Hi, Just joined this forum to gain some knowlege/Advice. I have 3 small grow spaces, all are 2 feet by 3 feet x 6 feet up. I have 2 dual use 600 watt dimmable didgital ballasts with MH and HPS Bulbs. I have 1 CFL Curly bulb (14 bulb array intended for seedlings)so 1 light set up for each room 1 room for Seedlings and Small clones, the other two rooms will be for intermediate clones and Veg and Flowering. My clones (MOB and White ice) will be here next week and I want to get off on the right foot. I have a lot of questions, but basically would like some advice. There are a ton of discussions going on here and being new to forums, I dont want to jump into the wrong one and feel like an idiot. (Yes, I have done that in the past) I have my Medical Green Card and can grow 6 plants at each stage. So. Looking for guidance and thoughts on what I have so far. Also, are 3 gallon buckets going to be ok for this? Thanks! .
Sounds like you're started on the right foot already. I'd get some 5 gallon Smart Pots for the final pots. I don't recommend putting any more than 2 flowering plants per 2'x3' area. Are you looking to perpetually harvest?
Yes, sort of a perpetual grow. I'm not looking so much for quantity as Quality and I want to learn to do it right Quantity can come later as needed.. I have gardening skills and a green thumb ouside with the flowers and shrubs, but this is a whole different ball game isnt it. I mean with the different witches brews for soil additives and what not, holy cow, a lot of people have a lot of different recipes there.. Really kind of confusing Ill have to learn more on that later I think, Just want to have a healthy grow. I was gonna use 5 gallon plastic buckets with holes and a catch pan. Checking out the Smart pots as you mentioned and they look pretty nice, how they work and such. I found a good deal on Ebay and will likely get them there if I dont see them at wallmart cheaper. I'll be getting the smart pots for sure. Thanks for that advice. Still wish I could do three to a room thos. Maybe with some selective cropping/Pruning?
I actually use a 2'x3' tent with a 400w HPS and it's a bit snug with two plants after topping and scroging. Ideally each indoor plant should have 2sqft. You could look into the SOG technique, but it doesn't seem like a good fit in this situation. You could get another 600w if that's within your budget and grow two per 2'x3' area, start each grow in intervals so you can perpetually harvest. As far as soil goes, a 1.5 cubic ft bag of Foxfarm Ocean Forest along with a few quarts of organic perlite(not miracle gro) will fill two 5 gallon pots. Unless you're looking into building your own soil, which is easier than you may think.. head over to the organic section and there should be a sticky for an easy starter mix.
You are totally right ,I can see where 3 would be a stretch. I put three 5 gallon buckets in there just to see what it looked like and would get plant cramped pretty quick I think. So I'll go with 2 as you suggest. I can still do this I think if my 250 watt curly CFLs (14 light array) will keep a good vegatation without the plants getting lanky. Maybe boost that to the next bigger bulb for more lumens. I'll have to see what the wattage would be. So if I can get enough CFL Light, I could still get Seedlings and or clones to start vegging in cabinet one. once established, move to Heavy Veg growth under the 600 watt in cabinet 2 and flowering in cabinet three. as soon as flowering is done shift the pots. I can also flower in cabinet 2 if I get ahead of myself. I would hate to have seedlings or clones I cant use. I guess it will all be Timing things properly. Does this make any sense to you? Anything special about the drying process? I see pictures of hanging it everywhere. But wondering if I can just hang it in cabinet one from the ceiling above the cfls. I think theres enough room and I can lock all these cabinets. (not enough to stop a crowbar, but enough to keep family members , kids, etc out) does it matter if its dark or not? It will be a long time before I get to that , but curious.. Its a pretty stealthy setup. Being able to lock the doors whith people having their kids around is key for me. I will try venting and cooling with a 1400 CFM dual blade window fan. I dont think it will actually pull 1400 CFM but we will see. I'll be running it into my attached garage thru 2 activated charcoal furnace filters. Fan is a three speed , so I can turn it down if needed and I dont really need to pull as much from the cfl cabinet, more for the two 600 watt lights in cab 2 and 3 I think I need about 400-450 real cfm. Cool air will come in under the doors where I have left a sizeable gap. there are no light leaks. Cool air in the bottom thru the lights and out thru the fan / filter box.. thats the plan right now. Thanks for the Tips on Soil , Preparing to mix some now. I'll transfere to smart pots if they arive before my "Seedlings" do. other wise I'll keep them in a smaller pot for now
Yep makes sense, should work well. Also, keep in mind the 5 gallon smart pots are wider but more shallow than a 5 gallon bucket. Drying is pretty simple, just hang the harvest either in the tent you grew in or in any cool place that isn't humid. Start by trimming any leaves or any immature popcorn buds from the plant (which I freeze and save for hash made with bubble bags. They have some cheap brands on Amazon, definitely worth the 30-50 bucks.) Then, cut off branches and hang them. Usually takes 4-7 days. If the stem snaps and doesn't bend, it's ready to start curing.
