2'X2'X6' grow space. HPS or CFL?

zoezoezoe

zoezoezoe

Well-Known Member
I'm planning my second grow in my closet. I grew in this space last time and had great results using hydro and about 300 watts (give or take) of CFLs.

I don't want to use a 400W because of heat issues, but what about a 250 watt HPS? Would I get better results with that than with 300 watts of CFL? How will heat be with a 250 watt in that grow space and will the light be sufficient for 2 plants? Thanks!

Any input would be great. Thanks! I'm going to get a grow journal going once I build the space. White Widow and Strawberry Cough, from clone will be the plants.

bongsmilie
 
socom3riot

socom3riot

Well-Known Member
Im sure it would be fine if you have proper ventilation or a cooltube.
And yea 250W would be good for 2 plants
 
zoezoezoe

zoezoezoe

Well-Known Member
I have been looking at the self contained/ventilated hoods that HTG sells. If you hook up a fan and some ducts to that, is that really all the ventilation ya need for the grow space?
 
socom3riot

socom3riot

Well-Known Member
zoezoezoe said:
I have been looking at the self contained/ventilated hoods that HTG sells. If you hook up a fan and some ducts to that, is that really all the ventilation ya need for the grow space?
Click to expand...
well , that would control the heat issue, you should have some sort of air intake tho for fresh air, unless ur using co2 , then i would recommend an exhaust. But as long as the heat issue is controlled , just like a regular fan blowing air out and in would prolly be ok for a small grow.
 
tryintogrow

tryintogrow

Well-Known Member
i just switched to a 400w MH/HPs and it actually runs cooler then cfls i had. i just use one fan for about 15 ever 2 hrs. also just be sure to get the glass for the reflector so all the heat is pushed up:) happy growing.
 
G

gforce420

Well-Known Member
Most air cooled reflectors are gonna be 2' across anyway so it would be difficult to fit them in your 2'x2' space & run the air anywhere, cause even if you got an air-cooled reflector in there then you would not be able to turn the corners w/ your ducting, you would just have to go str8 thru the wall which would mean going into another room in your house or another closet or something & i'm sure you don't wanna tear your house up like that (I sure hope we're not talking about your parents house). Anyway I looked on HTG & I think i see what you were talking about & it looks cheap (inexpensive) which is great. I've never used anything as small as a 250 so i don't know how hot it would be but I would suggest keeping it as cool as possible. What I saw @ HTG is also amazingly small, 9" x 4" x 5.5" tall. Wow that's little. Anyway, since I dont' think you can get an air cooled reflector in there & if you did it would cost alot more than that thing, I would suggest going to lowes or home depot & getting an 8 In. 110VAC 500FM In-Line Duct Fan - 3012 at The Home Depot and a Master Flow 7 In. Deluxe Click Starting Collar - 12 Per Carton - SCF7 at The Home Depot to mount it in. (the fan is 8" 500 cfm & the bracket i liinked is only 7" but if you go to the store you can find 8" or whatever size you need to match the fan you choose). I linked the 8" duct fan which does 500 cfm, this may be overkill in your room but i don't know how hot it will get so more is better. It's only a few more dollars & a little bit more electricity so i think it's worth going w/ the 8". You can even buy a ductistat @ home depot too & set the temp you want, then if the fan is overkill & keeps it cool enough then the ductistat will turn the fan off, keep your room @ the right temp & save a little money on the power bill too :) . So I would use the all-in-one set up you were looking @ and mount that 8" fan on your ceiling and run into the attic (assuming there is an attic above the closet? if not then well it's time to rethink where you can run the air). since the room is only 24" wide then I would guess your door is maybe 20" @ most? Is it a regular single door, or is it a bi-fold door? Anyway I would make sure you have @ least a 1/2" opening between the bottome of the door and the floor, That will give you an air intake, otherwise the fan is just gonna struggle & not really move any air.

