How to set up a 600w HPS Grow Light System

Posted by Jakub Czaja

On 03/03/2022

HPS grow lights are brilliant for beginners and the seasoned grower. With HPS lights you can reach really high light intensities, whilst also using one dual-spectrum lamp that is ideal for vegetative growth and flowering.

Each 600 Watt grow light system is made up of 3 parts:

600 Watt Grow Lamp

600 Watt Grow Light Ballast (ideally a dimmable or digital ballast)

Grow Light Reflector.

Keep in mind, that the wattage of your HPS light’s ballast and lamp need to match. Even if you have a dimmable ballast, you must not use it with a lower wattage lamp – this may cause fire.

To get the best from your 600 Watt HPS grow Lights:

Use a Grow Light Timer and Contactor:

Use a timer to automate on/off times – most people run their HPS grow lights for 18 hours in vegetative growth, and 12 hours in flowering.

If using a grow light timer, you must use a contactor to protect your timer – you can get 2-in-1 grow light timer contactor boards.

Never try to dim your grow light ballast whilst it’s on:

Some ballast won’t let you dim the setting unless you switch them off to do it. Instead, we recommend that you switch your HPS grow light systems off, then dim your ballasts. When you turn your lights back on again, soft start technology gradually brings your grow lamps to the selected power setting.

Use gloves when handling grow lights

Oils on your hands can cause lamp degradation when handling lamps with no gloves on.

Position ballasts outside your tent

Ballasts do emit some heat which can warm the air in your grow tent.

Get your HPS grow light hanging Height right

The exact height of your 600w grow light depends on lots of factors:

Your reflector footprint
The number of lights
Your tent size and shape
The plants your growing

However, as a rule of thumb, you want to hang your 600w grow light systems at a height where you leave a safe enough gap between your lights and canopy. For a 600w HPS grow light kit, the gap should be: