Build my first stealth grow box. Need ideas and advice

This would be my first cab as well as my first grow. I have some wood working skills but I am no pro carpenter. I know jack squat about electrical wiring so will have to read up on that if I decide to get fancy. Here is a little project I did a while back so you guys can see I am not a complete moron:


Building my first fight stick, SUCCESS!! - shoryuken


My goals for this cabinet are as follow:


1. Stealth (no odor whatsoever)
2. Able to grow enough so I no longer have to buy it
3. Would like to keep it down to 1 exhaust fan (prefer no cool tube)


I first thought about using CFLs but decided to go with HPS/MH bulbs instead for better yields. I would like to keep the cabinet relatively quiet, so just 1 exhaust fan. I want to avoid having to put a fan to exhaust the cool tube and another to circulate air in the cab. Need to keep it as simple as possible if I can. My other issue is the filter and fan size. Not 100% sure what size I will need. Guess that would depend on how many plants I want to grow at a time.


Here is what I had in mind:


250w HPS/MH
4" Inline exhaust fan with Carbon Scrubber
Allow me to grow 2 plants at a time
No need for 2 fans
Min I am guessing 1oz per plant Max 3-6oz if I do a perfect job
28"deep, 3'wide, however necessary tall


I smoke an 1/8 a week. I figured if I went with a 400w setup I would need a cool tube to keep the temps down perhaps forcing me to use 2 fans. Also, growing 4 plants seems a little greedy to me since I just want to grow enough for me and for company when I have guests. Also, 4 plans drying and curing might require a 6" fan instead of the 4".


I have no experience with this kind of stuff and I am open to all suggestions and advice. What do you guys think about the setup I have in mind? What kind of yields am I looking at? Going to take turns growing Indica one harvest and Sativas the next. Most likely going to use the SCROG method to maximize my yields. Saw a guy get 3.5oz from a single plant in a mini fridge with a 150w hps bulb. Here is a link:


Master Kush scrog. 150w hps, 1 mini fridge, 1 seed. hydro - flowering PICS


I know he used hydro for his grow and that it gives better yields. I would be using soil and nutes for my grow. Heard it gives the buds and earthier more flavorful tone. Anyways, looking forward to hearing from you guys.


PS: Feel free to post links to DIY guides on how to build cabs as I need as many ideas as possible. Thank you!

Wow now I got to figure out how to scrog in my cab.

Mad Skills on the woodworking!

I have my first grow going in a cabinet armoure thing, using leds and Hydro. There is a link in my sig if you want a look.

I am subscribed to your thread, looking forward to see what you come up with.

Went to a Hydro store today to get a visual on what I want to buy. Most likely I will go with the following setup:

400w HPS/MH
6" cool tube with reflector (or maybe an air cooled hood)
6" inline fan (450 cfm)
6" Phresh carbon scrubber (450 cfm)
Insulated tubing

Was planning on hanging the filter from the top of the cab then using the insulated tubing to connect it to the cool tube then some more tubing to take it to the fan which will direct heat out the top.

Does anyone have experience with both the air cooled hoods and the cool tubes? It seems the cool tubes would be easier to not only cool but also to keep air tight. The construction of some air cooled hoods make me think that they may have air leaks in them and thus result in my exhaust, though scrubbed, smelling like weed.

Drew these up real quick. Rough sketch using dimensions I found on Sunlight Supply for the parts I want to get. With the current size of the box, the Phresh website says my total cubic feet is only 62. Figured if I used the 6" Vortex fan that is rated at 452 CFM it would be more than adequate to not only filter the cab but also cool the light bulb since it will be in such a close compartment. With the filter also being height adjustable, I can use less ducting which means less chances for air leakage. Also, less distance for the air to travel and be expelled. Only leaves 3 feet to grow, but after super cropping and scrogging my plants I should have plenty of room. Only problem, the cabinet is too big to take down hallways in a home and then rotate to take into a bedroom. Don't want to build it in the room, cause how the hell do I get it out?? Other than taking it apart which I am afraid could weaken the structure of the cabinet from putting in and taking out the screws more than once. Plus I was planning on using rubber spray to seal the edges to prevent light leakage. Yet another hurdle to overcome!!

