Best 600w HPS set up for budget?

Can you guys lead me in the right direction with my lighting system? Im talking about separate pieces, a good bulb, digital ballast, and hood? Can you guys let me know if you have heard anything about what ive selected, or if youve ever used them, and any alternatives?

Thanks!

With literally thousands of web sites selling the style of components you desire in varying degrees of quality and in a very wide range of prices, this is an almost impossible question to answer. Which digital ballast would you like? What constitutes a "good" bulb to you? What style of hood do you want?

Unless you can narrow it down dramatically, I would just suggest picking the exact components you desire and searching for the best price you can find. Once you find the best price, consider posting here to see if anyone has any experience dealing with that particular vendor.

gcvt420 said:

With literally thousands of web sites selling the style of components you desire in varying degrees of quality and in a very wide range of prices, this is an almost impossible question to answer. Which digital ballast would you like? What constitutes a "good" bulb to you? What style of hood do you want?

Unless you can narrow it down dramatically, I would just suggest picking the exact components you desire and searching for the best price you can find. Once you find the best price, consider posting here to see if anyone has any experience dealing with that particular vendor.

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Thanks for the advice, I wasnt sure whether or not there was one type of Bulb or brand that everyone went to due to performance, or a certain hood that was extremely reflective and effective.

But heres what I was thinking and let me know what you think.

Eye Hortilux 600 Watt Super HPS Lamp
http://www.growlightsupply.com/eye-hortilux-600-watt-super-hps-lamp-p-97.html?utm_campaign=export_feed&utm_medium=cse&utm_source=googlebase&m1track=googlebase


Quantum 600 Watt Dimmable Electronic Ballast
http://www.growlightexpress.com/grow-light-ballasts-3/electronic-ballasts-22/quantum-600-watt-dimmable-electronic-ballast-1008.html


Xtrasun 8" Air Cooled Reflector
http://www.hydrofarm.com/pb_detail.php?itemid=9880#

Total: $426.17

This is kind of expensive, and do I honestly need a Dimmable ballast, will that really come in handy?

I was planning on getting a MH bulb for veg, where can I find a reg. one, all i can see are conversion HPS to MH ones? Also are the Hortilux Super Blue Dual Arcs the same as having a MH and HPS?

Thanks all

htgsupply.com
I bought my 600watt digital electronic ballast, hps light, and upgraded $25 (usa) extra for a better reflector than standard. Total cost with shipping was $248. It was on sale when i bought it, but I think they still run similar packages. Definitely the most inexpensive you will find. I jumped on it when I saw it. Hope it helps. If I had gottwn the cheap reflector it would've been only like $220 something shipped. I was on a tight budget when i bought it and regret not getting the MH conversion bulb, when bought with the package it is way cheaper than buying seperate. Since this setup is like half the cost of other sites, and no compromise on quality, I would spend the extra on the MH light, and maybe even the Euro reflector (with 6 inch duct hole for air cooling). Also bought a 6 inch Duct fan for $24, but look around elsewhere might be cheaper. Definitely go with htgsupply.com They have good reviews and they shipped timely. I would buy with a prepaid visa credit card though (put in a fony name) because I am paranoid about THE MAN.

After telling you this I wanted to make sure I hadn't remembered wrong. (Found on left hand under "grow lights" tab, then click "digital greenhouse systems" then "600 watt". For some odd reason, if you buy the 600 watt HPS setup $199, then add a MH conversion bulb(+$40), it is $10 cheaper then buying the other 600watt setup that automatically includes the exact same MH conversion bulb for $249 (both without shipping included).

OR
http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=48956
Thats the exact same setup I bought. I thoroughly researched all components of the setup. The standard GrowBright 600watt HPS light has more lumens and light hours than some of the more expensive ones upgrades, so go with that. Plus $40 bucks for the agromax MH bulb if you want, it will make a huge difference during vegging, and ultimately the final harvest. If you have enough circulation/venting in ur room then the air cooled Euro reflector is +$35not a necessity, the Maxwing should be fine. So for a total of $275 plus shipping, ur saving a lot of money, on a name brand warrantied, energy efficient product. All bulbs only last so long, so there is no sense in paying twice as much for a bulb just for the name. In fact the $67 upgraded Hortilux hps is a ripoff. It is 10,000 llumens less out put and 10% less blue spectrum (for veg growth) than the Growbright which comes standard. I've spent a lot of time re-researching this product for you. For your own sake, dont waste ur money on the $426 setup, you'll get more for cheaper with the one I bought.

this is what I have been eyeing for a while on ebay...Lumatek Digital 600w MH HPS with 6" cooling hood...pretty sweet deal...

http://cgi.ebay.com/600-watt-MH-HPS-Lumatek-Grow-Light-Air-Cooled-2-lamps_W0QQitemZ360188872996QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item53dcee0924

And why the F**K would u want a dimmeable ballast? That would only come in handy the first week of vegging when the seeds are sproutin, which would save u next to nothing on energy costs. Buy a $5 , 42 watt CFL (5000k-7000K) from 1000bulbs.com if your worried about it, thats again, what i did. I don't know about a dimmeable ballast, but putting a light dimmer on your household lights, stresses the components and decreases the light expectancy of the bulb/built in ballast . So I would only expect that a dimmeable digital ballast might not last as long.
I dare anyone to finder a better quality 600 watt setup, not to mention cheaper

Drumbum has the right idea here. You can save a considerable amount of money by buying a package deal with components either close to what you want or you can select a package and upgrade it to get exactly what you need. Both HTG and Amazon have great deals like this. Usually, the reflector/hood is going to be where they skimp on these packages. So you can get a great deal, upgrade to a better hood later and have the original reflector on hand as a spare...or perhaps sell it off to get a few bucks back.

