Grow box 3ft wide, 1ft 8/12in deep, 6ft tall made to fit into closet Latches seal the door shut. It is sealed so well the exhaust makes the intake fans spin even when they are off 2x115 VAC 67 CFM fans draw air through carbon filter 6x 65w 6500k CFL Carbon filter, functions much like the normal A/C intake in homes.
390(65x6). The box is fitted to have 2 hanging on each side to bring it up to 520 during veg. I'll have 8 65w 2700k CFL's for flowering.
I'm not confident in these bag seeds. I don't even know how old they are and the chances I will get a female is slim. So, I ordered 30 White Widow seeds and I can't wait for them to get here. I'll probably grow 6 at a time to make sure I get a female. I'd hate to wait 3 months and find out there isn't even one and I smoke about half an ounce a week so I need to harvest all I can. Take it from me kids: If I could build my box over again, I would go with HPS lighting over CFL. Call it gut feelings, but I can tell the CFL light doesn't penetrate like an HPS does. I flushed both plants with new water. I had been watering them with bottled water with PH around 8+; so fixed that by watering them with 6.0-6.5 PH water. They are really starting to take off and develop leaves. They are super dark green and I couldn't be happier with them. Plant #2 was under a 2700k bulb at birth and caused it to stretch. I fixed that by replacing the bulb with a 6500k. The 2700k was just left over from when I was testing the box anyway. (lazy ass) It will be okay once it grows out a little. Day 9 Plant #1 Plan #2 Both plants
Both plants have really took off. There is new growth at the base of each large leaf, starting to develop the infamous 5 fingered cannabis leaf. I'm keeping the CFL's 3inches above the plants it has fixed the stretching in plant 2. Both plants are growing bushy and low to the ground and I am pleased with them so far. It is seriously hard to believe they grow as fast as they do. Day 10 Plan 1 Plant 2
Just wait until they have a full root system, then you can almost sit and watch them grow. That's awesome your getting White widow, always good to go with know genetics over bagseed.
I've been looking for specific grow techniques for White Widow. For example does it prefer a specific light schedule? What kind of soil does it prefer and how does it like to grow: as a bush? Vine (scrog), or?? I haven't found anything good yet. If anyone knows how to cater to White Widow strain or where that info is available, let me know.
Hey man good luck, things are looking good. Just wanted to make sure you were on the right track: I don't believe you should be using an intake fan, unless they're perfectly aligned and pulling/pushing the same amount of air, the intake fan will actually inhibit your exhaust fan. I think you're better off without it - or putting it as an extra exhaust fan. You're pulling through this filter from the box to the outside air, no? I would agree....you're running enough wattage for one, easily, but not getting the lumens. One trick you can do is hang the bulbs amongst the plants, so all sides of the plants get light...this is one thing you can't do with HID lighting!
Well, I'm gonna do it. Yes, I am going to buy a 400w HID. The cab I have now should be fine for a HID but I'll have to build mum box. My White Widow seeds are in! I had them shipped directly to my house. Impressively stealthy shipping methods. The CFL's will be perfect for a bonsai mum. View attachment mums.pdf
I'm interested to see how it works when there is an aroma, too. I'll keep this in mind when playing around with it. Of course. I don't like that idea of CFL's hanging in and around the plants sounds sloppy and hard to manage to me and (GaAAAH! MORE WIRES!) I'm sort of a clean organized freak. I'm sold on installing an HPS.
Germing 5 White Widow seeds. Working on Veg cab and mother cab. So I can grow enough to be sure my personal stash doesn't run out. I ordered the HPS+HM light can't wait until it gets here.
Day 14 Both plants have crystal like hair covering the leaves and they are starting to smell pretty skunk if you sniff them up close. They were bag seed and I'm pretty sure it's AK-47. Plant #1 Plant #2 White Widow 5 seeds finished soaking in water this afternoon. All 5 within hours fell to the bottom of the glass. I put them in a moist paper towel, in a plastic bag to grow roots then I plant them in soil; root down. It worked perfectly the first time. Using this method, I can be sure the seeds I am planting are actually going to grow. Note: The burn on the lower two leaves is because I sprayed them with a water bottle mixed with Superthrive during the first week. It wasn't until after I pulled the trigger that I realized I probably shouldn't spray chemicals on the leaves. They will be ok though, those leaves usually fall off eventually.
Day 15 Soil was completely dry. I think it's been a week since I watered them and they are looking great. Today was the first time I noticed a little bit of droopiness. I took this opportunity to start feeding nutrients. They were fed Fox Farm Grow Big and Liquid Plant Food (Big Bloom). Plant #1 Plant #2 White Widow Well since it has been only 12 hours since I last posted an update, not much has changed. They are still germing in a wet paper towel in a plastic bag. One of the seeds has sprouted a root and is taking of much faster than the others. This happened last time too. In the end the plants seem to catch up even if they are slow to sprout.
Day 17 Here's an update for you... one word: skunky. And it's a little outrageous how quickly they are growing. Like an inch a day in every direction... I'm afraid the plants will run out of room and starting to think I should have used to the whole closet instead of a grow box. It's beyond me how anyone would be able to grow and harvest in something as small as a large PC tower. White Widow Day 1 Another note. Planted the 5 White Widow.
Day 20 The new lights are in. I took down my 390w CFL setup and replaced it with a MH+HPS 400w light in a cooling tube. Looks great, installed easier than I thought it would - the whole ballast thing made me nervous because I had no idea what a ballast was. Whatever the commonly suggested benefits of an MH+HPS light might be: what stands out to me is it really is a much cleaner setup than wiring CFL lights on a DIY hanging light. And honestly it was cheaper. My cost break down CFL 8 x 65w 6500k CFL: $27x8 = $216 8 x 65w 5500k CFL: $27x8 = $216 8 x Sockets + wire = $50 Wiring Supplies (cabs, electrical tape, zip ties, etc) = ?? TOTAL = $472 + Tax + Shipping MH+HPS 400w MH light bulb 400w HPS light bulb 400w Ballast Light shield Inline cooling tube TOTAL = $274.90 + Tax + Shipping That's my experience. However, this doesn't take into consideration venting for the new light. But I do have those parts on had and it only cost me $40 for a 6" 165 CFM inline fan and 6" tubing. Heat The Strangest thing and I was totally not expecting it. But, when I would use an oscillating fan in the cab with CFL's the cab temp would rise 10+ degrees Fahrenheit (95+). So, after two short tries with having a fan I simply went without it. Three hours after installing the MH light the cab is steadily 4 degrees cooler. Weight Personally my CFL setup was 15-20lbs or more. Mostly the weight was from the materials I used to build it. The 400w MH/HPS setup weights about 5lbs or less. IMHO In my situation if I had to start over all over again I would use an MH+HPS. Old CFL Setup New MH+HPS Light Plants Plant #1 Plant #2 White Widow Day 4
Looking good! Great info on the cost of DIY vs. MH/HPS...got me thinking about going that route myself. I would be curious about the impact on utility bill..compared to CFL's.