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help, need lighting info,mh and hps

18 years ago

i am getting ready to purchase lighting systems for my 30 PLUS tropical fruit trees. i am confused by the mh and hps. do i need on or the other. or do i need the switchable mh and hps systems. any feedback would be great. also do i need the 1000w systems. the area i am covering is two sections in a sunroom on the east side of home is 21 sq ft area and the other 16 sq ft. thanks to all.

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Comments (5)

rsmith8013
18 years ago
What I found to be the easiest and cheapest lighting system is buying a workers' halogen lamp, the kind they use for working at night on the highway. I bought it at Lowes for $40 a few years ago. My trees LOVE it. It has 2 lights- each is 500Watts. I use it from Nov to April. It covers a lot of space. It should work for your sunroom. It only costs about $5 extra dollars a month in electricity.
siliconmage
18 years ago
As, I understand it, since I'm researching this topic at present. I'll probably purchase something this week. HPS for Blossoms, Flowers & Fruit. MH for basic all round plant growth. There are some MH bulbs that have a red spectrum included and HPS has some with a blue spectrum included. 1000 watt in a horizantal reflector should cover something along the line of a 5' X 7' area. If you are doing 2 seperate sections look at light movers as well.
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I think a new reflector will prove to make a marginal difference to solve the problem, but a good idea nonetheless. You could use an indoor, covered greenhouse such as Hydro-Hut or you could build something similar using various enclosed items such as an armoire or portable, covered greenhouse. Friends of mine framed-off an area in their basement in which to keep their garden so as to contain the light and to control the other environmental factors. A word of warning: any time you start containing plants and lights in an enclosed area you will have to monitor and possibly dissipate heat and/or humidity. Good luck.
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Does it have a light sensor maybe that is somehow being triggered, or not? At such a low wattage, the cord gauge shouldn't really matter, within reason, as long as the connections are tight. Even a very thin 18gauge cord would be enough, though I doubt I'd personally use something that thin. I've never used a low wattage HPS but my 400W doesn't turn on/off/on like that - it starts low and builds up to full brightness, but never appears to go off once the power is on. Lastly make sure the bulb is firmly seated in the socket, but don't tighten it too tight - you should be able to remove it easily.
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Patty_in_Wisc
18 years ago
Hope you look at my post "new sunroom lighting". Maybe you'll get some ideas ?
siliconmage
18 years ago
My project is not as ambitious. I'm going the route of small corner space in the basement (no natural light). I'll mount a MH 1000 watt HID lamp kit, and a decent humidifier.
doomedjest
18 years ago
I pretty much did something similar, In our basement the water heater and the heater are in the same small room. I fit in all of my citrus plants and then drapped a sheet over the doorway to keep the heat in the room. I have a 200W MH lamp above the trees, and then a fan in the room all turned on by a timer. It worked out pretty well last year and i figured i would go with the same setup this year, i only added the fan, and am thinking of adding a humidifier. My Key lime bloomed all winter in this setup.
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