[kelly1376]

I am wondering if it is possible to get smaller bulbs than 400 watts and use more of them, and make these lights closer to the tops.

Yeah that's why I initially brought up the cobs. You could run a ton of individual lights at say 50 watts each, but if you used HID I think you'd need a separate ballast for each bulb and that would become a pain in the butt really quick. But with COBs it's simple enough to do once you understand the driver and wiring concepts, and you can get cobs in different spectrums, 2500k (same as HPS) up to 5000k.

I am wondering if before this is all over with that I have to have a metal fabricator to make a hood that would allow all the lights, with sockets placed where we desire. You got some really good links to science and that says a whole lot about you, my articulate new friend!

Hit up one of those cob builder guys. They design framework for stuff like that all the time. I know I already mentioned timber grow but there are others like johnson grow lights (horticulture lighting group), cobkits.com, & heavenbright. There's a guy on youtube called growmau5 that has a bunch of tutorials & always does various framework builds. The angled aluminum framing is easy enough to work with.

Originally Posted by Chilly Willy

People keep suggesting LED, put the light is so bright that on my high end flash lights they say you can not read under them, nor is it good for people. I guess I need to learn more about them because Philups sure seams to like them but grow lights by manufactures are nit on the band wagon yet and this makes me wonder why. Sun Systems does not have an LED set up.

The LED grow lights are not the same as an LED in a flashlight.
For around $60, one can get a 300W LED panel that gives full spectrum lighting with a lot less heat and energy consumption than a HPS or even a MH.
They're even available in strips.
I'd do strips down low on the horizon, a small 300W panel, then a 600W panel for the top, a 300W and then strips again. I'd set the strips to more reds and greens.

They even give IR and UV light! They emit all the spectrum that a HPS does, even if only less powerful at the moment.

I may be building an igloo in my basement soon to try this hahaha

Honestly, if I had the money, I'd be building a sweet grow setup and implementing the dome, the travelling "sun" and all.

Then again... Plenty of people use just a straight walled box and add LED strips to the sides or fluorescent tubes and get pretty amazing yields. I don't know that I'd even mess with a big energy chugging HPS or MH at all, since I want a small box that doesn't cost a ton to run. Running a 24hr day cycle for vegging is pricey!

ReikoX, I saw that curved mounting bar setup, and that's probably what got me thinking toward a planetarium.
Oh, if I had to funds hahaha
I'd have a walk-in arboretum with a band of the best LED money could buy and a travelling sun.

Then again, if I had that kind of money, I'd build one of those English greenhouses that I love so much. That'd keep me in herb for the year, for SURE! Late finishing time? No worries!

Like this!

[Chilly Willy]

Scott - it is funny you mention igloo.

[Chilly Willy]

Kelly - I am sure going to check into the cob. I want to push a couple of these ideas I got. Need to see what all materials are available, and how that is going to change the initial idea.

A pot does not ned to be swear or round, it can be long and narrow and be made part of a screen that slides into a light box. If the bulbs are small like 150 watts then the smaller intensity will let the bulbs get closer to the screens, that way you can put a screen on each side of the bulb (bulbs). I guess it all depends how big the screen is.

But first I want to try to figure out this heliotropism with moving lights, I don't want to use my igloo, it is my home. I think a flat surface is just fine, and maybe use smaller bulbs like 150 watts, and more of them. I can make the midday use more HPS, and morning and evening is more MH in my arrangement of the lights staggering on and off to move the leaves. I guess it depends on the equipment too, if it is the same ballast that works both 150 watt and 250 watt then it would probably be better to use less light bulbs and more intensity that way. I need to figure this out pretty soon because I want to start buying the equipment, at least part of it so I can start growing, I miss it a whole lot. But talking about it is really cool too. I guess the chase is as good as the catch.

[Chilly Willy]

ReikoX - how you doing today bud? I looked at the charts and they say HPS and MH at 150 watts is about 7 inches will give you full intensity of the sun. But I got some comments the other day from some guys who say that those charts, that their numbers are too small and they would burn their plants at 20 inches under a 1000watt bulb. I used the charts and got great results for 400 watt MH, and HPS.

So how close do you put your 150 watt bulbs to the top of your canopy? By the way, thanks for coming by today. I really appreciate your input. Here are the charts, I slipped in an extra picture showing you my pots, and substrate (I have only grown organic and that includes this special soil):

[ReikoX]

Hey Chilly,
The small CMH bulbs are quite cool to the touch. I keep my plants around 10 inches from the bulb. The bulb is vertical. Here, a picture is worth 1K words.


What you see here is my CMH cab (one of two sections). The entire cab is 30"x30" and the plants are huddled around the bulb and tied back to the screens. Problem is each bulb requires a ballast and that can get expensive fast.

Originally Posted by Chilly Willy

Scott - it is funny you mention igloo.

View Image

That really IS funny.

Totally by happenstance, but still synchronicity at least.

[Chilly Willy]

ReikoX - Dude, what kind of camera you got, it must be a Nikon SLR. I had to buy a bigger computer just to get the whole picture on my screen. So you don't go by the charts either. I see your pots are touching so you can't move them closer but you can put your screens on the other side of the stalks and weave the bids in them closer to the light. Due to their thickness though, you may want to do what I did and get four small diameter boards, make a square, and drill holes all up and down and across then weave your string in each hole. Making screens well, they made for amazing photographs when complete.

The deal with the charts is what distance is full sun, with 400 watt it is 11 inches. So putting them 11 inches away from the tops is too far. You want full sun to be somewhere down into the canopy, if you can't do this then something else is wrong. What kind of temps are you running inside the cabinet? What are you going to do if a guest comes over and is looking for a towel, and opens up the cabinet? Just curious what you are going to tell them. hehehe

How wide and long is that bulb, and is that a small ballast running it or a big one that is dimmed? Oh, and are you living with others and do they know about the cabinet?

[Chilly Willy]

Scott - I spent six months researching before coming to this forum to pick up a few more details back in 2006, and of those six months I used two of them looking for an avatar, and various pictures once I found a cool one (pun intended). I started growing soon as I began posting and people were wow, you must be some kind of scientist, cleanest grow yet, others were like hell, how do you afford all that equipment and nutes; one guy said he pees on his plants for nutrition. It was really fun, and I am hoping to have an even better time this run. Thanks for helping make that happen!

Originally Posted by Chilly Willy

Scott - I spent six months researching before coming to this forum to pick up a few more details back in 2006, and of those six months I used two of them looking for an avatar, and various pictures once I found a cool one (pun intended). I started growing soon as I began posting and people were wow, you must be some kind of scientist, cleanest grow yet, others were like hell, how do you afford all that equipment and nutes; one guy said he pees on his plants for nutrition. It was really fun, and I am hoping to have an even better time this run. Thanks for helping make that happen!

View Image

LOL people are really interesting creatures.

Aren't they?

I'm pretty glad to be here. I've learned so much even for a hobbyist outdoor grower.
Great group here!