150w HPS Club: Inspirational Resource

would it be more efficient to have my set up the way it is cooltube/floodlight or should i make a hood like in faq and just have the heat vented out though one of the tubes i have? im open to any suggestions

The most efficient way to use these low wat hpses is to mount them vertically, i dont know if if itd be more efficient, maby if you found one with a bigger opening than youve got on your hood

xxbxrxextxtxx said:

heres some pics of my box 150 watt flood light that i made into a cool tube. a couple clfs and the small box is my veg chamber

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Looks like you should do a little work getting those plants all as close to the light as possible. Raise the plants or drop the light lower. If that cooltube it working right you should be able to get the light within an inch or two of the tops of the plants. If the cooltube is blocking too much light and making the light footprint too small maybe you could fix that.

Oh and xxx, remember, glass filters out 10% of the lumens, so taking it out all together is the best bet. Also a cool tube should alow your light to spread out to more area as there isnt walls on it like your hood there.

Frosty- here we go HPS 160w Son Agro Universal - Hydroponic Equipment . com

well i've been reading for a while now and started my own 150w grow cabinet and it's coming along nicely

i'll fill in some details on my story i started this cabinet as a results of coming home to find 4 little seedlings growing in my bedroom window. turns out my wife had found some seeds in our bag and decided why not plant them. this surprised me since i thought she was mega against growing (it would end her career if she was charged with anything) well since she started it i started researching and found this site, after reading many others and learned alot. the faq was a huge discovery for me and answered all the questions i still had (mostly due to misinformation from other sites).

anyway heres is my setup:

12x24x60" candadian tire special for 38.99 (hehe i bought three )
security light hps 150W (removed all the hardware except bare minimum including rewiring out light sensor and creating a remote ballast)
couple of 12Vfans (that i had laying around)

and I'll post some pictures later

Hi all-

First post, did a lot of reading and have a few questions. My buddy and I built a nice grow box that has inside dimensions of 3'1 high, 1'6 deep and 2'4 wide. It contains 1" reflective insulation and weather tight with a door a fan that brings in fresh air and an exhaust that takes air out into a HVAC duct with fabric softner to help dull the smell. I will be using the Aerogarden Deluxe. I am still to get extra lights, and an air pump with airstone. This will be my first grow and I want to do this right. My first question is Lights

I have a 160W Wonderlite is a wide spectrum light designed for orchids and other tropical plants that tend to perform poorly in standard home or office environments, Its unique spectral distribution has an excellent balance of blue, red and far-red wavelengths in the visible light spectrum (440, 660 and 740 nanometers)
---Is this a good light to use?
---And will I need other lights?

If I do need another light, I would prefer to get 2 of the same to put on both sides. I dont want to use lights that produce heat to the point of burning the plants...
---Is it better to have a HPS bulb or a full spectrum CFL?
---At which wattage would I need?
---Which are good brads to pick up at a home depot or so.

I have plenty other question but I am tkaing this one step at a time thanks

MisterMicro said:

Yeah, they make 160w son agro bulbs.. i only found one source, i forget the exact site, but you could just google it, and i know its on the fist page.

Hey those beans are popin like mad!Dude im so fucking stoked. So far two ECSD have poped out there little white rockets, two bats, and one ECSD X SD! Dude aesome, fucking aesome. There loving the heat i think, it hasnt even been 24 hours. I was getting sick worring about the possibility they got nuked durring shipping, such a fucking releif.

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Cool...I told ya to trust me
The ECSD's 'can' take upto a wk to pop, so a lil patience is best exercised with those... or maybe try scuffing them.

If you get males from the bat, use it for pollen, you wont regret it bro.

looks like we got one over on shipping dudes again...

