shopping list for beginners and other useful information

Discussion in 'First Time Marijuana Growers' started by housefullOweed, Sep 23, 2010.

  1. #1 housefullOweed, Sep 23, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 8, 2010
    I am posting this thread so i can refer people to it because i am sick of answering the same questions over and over again... Growing weed and getting decent results is not something you will be able to do with out a reasonable investment i recommend having a 1 to 1.5k budget before you even think about growing. Here is a shopping list of many of the things you will need, i am using DC hydro because they have been the cheapest site i have found so far and have almost everything you need to grow.

    [edit] I just noticed the prices on my shopping list have changed drastically since i posted this so i apologize to those i referred to this thread for cheaper pricing. The prices may have changed but the shopping list is still relevant so I'm gonna keep it up, if pricing seems to high look around on www.dchydro.com they have lots of great deals or check out Google Product Search for cheaper pricing.

    Lighting
    400 Watt
    $79 400 Watt digital ballast www.dchydro.com
    $8 S to H adapter www.dchydro.com
    $63 18 Inch cool tube www.dchydro.com
    bulbs

    600 Watt
    $100 600 Watt digital ballast www.dchydro.com
    $8 S to H adapter www.dchydro.com]www.dchydro.com
    $111 Air cooled reflector www.dchydro.com
    bulbs

    1000 Watt
    $150 1000 Watt digital ballast www.dchydro.com
    $8 S to H adapter www.dchydro.com]www.dchydro.com
    $111 Air cooled reflector www.dchydro.com
    $26 1000 Watt HPS bulb www.dchydro.com
    $33 1000 Watt MH bulb if you want to veg with HID www.dchydro.com

    Lighting accessories
    $214 Light mover (Optional) more info in lighting section www.dchydro.com
    $11 15 Amp digital timer 1000 watts max www.dchydro.com
    $15 Yo yo light hangers www.dchydro.com
    Mylar or white paint www.dchydro.com

    Ventilation and climate control
    $17 Hygro-thermometer www.dchydro.com
    $20 Oscillating fan LASKO 16 In. Oscillating Stand Fan - 2520 at The Home Depot
    $2 x4 6 inch ducting clamps home depot
    $20 25 Feet of 6 inch flexible ducting home depot
    $20 Fan speed controller High Tech Garden Supply

    Expensive fan & filter combo
    $160 6 Inch vortex fan www.dchydro.com
    $136 Carbon filter www.dchydro.com

    Cheaper fan & filter alternative
    $114 6" Centrifugal fan 6 inch inline centrifugal fan - Google Search
    $100 Carbon filter High Tech Garden Supply

    Ozone generator (Optional) see ventilation section for more info ozone generator hydroponics - Google Search

    Misc supply's
    $5 PH test kit www.dchydro.com
    I would suggest a digital PH meter but i have no experience with any can some one suggest a good one?
    $5 PH up www.dchydro.com
    $5 PH down www.dchydro.com
    $17 TDS meter www.dchydro.com

    Misc supply's optional
    $140 C02 regulator Hydrofarm - Active Air COSYS Hydrofarm CO2 System (.2-2 cubic feet per hour) with Timer excluding c02 tank.
    $??? C02 tank probably better priced locally
    $50-$100 Fire extinguisher Fire extinguisher - Google zoeken
    $10-$20 Smoke alarm smoke alarm - Google zoeken
    $100-$200 Reverse osmosis system reverse osmosis system - Google zoeken
    $10 Hot shot pest strips preventative pest control and identification... hot shot pest strips - Google zoeken
    Organic neem oil pest control neem oil - Google zoeken
    $9 3-Lens Magnifier from radio shack for sexing, 3-Lens Magnifier - RadioShack.com more info here... http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/454814-sexing.html
    $13 Illuminated Microscope for determining harvest time, Illuminated Microscope - RadioShack.com more info here... http://forum.grasscity.com/harvesting-processing-marijuana/424138-simple-harvest-cure-step-step.html
    $20-$50 Green led head lamp for seeing in your plants dark cycle. green led headlamp - Google Search

    Grow tent
    Grow tents are great for the grower who does not want to modify his or her dwelling, for $100-$200 you can have an easy to set up portable growing chamber that will help you control ventilation and light contamination with out any modification what so ever. But be careful when purchasing grow tents, try to avoid tents lined with white pvc there are a number of them on the market that will poison and kill your plants, for this reason you should only purchase from a reputable dealer or only purchase tents lined with mylar.
    mylar grow tent items - Get great deals on Hydroponics, grow tent items on eBay.com!