sorry, they called me off work today then I got a $126 seatbelt ticket, so I'm mad, and am immaturely venting through your post. Comparing ratings of the Grow bright High Pressure Sodium light alone, that I bought, with the hortilux HPS (which apprently stands for Hortilux Piece of Sh*t) :
Growbright 95,000 lumens, 30% additional blue spectrum combined with red lighting and 24,000 hour life expectancy (one year is 8,760 hours)
Now the "fancy" Hortilux: in my research i've found varying lumen outputs either 85,000 or 88,000 lumens, which is still less than the $67cheaper Growbright which comes standard through HTGSUPPLY( you can get the whole package for the price ur willing to pay for the "dimmeable" ballast). Aslo, Hortilux rated at only 20-25% Blue light spectrum and a measily 16,000 hour life expectancy. The varying ratings on hortilux are enough alone to make me not trust the product, cant even have consistant info, which makes me doubt their product all together.
The decision and money are yours, but it seems obvious to me. I don't mean to pester you, I just know I appreciate imput like this b4 making a costly investment.

Oops...double post.

WOW. This is the third time ive had to retype this post. Drumbum, Thank you so much for all of your help, it is greatly appreciated. Sorry about work and your ticket, but thank you and +rep. After first seeing the link to the site, I decided on the Digital greenhouse system, which I later saw you said was the one you got, what a coincidence. Also thank you for the detailed information and research on the HPS bulbs, I really appreciate it, and I LOVE it when I have a lot of information, thank you, you are in no way pestering me at all.

As far as a dimmable ballast, I was concerned about heat, and figured that may be a partial solution. Now that i moved the location of my grow room, I no longer really have to worry about heat, and youre right about it being pointless, esp. when im planning on getting a MH bulb for veg.

As far as ordering goes, I am somewhat concerned. When I was completely faded, on multiple things, I was stupid and ordered my seeds with my real name, CC, and shipped to the grow location. Im not really worried about the federales seeing as I have only 5 seeds. Also before, I purchased about 4 - 5 books on marijuana cultivation with my Credit Card. I originally had ZERO intention of growing this year, just really curious about it, and here I am. So would a pre paid Visa with a fake name still be alright? I live in my parents house, so i dont have many options, and cant ship it elsewhere without getting someone else involved. Im not at all worried about having things shipped to my house due to my parents at all, thats no problem, just the legal standpoint.

Heres finally what I ended up with deciding on:

Digital Greenhouse Digital Electronic 600w Ballast


EasyCool 8


GrowBright 600 watt HPS Bulb


AgroMax 600 watt MH Conversion Bulb


Sunrise Hi-Low Reflector Hangers


Dual Outlet Mechanical Timer

Total:$320.84

I went with the EasyCool 8 because I plan on moving out after this grow is finished, and in my future set up, heat may be a huge problem. I have no problem spending the extra money and being prepared.

Once again thanks again drum, and thanks to you too gcvt!

Cool - looks like a great setup you decided on there! Enjoy

Guess it depends how paranoid you are. I purchased seeds once with my credit card when living with my parents, so I'm probably on some "list" somewhere, oh well. But I purchased everything else with a prepaid visa, to hopefully avoid drawing more attention to myself. I mean a few seeds is one thing, but making multiple expensive purchases for things that could incriminate you, seems like an unecessary risk. Especially when its easy to just either send a money order, or prepaid visa.

I have the HTG setup and it is a good deal. The ballast works as advertised. It has a cooling fan, so it makes a little noise, but nothing that is too bad. The cordset and socket are high quality. The bulb supplied seems to be adequate, though I think that just about any 600W HPS is capable of decent results. I had a high end reflector already so did not need another.

You will be happy me thinks.

Thanks all, and I just finished the frame for my grow tent and it looks like its going to be 7'x5'x7'. Everything is finally coming together, im excited.

Lowest temps got in the room at night was 68, and it sits around 73-74 during the day. How much of an increase in temp can I expect from the light in that space area, but its the EasyCool 8 Reflector, and I will be running an 8" fan on it. Thanks all.

http://www.insidesun.com/Super_Economy_400_Watt_MH_65a26e.item go to this link and this one is $99 depending on how many plants you are growing i found this link on this site

thought i'd report back on this post on how my light setup worked. The tomato plants i grew this fall (and finished by thanksgiving) were superb. The 600 watt. HPS light i bought yielded great cherry tomatoe plants, and the full sized tomatoes did alright. Even when gardening outdoors, i have never been as satisfied with full sized tomatoes, when compared to cherry tomato plants' yield/quality. But just wanted to say, after my first, and prolly last (i'm opposed to wasting the electricity growing indoors even in the winter), indoor grow, i was surprised that the artificial lights weree able to recreate the effects of sunlight, and produce delicious tomatoes. Maybe one day weed will be legalized and i will use my lights again, but till then, outdoor gardening/farming in the summer is what i look forward to

the pot seeds i ordered never arrived, so i grew some cherry tomatoes. I can never get big tomatoes to really produce, even outside in the summer. Dont think i'll be trying to grow pot again, not till its either legalized, or i move to cali, lol. Wont waste the electricity growing cherry tomatoes inside in winter either.

drumbum3218 said:

the pot seeds i ordered never arrived, so i grew some cherry tomatoes. I can never get big tomatoes to really produce, even outside in the summer. Dont think i'll be trying to grow pot again, not till its either legalized, or i move to cali, lol. Wont waste the electricity growing cherry tomatoes inside in winter either.

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this sounds like a lie because your very paranoid.

nordowell said:

this sounds like a lie because your very paranoid.

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LOL...that is funny..

Just because you are paranoid doesn't mean your not right!!