Please Help Me Learn About Lights (Watts) Vs. Lumens

[michigankris]

OK everyone - I'm a bit confused (yeah....what's new right?) about the importance of the difference of the wattage of my lights vs. the lumens that they give off.

 

For example: Is it better to have a 1000 watt HPS bulb system or a 600 watt HPS bulb system for flowering. I've heard it both ways.....only get 1000 watt cause you can put more plants under it (been told up to 10) but others say get the 600 watt - that can get closer to the plants due to lack of excessive heat that the 1000 watt put out) PLUS they pull less electric for the same results. I have been told to put only 6 plants under the 600 watt bulb. I've also been told that some 600 bulbs throw close to the same amount of lumens that a 1000 watt bulb does. If that is the case....why would I want to add the extra heat to my grow room and extra $$$$ on my electric bill??

 

Let's say - that money is not an issue (of course it is but let's just pretend it's not...as far as equipment goes but let's watch the electric bill issue). Equipment expense is a one time investment that will pay for itself over time by providing me the meds that I won't have to go and buy elsewhere.

 

What I do know about things like this is that EVERYONE should and will probably have a different opinion about this. I look forward to hearing all of them! Thanks in advance for caring enough to respond. I appreciate it as I'm just learning to grow.

 

All this lumens vs. watts thing has my head a spinnin'

[Bisharoo]

Well, there are many who have the information we seek. I also ask those to share their knowledge in this area with us if they will.

Thanks, friends!

[AbsoluteRoyal]

OK everyone - I'm a bit confused (yeah....what's new right?) about the importance of the difference of the wattage of my lights vs. the lumens that they give off.

 

For example: Is it better to have a 1000 watt HPS bulb system or a 600 watt HPS bulb system for flowering. I've heard it both ways.....only get 1000 watt cause you can put more plants under it (been told up to 10) but others say get the 600 watt - that can get closer to the plants due to lack of excessive heat that the 1000 watt put out) PLUS they pull less electric for the same results. I have been told to put only 6 plants under the 600 watt bulb. I've also been told that some 600 bulbs throw close to the same amount of lumens that a 1000 watt bulb does. If that is the case....why would I want to add the extra heat to my grow room and extra $$$$ on my electric bill??

 

Let's say - that money is not an issue (of course it is but let's just pretend it's not...as far as equipment goes but let's watch the electric bill issue). Equipment expense is a one time investment that will pay for itself over time by providing me the meds that I won't have to go and buy elsewhere.

 

What I do know about things like this is that EVERYONE should and will probably have a different opinion about this. I look forward to hearing all of them! Thanks in advance for caring enough to respond. I appreciate it as I'm just learning to grow.

 

All this lumens vs. watts thing has my head a spinnin'

 

I can answer a few questions, Lumens is a measurement based on what the human eye can see. So to the plants the number of Lumens isnt exactly paramount. I dont think lumens should ever really be the selling point in a bulb.

 

a 1000W will produce bigger tighter buds than a 600W period. buy a 6" high velocity fan and an air cooled hood to suck the hot air away from the bulb. If your running in a decent sized room an air cooled 1000W isnt going to be a problem really. Now if your in a 4x4 Tent or something I would say just go with 600W because less light is better then heat stress.

 

Also try not get into the "10 plants per 1000W" thing, ya these numbers are an ok benchmark but I know people who use a 1000W per 2 plants and grow trees, try to match up how many sq ft. the mature plants(need to guess on finishing size if you havnt grown the strain before) plan to occupy then divide that by the total coverage of the light ie. 3x3, 4x4, 5x5

[thanks2]

A digilux 600W bulb produces 95,000 lumens with a good light spectrum. A didilux 1000W bulb produces 155,000 lumens with a good light spectrum. Since the 1000W has to be further from the plants, it covers a little larger area. The 600W runs a little more efficient and produce a lot less heat. The 1000W gives better light penetration, so the lower part of the plant can get more light with large plants. Professional green houses usually use 600W lights.

 

The ideal set up would be to use 2 600W lights instead of 1 1000W light. This will give you the most light and number of plants for the electricity and the least heat. Two 600W lights will give you the highest gram per watt yield. One 1000W light gives you the most bang for the buck on initial set up cost.

[+RevThad]

A digilux 600W bulb produces 95,000 lumens with a good light spectrum. A didilux 1000W bulb produces 155,000 lumens with a good light spectrum. Since the 1000W has to be further from the plants, it covers a little larger area. The 600W runs a little more efficient and produce a lot less heat. The 1000W gives better light penetration, so the lower part of the plant can get more light with large plants. Professional green houses usually use 600W lights.

