How Would This Closet Setup Do?

Discussion in 'Grow Room Design/Setup' started by Bar2z, Aug 1, 2014.

  1. Hey everyone, before anyone gets on me about looking at other posts I have gone through many many posts and done all the reading and am now just looking for some opinions on a few specific questions and my potential setup. I'm planning on starting my first grow relatively soon here and need it to be 100 percent stealth. I can't have my room mates know because it seems like they are not totally into the idea of a grow. I have my own room which I keep locked but I need this thing to not smell or make much noise. for when I'm not home or enter/exit my room. I have a decently big closet that could accommodate a tent that is 2 feet deep and up to 4 feet long and 5 feet 4 inches tall, however 3 feet long would be optimal. The following is the potential setup I am looking at buying. 
     
    Tent:
    Lights:
    Scrubber:
     
     
        I really like either the HTG Supply Tent or the Secret Jardin dark street wide model tents based on their high rated reviews and the fact that they are relatively inexpensive.  I have been reading that the HTG supply tents do or at least did have some sort of gassing issue which resulted in a chemical smell as well as stunting plant growth, neither of which are what I'm looking for so I'm leaning towrds the Secret Jardin even thought the HTG Supply tent would leave me more space in my closet since its only 2x3.
        I plan on trying to grow 3-4 plants using the SCROG method in dirt. I have also been contemplating a DWC grow but like the simplicity of dirt and I have heard even though it takes longer the smoke seems to be a cleaner and tastier one which I wouldn't mind the small increase in cultivation time. Would 4 plants be ok for scrog in a 2x4 or would three have a similar yield? And also I'm not trying to raise the power bill by too much I think I can get away with a 600 Watt but what would you guys think? Right now we use around 900-1400 kwh per month and I am cutting out about 100-200 watts of power (getting rid of a fish tank) so I think if I swap at the right time I may be even stealthier. Would a 400 Watt possibly be the better option based for the power bill or should I just stop worrying and get the increased yield of the 600 watt for a tent that size? I'm unsure of what 
        One of those filters, I'm leaning with the regular 6 inch, paired with their combo fan, muffler, timer, rope ratchets, fan speed controller (for noise reduction/power reduction) and 8 feet of ducting for a little over $300 isn't a bad option and I'm willing to pay for what I need to stay stealthy and work well. I'm planning on running the carbon filter to the light to the inline fan pulling through everything. Could you potentially run the carbon filter only at night and still have it be effective? I've read some people like to put the fan outside of the tent, I'm indifferent to where the fan goes but would like to hear your opinions. 
        I'd love to also hear what kind of pots you guys recommend but from what I've been reading it seams pretty subjective but seems like a lot of people like smartpots, geo pots, aero pots, or gro pots. I'm planning on just buying small plants from a dispensary and just planting them in 3 gallon pots and grow from that. I'm not sure what soil or nutrients to get yet, still have some research to do but once again recommendations on lines of products would be awesome. 
     
    If you made it through all that and have any advice for a beginner I'd greatly appreciate it!
     

     
  2. hey dude, your setup is similar to mine. 2x4 tent. same light except its an Apollo. and 4 plants. I'll try to answer as many questions as I can based on my limited experience. with that fan/light combo, you should expect at least a $25-$30 increase in your bill. this of coarse depends on how fast you have your fan running, how many hours a day you run your light, and you also have the option of dimming your light as well. If the plants smell, then you will definitely notice it when you take the filter off. My fan is pretty loud as well, when I have it at 100%, but you could always tone it down. I had to put mine outside of the tent because of space in the tent. The biggest thing you are up against it heat/ventilation. My 600w puts off some pretty good heat. I have mine venting into a crawl space which helps a lot. Are you planning on just venting into the closet or room? If so, you don't want to be pulling the same exhaust air into your tent because battling temps is a bitch. I hear smart pots are great, but I'm just using plain old plastic pots.  I also use FFOF and their ferts as well. hope this helps you out, let me know if you have any other questions and I'll try to help. Your should start a journal. Good luck.
     
  3. #3 Bar2z, Aug 1, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 1, 2014
    So I looked into the 6 inch inline fans and those things are waaay to loud for me probably. So now I'm looking into either a 400 watt HPS/MH combo with a 4 inch fan or a 315 watt ceramic metal halide setup. I've heard the CMH run realy cool and grow really well due to the spectrum they put out. I'd love to be able to use less power with the CMH but I'm not sure if I'll be happy with the yield or if the extra 300-400 bucks for one is really worth it. I've read that the bulbs last longer which would mean that the long term investment would be better but I need payback as quick as possible with this grow setup so I'm leaning towards the 400 watt HPS/MH combo. I'm planning on venting back into my room up high, my room stays at about 70 degrees I'd say.
     
  4. Not for long, lol. Seriously though, the 600w setup is only a few dollars more and you could always dim it down to 75% @450w or 50% @ 300w. And with the 6" fan you can turn that down to a whisper if you need to. Much more flexibility. Better to have too much then not enough. I was stuck with this same decision before I bought mine and figured go bigger with the option to tone it down. Plus you never know if you may need the extra power in the future...
     
  5. So getting a 6 inch fan and cranking it down to like 50% would be quite enough to have in the same room I sleep? I was thinking about getting a digital 600 watt so I could turn it down to 75% if the heat was too much. I've also considered mufflers for sound. What do you mean not for long? I don't really have any options other than venting to my room because I can't have anyone know I'm growing because my room mates aren't super stoked on the idea. Have you heard of any issues with rf interference because I can't have any traces of the grow.
     
