Help! Just got first grow light! Height recommendations???

DH just unboxed it and he asked me how high to install it from the plant table. Can anyone help with this info?

We don't actually grow plants hydrophonically, but need the grow light to adjust for temps and light in our climate here.

The light is a 250watt metal halide fixture that is supposed to cover a 3' x 3' area. Yeah, I thought about just holding it up until it covers 3 square feet, but that's probably not really accurate. Plus, the fixture is pretty heavy, and we're too old to manage all that physical effort! LOL

I plan to use it for a lot of various flower and vegetable plants. It will be in an area that has little, if any, natural daylight (think garage), if that affects the answer I seek, i.e, does it need to be adjustable? If so, in what increments? (Hey, DH is an engineer, but we both forgot the math formulas!)

Here, I have to start plants early to get a jump on the intense heat and humidity, and of course the bugs, etc. that hit us during the summer months. Otherwise, they fade then, and sort of resurrect again (if I'm lucky) in October, when the weather cools. I'm still harvesting sweet peppers from last year's crop, by bringing them inside when cold, and back outside when warmer! DH doesn't really appreciate all the toting in and out!

Anyhow, those of you with experience with MH grow lights, any suggestions, or web sites, for height installation? Should it be adjustable?

Thanks so much for any info you provide!!!!

From a decrepit old FL newbie to grow lights!

set up your light.
set it at about 2 feet over the plants
put the back of your hand towards the light just above
your plants for 1 minute
if its to warm for you , its to warm for the plants.
raise the light somemore or lower it if its not to hot.

Now that sounds like using your old noodle, Sparky! Good advice, thanks!!
I was only thinking of the light factor, and not even considering the heat factor as well. I really didn't know if grow lights, especially MH, were more into providing light than heat. But they do tend to go together, don't they, even with fluorescent bulbs.

I think I even have a chart for temperature needs for various plants somewhere. Now where did I put it?????? Ah!!!!! There it is!!!

Thank you all, sooo much!!!!!

Your HPS and MH grow lights will toss out some heat, The MH will toss
out more then the HPS.

I run a 150w hps and a 400hps and you have to keep a eye on them
plants too, they love to grow right up to the light as close as they can.

I found my tomatoe plant one day laying right on the bulb ..
self killing leafs .. LOL .

you want to get the light as close to the plants as you can with out burning
them and as the plants grow you just keep raising the light up.

The MH lights are good for starting plants then when they get to flower
switch to HPS or both. the MH will keep the plant from streching and
your internodes will be closer then if you used a HPS light alone.

Thanks, Sparky!

You know, I've had plants do things that are totally NOT in their own self-interest. I call them kamikaze plants! I guess they're like animals and humans. We seem to do that too!

I chose the MH lights because I usually have the most problems getting plants started and not getting leggy. I may get the HPS later for flowering. But down here in FL, the problem is usually that, if the plants don't get an early enough start, the incredible heat and humidity send them into a "summer dormancy," I think, just to survive.

When temps cool down somewhat, plants come back to life again, but usually too late to produce flowers and fruits/veggies before frost hits.

I've still got pepper plants from last season that, in the past, have gone on to produce bushels of peppers the next year, if protected from killing freezes. I hope this will happen again this year. But I'm planting a new crop of them, just in case!!!

What im doing now when doing seedlings is as soon as they poke there heads
up i fire up the little 6 inch fans i have and let the blow across the plants to get
them to stiffin up too.

you do not need to buy expensive grow light bulbs. I have been seed starting and growing plants under flourescent bulbs I buy in 10 packs at Home Depot or other large homebuilding centers for 7 years. Have a plant/seed starting business and grow thousands of plants each year with these bulbs. The bulbs are 32 watts each,tube type, 48" long. They fit in a regular shop light fixture.