150w HPS Club and Resource Guide......

[Matanuskan Flo]

there are def threads on diy links to remote ballasting the self enclosed systems. you could still spend 70 or so on the sun system, take it apart & cool it that way. the ballast won;t be digital. but, w/ 150w, its not necessary IMO. there is a DIY link-o-rama by Pontiac which contains the DIY for converting enclosed ballasts to remote ballasting. for the sun system & for hps floodlights, which are like 40 buxx at HD/lowes. i use the sun system 150 in a tiny horrible space. since i read ventilation 101, i have no heat issues. its all about proper air exchange man. u wont have to worry so much about heat if you focus energy on ventilation. give us some more specs of the grow area/box. how many plants, strain, medium.....everything u can think of, the more info, the better answers we can give ya bud. GL

edit - you can go to salvation army/goodwill & find a large fluted candle holder or cool tube looking apparatus for $1. so, dont think the cool tube is the only answer, or even the pyrex bake around tube which people get on ebay. they are discontinued, so hard to find and around $30. i'd go the cheaper route.....

 

[Rambro]

i appreciate all your help matanuskan. im lookin at a rubbermaid cabinet about 18" deep,36" tall, 30" wide from target. or another wood one maybe like 30inches tall. i have some autoflowering feminized ak47 on the way from attitude, plan on growing 1 or maybe 2 at a time in soil. will need a carbon filter setup also and also mainly i need it to be quiet which is while im tryin to keep the cab super cool so ill need less ventilation. itll be in my closet but i will leave closet doors open while im home to help with ventilation. is it safe to have a cab in the closet with my clothes or should i try to just put it in my room without it being noticed? also as i would like to keep it as cheap as possible, i do have a few hundred bucks of disposable income that i could invest in this, just dont wanna buy shit and end up finding out its not gonna be possible to do this shit with my requirements of small and quiet. btw the light i posted is like 170 something, with all the shit id need to make a remote ballast with cool tube on another light id end up spending damn near that much

 

[catman]

Rambo, those dimensions sound great. If I was you I wouldn't waste my time with an autoflower strain. My cab is in my closet and I don't keep any clothes in there anymore. Not sure how much it would matter with my carbon filter and all, but better safe than sorry. I chose the size of my cab specifically so that it would fit inside my closet closed.

 

[AcroPhobic]

Rambro .. you really need to worry about airflow first. Hoosierdaddys's link is your best friend. That price for that system is expensive. I use a basic 150 that I bought on ebay many moons ago for $60 shipped with an enclosed ballast which means extra heat but my cab stays nice n cool because of airflow.

I have an 8 inch exhaust with three settings, 2 four inch + 1 two inch PVC intakes and a 6 inch fan blowing on bulb and canopy. My cab is 20length, 36 height, 22 width and my temps stay 2-4 degrees above ambient. Ambient in room is anywhere between 70-74. If you want a reliable 150 system ready to rock, then try HTG supply. They have some nice stuff and great support. You can get the 150 system for $69. I"ll be upgrading to a 250 hps/mh conversion system from them soon for a new flower room I have in the works.

 

[Rambro]

Rambro .. you really need to worry about airflow first. Hoosierdaddys's link is your best friend. That price for that system is expensive. I use a basic 150 that I bought on ebay many moons ago for $60 shipped with an enclosed ballast which means extra heat but my cab stays nice n cool because of airflow.

I have an 8 inch exhaust with three settings, 2 four inch + 1 two inch PVC intakes and a 6 inch fan blowing on bulb and canopy. My cab is 20length, 36 height, 22 width and my temps stay 2-4 degrees above ambient. Ambient in room is anywhere between 70-74. If you want a reliable 150 system ready to rock, then try HTG supply. They have some nice stuff and great support. You can get the 150 system for $69. I"ll be upgrading to a 250 hps/mh conversion system from them soon for a new flower room I have in the works.

i realize ventilation and air flow is keep to keep temps down, but fans are also what usually what makes the most noise so i was trying to prevent having more fans/louder fans going by having a very cool light system. from my research on here i think this would work better than just having a cheaper light inside of a heavily vented box because i need it to stay stealth. hopefully with my full setup it wont be much louder than a running PC(wishful thinkin or is this possible?) the 170 for that light system isnt out of my budget, because i know around my neck of the woods my first grow would damn near pay for itself if i sold half an ounce . and i went with an auto flower strain because i know they usually stay small and they go from seed to harvest in under 3 months. i also got a freebie of feminized rocklock and fem lemon skunk(not auto flowering) that i might try outdoors . im about to go out now and buy the lil cabinet and try to find some mylar. ill post pics as this thing comes along, and thanks a lot guys for your help!!!!

