AndyBotwin
Weed Whisperer
auto, here's how to figure out your power bill. Multiply the wattage of your lights by the number of hours per day and divide by 1000. So I have a 400w light running 20 hours daily:
400 * 20 = 8000 / 1000 = 8 kWh per day. Now look on your power bill or electric company website and determine how much they charge per kWh. There may be lower or higher rates depending on what time of day the power is being used. For me the cost is around 9¢ per kWh making my daily lighting cost 72¢. Multiply that times 30 days in a month and I've added $21 to my power bill. Of course this doesn't include all the fans and other electrical items associated with your grow.
I am running a 400w HPS in a air-cooled hood and it barely raises the temperature in my 4'x2' tent. Granted I have 6" ducting and a 400cfm inline fan cooling it, so the hot air gets whisked out pretty quickly. It's definitely doable as long as you have a way to get cool air to your bulb and get the warm air out of the grow space. Apart from the light and hood, my tent also has a carbon filter and 200cfm fan for normal ventilation and odor control. Like Trapper said, LED may be a good option for you as well since it doesn't generate too much heat. I do not have one yet due to cost and the fact that my grow space is only 6' tall. You need some decent height when you run LEDs or you run the risk of bleaching the plants.
400 * 20 = 8000 / 1000 = 8 kWh per day. Now look on your power bill or electric company website and determine how much they charge per kWh. There may be lower or higher rates depending on what time of day the power is being used. For me the cost is around 9¢ per kWh making my daily lighting cost 72¢. Multiply that times 30 days in a month and I've added $21 to my power bill. Of course this doesn't include all the fans and other electrical items associated with your grow.
I am running a 400w HPS in a air-cooled hood and it barely raises the temperature in my 4'x2' tent. Granted I have 6" ducting and a 400cfm inline fan cooling it, so the hot air gets whisked out pretty quickly. It's definitely doable as long as you have a way to get cool air to your bulb and get the warm air out of the grow space. Apart from the light and hood, my tent also has a carbon filter and 200cfm fan for normal ventilation and odor control. Like Trapper said, LED may be a good option for you as well since it doesn't generate too much heat. I do not have one yet due to cost and the fact that my grow space is only 6' tall. You need some decent height when you run LEDs or you run the risk of bleaching the plants.
