D3N,
Right, first I’ll explain what I meant. And then I’ll explain what I think YOU should do.
First up, the 50 to 80W per square feet.
50W to 80W is the optimal amount of light (IMHO) you need per square foot of growing space in order to get good healthy plants and plenty of yield. Wattage is obviously what most light strengths are measured in though technically what we want is to maximise the amount of lumens per square foot, however since different bulbs of the same wattage and type will differ slightly in their output of lumens. Because of this I’m going to work in watts. Ok?
Right.
So, let’s say you have a 4’ (W) x 4’ (D) space in which you are growing. This has a square footage of 16’. At 50W per square for you’re going to want around 800W. Best to get a k to be sure.
Be aware that although the space height is not taken account of here as you will move the lights up as the plants grow taller (fuck chains buy seatbelt style rollers).
The next bit is a “shot in the dark” yield estimate.
It is virtually impossible to predict yield from a crop unless you have grown from stable clones whose mothers have been used before in an environment that you also know intimately. Even then it is hard.
This is mostly due to the massive amount of variables that can be taken into account.
A good rule of thumb though is that new growers should aim to get 0.5 grams of dried product weight for every 1W of lighting in that setup. So in the case above of the 4 x 4 x ? grow with the 1000 w light a ballpark yield figure for a new grower using the space reasonably well will get around 500g (almost 18 oz). This of course assumes the plants survive, the space is fully used (not just 1 measly 3 ft plant in a 4 x 4 x ? space) and there are no glaring errors.
You could fill that space with 6 nice supercropped plants and pull 2-3 oz per plant with no problems, 4oz with a little knowledge and 5+ after a few seasons.
Alternatively grow a much larger number of clones, and flower them small though in many cases this is unwise as many growers like to keep under a certain amount of plants to comply with medicinal marijuana laws. It does of course have the benefit of a quicker turn around time – after the initial selection of a mother or two is done.
((Note, cloning is just taking a cutting from an existing plant and forcing it to grow it’s own roots. This has the advantage of being an exact match genetically to it’s mother (the plant you took the cutting from), this in turn means it will have the same growth traits and most importantly the right gender! It also has the advantage that the cutting is genetically the same age as it’s mother so they can be ready for flowering in very little time if you want to flower a lot of plants when they are small and hence get a quick turnaround)).
The next bit was about the temperatures in the grow room. Just keep this between 80 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit when the lights are on (the plants “day”) and you’ll be fine. If the plant gets a dark period (see below) the temperature optimally should drop 10 - 15 degrees.
If you add CO2 to your grow (Carbon Dioxide is what the plant “breathes” if you like) the temperature range is a bit higher. This is to enable the plants to transpirate (breath) quicker and hence take advantage of the added CO2. But like I said forget that for a first grow.
Now, here’s what I think you do.
Firstly I think you should go read the
Overgrow Growfaq as a whole load of what I have just explained is contained within it.
It might also be worth buying a cannabis cultivation book (though the internet is negating the need for these) such as one written by Ed Rosenthal.
Once I’d done this I would feel I know a little more and can start to think about my setup.
I would then plan and design this setup, price it up, check it’s all going to work right.
Then.
I would build myself a grow space of about 4’(w) x 3’(d) x 8’(h) (slightly smaller than above to allow for a smaller light), get a 600W light and start a small organic grow.
I recommend a 600 because initially it will allow you to grow enough to learn the score (whilst still providing yourself with an adequate amount of top quality, percy smoke) but also be upgradeable for the future. IMHO 600’s are more efficient than 1000 in that they produce more lumens per watt in most cases anyhow but also allow you to use say 5 x 600W lamps instead of 3 x 1000W giving you the same overall wattage but a far more consistant coverage of lights. Add the greater number of lights together with the ability to use rails to move your lights (or spin them) then you can really start to make use of the better coverage the 600’s will provide.
The growspace can be built easily in a large wardrobe or hand built as a new corner to your room (like a wooden shower cubicle, lol). Alternatively you can shrink a larger area by hanging mylar as adjustable walls. If growing in a structure this should be painted bright white (you could go for Mylar but if you can paint a surface it is much easier and less hassle to do so for an almost immeasurably small loss, cheaper too) and be well ventilated (as we spoke about above). DON’T SKIMP ON FANS AND VENTILATION. So many new growers spend ridiculous costing lights and skimp on fans which at a later date burn out unexpectedly and leave your whole crop sweltering in the heat.
It’s worth thinking a little about small things too like the lights ballast before you grow. Try to get a remote ballast with a decent length of cord (or build your own) as this will allow you to separate this from the grow space (less heat, less electricity near water etc.).
Obviously the design of your room is entirely dependant on location but…
…you’re a carpenter so I’m expecting class A room design here bwoy!
As a final point, before you switch on your glorious new flowering and vegging chamber I would think about installing a smoke and heat alarm just outside your space.
It’s also worth building yourself a smaller clone/seedling box. This can be made out of any smallish container. Ventilated with PC fans and lit with flouro’s (strips preferable IMHO but CF is fine). Add an adjustable heat blanket to the bottom of this and you have a lovely propagator and grower for you babies before they are big enough to go into your room.
As for cost, 1k on for 18 hours a day during the plants veg stage and 12 for the flowering stage shouldn’t come in at more than 20 or 30 dollars every quarter year. But I’m not from the States so that is a complete guess!!!!
Anyway.
“I’m beat. My feet hurt. And that bitch is slippin.”
I'm bound to have missed something.
GO AND READ THE OVERGROW FAQ.
Peace and good luck.
Keep us updated.