    Water
    Water is a very important part of growing a healthy plant obviously so it is best to go with reverse osmosis filtered water, the reason for this is that it is almost completely pure. Using spring, tap, or well water untested is not recommended because many sources of this water have a high number of Total dissolved solids.

    TDS
    Total dissolved solids are particles that are in the water and can be anything from fertilizers in well water, to high concentrations of minerals that may seriously effect your plants health. Total dissolved solids - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    PH
    PH is a measurement of acidity to alkalinity and is a very important part of growing healthy plants, im not gonna go into in to details here, but i will provide a link that better explains it and a chart that shows nutrient absorption points for hydro and soil growers. http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/567829-ph-what-means-your-plants.html [​IMG]

    Watering schedule
    Over watering is one of the number one killers of newbie growers plants, due to their wanting to mother and nurture their young plants. This is very bad for a plant, plant roots need oxygen just as much as they need water... It is advisable to keep track of a watering schedule, you should water every 3-4 days from start to finish. The general rule of thumb is to water when the top inch or so of the soil is dry this will keep your soil from becoming water logged and killing your plants. Plants can recover much better from under watering than they can from over watering for this reason you should under water as opposed to over watering.

    Growing medium
    I would recommend any grower just starting out check out Vic's super soil just to get the hang of things, it can be a bit costly to put it together but its a water only mix which means you don't have to worry about killing your precious first crop by over fertilizing or under fertilizing.

    1 Bale sunshine mix #2 or promix (3.8 cu ft)
    8 cups Bone Meal - phosphorus source
    4 cups Blood Meal - nitrogen source
    1 1/3 cups Epsom salts - magnesium source
    3-4 cups powdered dolomite lime -calcium source & pH buffering
    1 tsp fritted trace elements
    4 cups kelp meal.
    9kg (25 lbs) bag pure worm castings

    - Mix thoroughly, moisten, and let sit 1-2 weeks before use.

    After you have a grow or 2 under your belt you should check out DWC it is second only to areoponics in growth rate and yield, truly a simple and awesome form of hydroponics, here is a DIY thread on making a recirculating DWC system, you can use rubber made tubs instead of buckets as well. http://forum.grasscity.com/do-yourself/600352-budslingers-recirculating-bubble-buckets.html

    Cloning made easy, here is a DIY thread to help you construct a bubble cloner it can be constructed for under $50 and offers almost a 100% success rate something any soil or hydro grower should have.
    http://forum.grasscity.com/do-yourself/504667-budslingers-bubble-cloner.html

    Number of plants
    The number of plants is more less insignificant its really all about finding an even keel, whether you grow 20 small plants or 4 huge plants its all about having the best lighting coverage over your canopy, the more light hits the bud sites the more bud you get.

    Potting
    Plant growth is directly proportionate to root growth, so you can see how this is connected to the amount of plants you are growing, if you want 4 huge plants you would have 4 huge pots if you want 20 small plants you want 20 small pots, the general rule of thumb is 1 gallon of soil per 1 foot of height.

    Transplanting
    Most people transplant in stages to promote healthy strong root growth the trick is to transplant just before the plant becomes root bound so you fill the pot with roots but transplant just before growth is stunted. I personally transplant when i can see roots coming out of the drainage holes and when the diameter of the plant is the same as the pot its in, i also start my seedlings in 16 oz beer cups then go from 1 gallon to 3 gallon to 5 gallon pots. Here is a guide on how to transplant. http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/574364-stress-free-transplanting.html

    Fertilizing
    Genral info
    Fertilizing Wisely http://forum.grasscity.com/advanced-growing-techniques/330991-fertilizing-wisely.html

    Over fertilizing
    Over fertilizing is one of the worst things you can do to a plant for this reason it is best to under fertilize as opposed to over fertilizing. For the first 2-4 weeks of growing your plant you should not fertilize, if you do decide to fertilize work your way up from 1/8 the recommended dose to see what your plants threshold is, if you notice brown spots on your leaves tips back off immediately and then flush if it progressively gets worse.

    Hydro info
    Lucas formula http://www.drugs-forum.com/growfaq/1654.htm

    Organic info
    Basic http://forum.grasscity.com/absolute-beginners/564150-growing-soil-soilless-mixes-guide.html
    Advanced http://forum.grasscity.com/organic-growing/650139-organic-higher-learning-lumperdawgz.html

    Some information on lighting
    To start off i would like to let it be known that lighting is the most important factor in growing high quality marijuana in quantity if you can't invest money here don't expect great yields... The avg grower can expect .5 grams of weed per month of flower per watt of electrical lighting power they use if they are running an efficient grow under HID, you can expect more or less depending on your experience, your growing techniques, your growing medium, and your plants genetics. Here is a very informative thread on lighting, http://forum.grasscity.com/lighting/263178-all-about-lighting.html and a very informative thread on how to best maximize your light. http://forum.grasscity.com/grow-room-design-setup/165331-getting-most-your-lights.html

