10 square ft closet grow

justiceman

Active Member
Hey guys I was just wondering what your views were on my grow room idea. I have an empty closet that is 5l x 2w x 8h. I was thinking I should get a 400w hps/mh but I am wondering if I could push it with a 600w? I have read that one needs about 40w per square foot. A calculator online says I should use a 400w for optimum lighting or 600w for maximum lighting based on 10 square feet. it also states that i should have fans that have a cfm rating of 73.3 cubic ft for a 400w and 86.7 for a 600w. my concern is will a 400w or 600w put off to much heat in a space that size? Will it be impossible or too challenging to keep the temps down? I am aware that I can use CFL but I really want to use some of the big guns. Thanks in advance for the help
 

huskerguy

Active Member
ya man i get along just fine with my 400w in my 4x3x8 (12 sq ft) closet, w/o some kind of ventilation it would be way too hot. your math seems right as far as fan power. but i just ghetto rigged my ac to pump right into the room and it works great. keeps cool 70 deg. air pumpin in at all times. Id say that on a hot day my temps push about 82 deg. at the warmest time of the afternoon, other than that id say they stay pretty stable at about 78-80 deg.

just keep lots of airflow and its fine man heres a couple pics of mine.
 

Attachments

Hairy Bob

Well-Known Member
Watts per square foot assumes a square room, for a 5x2 you'd be better off with a pair of 250ws.
You will need plenty of ventilation, make sure the exhaust leads outside of the room the closet is in, whether it goes into the attic, out the window or whatever, just make sure it goes away from the area, then you can let air flow in from the room and it should keep it cool.
Also get a bigger fan than you need, it's much better to get a fan speed controller and run it at half speed or whatever it takes, then you have that bit extra in case you need it.
You seem to have done a fair bit of research, keep it up and you'll go far. All the best.
 

justiceman

Active Member
thanks for the reply's guys. Ya I am thinking about going with two 250w's but would I be able to get a decent yield for my own personal usage from that set up?
 

Rexob715

Well-Known Member
thanks for the reply's guys. Ya I am thinking about going with two 250w's but would I be able to get a decent yield for my own personal usage from that set up?
Yeah, I think you would get an excellent yield. Keep the lights as close to the tops as you can, even if you have to add another small fan or two. They are 7 bucks at wal-mart for 4in. desk fans. (Were 5 bucks, damn inflation.)

I have heard that you want 50W per sq. ft. and I use a 400W in a 2x3 grow tent. So, 500W would be the same in a 5x2.

Her is a pic of my northern lights just before harvesting grown using LST technique.
 

Attachments

justiceman

Active Member
hey sorry for some reason I can't see your pics rexob. In any case I have thought of another idea. What if I got a 600w with good vent fams and then put a small portable air cooler(swamp cooler) in the closet as well since my humidity will be lowered by the lights anyway. I figure that a swamp cooler will increase humidity, and lower the temp a bit. Then I could move the lamp across the room(like a light mover)
 

justiceman

Active Member
Here is a rough draft picture of what I am thinking. Interestingly enough a friend of mine runs two 600w's in a room that is 8'l x 2'w x 8'h with a 300cfm vent fan and some ducting. He says that his hottest temp is around 80 degrees. If I get the same fan then in theory I believe I should be able to run a 600 with possibly even lower temps then 80 degrees. What do you guys think?
 
Top