Tell me what you guys think of my design. I was thinking if I mounted the fan outside, it would give me another foot to grow. Not as stealthy, but more meds is more meds lol

looking good! I am a noob as well so I don't have much advice. I am watching.

Commander Strax said:

looking good! I am a noob as well so I don't have much advice. I am watching.

Click to expand...

Have you done any grows of your own or are you just gathering information like me and formulating a plan?

Let's start at the beginning...

You smoke 1/8 a week. That's 1/2 a month. A grow takes two months so you need a whopping 'one oz.' per grow cycle. A 250 should get you five oz's and a 400 should yield about eight on average. So to start off with, you don't really need such hot lights. You're a newbie (and that's actually a LOT more fun so enjoy it!) so why not keep it simple and improve your chances for success.

Expect about three oz's per 50 watts of HPS lighting. You'll also need a grow box of about one sq. ft. per 50 watts. So a tiny little 70 watt HPS would give you 50% MORE than you're shooting for and would be a great starter. Easy to hide such a small grow box, too. 70's and 150's are readily available at Home Depot, etc. I use 150's.

After that all you need is the grow box. Why hassle with building your own? A couple of cheap Rubbermaids would do the trick. Years ago at OG I did a super simple setup in Rubbermaids and I recently found the photos online. It's a great starter setup. I'll dig them out if you're interested. Only takes three holes in the Rubbermaids and you're done.

Your cooling can be accomplished with a computer fan run at lowered speed to quiet it. Odor is always a problem but normally not until the last two or three weeks of flowering. I've found a rather simple solution to that, too. Aim the exhaust air at a neutralizer-type air freshener. Easy. A simple setup could easily be put together in a day.

Good luck in your grow. I just joined this site and this is my first posting. I'm an oldie from Overgrow. Howdy to any old buddies!

Here's a link to a box I used to use. You'll have to go to the start of thread before I took things out of the box. But before I moved the box into the closet it served me well out in the open.

https://www.rollitup.org/cfl-fluorescent-lighting/212741-first-time-complete-grow-cfl.html

Big factors here are how "stealth" you want to be and size requirements. If your going to do plants start to finish then start again after harvest, a small box will work well. But consider if you want to start clones, or veg plants while crop is budding you'll need space for sectioning off inside of box or another location. Notice how I set my clones up below my main grow area unlike allot of boxes I've looked at. This was so the main grow area wouldn't roast the clones up above it. Also so that when my clone area is on 24 light it wouldn't seep light onto the 12/12 area possibly making the plants hermies "supposedly". The heat also naturally convects in the same direction as air flow which really helped keep things cool. Make sure to seal things up so there is no light outside I even put snorkel like boxes over fans w/ charcoal filters in back to dissipate light so there was no light outside box. Also comp fans whether it be one or four will always have a little hum to them so no matter how stealth, I would still tuck it somewhere where there is little or no traffic. Also if your going to use air pump I suggest hanging them from springs. I just did this with two of my air pumps and now there whisper quiet.

Your on the right track figuring out what your needs are first! Keep researching and make things just the way you want them cause there is nothing worse than doing mods while in the middle of a grow trust me lol! Good luck!

im new to this too. i got a couple rubbermaids ontop of each other with 7 fluorescent tubes and its working well. im not sure if ud want the fan and the carbon filter seperate. everything ive seen has them connected at the top of the box/tent. the fan is pulling air through the filter and past the light, then out the box. so with the ducting connecting it all, how will it pull air/smell out the box? unless im wrong, ull need 2 fans, 1 for your cool tube and at least 1 for exhaust. if heats an issue you made need another fan for intake. but like i said i'm new too.

Project has been put on hold for a while. Some personal issues have come up that need to be dealt with immediately. For now I am just working on a Stealth PC Box that is almost complete. After that, who knows. I will keep you guys posted when I am done putting together my box. Just need the thermometer, timer and 2 light traps