Building a Grow Box

U

UpInVapor

Member
Hi, I have been reading this site and others for a while and have decided to start a small grow of my own. I have a closet that is 5'(L) x 4.5'(W) x 9'(H). I was originally going to set that up as a grow room but have decided I would rather build a box and put it in there so I do not have to do so much damage to the closet. This is my first grow, so I want to keep it simple which has made me decide to go with soil this time. I was interested in either building or buying a grow tent but was worried about the off-gases and how strong the tents are with holding up my 400W HPS. I then decided to just build it using 2x4s for the frame and possibly plywood or some lighter wood panels for the walls. I have mylar sheeting that I am going to line the inside with.

Since I am building this thing, I have been thinking I should go ahead and set up two chambers to help with future grows so I will have one smaller chamber for veg(mother and clones in the future) and a larger for flowering. My idea was to make a box that is 3.5'(L) x 4.5'(W) x 5'(H). I was going to make the veg chamber section of that be 3.5'(L) x 1.5'(W) x 5'(H) and have the flower chamber be the remaining 3'(W). I will be using CFLs in the veg chamber and a 400W HPS and a few CFLS in the flower chamber. I am growing from non-fem seeds so I expect to have to grow a few more in veg to get enough females at the end. Are these size chambers appropriate for the space I have? How many plants do you think I can veg and flower? Any other hints/tips? Thanks in advance.
 
desertrat

desertrat

Well-Known Member
you're better off if you make the box taller to allow for taller plants in flowering. 5 ft of height is only room for a 2.5 ft (by the way " is inches and ' is feet) plant giving room for the light and pot.

you can divide the veg side into bottom 2/3 and top 1/3 for a mother at the bottom and clones or seedlings at the top.
 
WARHOG

WARHOG

Member
Taller is better, I agree...I just had to build another grow cab, for just that very reason. Have you built the room yet? While building the grow room keep in mind Tempeature,Humidity,Light,Nutrients,Air,Growing mediums....IE soil,rockwool,perlite....some plants can get very tall, so I built mine for example 36"W x 23" D x 80"H ......I have a small but powerful 4"air intake fan to push fresh air into the box. For removing the air and heat generated from the lights,I have a 6" air exuast fan,going into a 6" hose I have ported into the atic....and from what I have seen and reed about. nothing besides nuts will kill your plants faster then hot temps.my box stays around 77.F with about 35% humidity. so if you do a two sided grow room....both the chambers can be the same temp but you will need a humidity dome7" for your clones and starting your seeds. I use FoxFarm Ocean Mix...it has all the good stuff in it with a ballanced PH level....you can use tap water,but RO water is best.U have a 400 watt HPS with a few CFL's....you should be awsome,in your flowering room.And for you Veg room make sure it is light tight.U don't want to get light to your flowing room to the veg room light cycles are different. flowing is pretty standard 12 on 12 off....veg is 18 on 6 off.... and dont over water((((only water when surface looks dry!!!! but first test it with you finger ,2" under the soil if it feel slightly moist you can water...if it still fell wet ...wait and water the next day. Since it's your first grow...I thought I might give you a few pointers,to hopefully save you time, and money, and headache.Good luck on your grow brother....keep it green
 
U

UpInVapor

Member
That is a good idea about doing two compartments in the veg chamber. I will definitely do that. How many plants do you think I can fit in this setup? What about in flowering, how many there? Thanks Warhog for all the useful tips, I will definitely have to remember those.
 
desertrat

desertrat

Well-Known Member
UpInVapor said:
That is a good idea about doing two compartments in the veg chamber. I will definitely do that. How many plants do you think I can fit in this setup? What about in flowering, how many there? Thanks Warhog for all the useful tips, I will definitely have to remember those.
Click to expand...
varies alot by type of plant, but something like 8 - 10 in veg and 6 - 8 in flower with moderately sized plants.
 
desertrat

desertrat

Well-Known Member
UpInVapor said:
I am now thinking of using this fan, anyone have any experience with it?

http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=46447

Will this cool my flowering chamber when used with a passive intake?
Click to expand...
that fan is built to work with a cooltube or air cooled hood in a typical set up like this:

carbon filter - duct - (air cooled hood/cooltube) - duct to outside, with a passive intake.

you probably are going to need a second outlet and fan as well.
 
WARHOG

WARHOG

Member
for your clones and mother plants do your doors open to the outside of the box or do you have to go through your flower room to get to the veg rooms?remember hps lights get real hot you have to remove that hot air. but i really like your set up...u gave me a few ideas for my next one....keep it green
 
U

UpInVapor

Member
Ok, I have put some more thought into this since some have told me this is not enough ventilation. HTG Supply has 3 different sizes for this duct fan: They have a 4", 6", and 8". The 4" - 80CFM, 6" - 160CFM, 8" - 300CFM.

What about if I use 2 of the 6" fans in the flowering chamber with a decent size passive intake? I will be using CFLs in the Veg side for clones and mothers. With just CFLs on that side will I still need to exhaust? If I do, what about if I make a passive intake at the bottom of the mother veg chamber and a 4" exhaust in both the mother and clone chambers and run ducting from those two outtake holes into a Y splitter with a 6" duct fan pulling air out of both of those chambers since they should not get too hot without a HID? If using one fan for the mother and clone sections together will not work I could do a passive intake and 4" exhaust duct fan from HTG supply in each of those chambers, which would set me up with 2 6" exhaust duct fans in the flower chamber and 2 4" fans in the veg chambers, one in with mothers and one with clones. How does that sound? The HPS I am using in the flowering chamber I bought from HTGSupply a couple years ago but never turned on. It will not have a cool tube.
 
WARHOG

WARHOG

Member
two 6"duct 160CFM fans will do the job,one for the flower room, and one for both the veg and mother chambers. I foregot to tell you........ running your lights in the evening, when your home is the best time to run the lights. Install a smoke detector above your cab,(((NOTE )) install outside cab......because powerfull 6" fans can suck out the smoke from the cab if there was a fire...and with alot of air moving through your cab the fire will grow quickly.Due to all the fresh air being pumped into the cab....so mount smoke detector on ceiling above cab or in general area....buy fire extinguisher SAFETY is # 1 bro....only work on your plants when your lights turn on from the timer. So what i'm saying is if you get home from work at 5 pm every day m-f no weekends hopefully lol. I would have the timer turn on at 5:30 PM.....why 30 minutes later you ask! because on average, when people get home they start to do tasks around the house ...check the mail, answer machine, typical run of the mill every day bullshit.It give you time to do stuff and then I water after my lights have been on for 30 minutes to an hour or so....I'm in a bit of a hurry today....but it sounds like you have the right ideas...if you have questions just ask the guys here!!! .....keeep it green
 
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