    Here is a chart that shows the peak light spectrum absorption points for photosynthesis, http://forum.grasscity.com/attachme...art-thread-hortgraph-chlorophyll-activity.gif and here are two charts that show how much light diminishes over distance with MH & HPS lamps.
    MH http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x140/earlon3rd/Foot-CandlesMHDoneNow.jpg
    HPS http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x140/earlon3rd/Foot-CandlesHPSDoneNow.jpg

    Lighting schedule and veg/flower chambers
    There are 2 lighting schedules for growing marijuana there is vegetative which is anywhere between 24 7 and 18/6 and flowering which is 12/12, it is essential that you make sure no out side sources of light interrupt your plants dark cycle this can cause stress and cause your plants to Hermie. When constructing your set up its a good idea to have a veg chamber and a flowering chamber because it can greatly improve your production via turn around time, having a a separate veg and flower room allows you to keep a mother plant which will eliminate the need to sex and grow from seed, and it allows you to veg new plants while you are flowering.

    Light movers
    Light movers are mechanical devices that, as the name implies, move an HID in a fixed pattern over a garden, the advantage is much more light is available to the plants when the light is in motion. With a stationary light, all that is shaded will remain in the shade, but with a mover the light will hit from different angles giving better coverage and therefore increasing the efficiency of your light.

    CFLs
    To save some money on your power bill and equipment cost you can use 5500k to 6500k CFLs to veg your plants they do a pretty good job for there cheap price, and you can easily DIY a quick mounting system for them out of a corded light fixture, some y splitters, and a few bulbs as seen here. http://forum.grasscity.com/attachme...t-beginners-other-useful-information-2184.jpg

    Advanced growing techniques
    There are many advanced growing techniques but the main principle of all of them seems to be getting better lighting coverage on your plants.

    LST
    In lst you tie down your plants to control height & to allow the best possible horizontal lighting coverage. http://forum.grasscity.com/plant-training/122936-how-lst-low-stress-training.html

    SCROG or screen of green
    The purpose of scrog is very much the same as LST, except the hieght of the plants is controlled by a screen mounted above them. http://forum.grasscity.com/plant-training/48363-scrog-method.html

    SOG or sea of green
    Sea of green is the theory of harvesting lots of small plants, matured early to get the fastest production of buds available. SEA OF GREEN Weed (Cannabis) Growing Guide:

    Supercropping
    Supercropping is a term given to a group of techniques that, when used in conjunction, will produce greatly improved yields over untreated plants.
    Supercropping - a tutorial - 420 Magazine

    Topping
    The purpose of topping a plant is to take the main stem which will become a large cola at the end of flowering and turn it into two colas for a better yield and a bushier plant.
    http://forum.grasscity.com/plant-training/122559-how-fimming-topping-made-easy.html

    Some information on ventilation
    The most important factor in controlling odor and heat in your grow room is negative air pressure, it is a very simple concept and worth having a good understanding of for any indoor grower. The way you create negative air pressure is by always having more air being pushed out of the room than being pushed in, for this reason there is virtually no reason to ever use fans to push air into your grow space, unless you are growing in a huge grow room. Here is a link that will help you calculate the ventilation needs of your grow room, http://forum.grasscity.com/grow-roo...alculating-ventilation-needs-room-volume.html and an faq that will help answer some of your other questions on ventilation. http://forum.grasscity.com/grow-room-design-setup/594150-ventilation-faq.html

    Ozone generators
    Ozone generators can be a great alternative to a carbon filter they have very little drag so they reduce your need for huge ventilation fans, and they eliminate all odor produced by marijuana plants if used properly. However there are some down sides there is a bulb that would need to be replaced every so often and high concentrations of ozone can be toxic to living creatures, so it is not a good idea to use ozone unless you are venting directly to the out doors, and have a good handle on ventilation. There are 2 different types of ozone generators there are ozone generators that are built into ducting to eliminate the odors being exhausted from your house and there are room purification systems. I would only recommend ducted systems to avoid contact with concentrated ozone, also DIY at your own risk the bulb used to produce ozone will blind you if you see it while its turned on. Here is some more info on ozone and saftey. Hydroponic Ozone Generator - Is it Safe For an Indoor Grow Room?

    C02
    C02 is the absolute last upgrade you should be adding to your system, adding c02 can improve your systems efficiency drastically but you have to make sure you can hold it in and that you have taken care of all your plants other needs first...

    I made a couple of diagrams showing the best ways to set up a grow room ventilation system.

