Tons Of Lighting Questions

Hey everyone,

Well I have been reading and I am thinking I should just buy some HPS bulbs and return my CFLs.

I have two 45 watt (3000 lumen) CFLs. One 750ish lumen CFL tube light (found it free) but the 45 watt CFLs were $16.00 +tax each.

The LWH of my grow box is 2'x1'x4'. Would it just be better to buy 1-2 HPS bulbs? I am going to grow just 2 plants for now.

I would want to hook up the HPS too my lamp outlet I wired. It is a standard 60W average socket (max of something like 650W) if I found a HPS with a standard socket that is something like 150W is it a bad idea to use the standard socket? Would I need a ballast for any HPS wattage? I litterly took the socket right out of one of my lamps, plug and all. I would have fans blowing on it but I am worried about melting.

What would be the cheapest lights to get and the most bang for my buck?

If I bought a higher standard wattage socket would I be able to wire it directly to a plug cord that I can plug into the wall? Wouldn't melt/blow the breaker?

Any other reccomendations are apprecaited.

Thanks alot, I know thats a ton of questions.

Crap I meant to put this in the Newbie section, my bad.

There's no such thing as a 750w CFL, and no equivalent you'd find free. What is it really?

HID's require a ballast, they can't be run off an outlet with just a bulb.

I'd say yes return the CFL's as soon as you find a used 250w HID for $40 or less on craigslist or whatever used classfieds you have on line locally, just get the right voltage HIDs.

OregonMeds said:

There's no such thing as a 750w CFL, and no equivalent you'd find free. What is it really?

HID's require a ballast, they can't be run off an outlet with just a bulb.

I'd say yes return the CFL's as soon as you find a used 250w HID for $40 or less on craigslist or whatever used classfieds you have on line locally, just get the right voltage HIDs.

Click to expand...

Sorry that was a typo I meant 750 lumen CFL. We discovered it after hunting through my buddys boxes he packed away years ago.

Thanks.

I know all these questions suck but some answers are appreciated by me and by others I am sure.

No offense but there must be half a dozen people asking the exact same question day after day.

Did you consider using the search function or simpy browsing the CFL growing forum to see what other people are using? There's loads of great setups in there.

ElBarto said:

No offense but there must be half a dozen people asking the exact same question day after day.

Did you consider using the search function or simpy browsing the CFL growing forum to see what other people are using? There's loads of great setups in there.

Click to expand...

Trust me, I search before every post. Google and RIU. Some questions have been asked before but some of mine have certain variables which I am not sure about, hence I ask.

ok bro, you cannot use a HPS bulb in a regular socket, cant do it, you MUST have a ballast to run a HPS, its not an optional thing. The minimum HPS size I would recommend is 250Watt, it will plug into a regular 120v outlet. Best bang for yer buck is without a doubt HPS.

If you wire a plug directly to the socket and plug a HPS bulb in there, you will probably blow the $40 bulb out instantly. Possibly injuring your self or creating a fire. Electricity is not something that you should experiment with, have a professional do the work, or buy a ready made solution.