Didn't know about curing. I have read up and see now it makes a big difference, I know a couple of people that grow amature 1 plant in a closet and I'm pretty sure they dont cure it. quite interesting. I have my 14 curly bulb going and its putting out just over 5000 lumens per sq foot, Im going to make some reflectors for it next, 22400 lumens of 5000 kelvin at a cost of 322 watts does not seem real efficient, I think I would upgrade to a 400 watt mH later and maybe even run that at 75% for more lumens.I'm hoping this will be enough light for now...
Definitely, it's the most important part of the final process. When you dry a bud the excess moisture gets trapped on the inside while the outside becomes dry. You also lose all the smell the plant had a day after they start to dry. To make sure the smell and taste come back, as well as avoiding harsh hits, definitely cure. Let your growing buddies know they're doing it wrong haha. 100 actual watts for one plant, 50 more watts for each extra plant. So theoretically you could grow about 5 plants with that amount of watts, obviously not recommended however. That'll be enough light for now, but the extra wattage surely makes a difference.
Made a reflector. that made a lot of difference. Some how my garage got turned upside down in one picture (Pic is upside down)
Looks good, but if that's tin foil it's a no go. Mylar reflects light, foil reflects heat and very little light
Its actually a pc of air duct pipe un curled. Its galvanized Steel, I've seen a lot of gull wing reflectors made this way. If I were to attach reflective mylar to this it would increase the reflection/lumens substantially? If so, I think I will try it. I would attach the Mylar with small sheet metal screws vs some sort of glue or epocy, so I can replace/Refresh it from time to time as It gets dull from humidity or what ever. What do you think?
Just thinking now, there are enouph attachment points/openings, I could probably use paper clips to attach Mylar.. I still like your mylar Idea tho, if it puts more light out ,.
Mylar is the best reflective surface for growing. Tin foil usually reflects less than 50% of light, and also reflects heat. White paint reflects about 75%, and mylar reflects about 90% of light.
Was just reading over everything and have a few questions.. Are the 2x3 areas light proof? Does it have ports for the ventilation? Which brings up another question, Do you have inline fans (400+CFM) and carbon filters for each 600w room? Or you could get one larger fan and filter combo running through the 600w rooms. The box fan should be able to vent the CFL box, but you might want to run it without any plants first and take a reading. Temp min/max: 65-85F Humidity should be around 30-50%. Any pics of the rooms would help give me an idea of the setup
Hi The 2 x 3 rooms are almost light proof I just have to put some foam door strip on for the cracks. I have one 1400 CFM twin blade window fan pulling accross an inline carbon furnace filter. I dont have a gage, but it pulss a flame in pretty good under the doors wher the intake is. There are no bottle necks everything gets bigger as it gets to the fan. I'll have to do the temp and humidity test you mention. Humidity in the room is 31% right now, but it should go up a bit with water and Plants right? Ill be adding mylar all around as well in the near future.
If that's a regular window fan I don't know if that'll work... you need an inline fan that hooks up directly to the ducting, one like this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00KWYJQYA/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?qid=1433109426&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SY200_QL40&keywords=Cfm+inline+fan&dpPl=1&dpID=516iN8n3KhL&ref=plSrch. HID bulbs get very hot
I just ran it for a couple hrs or more and It did not get hot in there at all. I think it worked.. Ran it Since that last post Reflector is hot but I can keep my hand on it Glass is hot enough so I can touch it for about 10 seconds, but cant keep my hand on it. Room is not even hot maybe 70-75 degrees but thats the same temperature as the romm in the basement I Know of those fans in the link, but being an Re-engineer, I thought I would design that filter box with the window fan in it. I had free time on my hands.
Thanks, we will see how it goes. Babies should arrive tomorrow. I'll start with the CFLs until I'm sure I'm getting enough cooling in the 600 watt rooms. I think I'm good but waiting to find Out about acceptable Reflector hood and glass temperatures.. Room temperature seems fine in a two hr test.