cfl setup test, first mj grow

I have built this grow closet. I am now tinkering with it till perfection. I have one test plant. It seems to like its life. Most likely I will start a few more plants from seed in a week. We will see how the remaining few days go. Everyday, I make a little more progress.

Let me explain the setup a bit.

I turned a corner of an old building into a grow closet. I included an old screen door for entry. I insulated the sides of the closet. Where I'm at it is starting to get cold. I hung mylar on the sides. I will have to make it a little flatter before its go time. The floor of the building is dirt. The closet is raised about a foot off the floor. This is good. I have lined the bottom of the closet with roofing rubber. In the picture you can see where i cut the rubber back and placed a screen. this serves two purposes. excess water can drain out (if theres any), most of my intake air comes from this opening. It is cool underneath the closet, bringing cool air in.

for lighting i have:
6 - 6700K 23 watt
2 - 3500K 23 watt
18/6

i picked up a small floor fan at walley world for $5. I turned it on its side half way up the enclosure.

The main problem i am working on is the lighting placement. I currently have three lights hanging from the midway ceiling. I am dealing with the lights turning and bumping each other some times. I switched one light fixture to a stiff electrical 3 wire cable allowing for more precise placement of the lights. but still not perfect. any ideas??

Oh yeah, so far in the last three days, my temps were between 60 and 80. I have the 6 hours of sleep happening from 11 am to 5 pm to help keep midday heat down. i think the early morning temps should be around 60. is this to cool?

sounds like you have all the basics down... for a first grow and just starting looks like you did your homework

good luck

thanks, i did do some homework and now i'm doing the lab work. hopefully only for the rest of the week. I had a catus farm for 5 years. completely driven by artificial lighting. that was fun, but none the same. except i'm using the same timer.

i just went out to check on the temps. its getting cold outside by the week. i actually turned off my fan. this may be a problem come the next few months. how hardy are these plants?

I would say anything under 60 might be a problem. Btw your plant in the pic looks a little droopy. Do you over water?

Dually - you are correct. the plant is saturated. The big pot is too big at the moment. Good analysis.

This morning at 6am the temps were at 60. It looks like i'll be closing that vent up..

check for the evening results.

good growth. in fact great growth. tight nodes and healthy leaves.
low temps. 70 f.
found a way to add more side lights. will be working on this over the weekend.
thinking about a top covering of Mylar.


i think my setup is ready to house a few more friends.
perhaps sooner than this weekend this will go from a design test to a grow journal.



questions/concerns for the day:
is the mj plant sensitive to touch?
i will most likely experience temps below the 60's some time, maybe not for a month or two. but sometime during the grow.

i'm happy

this morning temps were at 60. it looks like i will be picking up more lights and insulation to completely insulate the majical grow room.

I would take more pictures but my camera is broken and cell phone pictures just arent the same. and besides. its technically still a test. after this weekend the real kick off begins.

I have missed a few area's in my test though that will need proper addressing. fertilizer being the first. I have IRONTRON fertilizer that is 10-10-10. but from what i understand for the vegging i need less nitrogen? the soil is not mg. (not sure what it is though as i'm at work). i couldn't find any foxfarm at any store in my area. it looks like i will have to online shop.

Oh yeah - this plant is growing like a weed.
&
my girlfriend stated that i will either grow maryjane or go blind trying.

i added two more lights to help keep the temps up along with closing the top from the bottom of the closet with plywood. the weekend leaves alot to do.

i also will start a few more seeds today. in fact i'm going to get my jar now.

i just rounded up 5 bag seed. 2 from one stash and 3 from another. I think the one plant growing now is from the bag that i pulled three from today. that hopefully will give me good odds. I put them on top of the water heater in a wet paper towl within two hefty interlocking plastic plates. that will keep them nice and warm.

i guess its time to get a camera and start a grow journal. we will see about tomorrow.

just for thought. i'm not sure what will happen down the road. i may have plans to switch to an underground cellar with hps? not sure yet. i surely have the space and when i was purchasing a few more cfls for like $4.5 and the nessary hardware i was thinking it may actually be cheaper to get a hps setup from htg. time will tell. having said that should i start my journal here or in a differnt section??

ha i if it gets pretty cold an hps may supply you with the perfect temp. awsome

i know it will get super cold outside. i guess the inside temps depend on my insulation job. but it worries me that they wont get any fresh air if there are sealed up. i just hope im not surprised one day when there flowering and frozen.

maybe you get some purple as buds from the cold temps

Hey Flower Pimp, Looks Like your Having fun. From your photos it looks like you could use some reflectors set up with your lights, they really can help. I've had plants survive a light frost with no problem. I think a lot of it also has to do with the strain that you are growing. They do breed some for the colder outside areas like Canada. I believe the cooler temps won't hurt them they will just grow slower. You won't hurt them as long as you be careful Just like with any other plant. They can be a pretty tough plant. Your cellar idea sounds good. Might make it easier to regulate you temps. Advanced Nutrients make some pretty good ferts also. Have fun.

i would go for purple buds.

& yes, i am having lots of fun! i have been thinking about putting some false cardboard walls with mylar around my plant to help narrow the space. hopefully i will get some better nutes on the way this weekend. i was thinking about the triple foxfarm pack.

Hash Lover you have lifted my spirits considering the cold weather. thanks!


now i have also been thinking... i have this one plant that looks like imo i could start budding within a week. i have also just put down 5 seeds to germinate. hmmm.... what should i do? i don't want the growing plant to get to big.

maybe its not quite ready to flower...

Plant looks pretty good. With the wide leaves it looks like some Indica in it. Indicas don't grow as much as sativas after you start flowering. I'd wait if I had the room to let it get a little bit bigger. At about the most it would probably grow is about 3 times the size it was when you started to flower. I enjoy building the things I need as much as I enjoy the finished product. It's a fun hobby for sure.

thats great news. what is a general time line for veggin. i know strain matters but there all going to be bag seed. Maybe thats a question best answered when i know if i'm going to go cfl or hps for flower...

in my free time, i am always fucking with something. i have been contenplating using an old computer to grow. i was thinking about writing some code and controlling the lights and fans basaed on temps and humidity. perhaps tied into a water system that mist. along with pics on demand via webcam sent to my email. then i get overwhelmed and smoke. then i turn to my second hobbie. growing indoor house plants... growing weed indoors is like heaven....

FLOWER PIMP said:

i was thinking about writing some code and controlling the lights and fans basaed on temps and humidity. perhaps tied into a water system that mist. along with pics on demand via webcam sent to my email. then i get overwhelmed and smoke. then i turn to my second hobbie. growing indoor house plants... growing weed indoors is like heaven....

Click to expand...

Wow, that would be quite the sophisticated system!!! Keep us updated on the code writing, etc.

How old is the plant in the pic now? I agree with Hash, but if you don't want it to get too big, you could start flowering it any time now.

Lee