 

[grumblez]

Ventilation rocks. Bulenath's panasonic whisper fan would be the way to go for stealth fan...for limited space/cabinet grow I would duplicate that guys handiwork using Hoosierdaddy's airflow system for sure.

I might even go to ebay and grab a fully built mini system...for around 250 clams.

If the autos wind up not being your thing, I was reading through this the other day in light of my sativa going apeshit on me and there are some pearls about keeping even a mighty sativa under wraps (spelled intentional binding, skip the N and 12/12 from clone or seed).

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=66603 it is the ultimate sativa grow thread.

I think of PD and his Satanish (sp?) whenever I am up in there....yo Pipedream, have you ever had a jungle situation in the mini bubbler that required extreme measures? Enquiring minds want to know...you gotta have a story...

 

[AcroPhobic]

i realize ventilation and air flow is keep to keep temps down, but fans are also what usually what makes the most noise so i was trying to prevent having more fans/louder fans going by having a very cool light system. from my research on here i think this would work better than just having a cheaper light inside of a heavily vented box because i need it to stay stealth. hopefully with my full setup it wont be much louder than a running PC(wishful thinkin or is this possible?) the 170 for that light system isnt out of my budget, because i know around my neck of the woods my first grow would damn near pay for itself if i sold half an ounce . and i went with an auto flower strain because i know they usually stay small and they go from seed to harvest in under 3 months. i also got a freebie of feminized rocklock and fem lemon skunk(not auto flowering) that i might try outdoors . im about to go out now and buy the lil cabinet and try to find some mylar. ill post pics as this thing comes along, and thanks a lot guys for your help!!!!

Post pics indeed. Myself and others are here to help ya out along the way. Whatever you decide to do, we'll be here if ya need us and the best advice I can give you is to <READ> as knowledge is your friend, my friend.

 

[hoosierdaddy]

Rambro, without creating the proper environment, the plants may disappoint you.
Stealth is obtainable and there are tons of examples available with a search here.
Now, when you talk stealth, it helps to know if you can afford any light leak, or is it crucial that both sound and light be kept hidden? If this box will have frequent visitors in the room, it may not be the best choice of location. But, if it is the only location, then you will need to invest lots of time reading, asking questions, and making trips to Home DePot spending bits here and there to accomplish the task properly.

If you don't want to invest all it takes to get the thing dialed in proper, then you will either be very frustrated all the time, or you risk your security.

You seem to already be figuring in your head on your yield, which is fine and normal. But trust me on this one..you will not get what you think you will unless you invest the time, effort, and money it takes to do things at least close to optimum.

FWIW, I would can the autoflower idea until you get your box dialed in. Even then, I would only grow one or two out to see what you are dealing with. I personally won't ever touch them again, and I realize that many find that they fit their situation well...but to me they are not even close to worth the time and effort they take, only to yield a very minuscule amount of subpar herb. But that's just me...

I suggest finding a $30 pack of a well known plant. One that everyone who grows it knows how it acts. Indica is a new box growers friend.

On lights...there won't be a stitch of difference in lights unless you chose a ballast enclosed unit. There are no cool running lights. You have to cool them.
Now, if you do a search on cool tubes, you will see some very ingenious DIY instructions to make them. These can help to keep the small box cool as can be. Although you can still keep a cool box with an open light, but it is crucial that you follow the basics of air flow.
Nobody gets lucky and gets by without doing it properly. Not with predictable and repeatable success anyway. If they tell you otherwise, be very leery of anything else they try to feed you.