 

The ideal set up would be to use 2 600W lights instead of 1 1000W light. This will give you the most light and number of plants for the electricity and the least heat. Two 600W lights will give you the highest gram per watt yield. One 1000W light gives you the most bang for the buck on initial set up cost.

Just to add to this, for every foot away you get from the light the lumens (intensity of light) is cut in half.

[THC-Farmer]

Lumens are for Humans.

 

Lumens is a measurement of light based on what Humans see with our eyes. It has no relation to the light that plants use.

 

More light is always better. But it's not more lumens that you want. You want more photo active radiation. You want full-spectrum lighting all the time.

 

http://michiganmedic...rmers-secret-1/

 

Best of luck to you!

[THC-Farmer]

Just to add to this, for every foot away you get from the light the lumens (intensity of light) is cut in half.

 

Just thought I'd clarify a very common misconception here.

 

Lumens is not the "intensity of the light".

 

Lumens is a measurement of light based on what Humans see with our eyes. It has no relation to the light that plants use at all.

[+RevThad]

Just thought I'd clarify a very common misconception here.

 

Lumens is not the "intensity of the light".

 

Lumens is a measurement of light based on what Humans see with our eyes. It has no relation to the light that plants use at all.

Hehe thanks for clearing up my generalization.

[+420Atheist]

I think what some are eluding to is that Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density or PPFD is a better number to use than lumens. However PPFD is a measurement of usable light by a plant for photosynthesis per square meter over a period of time (normally a second or a day.) What the PPFD measurement is missing is efficiency of coverage. That is why PPFD is normally used to measure sun light outside. Outsides the efficiency of light is the same on this square meter of land as it is on the square meter of land 100 meters away.

 

A high PPFD alone does not mean that lamp will grow as much plant material as a lamp with a lower value, because the lower value lamp may cover a larger area. So to make a real decision you have to look at both lumens and PPFD. But there are even other factors as has been mentioned like distance from plants, ventilation, and how well your hood reflects the light in the right direction.

 

Look at square foot coverage of a light and not number of plants. I don't have enough experience to give a anecdotal recommendation but from my research the 600 watt is the way I will go with my next light.

[Grow Thread]

IMO if you are growing many plants with thousands of watts, the 600's would be the way to go. but only when it is a more "commercial style" setup, and the $ savings are huge on the electric bill every month...... basically if you are growing max plants for a max number of patients you may wish to consider the 600watt lamps. "most" caregivers who are growing max/max are not growing trees, but instead use a sea of green method.

 

for a "smaller" grower, use the 1000's. you will be pleased with the penetration.

 

so many people concentrate on coverage and square footage, which is good and necessary......but a lot can be said for how far down that main stem the light is really getting. obviously this may have to do with your growing preference. if you grow in a SOG and your plants never get more than a couple feet tall, then you wont care about penetration. but if you grow trees that are 5-7 feet tall it becomes an issue.

[urminutegot]

IMO if you are growing many plants with thousands of watts, the 600's would be the way to go. but only when it is a more "commercial style" setup, and the $ savings are huge on the electric bill every month...... basically if you are growing max plants for a max number of patients you may wish to consider the 600watt lamps. "most" caregivers who are growing max/max are not growing trees, but instead use a sea of green method.

 

for a "smaller" grower, use the 1000's. you will be pleased with the penetration.

 

so many people concentrate on coverage and square footage, which is good and necessary......but a lot can be said for how far down that main stem the light is really getting. obviously this may have to do with your growing preference. if you grow in a SOG and your plants never get more than a couple feet tall, then you wont care about penetration. but if you grow trees that are 5-7 feet tall it becomes an issue.

 

Very nice topic. I was just logging in to ask these types of questions. So, let's say I was looking to do 24 plants in flowering. What would be the number/type of lights you would suggest. The size of the room is not a factor, nor is ceiling height. I am not going to do the SOG method for this reason. Thinking that the plants finishing between 4' and 6' tall would be ideal.

[herb green]

600 watt HPS is considered the most efficent bulb available

 

Agro Sun bulb w/ Lumatek Ballast Hydrofarm Radiant AC reflector

 

This in a 600 HPS will get it done....

 

How many for 24 plants ? between 4-6

 

Or you could put a light on each one and put them in 18 gallon bins!

 

You can do whatever but the digital ballasts are better off w/ bulbs designed for them

 

Agro Sun is built for digital, lumatek bulbs, sun pluse, also good for lumatek ballasts

 

http://www.4hydro.com/lighting/agrosun600red.asp

 

That's a good place to get things they give 15% off to card holders free ship over 250$

 

call em....ask them some questions!

