants. I'd research more into that though. I know lumens don't mean a fuck to a plant, lumens is what humans see. The spectrum is what the plant cares about and that's why these MasterColor bulbs from Phillips are so popular, their spectrum is very good.
CMH runs on magnetic ballast. I think there's a few digital ballast out there now that will run CMH, but they are expensive. I'll just get a 400w magnetic ballast for $120, although I'd prefer a digital ballast due to it being quieter, cooler, more energy efficient and I've read digital ballast can prolong bulb life and quality of the light. If you find a cheap digital ballast that runs CMH, let me know! I'm buying my ballast here in a couple days.
Yes, you want a HPS magnetic ballast or a switchable one will work also, just make sure it's on HPS setting.
Retro white has something to do with Phillips making these bulbs to replace old warehouse lights and needed the same socket as the old bulbs to replace. I think the new all-starts have a different socket? Not really sure about all that.
I got my 400w MasterColor today and it has a February 26th manufacture date on it. So it seems they haven't hit the March stockpile yet? Probably quite a few of those bulbs left.
Good luck, DK.