 

[Rambro]

i can afford a few light leaks i suppose, because itll be in a cabinet inside my closet. little backstory- got laid off and moved back in with my folks a lil while back. my mom is ok with me growin, just told me MAKE SURE my dad doesnt find out. my dad is a couch potatoe tho so when hes not at work hes downstairs watchin tv or on the computer so he rarely(if ever) comes in my room. i want it to be stealth in case he ever does come in my room he wont even suspect anything. so i suppose quiet is more important than havin no light leaks.

and i dont have an idea set up on yeild, i been readin bout growing(had 1 successful outdoor grow, got ripped day before harvest tho) since way back on overgrow so i know to not expect a certain yield unless everything is done right. ive been reading this thread from page one damn near all day everyday for the past 3-4 days so im not just tryin to rush into this. i want the best bud from my setup so im askin the best growers(that means you guys!) for tips on how to set this up right! and on the autoflowers i bought, i read a lot of reviews between here and rollitup about the auto ak47 and theyre one of the heaviest yeilding auto's with good smoke to boot. plus ive got two non auto fem seeds for free with my order (rocklock and lemon skunk) im only lookin to get half an ounce to an ounce per plant i suppose but 1st try will be my guinea pig grow to get all my shit dialed in. i got my cab and cleaned my closet out some, but i dont wanna take all my clothes out or itll look kinda suspicious you know.. and i appreciate you guys with all the suggestions on making my own remote ballast and cooltubes and shit but honestly im not too comfy workin with electrical shit on my own with no experience and putting it in a closet lol. id kinda rather buy one so i know its put together right. maybe when i learn some more ill try it on the next box but i wanna get mine up and running within the next few weeks....

 

[Rambro]

heres my closet and the box i bought today.

 

[diamondmine]

Question- Thinking about mounting a 150hps flood light from econo.com but I don't want to remote ballast it, I was thinking instead mount the front of the light flush with the top of the cab so that the whole light unit wound be sticking out the top. Also I would leave the glass in place so basically I wouldn't be taking anything apart. Would this be a "cooler" option since the whole light itself would be sticking out the top of the cab and heat would escape out the top also? Do you get what I mean by mounting it flush because I haven't seen anyone do this?

 

[~pHaNtOm~]

heres my closet and the box i bought today.

a dr40 or even a dr60 would have fit nice in that closet spot. goodluck and keep us posted

 

[Rambro]

a dr40 or even a dr60 would have fit nice in that closet spot. goodluck and keep us posted

yea i know but then itd be kinda suspicious to see a big ass tent in my closet. i think if anyone was to see this cabinet itd just look like a regular ole shoe cabinet you know?

also, besides it being 180$ can anyone let me know if this is a good light or not? http://www.hidhut.com/catalog/150w-...ulb-and-glass-tube-reflector-combo-p-409.html

i know its expensive but really 180$ isnt much to me if its a good light that wont overheat my box. from my research on here its got everything possible to make it stay cool (cool tube, remote ballast, digital ballast) an ounce of dank here is usually at least 500$ thats if i can even find it. so im willing to invest a little money into this box if it means ill have my own dank in a few months and does that cooltube on it need anything more to be effective? i always see people with duct and fans hooked up to the cooltube, will this light need that?

 

[Rambro]

another quick question, do you guys think id need a carbon filter or would it kill the scent from 1 or 2 plants if i sat an ONA gel bucket near my exhaust?

 

[hazy]

On lights...there won't be a stitch of difference in lights unless you chose a ballast enclosed unit. There are no cool running lights. You have to cool them.

Excellent post hd.

I keep thinking about this 205 watt led in my closet, thinking it may not be what the big grower needs, but sure may be what some small cab and box growers need. This light needs no venting, it does not get hot, and as can be seen in my thread ain't doing to shabby for yield. And this is just my first run, next time I'm planning on a lot more from it. thinking a sog might do it justice.
Anyway, since it doesn't put out much warmth, you can feel a little warmth when you hold the back of your hand close and that's mostly from the IR not the leds. So I think if you had this in a cab with no other heat source(mine's got a 400 nearby, so i still have to vent) then you could put a fan and carbon scrubber at the top by or above the light and have it blowing down so you could bring warmth from the top down to the plants, that you would not need any outside venting. Of course you need fresh air for the co2 and could just blow right into the room it's in and back in through a passive intake. But you would not need or want any extra cooling such as a nearby window ac, and you'd have no hot exhaust blowing into your room.
Just a thought for you small cab guys. 'Course these things ain't cheap, but you might realize enough savings from other things to make it worth it. The jury's still out on leds and the numbers from my grow aren't in yet, but my led buds are denser though a bit smaller and I can tell by looking/estimating the weight they're going to do pretty good.

