Did I pay to much $

[Smoke4Life]

I went to my local hydro store yesterday to get my first light for my soon to be grow room... here is what I got.

1 Sun System super sun reflector



1 Sun System Galaxy electronic ballast



1 Ultra Sun 600w HPS Bulb
1 SunMaster 600w MH Conversion Bulb



I got all of this for $533 including tax... My question is did I pay to much and is this good equipment?

[Be IRIE]

Well, I have the same thing but lumatek and I paid over 200.00 less then you did.. Hydro stores are expensive, look at all that overhead that have to make up for...

I checked out the hydro store that I use and they wanted 250.00 for just my ballast. No worries, you are helping your local merchant and you will forget what you paid for it when you are harvesting some medicine....

[IronLionZion]

You spent a lot but not too much. You got it locally and thats what matters :)

[Smoke4Life]

I don't mind supporting my local store but now my grow room will have to wait becouse I'm short on money for my filter-fan setup. But I'm going to do this right and get everything I need and have it all setup before I get started so I'm on no time frame. Hopefully sometime in the next month or two I'll have my grow journal started

[Smokeyjoe]

I agree you supported a local store, that's a good thing.Did you pay to much?, no I payed 440+ tax for my light, bulb was like 110. Also remember the filter wont be needed till flowering you can get away with just a fan till then imo

[Racefan]

Dump the conversion bulb. You don't need it. Any difference it might make would be so little that I doubt you would be able to tell the difference. Most of us old timers use HPS all the way through. Except one guy i know...he thinks HPS's are only good for door stops and that MH are the better bulb so he uses them all the way through. lol That might help you get your filter faster. And by the way...I've had vegging plants smell just as much as any flowering plant.lol Strain plays a huge part in odors.

[Smoke4Life]

Good idea Racefan... Think I will do that and if I decide to get the conversion bulb later that will save me some money for now but I always thought everyone uses MH bulds for veg.

[TorturedSoul]

Originally Posted by Racefan

Dump the conversion bulb. You don't need it. Any difference it might make would be so little that I doubt you would be able to tell the difference. Most of us old timers use HPS all the way through. Except one guy i know...he thinks HPS's are only good for door stops and that MH are the better bulb so he uses them all the way through. lol That might help you get your filter faster. And by the way...I've had vegging plants smell just as much as any flowering plant.lol Strain plays a huge part in odors.

Just my opinion, but if that HPS bulb does not include some of the color spectrums that are beneficial in vegetative growth (like say a Son Agro or Planta T) then I cannot totally discount the benefit of MH lighting.

But I have looked at prices for MH coversion bulbs sold from hydroponics retailers and I have to wonder how much the OP paid just for that bulb and if it would be enough to purchase a small MH setup from a vendor that is in the lighting business. If so, the OP could then use it as a supplement to his/her HPS instead of being faced with having to use one or the other.

A MH in the range of 250 watts (or even 175 watts) would make an excellent supplement to the 600 watt HPS and give noticeable results.

Not to mention that a 250 watt MH on its own could well be adequate as a vegetative light on its own at least for early vegging. That would save 6.3 kilowatt-hours a day (if using an 18/6 schedule - 24/0 would mean higher savings) AND produce less heat which would mean additional savings if it meant less use of an air-conditioner.

BtW, I don't know how long you plan on vegging but if you with the above scenario, the savings (not counting any a/c differences) for 30 days of 18/6 with the smaller light based on an electrical rate of 13 cents/kwh would be $24.57. Doesn't sound like much but if you run four cycles a year it's almost $100.

And you could use it while your HPS was flowering the girls to keep a mother or to veg clones for your next flowering cycle (in another area).

Just something to think about.

[Be IRIE]

I get all of my nutrients and little things from my hydro store, but when it comes to things like blowers, lights and high dollar stuff, gotta hit the net..... I don't mind helping them out, but 250.00 extra for a light is a bit much...

[Smoke4Life]

Thanks for all the info guys... After thinking about it over night I decided to just keep everything I have the way it is and get the rest of my supplies A.S.A.P.

No one ever said this was a cheap hobbie right

[1qwkdsm]

Sheesh, $533 seems like an awful lot. My entire grow cost me less than $1000 and that's including drywall and insulation. The most expensive thing I bought was a $2500.00 thermal imaging camera which I promptly returned once the novelty wore off. Of course a lot of my supplies came from things around my house and job which I was able to "borrow" indefinitely
A little ingenuity goes a long way...

[mikejames]

The galaxy digi can run both MH and HPS without needing a conversion bulb, I think. Better check up on that first. Unless that is a super spectrum MH then nvm.

[miklosh]

In the begining I used hps for all stages,nowI do most my veg under flourecent in a6x5 veg. room, I replaced the 2x2 window with a 3x5 one and installed vinyl blinds for light control and privecy.just switched to t8 bulbs,works real nice for med.speed veg6-8weeks,for speedying things up I use a 4x8 space with a 1kw hps.Normally I don',t need the speedroom the power of the sun is more than suffice my needs.coming back from a "long visit" however can leave a person hungry for a good taste.Creigslist carry along list of good deals on grow lights and other related items.goodluck with your garden.peace.M>

[Aussiebonger]

Its not a cheap hobby, but its soooooo much fun!!!! think of this though..........
you have it now sooooo who cares what it cost.... you dont have to buy it again....
Good luck mate!

[Setting Sun]

That Galaxy ballast will run both HPS and *regular* MH bulbs just fine.

You do not need a conversion bulb to switch back and forth with an electronic ballast like that one.

If you want to veg with MH, you can just get a regular MH bulb for a lot less money than that conversion bulb.

I'm surprised your hydro store didnt know that or that they just wanted you to spend more for a conversion bulb.

regards,

SS