Hello Everyone! I am new to the forum, and new to growing. A passing comment from my girl has sparked this whole journey for me. I have been doing as much research as I could possibly do over the past few weeks. I have gathered a rough outline of what I will need and how this seemingly very difficult task works. I have ordered a few auto strains from the single seed centre ( Prohibition state so my options for seeds are limited ). I am sorta using the seeds as my goal timer I would like to be ready to go when the seeds arrive. So far this is what I've got: •2.2'x1.7'x5.7' Poly garden tool style shed going into our master bath /closet. •x8 23w 6500k Cfls. Ive decided to stick with cfls for now but i do plan on either swapping 4 6500s for 2700s or doing 8 6500s for veg and then swapping all for 2700s for flower What I need/still working on: •I'm skimping on any sort of cfl fixture for now. And using extension cords and socket adapters for power •I plan on some light seal work with great stuff spray. I will line with mylar blankets and reflective tape to futher light proof and seal. •For ventilation I figured one or two AC infinity 120mm Axiel 120v AC 110 CFM should suffice with a couple maybe 2 inch passive intake holes. My room is about 21 cubic feet. •We are renting our home with kids so carbon filters are a must. I plan on making a filter via the much available diy help. Figured this would at least double my CFM goal so i estimated 50 Cfm then with any heat or humidity issues the rest of the 110 cfm rated fan should cover me...right? •I would like to use fabric pots but since i am in a small space, and in my closet, would spill be something i should consider? •Soil and Nutes I still havent settled on a plan for. Maybe since I'm doing only a small auto grow just a simple cheap organic hot soil. Costs would be a big factor here as ive seen the going rate on some nute lines. •As far as monitoring goes ill be getting some cheap thermometer with RH and a wire probe, so i can hang that wire right at canopy height. As well as a cheap PH reader and PH up and down of course. So thats what i have so far. Any and all input or tips are welcomed! I am planning on continuing a journal of some sort for my grow so if anyone would be interested in helping an enthusiastic young grower when i get up and running it would be greatly appreciated.
Looks like you’ve done a bit of research and got a thinking head on your shoulders. I personally like to see people who are organized and dedicated. You’ll end up doing fine. I’m not so experienced myself but I can hopefully help shine a light on a few things that might ease your grow a little bit. So first, I’d like to recommend you look into the HLG quantum boards(65’’s or 135’s. I know it’s beginning to sound like a pitch around the city now but it’s really not. They’re just a good bang for your buck on so many levels and you’ll get quality for a fair price. You’ll also not have to keep up and replace with all the different light bulbs. 2) Id so go for the fabric pots. Just find a couple of plastic containers that will fit your pot inside of; that way when you water and runoff appears it just stays in the container to be absorbed by your plant as the soil dries. That’ll prevent water from spilling anywhere. (I use shallow containers but long and wide enough to only use it as water tray) 3) What I did, which works for me because I love organic growing and handling dirt,worms, etc... was to find a local hydro/plant store(2 hours nearly from me) and buy material like perlite, a base(dirt), and a form of composted manure(last it was buffalo loam) and of course amendments such as kelp, crab meal, etc. It really is a game changer and if mixed appropriately will last for many a grow and produce healthy plants without having to buy chemicals and grow supplements all the time. Just add water! All attributed to Grasscity’s awesome organic section and it’s knowledge and hospitable blades. If you go the other route that’s fine too, just from my opinion this is more fun, saves money later on, and sets your plant up with a mimicked version of its natural state of growing outdoors. If you add a handful of worms to your soil benefits will be enriched. Anyways keep updating this set up and I’ll stay tuned. Good luck! Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
What's going on?! Here for an update. Spoiler Alert! I have officially started germinating two seeds. One seed I've rightfully named Mystery, and one of my two AK49 auto seeds. So construction of my outdoor shed turned out to be much harder then I initially anticipated. I have used great stuff to completely seal the shed. But I think I have finally got the room and atmosphere where it needs to be. I very crudely taped mylar emergency blankets up to all the walls. Hey cut me some slack it's my first time Haha. I also have a very cheap CFL fixture. I drew a example because I forgot to take a picture of it. But it will be 4 23w 2700k bulbs and 4 23w 6500k bulbs. A few socket adapters. A few Y splits. And a few foil Turkey pans. Hanging by an extension cord. For my medium my local grow store has Great lakes water only soil. Once I have a seed pop I'll transfer into peat jiffy pots until I plant that pot and all into its permanent 5 gallon fabric pot. Next grow I'll be using radical bags or root trappers. So off to the races we go. I started germinating my babies this evening just before 5 PM and promptly wrote all data points into my grow journal. Any tips tricks? Can anyone speak on GLWO soil? I'll admit there's a lack of information out there on this stuff. But the water only soil side of the soil industry is where I am into for now.
Just do yourself a favor and get some quantum boards. CFL’s will not be sufficient to grow good buds. They will be airy and very light not dense like if you were using a good light. Also, since you’re in the states in prohibitionland and growing autos go through mephisto to order seeds directly from their site. Make sure you choose the U.S. site when you get to their main page. They have some of the best auto genetics around. And they ship from within the U.S. so they don’t have to go through customs. And g get them within a week. They also send mad free seeds. If you get a single seed they send two. If you get a 3pack they send 5. And if you spend $160 they send 15 free seeds on top of the extra seeds that come in the packs you ordered. I spent $210 and got 37 seeds. Can’t beat it. Good luck! Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
The plan is to upgrade to QBs soon! Gotta stick it out with CFL for now, but at least I'll get to learn some things along the way. I'm not sticking with autos. Simply fell for the auto marketing of them being "easier"/"faster" when I first started to do research. It may not be the best reasoning but the amount of flower I go through in a week my first grow plan was to get a plant to harvest asap for a decent bit of supply. Then switch to photos with hopefully a bit of knowledge, better equipment, and hopefully pull some real weight. I have got q specific question this time. I'm trying to figure out ventilation for my closet. Can someone explain to me what I seem to be missing? I hung the lights and cut the lights on getting ready to plant my germinated seed. But when I turned everything on for a testrun and let it run overnight checking in periodically my thermometer was well in the 90 sometimes 110+. My fans CFM rating is more than sufficient for the size of the room. Is it the heat from the lights it can't keep up with? Do I need more passive intake? The room I am storing this stays mid 70s. They say I understood I would work this would be the heat from inside my grow due to lights and etc would be extracted out of the grow and the cooler 70 air would be sucked through passive intakes keeping my plants environment optimal.
You’re gonna need a lot More ventilation. Where’s your passive ventilation? Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
I didn't seal the doors. That's the only passive intake I have. Thought it was enough. Glad to hear more intake might help.
The location of the actual shed protects me from this. It is in a back bathroom/ closet. I'm literally the only one that even had ever used this room as well.
How do you plan on dealing with smell? At that point you will probably need to cut a 6 inch hole in the shed for exhaust, and a smaller one for intake to give slight negative pressure. (If going carbon filter route) Just keep in mind intake/exhaust should really be located on opposite ends of each other. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum