1St Grow-Custom Pc Micro-Grow

Discussion in 'Indoor Grow Journals' started by packagecontents, May 19, 2013.

  1. Hey guys,

    I'm starting this journal to record my first real attempt at growing. But I want to make one thing clear from the beginning, I accept that CFLs in a computer case are far from ideal however this design is born of necessity and is after all only my first grow. I'm planning on growing one or two plants (pineapple kush) inside a cooler master CM600 computer case. They will be grown in small pots of soil using botanicare nutrients and a mix of 70/30 debco organic soil and perlite. I intend to use LST and/or SCROG to try and maximise yield.

    The lighting consists of 8x23W CFLs. 4 warm white and 4 daylight (I think that's what it's called). The case has been lined with galvabond steel sheeting and gaps filled with black calque. I'm also going to line the inside with Mylar in the coming days. The ventilation is done by 2x 140mm coolermaster fans, I'm not sure of their CFM ratings however they do seem to produce a substantial amount of pressure and air flow for PC fans. The 12V fan circuit is connected to a 500 ohm potentiometer which is used as a speed controller. The intake fan has light trap of the same design as the one in the link at the bottom. The exhaust fan will have a DIY carbon filter attached to it. I will upload some pictures of the case shortly when I am on my computer. Enjoy! :)

    Light trap: credits to scrubninja
    https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=135524
     
  2. Heres a few photos in no particular order.[​IMG]front of the case and the light trap on the intake fan.[​IMG]Outside of the case, still some light leakage as can be seen. I've since does quite a bit more caulking and will soon be lining the inside with mylar which should help. The top is where the carbon filter will be installed.[​IMG]The electrical junction box, transformer+rectifier and the potentiometer. The bottom picture is the case overall obviously :p[​IMG]
     
  3. Ran the box today with all the lights in it today. After an hour it had seemed to settle on 31C degrees in a room that was about 15C. I decided to add a 2nd 140mm fan bringing the total to 3, 2 exhaust and one intake. Before this I also lined the inside with Mylar which does not seem as reflective as I thought under intense light :S I can see through it if very bright light is shining on the other side.

    Anyways I've basically finished sealing up the case, one side panel is now semi permanently attached with black calque in all it's gaps. The seeds are germinating and have just shown taproot. I'm hoping to plant them within a few days, I've gone with 1 Hash Plant and 1 Pineapple kush.
     
  4. Hey I like your set up a whole lot man! One thing I might suggest is that during veg, use a greater percentage of daylight bulbs and when you go into flower, switch to a higher percentage of warm white bulbs! Otherwise looking really solid! I'm doing a mini grow as well, stop by if you want help with any LST methods or ideas! Good luck!
     
  5. Braj I'm just about finished with my pc grow case as well. It's my very first grow too. The fact that you are going to attempt this SCROG rigamarole has inspired me to try it as well.
     
    Expect me to be checking in periodically =)
     
  6. thanks for the support guys :) yeah jdn5017 ive got some extra warm whites i might throw in for flower, not sure i can justify buying extra daylight bulbs for likely only a couple of weeks veg but thanks for the input.
     
    seeds went into the soil today.
     
    DIY carbon filter:
    [​IMG]and so it begins!! :D
    [​IMG]
     
  7. Nice man. It looks really nice and tropical in there (I wish I was plant sized!). Tho I've seen these before, and have to say: one plant is likely all you should grow in this case.
     
    Even if you grow a tiny strain and send it straight into blooming you're still going to be likely to run into space issues, with half of each plant suffering.
     
    Just my 2-cents and will be watching this thread. Thanks :D
     
  8. I wouldnt have put the bulbs on the sides bro cuz eventually there going to touch the bulbs man put them at the top then pinch and lst to make them stay low and they will exsplode with bud sites,il be watchin good luck

    Sent from device_name using Grasscity Forum App

     
  9. Ok, so it's been a while since I posted on this. After 3 days or so the seeds had cracked open and the taproot was showing but it failed to ever grow. I put them in the soil after about 7 days and they never broke ground :( although this might be something of a blessing. I'm having horrendous issues with temperature at the moment and as you mentioned str8crip the side lights would be better up the top, it may be a little difficult to move them at this stage but I think the whole case will be getting a bit of a makeover so ill see if I can move them. I'm thinking of installing more fans but having more than the 3 140mm already in there seems a but ridiculous. Or perhaps putting polycarbonate infront of the lights to block some radiant heat. I'm not sure. Any suggestions?
     

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