Did you already buy the aerogarden? They're a waste of money and you can do better just growing in soil to start with a few cheap cfl's or one small HID.
Look at this grow for the best example of high yielding small garden in a box:
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=69713

drevil1981 said:

I have a 160W Wonderlite is a wide spectrum light designed for orchids and other tropical plants that tend to perform poorly in standard home or office environments, Its unique spectral distribution has an excellent balance of blue, red and far-red wavelengths in the visible light spectrum (440, 660 and 740 nanometers)
---Is this a good light to use?
Yes it'll work, but i have no experience with those lights so cant say whether they'd be worth the 49 bucks or if it might be worth heading to wally world or Hdpot and buying a bunch of 26w or higher CFLs.
---And will I need other lights?
Dont know for sure, but i'm gonna say yes..but those look like they'd only be of use to one plant, atleast with a 150w HPS you can get around 6 plants of varying age, but the way i do things does require me to have continual harvest.so i'll be flowering 2, vegging/maturing 2 and have 2 seedlings starting out, and each is raised to a suitable distance from the light

If I do need another light, I would prefer to get 2 of the same to put on both sides. I dont want to use lights that produce heat to the point of burning the plants...
---Is it better to have a HPS bulb or a full spectrum CFL?
HPS is reasonably low buck, easy to install, requires minimal wiring,achieves good yields...CFLs run cool so you will have virtually no heat hassles,and they perform well if you have enough of them at the correct kelvin ratings of 6500k for veg, 2700k for flowering..
1 plant will need around 6+ CFLs for ample growth, and to achieve an average yield....Its your call..
More CFLs=increased likelihood of good yield.
I would go HPS with a couple of daylight 6500k bulbs to even out the color closer to natural daylight.. thats how i do it. see previous pix..

---At which wattage would I need?
Min 150w HPS - some people grow using the 70w, but they are only of use for tiny micro grows.
CFLs min 26w - aim for 45w or 65w - or alternatively use the CFL type 2/4pin plc floodlights,theyre cheap and available in numerous wattages, and i can speak from experience they work
---Which are good brads to pick up at a home depot or so.


I have plenty other question but I am tkaing this one step at a time thanks

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Cool, i wish you good luck and hours of fun with your girls..
also, Try using the Faq section, there's a hell of a lot of information there, and descriptions of most lights etc..





Isnt this the 150w hps club thread?

OOOoooh Jack's shown up....
Must mean the hijack is over.. lol.




Go steady

cool bro, thanx for the info.

Do the HPS 150W get hot?
Do I hold this light within an inch of them or will it cause to burn? I am hoping to install this at the 3' mark on the top of the box. Or will this cause my plant to grow towards it faster, I want to maintain the heights on these bad boys
Will I need a ceramic ballast for the HPS light?

About the CFL's should I be gunning for the 2700K instead of the 6500K since flowering is more important.

I see my light set up as 2 CFL's at 70 or 100W, one of each side. The aeroGarden deluxe light hood (3) and an HPS light, either above the aero garden hood or the back of the unit witht he wonderlite in front.

You think I might need more CFL's or 2 HPS to balance the lighting evenly?

Thanks again man

drevil1981 said:

Do the HPS 150W get hot?
Yes but not very hot...My temps in the pc hideaway are always around 75.

Do I hold this light within an inch of them or will it cause to burn?
No, ONLY CFLs can be that close, with HPS you will need to be atleast 1ft - 1.5ft away starting out, then move the plants closer as soon as you see the slightest bit of excessive stretching.
A couple of DAYLIGHT CFLs will help reduce stretch in there too.


I am hoping to install this at the 3' mark on the top of the box. Or will this cause my plant to grow towards it faster, I want to maintain the heights on these bad boys
Will I need a ceramic ballast for the HPS light?
you can install it fixed at 3', but you'll need to use objects to put the plants whilst small, closer to the light, or you'll get 3' long seedlings, that will snap under ther own weight, and leave you no room for growth during flowering...REMEMBER- most strains can double or even triple their height during flowering phase..
You will need a ceramic E40 style bulb holder and a ballast rated 150w..you can buy very cheap HPS 150w security lights, that will contain eveything you need, e40 + ballast etc.
Just break it down and use the internals.

