My 1st ever grow - Rubbermaid Container

Fist of all this website is the shit and I studied what everyone else on the indoor grow forums did for a good 5 months before even thinking about growing. So its all thanx to you people that I found my new hobby. hahaa



This is my first ever grow - tell me what you think. I am using ...

2 35 gallon Rubbermaid containers
1 computer fan (12 volts , .38 amps @ 3000 rpm )
1 a/c adapter (12 volts , .5 amp max , spliced to fit fan )
1 plug in fan
1 thermometer / hydrometer
3 clip on utility lamps
6 CFL bulbs ( 4 @ 26 watt 6500 k , 2 @ 23 watt 2300 k )
lots of duct tape
tin foil
timer

and I might be missing some more things but that's basically it. Since its my first grow I used bag seed (not the greatest but will do) and if this happens to work I will trade up to attitude seeds later. I got the seeds to sprout roots by wrapping them up in a damp paper towel and forgot about them for three days and low and behold they germinated. When these pics were taken I just put them in miracle grow potting soil (.10 N, .05 K, .05 P). We'll see how it goes ...


So any advice? bring it on ...

Edited by egn1007, 10 September 2009 - 03:40 AM.

That's a good start with the lights (6?). Get them all going now.

Man you need a box with a door on the SIDE. If your just growing with cfls you need them as close as possible. It would be a bitch to get them in the right place from above.

Maybe cut the side out of the top box?

Hey bro our setups are similar take a look at mine
http://forum.grassci...rubbermaid.html

It looks really good. You've probably figured it out by now but these bins light up like a jack-o-lantern if you don't cover every part of the inside. It's probably less of an issue for you though since you have it hidden in a closet.

i used a rubbermaid in the past. do you have fresh intake/exhaust figured out?

Everything looks good, basically how Im doing it. Just get a good flow of air in and out with your fans and you should be set...

Hey everyone, thanx for the feedback. Keep it coming, I need all the help I can get. I posted a pic with all of my lights going on at once, I didn't put all of them in for germinating because I thought the seeds needed only minimal amounts when just hatching but I guess I was wrong.

As for the exhaust / intake setup, there are 2 PVC pipes connected to 1.5 inch elbows, and then attached to a pipe which takes air in from the out side. My whole grow set up is vacuumed and the air that does flow out has a carbon filter and a bunch of dryer sheets blocking the way. No way is it going to smell up my apartment.

And yea even though I duct taped and foiled the crap out of the inside of the containers, it still glows neon green at night, which is really trippy and really cool to look at, but not practical for my stealth operation. So I put a blanket over it. It seems to work fine.

Damn that looks good bro. I think i'm gonna use pc fans too but i'm not sure on the wiring. I just ordered my light today. its a 150w high pressure sodium in a reflector. it should work good for one plant

Egn how many fans are you using for exhaust? I've got two really fast computer fans for exhaust and one for an intake. (3x120mm) Plus a fan blowing on the plants and my temps are around 80-85 degrees.

looks good man! I'm just now starting this project with the same design, but simplified

I used only two fans, the really powerful PC fan at the top and a battery powered mini fan at the bottom. The only problem is the temp hovers around 87-90 degrees with all the lights turned on. Putting a cup of ice seems to help the situation but I need to find an alternative to keep the temp down even more. Any ideas?

I used only two fans, the really powerful PC fan at the top and a battery powered mini fan at the bottom. The only problem is the temp hovers around 87-90 degrees with all the lights turned on. Putting a cup of ice seems to help the situation but I need to find an alternative to keep the temp down even more. Any ideas?

More intake. I used a 3" intake and it's probably not enough... my temps have been about 84º with 180 watts in cfl's.

I would double up the amount of passve intake you have.

Looking good, man. I've been planning a similar setup for when I move into my new apartment, and seeing this has definitely given me some confidence in the whole Rubbermaid thing.

How many plants do you plan on growing to harvest in there? I was kind of concerned about space, even with LSTing.

I will definitely get some more intake going on but it might take a few days. As for the plants I actually plan on growing and eventually harvesting, I have nine growing. But after the males are identified and destroyed I will grow the remaining females. I will probably keep only two for harvesting and give the rest to a buddy of mine who shares this hoby of mine. haha

I will definitely get some more intake going on but it might take a few days. As for the plants I actually plan on growing and eventually harvesting, I have nine growing. But after the males are identified and destroyed I will grow the remaining females. I will probably keep only two for harvesting and give the rest to a buddy of mine who shares this hoby of mine. haha

9! thats alot of plants for just a rubbermaid grow bro. I have a 45 gallon bin with only 3 plants and I can see some space issues in the future.

Yes I am going to grow 9 until they are old enough to determine the sex. The males will be killed and the females are going to be split up between me and some friends of mine. I'll probably end up getting 3 of them...

Okay here is an update. keep in mind they are 5.5 days old. what do you think? (I am sorry the pics are shitty. I don't have a legit camera)

any updates?

you dont really want tot use tin foil.. get that black n white roll of 3mm vinyl or some mylar.

you dont really want tot use tin foil.. get that black n white roll of 3mm vinyl or some mylar.

I agree. If your intake was 2X the size of your exhaust, that would help you control your temps better. You also might want to start thinking about a carbon filter.