  6. My 6 inch isn't really THAT loud. I have mine in a walk in closet that's next to my bed with no problems. Once you hook a filter and ducts to it, it quiets down a good bit. 50% would definitely be fine. "Not for long" was just kind of a joke. I live in NC where its pretty hot. I tried venting into my closet and it got hot as shit in there. I had to cut a hole in the floor to vent into the crawl space. You may not have the same problem. Just know that 600 is pretty hot without proper ventilation. If you can't vent somewhere, you could have your intake come from a cooler source like an a/c vent. all you can do is hook it up and monitor temps, and then adjust lights/fan to see what works. No RF problems here.
     
  7. Alright so I'm leaning towards building a light kit and not going with one of the cheap iPower or Apollo kits. I really like the Solis Tek 600 watt digital ballast due to its great warranty, five years I believe, and smart start technology and it allows you to use a 400 watt bulb on there so I'm thinking I could do a 400 watt MH for veg and 600 HPS for flower. Or worst case if heat is too much on a 600 I could do a 400 HPS. I'm also really liking a potential 400 watt CMH still but I'm not into magnetic ballasts. Also I'm not sure what size filter I may need, in you're opinion do you think a 4 inch filter would work or would it just be worth it to buy a 6 inch so that I can just pipe it straight into a 6 inch cool tube. Sorry for all the questions, just want to be confident in my purchases, and thanks for all the help so far!
     
  8.  
    Get the solis tek 1,000 it will run all the lamps (400,600,1000)and will be worth it when you go to upgrade the lighting all you have to do is buy the big bulb.
     
    I run 1,000's and love the harvest i get.
     
  9. I'll look into that one but I'll have to stick with the 600 for at least the next two years so I may go with the 600 400 model just so I can get that 400 watt boost and 600 watt boost and save a few bucks up front and if I move and get to grow bigger Ill get a 1000
     
  10. Light sounds good. As far as the fan, if the hood/tube is a 6" then definitely go with the 6" fan. You can always turn it down some if you need to, and if you ever get that 1000w it will work with that too.
     
  11. Great questions. I am a new grower and today I bought the Apollo 600w MH/ hps. I also got a 6 inch 435 cfm fan on amazon for 130. I have an 10x10x x8 tuff shed. Inside I am going to build a smaller grow box. I am wanting to scrog a Meter squared. I plan on veg at 400 and flower at 6. I will turn my lights on at night as peak hours are during the day. I got 6 deme nosed seeds. Mostly bomb seeds. I am planning two at a time. What do you guys think? I got my seeds a few days ago. I wil use fox farms ocean soil with there line of nutes? Any suggestions??
     
  12.  
    Don't plant 2 plant 4. Always want a backup.
     
  13. They are all feminized seeds and I'd like to keep some for the next cycle. Will 2 feminized seeds provide 2 plants or should u drop 3 seeds only expecting g 2 to survive.
     
  14. Like snoop said, I'd plant 4. You should expect them to all survive. You can maximize your space and electricity usage by popping all 4. If they are photo seeds then you could always make clones from one of them for your next grow. Also, I would rock that MH @ 600w for veg. Your girls will love you for it. Good luck!
     
  15. I don't have an area to veg tho. I was told if I increase by veg time I can still fill up screens. Seeds were 50 bucks from herbies so I like two grow cycles. Why is it more efficient? I can always buy more seeds next time. How long will it take 4 plants to fill a meter square?
     
  16. So I'm going to go with this Solis Tek 600w ballast http://www.growwurks.com/solis-tek-digital-ballast-600w-400w-hps-mh-dual-volt-120-240v.aspx and a 400w Hortilux Eye Super HPS for flower like this one http://www.hydrogalaxy.com/growing-lights/hid-bulbs/hortilux-super-hps-enhanced-spectrum-bulb-400w/?catargetid=120146710000017241&cadevice=c&gclid=Cj0KEQjwjZefBRDfsY28oNjbgeABEiQA8kVt3VzbmkM9YSvAzfNlqYkWY1v48NSBGBwaGpzu0VK37uUaAtHH8P8HAQ. For my first one or two grows I'll go with 400 watts and if I can manage temp and things the way I'd like to I'll upgrade to a 600 watt for flower. As for the veg bulb I'm not sure what to go with. It seems to me that  veg bulbs aren't quite as necessary to go with an expensive bulb such as hortilux because 400 watts should be plenty of light regardless. Is this a safe assumption and would anyone be willing to recommend a  veg light for me? I really like the Daystar and Radiant hoods by hydrofarm. I think they may reflect better than a cool tube and it seems like they cool lights really well. Are cool tubes more efficient when it comes to cooling though? Any thoughts on the potential hoods? I will be scrogging 3-6 plants in a 2'x3' area in the tent
     
  17. #17 tmntgrower, Sep 20, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 20, 2014
    I have the same apollo light. Seems to be working for me, however I don't really have anything to compare the light against. I like the others would plant all 4 seeds. Even if they all survive some plants are just healthier and larger than others. For the extra cash spent in seeds it's little risk to start all four and pick your best two if you decide that the four plants are to crowded. I started six plants in my first run and gave away my two runts as I only have 4x4 space for flowering. Choosing the strongest plants is always a good option as plants of same genes in same environment can have slightly different growing traits. Also just think if you only start two what happens if you over fertilize one or just get a weak plant? Growing four allows for the what if? Do you plan on cloning? If so it's another reason to start all four gives you a better chance to copy the one plant you really love.
     

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