 

You may as well match the bulb to digital,or magnetic to standard bulb (hortilux)And match brand ballast to brand reflector so the cordsets match...and get a 600 watt...unless you are a master with heat control

 

Forget about Lumens...get a good bulb, ballast and reflector...And control the heat!

 

Ventilation 101

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=112862

[urminutegot]

600 watt HPS is considered the most efficent bulb available

 

Agro Sun bulb w/ Lumatek Ballast Hydrofarm Radiant AC reflector

 

This in a 600 HPS will get it done....

 

How many for 24 plants ? between 4-6

 

Or you could put a light on each one and put them in 18 gallon bins!

 

You can do whatever but the digital ballasts are better off w/ bulbs designed for them

 

Agro Sun is built for digital, lumatek bulbs, sun pluse, also good for lumatek ballasts

 

http://www.4hydro.com/lighting/agrosun600red.asp

 

That's a good place to get things they give 15% off to card holders free ship over 250$

 

call em....ask them some questions!

 

You may as well match the bulb to digital,or magnetic to standard bulb (hortilux)And match brand ballast to brand reflector so the cordsets match...and get a 600 watt...unless you are a master with heat control

 

Forget about Lumens...get a good bulb, ballast and reflector...And control the heat!

 

Ventilation 101

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=112862

Very nice , Herb. thanks for the information. I am thinking of using adjust a wing reflectors since the room I might use is so big and climate controlled. THe heat won't be an issue. Air in room will be exchanged every 5 minutes. Air conditioned in the summer and heat in the winter.

 

WOuld it still be wise to buy vented reflectors?

[kruztydj]

I just stick to 1kers.

[affordablemimeds]

The ideal set up would be to use 2 600W lights instead of 1 1000W light. This will give you the most light and number of plants for the electricity and the least heat. Two 600W lights will give you the highest gram per watt yield. One 1000W light gives you the most bang for the buck on initial set up cost.

 

 

 

Well you can't compare 2 light sources to 1. Buy the 1000's went from 600 to 1000. Major differance in light penatration and bud SIZE.. Also try the agrosun red bulbs. I use 2 1000 in a 8 x 12 x 10 room. no vents on light, (I am only 16 inches above canopy also) no air cond. all summer again. And the hoods are very important. Sun Systems XXXL work very well. It covers a 6 x 6 area very nicely. I keep 16 plants under each light. And as I recently figured out I am getting more than 1 gram per watt of light.

 

 

This is the room ready to go, looks sorta differant today.

[Grow Thread]

So, let's say I was looking to do 24 plants in flowering. What would be the number/type of lights you would suggest. Thinking that the plants finishing between 4' and 6' tall would be ideal.

 

of course it still depends on strain. a bushy 6 foot tall plant, and a spindly/lanky 6 foot tall plant are 2 completely different animals when it comes to space usage

 

i can SQUEEZE 6 of these under a 1000 watt lamp and get 4-6 ounces each. i never go over a 6x6 footprint for a 1000 watt lamp. i actually try to keep it 5x5, but with 6 monsters, they tend to take up just a tad more

 

 

but on the other hand, i have a third dimension strain that doesnt bush out at all. it just grows straight up 6 foot. i can fit 15-18 of them under a 1000watt lamp and get 1.5 - 2 ounces each.

 

if i was using 600's i could only fit 2 of those monsters in the picture under one lamp. that means i would need THREE 600's to do the job of just one 1000 in my particular set-up with this particular strain.

 

24 plants in flower? either 2 or 3 1000 watt lamps. depending on how bushy you want to get. i'd get 3 to be safe.

[urminutegot]

of course it still depends on strain. a bushy 6 foot tall plant, and a spindly/lanky 6 foot tall plant are 2 completely different animals when it comes to space usage

 

i can SQUEEZE 6 of these under a 1000 watt lamp and get 4-6 ounces each. i never go over a 6x6 footprint for a 1000 watt lamp. i actually try to keep it 5x5, but with 6 monsters, they tend to take up just a tad more

 

 

but on the other hand, i have a third dimension strain that doesnt bush out at all. it just grows straight up 6 foot. i can fit 15-18 of them under a 1000watt lamp and get 1.5 - 2 ounces each.

 

if i was using 600's i could only fit 2 of those monsters in the picture under one lamp. that means i would need THREE 600's to do the job of just one 1000 in my particular set-up with this particular strain.

 

24 plants in flower? either 2 or 3 1000 watt lamps. depending on how bushy you want to get. i'd get 3 to be safe.

I was thinking 4 bubble. But I am glad to hear that 2 or 3 will work. I think I will error on the side of caution and go with 3 1000k.

[Grow Thread]

the strain in the pic is definitely a faster/larger than a "normal" strain.........