How much light?
 

Hello all,

I am wanting to get a hps light for my grow area which is 3.5 ft. wide x 2ft. deep x 6ft. height. Should I go with the 400w, 250w, 600w? I notice the prices are pretty close together... So, in this case is more better?

I dont think a 600 watt light would any good your just giving the power company money,with the size of your set up you may need to get an a/c reflector to keep the temp in check with the 250 or the 400 so dont forget the added cost of a fan and ducting. just my thoughts

I didn't bother to respond because the link in the signature shows the person has a website selling lights for hydroponics. So they already know what they need to know about lighting. As far as I can tell it was just a setup question. Also the person has not logged back in sense they posted the question.

Yes, I have a website selling hydroponics supplies. However, for my own application I did want to get expert advice as I am still new to growing. Thanks.

I use natural lighting myself, so I don't have much experience with artificial lighting. But in general I would think stronger lights would be better, though I don't know what the difference in energy consumption would be, and heat can defiantly be an issue in confined spaces. I just try to think ahead, you may want to use the light for other setups in the future. What type of system are you planing? What are you wanting to grow?

I tested my new 400w light out in my closet and man does it get hot in there... I may have bought too much light as it turns out, but I have not put my exhaust setup in there yet. I am thinking about either going with a 4" carbon fan and scrubber or a 6" setup. The 4" only pulls 170cfm and the 6" pulls something like 424cfm. My closet volume is just 168 total cubic feet... I am wondering if I went with the much powerful 6" fan and scrubber if it would keep my closet cool enough running that 400w light. I added a small air vent to the bottom of the closet where fresh air will be pulled in once I have some negative pressure in there.

My setup consists of a partitioned closet. One side I can fit about three 5-gallon buckets in there and the other will have at least six 5-gallon buckets(DWC style).

I am not sure the fans you are talking about, but if they are the made for hydroponics fans that run about $150 and up, I don't think there worth the money. Though I don't think you could ever really get too much ventilation, unless your plants are being blown over.
How are you going to fit 9, 5 gallon buckets in a 3.5 foot wide by 2 foot deep space? My 5 gallon buckets are 1 foot wide. If I were real lucky, and staggered them just right, I would be be lucky to fit 5 in that space. But the plants would never be able to grow wider than the buckets.

The fan and carbon filter I found on ebay.. the 4" fan and carbon filter is about 120 and the 6" setup is 185 I think. I am worried about the smell that it will have and the heat mainly.

I have my closet partitioned into 2 areas. The first side is the small area that I gave dimensions for. I have three 5 gallon buckets on that side and will have 6 on the opposite side.

I have never had to deal with smell problems, but as far as the fan I would prefer to use bathroom exhaust fans for a closet type structure.

Ones like these you can get at any Home Depot or Lowe's for under $20 ea and they come in all shapes and sizes (cfm's).
Air King AS50 Bath Fan Only, 50 CFM, 3.0 Sones
Broan 688 Bath Fan Only, 50 CFM, 4.0 Sones
Air King AS60 Bath Fan Only, 60 CFM, 3.5 Sones

just figure out the cubic feet you need and buy accordingly, you can always scale up by adding more, or down by using less. With 168 cubic feet, you shouldn't need more than 4, 50 cfm models. That would change all the air in the entire box every minute. The 60 cfm model would be 240 cfm with 4, or 180 cfm with 3.

If you really want exhaust power I would go with a Blower Fan. Home depot and Lowe's also carry similar blowers.

CFM on low 1280, medium 1750, high 2180
Stanley® Blower Fan (655702) - Box & Drum Fans - Ace Hardware

CFM (high 1220) (med 1025) (low 768)
Air King 9550 3-Speed 1/16 HP Molded ABS Plastic Pivoting Utility Air Circulator

You'll need to call the company to find out the cfm on these, or find another site that specifics the cfm on there "Furnace Draft Inducer Blowers" but you can probably find them at Home Depot or Lowe's also. Trane Furnace Draft Inducers