About the CFL's should I be gunning for the instead of the 6500K since flowering is more important.
Use 6500k daylight bulbs for vegging, then swap to 2700k warm white for flowering...When i grew using CFLS i used to mix colors...ie 5x 6500k + 3 2700k for veg, then 7x 2700k + 2 6500k for flowering..
Mixing the bulbs gives a more natural light with the full spectral range for the plants to use.

I see my light set up as 2 CFL's at 70 or 100W, one of each side. The aeroGarden deluxe light hood (3) and an HPS light, either above the aero garden hood or the back of the unit witht he wonderlite in front.

You think I might need more CFL's or 2 HPS to balance the lighting evenly?
Its not worth running 2 HPS 150w lights, that would create a fair amount of heat, also, 2x 150hps will not create an even color, as both HPS emit the same color spectrum light 2000-2700k that is suited for flowering, altho a HPS bulb will veg a plant reasonably well, you would get larger plants during vegging if you used a MH light,as they are more suited to vegging due to their very blue color rating 6500k.......
Thats why we mix in CFLs rated 6500k,so there is 'some' blue light available for the plants to use during the veg cycle... if you want more lumens you should just buy a 250-400w
HPS...
We grow with 150w, as they suit our mini grow spaces, dont generate too much heat,work effectively,are cheap as f@ck to buy,and its nice to show some of those people out there that think 150's are a waste of time, that we can get good yield and generally great healthy plants.
Thanks again man

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No problem hope thats helped a lil.

i only have 1 plant and im useing a 150hps and 2 42watt cfls for her. the cfls and hanging beside her and hps over her of course and she seems to like it i hope i get a decent yeild off of her

lets see some pix hood...

frostythesnowthug said:

lets see some pix hood...

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ill see what i can do. its kinda hard to get good pics of the setup with the lights on because its bright and it looks like just a yellow picture lol. but ill try

so here is my ghetto setup. lol i know she porally can be a little bit closer to the hps and im working on that im gotta find something to raise the pot up i have some bricks outisde ill clean them off and use them but here it is lol first grow nothing special if i like it im gonna upgrade after this.

sorry to chime in late here but ive read a couple posts about bases for HID lights. Just wanted to clear up that you NEED a pulse rated socket for an HID lamp. The ceramic ones you can buy at hardware stores are usually not pulse rated. Pulse rated means that the socket can handle the thousands of volts it takes to ignite the lamp. and ive never seen a mogul (meaning large) based socket in a hardware store. only medium without pulse rating.

you may need to go to an electrical supplier to get the sockets (hydro stores have them too)

Even lamps as small as 150W require a pulse rated socket. the socket will be stamped with a "5Kv pulse rated' marking on the bottom or side. look for this stamp. cheap sockets work but you run an unnecessary risk. Electrical shorts at these kinds of voltages are lethal and can start fires.HID lights kill people. its not a myth. they have also caused fires that burn commercial/residential structures to the ground. this shit actually happens; and 99% of the time its because of human error regarding installation.

HOOD 420

nice. its simple, very neat, and effective. looks like my fist closet grow! i had the same white wire shelf in my house in college. lol.

yer plant look healthy and happy too!

khujo said:

HOOD 420

nice. its simple, very neat, and effective. looks like my fist closet grow! i had the same white wire shelf in my house in college. lol.

yer plant look healthy and happy too!

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hehe thanks man i like to keep things simple as it always seems to work better that way and yeah the plant seems to like the setup so im not gonna change anything maybe just put her a bit closer to the hps

go ahead and drop that hps down to about 6 inches above your plant. mine used to look just like that. gettin it closer will make alot of difference

xxbxrxextxtxx said:

go ahead and drop that hps down to about 6 inches above your plant. mine used to look just like that. gettin it closer will make alot of difference

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cool man im gonna try it and see what happens