MH w/ a HPS ballast

[dub 6]

im not too keen on the "electronics" but i got an extra one of these...

http://htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=47929

and i was wondering what would happen if i put a MH bulb in it for veggin?
whats the difference in ballasts?

 

[Charlie_Citrine]

They aren't rated for MH...get yourself a switchable ballast if you want, or an HPS with a more "even" spectrum (if they make those, I don't know firsthand, sorry).

You can, of course, go start to finish with an HPS, vegging to flower, if you can only afford one.

 

[pinecone]

get yourself a switchable ballast if you want, or an HPS with a more "even" spectrum (

You can also run a Ceramic Metal Halide (CMH) in a HPS ballast (see the sticky). CMH bulbs have a more even sprectrum than HPS bulbs.

Pinecone

 

[Oldmac]

Pinecone has the best solution for you, CMH.

The other option is to buy a MH conversion bulb for your hps ballast.

 

[Philosophelon]

All magnetic HPS ballasts are switchable, most just don't have switches. You can just disconnect the ignitor, switch the capacitor if necessary, and then you'll have a MH ballast. The only difference between an HPS ballast and a MH ballast is that MH ballasts don't have an ignitor (they also have many different kinds of capacitors). Also, if you ever want to change it back to HPS, just re-connect the ignitor wires, and switch back capacitors if necessary. I did it with some old HPS ballasts I wanted to use in veg, and it works just fine.

That being said, I'm going to rewire some of them back to HPS and test a few CMH bulbs. I've been impressed with what I've been reading about CMH, and I think the extra red light will be very beneficial for seedlings/clones/early veg.