This is my current idea for a 6'x51/2'x21/2' (HWD) clone/flower box & 41/2'x2'x21/2' (HWD) mother box. I have not started the build because I would like to get a little feedback first.The clone box will house 6 clones in 6 inch pots. The flower box will house 6 plants, 2 per 13.5 gallon rubbermade tote.The mother box will house 1 plant in a 13.5 gallon tote. All intake and exaust will be run with 100-120cfm cpu fans. I will spray paint the inside/outside of all boxes white and have the clone/flower boxes' outside painted by a friend, graffitti style. I am thinking about using a tablecloth to cover the mother box, put her in the corner and double the box as a lampstand. As for the clone/flower box, won't be able to get too stealthy with it, but I figure making it as decrotive as possible on the outside will make it look more natural to the setting. I will use 2x4's to frame the boxes and pressboard as the walls. I will use some kind of sealent to make the box air tight. I'm not sure what to use, if you might have an idea please let me know. I am also leaning towards the idea of putting both boxes on wheels to improve mobility. Any input would be greatly appreciated. I'll update as I progress in ideas and construction. Picture 1: Inside views Picture 2: Front view with doors closed Picture 3: Rear view
So would you then suggest me using 2 400w hps lamps? About the 13.5 gallons totes though, I think the will work well. 2 plants per tote will give each around 5 gallons of space. Obviously I don't plan to fill it to the brim. I believe that will be suffcient. Plus they are only 4 bucks at your local wally world. I was actually thinking the light might be much but im not sure what to use instead. Any feedback would be appreciated.
Sounds like a 1000W might be a little hot. I have a 6'x3'x8' with a 1000w HPS on a mover (manual for now) I relocate the light each day. Plan on making or buying a real light mover soon but this has worked well in the past. The biggest thing is venting and temperature. You have to have good air movement with 1000W. Sometimes the low humidity is a factor also, so you may have to deal with that. A 1000W can dry things up quckly. Also the tremendous growth. You will out grow a box very swiftly and it can end up hurting you in the end. A couple of 400W HPS might be best for your cab. Just make sure you can keep your water cool in your buckets. Below 70 is best. My last grow in this box I vented each 5 gallon tub with dryer vent duct from fresh cool air. A vent was cut into the top of each tub stemming from the main duct work. A blower drew from cool air and fed the system. It was a major pain to set up but damn did it work well! It saved my girls lives This time I am going with 5 gallon buckets instead of the tubs. They are deeper than the tubs and don't have so much surface exposure so I figure they will be easier to keep cool. What I am thinking about doing differently this time is using a timed exchange of water from a cooling tub located on the outside of the box. I'll have to figure out the overflows on them and all that but it seems the best way to go if I stay with DWC and the 1000W. I love the giant buds but Hot nutes just fucks everything up... Good luck
Ok, so I did a little research on prices for hps lamps and I am leaning towards using 2 250w HPS lamps instead of the 1000w. This should help with temp and energy useage and also give a better distribution of light. They are only $79 each on a site I found. I'll edit this post with a link to the site asap. Also, although I eventually would like to use a hydro system I am going to be using an organic soil (bat guano, worm castings, perlite) in the totes for this first grow.. I figure it might be a little much to take on using a hydro/bubble system for my first harvest. I plan to keep up on the research and when I feel confident, I will convert my setup to a hydro/bubble system. I am attaching an updated pic with the 2 250w in place. insidesun.com 250w HPS, $79.00 http://www.insidesun.com/e2c5b5c00e10b2159cf4edd3628fa645.item Update: I have found the cpu fans that I plan to use for the exaust/intake. I first figured that I would use 120-150 cfm cpu fans, but I think that might be a little much and is, for sure, not cost effective. I have decided that with the change from 1000w to 2x 250w hps, 80cfm per fan should work fine. That would give me 240cfm(exaust)&160cfm(intake) for the flower box and 80cfm(exaust)&80cfm(intake) for both the clone and mother box. Here is a link to the site I will get my fans from. surplussales.com Globe Motors Fan, 12vdc, 80cfm, 2050rpm $7.00 each http://www.surplussales.com/fans-blowers/FansBlow-3.html