P.S. after i think about it, you're room is only 24 cubic feet, so 500 cfm really is probably overkill, like Over overkill. So maybe go w/ a 6" duct fan, which I think should be about 1/2 the cfm. 250. that would move 10x the air in your room every minute under theoretically perfect conditions. Realistically maybe 1/2 that. & if you are running it any further than just thru the ceiling then that will go way down so if you do have to duct the exhaust very far then maybe the 8" would be a good idea.


Hope this long winded post helps, lol. otherwise I've wasted too much time :p
 
G

gforce420

Well-Known Member
Oh, one more note. If you do in fact have an attic above you & your run the fan to blow out up there... Well then I would also advise putting the ballast up there too, you don't wanna leave the ballast in your room where you will be watering plants & such. Then there is also the additional heat, which you don't want. So put the ballast up in the attic & run the cords down below.

Note: hopefully you have somewhere to plug it in up there, because you don't want to run extension cords to you ballast. Actually I'm not sure how bad that would be w/a 250 watt, maybe you can, just check the manual that's with it. & if you do run a cord to it then use the shortes length & heaviest guage cord that you have (cord guages get heavier w/ the smaller the #, a 12 guage extension cord is VERY thick & heavy duty, a 16 guage is probably what you're used to seeing). But really, don't try to get too cute when it comes to running electricity around your grow room. You have very high voltage, water, and alot of frequent activity. Accidents will happen, you just gotta make sure everything is as safe as can be so when an accident happens it doesn't cost you your life :)
 
zoezoezoe

zoezoezoe

Well-Known Member
Hey, thanks for the VERY helpful post. I will be heading to HomeDepot tomorrow to see what I can find. Thanks!
:peace:
 
GypsyBush

GypsyBush

Well-Known Member
zoezoezoe said:
I'm planning my second grow in my closet. I grew in this space last time and had great results using hydro and about 300 watts (give or take) of CFLs.

I don't want to use a 400W because of heat issues, but what about a 250 watt HPS?

bongsmilie
Click to expand...
My opinion is HPS all he way...

I wanted a 400 HPS.. but thought it was too much...

Then I just bit the bullet and bought the last light I will ever buy (not upgrading 17 times WILL save you money)..

I went with a 600 HPS in a cool tube...

My tent is 36x20x60... very small...

With proper venting, I can have 600 watts 10" from my plants and I can thermostatically control the temp down to 65F.... pretty good...

My sig has a really cool link to a DIY Cool Tube...

here is my tent..

Best of luck....

 
GypsyBush

GypsyBush

Well-Known Member
One more note...

The fans suggested above are ok... but any restriction will severely hamper their performance...

You will be happier (for a longer period of time) with a centrifugal type fan...

I use a 4" 170CFM for my cool tube... like this one...

High Tech Garden Supply

They will maintain CFM much better ....

Cheers....
 
zoezoezoe

zoezoezoe

Well-Known Member
What material did you make your tent out of if you don't mind me asking? PVC frame and some kind of plastic sheeting?
 
GypsyBush

GypsyBush

Well-Known Member
zoezoezoe said:
What material did you make your tent out of if you don't mind me asking? PVC frame and some kind of plastic sheeting?
Click to expand...
I'm a lazy stoner...:eyesmoke:

So I will do it the easy way... quoting...lol...

I must say that the ventilation has been upgraded... more ducting... more fans...

Final Vent sys. includes

170 CFM cool tube driver
440 CFM thermostatically controlled exhaust fan
440 CFM speed controlled to 330CFM, thermostatically controlled intake fan

I use the 2/3 exhaust rule for my intake fan as to keep a slight vacuum, assuring no smells get out, but rather, fresh air leaks in...

I have also changed PPM monitor to the Hanna Grocheck, which includes continuous pH and TDS/EC monitoring... freaking thing is awesome!!!!

Well, here are the original posts from my thread...

Cheers...bongsmilie


GypsyBush said:
Hi...! yes... I'very Hi...!

A while back (10 days or so) I ordered a new light... a 600 Watt HPS w/ a 8" cool tube... ... so I could have one light over the four trays I intend on having..

