Is one 600w in 4x4 Tent enough?

Discussion in 'Growing Marijuana Indoors' started by oregongreens, Dec 20, 2014.

  1. I'm in week four of flower, and my light doesn't want to cover the entire width of the tent.  It seems that no matter which position I move it to, there is always one corner, or one entire side of the tent that doesn't get lit well.
     
    I've put four 24w CFL's in the dark space for now, changing it's position every two days... is this enough? Is this even a good idea? Should I just invest in another HID?
     
    Any input appreciated.  Thanks!
     
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  2. I hear ya, the biggest problem with a 4x4 tent is heat. 600w should be more than enough, I use to grow 12 plants under 1000w, no problem. But the light needs to be pretty high to get complete coverage. Most likely, your light is too low. But then, everytime you raise the light you lose a lot of intensity. How many plants do you have in that 4x4 and what size pots are you using?
     
  3. Ok....right off the bat.....take the heater out. Then disconnect the hood and take out the glass. Reroute the fan so its filter>fan>exhaust. Then raise the hood 6-12 inches....This will save on electricty and will give you the lumens, spectrum and temp you want. Even though i run 1ks.
     
  4.  
    Heater actually isn't on, dehumy gives enough heat to help out, heater only kicks on on the coldest of days.  Glass is already off the hood.  I had my fan set up exactly how you described but I was fighting terrible humidity issues (ambient RH outside of tent is a lovely Oregon 90%). which led to 60% in the tent which led to PM. Temps and RH have been stable for a week as is.... not moving anything accept for the light light :)  Thanks for the comment!
     
  5. I find a single 600 to be a little lacking for a 4x4.  Probably better suited for a 3x3 or maybe 3x4 depending on your reflector.
     
    Last crop I added a 3rd 600 into my 4x8 and much happier now.
     
  6. 600w is functional for a 4 by 4. technically, a 400w will do it, just not as well.

    You should be rotating your plants, anyhow, if possible, to get light on all sides as equally as possible, so a "dark corner" shouldn't be a danger.
     
  7. #7 greenthumbs21, Dec 20, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 20, 2014
    So you are running a fan through a hood with no glass....pointless.....do as i stated above and it will lower humidity. And put dehumidifier on outside of tent
     
  8. Yeah, was rotating these until SCROG. Not sure I'm sold on the screen idea. If the immediate yield for this turn will increase by 1oz, I would purchase/add another light & hood today. Would it be worth it to introduce more light halfway through flower?
     
  9. Sure....may it be hps or mh you will increase yield or potency compared to the control (what you have now)
     
  10.  
    The hood with no glass adds heat to the tent. When hood was disconnected, exhaust sucked all the heat straight out of the tent and my temps were down to the low 50's at night. If I slowed my fan down to keep some of the heat in the tent, RH went up. The tent is in my shed which isn't sealed... running the dehumy outside the tent was pointless. It was pulling 70 pints a day and RH inside my shed was still at 80%, and inside my tent was at 60%, spiking at 77%. I've been through pretty much every scenario and combination with the dehumy, glass, hood, and exhaust.  I found a sweet spot that's been rocking nicely or the past week and I've seen nice growth, nice temps, RH at 30%, increase bud size and PM has subsided.... not sure if I should interrupt it.
     
  11.  
    This really is the root of my question, thanks for your your help. This is my first indoor project, so it's all new to me. Not to mention I set a budget for this first grow, with a goal to come out even after harvest. I could put more money (adding a 400W + Hood) into this grow, but I would only do so if the increase in yield would compensate for the extra investment this time around. 
     
  12. Nope....everything i do is 30% or lower. And after hearing your situation i definitely recommend the second light with the dehumidifier and or heater on the outside. You cant control temps in a shed so blast it
     
  13. Your best bet is to add the opposite of what you have now....so you have a mh....get a hps....etc.
     
  14. Washington grower here. Also if you set the dehumidifier in the shed you could set it up to just constantly drain outside so you don't have to empty it. Pick up some nice HVAC (duct) tape and seal the shed as much as possible from the inside. Look for freeze resistant tape.
     
  15. And more light is always better.
     
  16. Definitely try to seal like above said....if no tape maybe spray foam or gutter sealer and the dehumidifier is always best outside of tent....also like above.
     
  17.  
    I guess I'm not opposed to changes, although a bit hesitant since the environment is very stable as is. I'll try moving the dehuy outside the tent, but I'm curious how this will benefit the situation as is? Currently the dehumidifier runs 24/7 and at night my RH still creeps up to 45% while inside the tent. It drains through the bottom zippers and out a whole in the shed, so emptying it isn't an issue. Good call on sealing the shed with tape. I'll try moving the dehuy.
     
    I appreciate the feedback from someone who is relatively local.  Cheers
     
  18. thanks for the feedback green thumb. +rep  :bongin:
     
  19. Because if you can lower the humidity in the containing shed. The humidity in the tent will be even lower. So it would be similar to an indoor setup. Mine is sitting at around 32%
     
  20. I'd say your best best is to move it into shed and try to seal as best as possible.
    Also would give you more room for plants
     

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