Help me pick a light for vegging :)

21w twin tube for first 3 weeks from cutting or 4 weeks from seed and then 250w eviro light for next 2-4 weeks after then the 600w hps
if your doing a few grows it save lots of electria and reduces heat

i dont know what dank is thinking but the t5s are alot cheaper than running a 600 watt metal halide 18 hrs a day you still get great results with t5s for veg i dont recommend them for flower you could but your hps would be much better bigger buds better yield you can veg a plant pretty good size with the t5 you dont want a single bulb get a 4 to 8 bulb the more bulbs the better. Next winter when its time to veg indoors im gonna invest in a few of the 4 foot 12 bulb t5 set up but you can get a descent 4 ft set up. The investment into the t5 set up will make up for it in the long run cause it does make a difference i switched to my 400 watt mh for veg on 18 hrs 6 off there was a difference big enough in the power bill that my dad kinda got pissed but im also running 1800 watts 12 hrs a day

past times said:

250 or 400 watt mh....or get a new 600 adjustable ballast that can do both mh and hps. you can do 50/75/100 power so you can adjust wattage.

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My vote.300w veg, 600 flower.

On a adjustable ballast. That what I'm using

Kyle Keen Green said:

Ye, I've had a look at the T5's, They only have 24w tubes in tho (one within budget) and they have 4 tubes, I didnt think this would be enough? Any thoughts?

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I'm using one of these: http://www.homedepot.com/Lighting-Fans-Indoor-Lighting-Industrial-Shop-Lighting/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbvnq/R-202193185/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051 with 2X Overdrive ballasts.

The reflector on that fixture is 95% reflective german aluminum.

Thing is I spent about another $90 US buying new ballasts and a set of tubes.
So you are looking at around $175 for @ 24,000 lumens from 6 T-8 tubes.

I used 3 GE 4-Lamp T-8 'Instant Start' style ballasts for mine.
Each 4-lamp ballast runs 2 lamps in 2X wiring mode.
I did have to rewire half of the bi-pin sockets to non-shunted mode as well.

If you are good with wires, and can read a schematic, google fluorescent 2X Overdrive to learn more.
This is very common in the aquarium nut community; so those forums might be helpful.

I get as much, or more, light output as a 54W T-5 from a 34W T-8 at 2X and it runs cooler than the T-5 does.

The only real drawback is lamp life. You get about a year out of a set of tubes using this method.
But a replacement set is only about $30.

Manufactuers need to guarentee lamps for 10,000 hours so they sell them commercial.
T-8 is the de-facto standard in office buildings and the like.
This is why you can't buy a 2X overdriven fixture - no manufactuer will give warranty.

If you are afraid to rewire a brand new fixture you still can not go wrong with that model I linked to:
It has multi-volt auto-voltage sensing ballasts with highest efficency rating that can be plugged in to 110 to 270 volts ac with no rewiring.
I worked with 8 T-8 lamps that were not overdriven for quite some time before making this setup, and I got very good results.
I just get better results now with the extra light.

Here's a google hit I just got for further reading: http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/plants/Podio_Overdriving_Standard_Light_Strip.html

Oh yeah - I forgot to tell you the best part: When you get done rewiring the fixture it will use less power than when it was wired correctly even though you get 1.7 X light output from ratings.

I use a 2x4 6 bulb in my veg. Good light not as good as mh but still damn good. I have 15 under it

Hey everyone, I have spent a fair amount of time playing around with CFL's to supplement my 1000 w HID lamp.

I think I have some good info for you; so I am just going to dump it and try to explain the basic concepts.

The first, and last, images show some CFL's surrounding my HID fixture mostly assembled before the other images were shot.


I wanted to get more reflectivity from my CFL's and so I started tinkering with a Sun Systems "Value-Wing" as a base.
They are like $20 for a reflector with a nice ceramic Mogul socket attached; I take the Mogul sockect off and use the rest for my project.

In the "a" fixture I use 2 of the Value-Wings; only 1 is used for the "b" fixture.
I used 1-1/2" DWV PVC Pipe for the framing on the "a" fixture with a length of 2" PVC pipe for mounting.
After assembly I had to balance the fixtures with little pieces of pipe for my hanging scheme; so that's what those are. lol

I started out trying to use 4" PVC tubes to mount the socket adapters into; but is was not happening easily.
So I switched to 4" square Fence Post PVC Wrap I picked up at Home Depot and it made everything fall into place.
For those using RubberMaid type enclosers: the "b" fixture will set down into one and you can put 120mm computer fans inside the ends of the square tubes for airflow.
This method would keep most of the heat generated from your CFL's outside the enclosure and allow you to cool them without using internal air.

The images should be self-explanatory; but if you have any questions I would be glad to respond.
I am using 23 watt "Soft-White", (in bloom room), CFL's in mine at present; but you can use from 17 w to 42 w CFL's in this sort of array.
For Vegging you would want to use "Daylight" CFL's.

Great work with CFL's

i recently found out THE SUN is a great light for vegging , Stick em in the window sily, open the window for fresh air = Profit

Kyle Keen Green said:

I have a 600watt hps for flowering, but I dont want to use so much power as the plants are small. Ive seen a 150w ballast and 150w son-t bulb for £40. What you think?

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All in the same space? What size grow area?

I've been using the sun but as we all know the sun goes down lol giving them 18hours a day so the sun can only do half the job!

brotherjericho said:

All in the same space? What size grow area?

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I'm using a small room, now 9 plants, using the sun from 6am to 6pm then putting under 600hps for 6 hours. Getting good growth, and plants look healthier. Considered buying a T5 but still negotiating with a few different companies I have all the time in the world

t 5s are the shit for vegging man im telling you and you will be using way less than that 600 if not some cfls would work if your just trying to keep it vegging all summer

or vegging until the days get longer i meant

Im only at the end of week 1 check my pics:

https://www.rollitup.org/newbie-central/514973-take-look-see-how-my.html

I will definitely invest in some T5's, there's one I have my eye on it's the Lightwave 24w x 4. Only problem £70. Spend a good £400 now.

i got a 2 by 2 8 bulb hydrofarm set up for 200 us dollars which would be around 120 of your money around there they last forever me and my frend both vegged under ours for 6 months 24 hours a day before one of his bulbs burned out so i went and got some new ones for mine today he has a 4 ft 6 bulb set up he payed the same for his as i did for mine

You would think that but things are expensive over here your $100 item over here costs £150. We Import a lot from america for that reason.