    The first is for your standard closet grower on a limited budget a very simple system air is exhausted threw your air cooled reflector and your carbon filter reducing heat controlling odor and bringing in fresh air from your intakes. http://forum.grasscity.com/attachme...ers-other-useful-information-ventilation1.jpg

    The second is for a grower who wants a bit more of an advanced room with c02 but has not sealed up there room yet, this room has a separate ventilation system for the lights and one for climate and odor control which is controlled by a thermostat and humidity controller.
    http://forum.grasscity.com/attachme...ers-other-useful-information-ventilation2.jpg

    The third is for a grower who has completely sealed up there grow room to allow for maximum co2 and climate control, the light again has a separate ventilation system and the temperature and humidity are controlled by an air conditioning unit and a dehumidifier.
    http://forum.grasscity.com/attachme...ers-other-useful-information-ventilation3.jpg

    Here is a link to a very informative thread on electricity and safety, http://forum.grasscity.com/do-yourself/349438-electricity-usage-wiring-saftey-you.html here is a link that will help you identify and take care of nutrient deficient, toxic or sick plants, The Complete guide to Sick Plants,pH, and Pest troubles! - International Cannagraphic Magazine Forums and last but not least a gigantic compilation of questions and answers sourced 420mag. How to Grow Marijuana - Everything You Need to Know! - 420 Magazine
     

    Attached Files:

  2. Bump. Very nice
     
  3. good thread nice prices also :)
     
  4. Or with:

    $150 for a 600watt hps w/ bulb included,
    $40 in nutes,
    $20 in coco,
    $10 in pots,
    and some flat white paint and a fan, you could grow a pound every 3 months,
    about 4 times a year.

    Someone on a budget would definitely bennefit from the above abreviated list =-P Many personal growers don't need much more than this to complete a succesful grow, it's how I started (minus the coco), many many moons ago :)
     
  5. You didn't need ventilation or order control with that light?
     
  6. This could be a sticky, however a proper title to the thread would be nice. Great start!
     
  7. But i liked SSDD >< you know same shit different day... Anyways your wish is my command.
     
  8. Thank you, keep adding onto it.
     
  9. #9 housefullOweed, Sep 26, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 26, 2010
    Im working on it but i am failing at thinking of more info to add i would like to add more info about growing but there are many other threads that cover a good amount of what it takes to grow weed and i am guessing if i compiled a list of links i would forget a good amount of info... Does any one have any info they would like to contribute to my thread, i would like to provide a good overview of growing in general but i am not sure where to start or where im headed...
     
  10. hah i love your standard first timer closet grower on a limited budget setup
    its right on the dot
    too bad i messed up by not buying a air cooled reflector just a cheap one
    but good info :hello:
     
  11. whats the difference between digital ballast and magnetic ballast? and what do I need to keep my eye open to find a ballast that will support 400-600 watt bulbs (MH and HPS) ?
     
  12. #13 housefullOweed, Oct 13, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 13, 2010
    A digital ballast is silent and doesn't create much heat, a magnetic ballast creates an electrical sounding hum and puts out quite a bit of heat, and to answer your question to support a MH and HPS bulb you either need a switchable ballast or an hps ballast with a MH conversion bulb.
    mh coversion bulb - Google zoeken
     
  13. never noticed your diagrams... very cool

    bump
     
  14. got some great info in here man. +rep

    nice diagrams too
     
  15. awesome post.
     
  16. What's the best deal currently available on a 600w digital switchable ballast? I just need the ballast and the bulbs.

    Is this a thread where I can just blurt out a question like that?
     
  17. Hmm i just noticed that the prices on my shopping list have changed drastically since i posted this, sorry to anyone i referred for cheaper prices... Here is the best price on a 600 watt digital ballast that i could find however it doesn't say whether or not its hps/mh or switchable, and i was only able to find a 600 watt hps bulb. Don't forget the S to H adapter if you are using a hydrofarm reflector.
    www.dchydro.com
    www.dchydro.com
     
  18. This is the case with a magnetic ballast. Or, a digital ballast will run both kinds of bulbs.
     


  19. Thanks alot man. I already have both cordsets. That's actually pretty cheap. I could go from a 400w to a 600w for about $160-170 w/ both bulbs, and if I could ebay my 400w ballast and bulbs for like $70-80 total, then it'd end up costing me less than $100 to upgrade the light.

    Anyone think I could run a 1000w in a 2x4x7 tent? I could put a real big fan on the cooltube. Someone please convince me to do it. I know if I get a 1000w I'll figure out a way to cool it, I'm just having some anxiety about it and I need someone to push me in that direction.
     

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