I guess my point is about the dynamics of venting and cooling are turned on their heads can get real easy with these lights in the right circumstance. There is no heat. My only experience is with the 205 watt HydroGrowLED from LEDgirl, so I am leery of any others because of so much bs about them.

 

[grumblez]

^^ what Hazy said!

I have been following every LED grow journal up in here and Hazy has an awesome point...LEDs are there for micro grows, just make sure to buy a nice fixture or you will be let down. 25 dollar square panels may work for veg, but will not bring nice fat flowers. You need to spend the coin for a 90W on up fixture...

On LEDs in general, beware of the HPS comparisons. 90W LED is NOT as good as a 400W HPS. Now the 205W light is more like it...some even say the LED grown herb is more potent...

Hazy's write up has some of the best photographic evidence I have seen regarding the capabilities of LED fixtures. It actually made me start watching online auction prices...again...for larger fixtures.

I would do LED in a heartbeat for any cabinet grow. Any fan would be simply to remove smell...but there are other options there...it would simplify overall system requirements which allows for better stealth and less fuss in general.

 

[Pipedream]

Bro' If your planning on keeping your clothes in that closet while the box is in operation, you'll likely need a well-designed and operating carbon filter. If not, you'll wreek from pot where ever you go. And you don't need to advertise that!

 

[AcroPhobic]

Question- Thinking about mounting a 150hps flood light from econo.com but I don't want to remote ballast it, I was thinking instead mount the front of the light flush with the top of the cab so that the whole light unit wound be sticking out the top. Also I would leave the glass in place so basically I wouldn't be taking anything apart. Would this be a "cooler" option since the whole light itself would be sticking out the top of the cab and heat would escape out the top also? Do you get what I mean by mounting it flush because I haven't seen anyone do this?

I know what you speak of as I've seen it done. Yes having the "unit" sticking outside top of grow ceiling would let heat from ballast escape and if you use the glass shield you can put plants close to light source. You are still going to need ventilation -- intake+exhaust.

 

[AcroPhobic]

i know its expensive but really 180$ isnt much to me if its a good light that wont overheat my box. from my research on here its got everything possible to make it stay cool (cool tube, remote ballast, digital ballast) an ounce of dank here is usually at least 500$ thats if i can even find it. so im willing to invest a little money into this box if it means ill have my own dank in a few months and does that cooltube on it need anything more to be effective? i always see people with duct and fans hooked up to the cooltube, will this light need that?

You need to invest time into planning first. a 150 gets hot with no ventilation, your closet and room will STINK of weed in 12/12 without exhaust into carbon scrubber or ventilation for that matter.

Re-read our advise to you, seriously if you want to make this work, do it right the first time or your just setting yourself up for failure. By all means buy that light if YOU want. Your gonna need ducting and a inline fan to exhaust the HEAT from the BULB in the COOLTUBE through the CARBON SCRUBBER. READ and UNDERSTAND hoosierdaddys air-flow link in his sig!

 

[AcroPhobic]

buzzed with bud pics

buzzed with bud pics

Done with outdoor plot prep and vegetable garden and njoying some ice cold sweet tea and a bowl of my latest harvest. Nice n sunny out today. I wish I was 18 again, this outdoor prep work puts a hurtin on ya the older ya get. haha Nice thing about this smoke is no couchlock so enjoying the rest of this nice day outside is a no brainer. This stuff smells like skunky grapejuice with a peppermint undertone and is the most potent of the three plants. Hits are heavy and make me cough a bit. Tastes like it smells basically. High comes on strong and is all head with a tad of lsd-trippiness to it and has a good balance of body buzz to compliment it, but that's just the amber trics letting me know whats up!