I wanted to order a Grow Tent as well, but the cash was a little short that day... not wanting to wait this long again for shipping, I decided to go get some supplies and build my own... (with the help of a good friend... Thanks!!!:clap:)

Soooo, I just thought I'd post about how I spent part of my day yesterday...

Went to WM... picked up a "wardrobe"... air pumps & stones... Industrial Strength Velcro... and 4 plastic containers...








Then I went to "L" and got a few more things... 4"in-line duct fan (exhaust) @ 80CFM... some 4" ducting... a 4" ducting wall adapter... and some heavy duty tape...











Then I went to a gardening supply store and picked up some 6 MIL black/white Panda Film, but I had to buy a freaking roll of it... 1000 sq Foot roll... yeah.... ok... and I found these neat little zippers... probably $1 from China, but I paid PREMIUM, let me assure you hehehe, what a rip off... I needed them so I got them... and they were very easy to use... if only they were a better zipper... I hate cheap, flimsy shit that you know won't last... especially when you have to pay a lot for it...

Oh my other beef with the zipper is that you NEED 2 to make a door... all of the pictures showed what I needed... but you can't make an effective door with just one... everything I said before... just doubled the price... rip off....








So I guess a few pictures of the assembly are in order...

This is not a tutorial... I am not a teacher and I don't have patience to explain anything to anyone unless the person is willing to pay genuine attention because they are really interested...

With that said, I would be glad to answer questions here on this thread (please do not PM me ABOUT THIS)... just make sure you are asking a relevant, specific question... Thanks...!

















So Yeah, it is pretty easy, if you have the patience to deal with a very large piece of plastic that needs to be folded neatly several time...

I still need a piece of thin plywood for the bottom, the cardboard looked good for the pictures, but it's not permanent...

I put little velcro tabs, attaching the frame to the panda film...

I had to make an extra section to cover the back of the zipper, as it is not light proof, and to make sure, I ran a strip of velcro lenghtwise, to make sure light cannot go in because of the zipper...

I'll take a better picture of the thermostat, but it is just a regular cooling thermostat... you set the temp and it lets power go to whatever it is you are running...

Kinda like a timer..... but instead of turning on and off with hours and minutes, it is controlled by temperature...

So I can have the fan kick at ... say... 75F...and when it gets below 75F (+- a few) it shuts off....

Passive intakes should do it... but it would be easy to add at any point...

I know I will not get true 80CFM out of this fan, but I have a small tent...
true 80CFM would circulate the entire airmass 3.3 times every minute...

I bet I am still getting full volume transfer every minute... I got 24 cubic feet of space...

Well, it's time for me to go and enjoy some torture at physical therapy...

Be good boys and girls... and remember "Always Drive Rowdy...." lol...

Gypsy....;-)

When the light gets here, it will have 8" holes on the sides of the tent for unrestricted blow by ventilation... provided by a 265cfm cage fan (not an in-line blower...
Click to expand...
and the continuation...

GypsyBush said:
Damn... and I still got the joint... :joint::peace:


Ok... so I will start pretty much where I left off... with one overlapped picture to illustrate a change....


I decided to change the exhaust flange because I found one that will block the light a little better than the previous... and I think it looks slightly better...









...and a little fan to ... "..stir it up, little darling stur it up..."lol






Oh! I was wrong about the fan all along... it is a 170 CFM in line blower...








I have always been scared of cheap plastic timers on anything more than household lamp... so... here we have a real timer... that probably won't catch fire, melt or be overloaded...








Of course we gotta know what we are feeding our plants, so here we have a HANNA Pronto TDS/PPM meter.... everything to keep my ladies happy...








The thermostat will kick the exhaust fan ON when the temperature inside raises to what the user sets it to...







This power strip will be used for non-ballast/non-timed/non-heat generating items such as the circulating fan and 9 watt CFL (just in case I need a light and don't need to fire up the BIG GUNS...)

Everything else will be staged outside... airpumps, ballasts, transformers... etc...






And here is the whole strip with the goodies....









... and last but not least....

I really wanted to use some of the "neoprene" medialess "disks"... but there were none to be had in this town...

So, again, I found something that works at a fraction of the cost....

I wanted to get away from absorbent foam once the seedlings grow a bit, to avoid stem rot...

So this closed cell foam is perfect, even if I have to tape or glue it once the thin seam busts...

It's perfect for what I am doing...










Well boys & girls.. it's been fun so far... but I am not finished.... soooo... I will get busy again and check with you guys a little later...

Take care...

Gypsy...:joint::bigjoint:



:joint:... anyone...



:leaf:
Click to expand...
 
GypsyBush

GypsyBush

Well-Known Member
zoezoezoe said:
well thanks. that is awesome
Click to expand...
If you would allow me a suggestion...

I would go with a 400 HPS... in a cool tube...

If money is an issue... wait and buy it piece by piece...

Upgrading will make growing more expensive over time...

If you are going to be with it for a while, I guarantee you will end up with a 400 or better...

Why upgrade 13.4 times????

Serious man, I could care less what you grow with... but if you want to save money over time, you need to look at gram per watt ratio...

How much you pay for each gram is what tells you if your grow is "cheap" or not...

A 400 HPS is where you start seeing the ability to produce 1 gram/watt... the light "hits" harder... there is more intensity to it... I am not sure how to explain it.... the light penetrates further within the leaf....

Save the money, build it right, be happy for years....

If cash was no object, I would say this is a good deal... (see pic below) and HTG is a very straight up company... I use and recommend anytime something is needed... they have taken care of me with "old school costumer service", standing behind their products with no questions asked.... 100% awesome company..

With these components, you would have a good light, odor control and exhaust fan...

Pull (hot) air from your grow space through the cool tube... there is your exhaust...

If you have enough room inside, put the carbon scrubber as the pick up point for the exhaust...

If not, just slap the filter outside, on the exhaust end of the fan.... you may need to connect with a piece of ducting...

The best way to set it up is what I did...

With a fan dedicated to the light...

Making the fan blow cool air from outside, has several benefits... the fan is more efficient at blowing cool air vs warm air.... the fan will last longer, by running cooler...

But with that arrangement you must vent that warm air straight out the space... wasting a fan if you will.. but not really if you need it to keep the temps down...

So you will also need an exhaust fan... most people say turn the air over 1x every 5 min...

I said fuck that and exchange the air in my tent 3x per minute...

But you could possibly get away with this set up...

High Tech Garden Supply


I put a grand into my tent, but I have enough materials to make 9 more tents @ $50 each... the fans I have can drive 2 tents in the summer, 3 in the winter... I will never have to upgrade to a bigger light...

Sorry if I am rambling bro, I'm high one some miniature nugs...lol....

Have you seen my minis????

Check this...









​
 

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GypsyBush

GypsyBush

Well-Known Member
and just on an EDIT note...

I gave you the figure for the old vent sys...

440CFM in a 25CF tent, exchanges the air 17.6x per minute...

I have ducting, turns and what not so I bet its down to 15x a minute...lol

But I am very ok with that...

Cheers...

Hope some of this helps...

:eyesmoke:
 
tryintogrow

tryintogrow

Well-Known Member
nice post thx for the info....did you stack to wardrobes on top of each other or do they make 6' tall ones?
 
GypsyBush

GypsyBush

Well-Known Member
tryintogrow said:
did you build that tent urself? if so how did you do it?
Click to expand...
Are you serious?;-)

Look up about 3 or 4 posts man... :eyesmoke:

It's pretty self explanatory...

Panda film around the frame with some tape...:blsmoke:

Is there a specific qauestion about it?

Hit me back dude... lol...:bigjoint:
 
Hotshot123

Hotshot123

Well-Known Member
2- 6" fans from WalMart at $8.00 each is all you need, no need for all that expensive stuff. I grown with 250 watt hps before in a 3'x3'x6.5' and pull over 10oz for two plants. If you train one plant right, you can get that much or more with just one plant. Wow, just notice the date on this thread, it is old.
 
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