Dirt cheap perpetual harvest?

I also forgot that the lights are 4 feet across... So that wardrobe is out of the question. From what I see, steel tubing is also very expensive, so I can't build it out of steel. If there's no alternative, I'll use PVC, but my balls won't thank me for it.

lgolos said:

I also forgot that the lights are 4 feet across... So that wardrobe is out of the question. From what I see, steel tubing is also very expensive, so I can't build it out of steel. If there's no alternative, I'll use PVC, but my balls won't thank me for it.

Click to expand...

You can also use a non toxic material known as wood... Places like HD (which stands for Home Depot) even carry it in convenient 1x1 and 2x2 format... which along with some nails, screws or glue, will give a very sturdy frame...

How about that alternative...???

So, have you looked into a manufactured tent???

Hope this helps...

G

I haven't been able to find a manufactured tent under 100 dollars, and none of them would fit. I'll consider wood, but it's not my first choice. Either way, I can't order anything until the 21st; I'm using a single-use generated credit card using the paypal plugin (to hide trail), and my funds don't clear until then.

On a somewhat different topic: Would these

12 Greenlite Compact Fluorescent Light CFL Bulb 23/100w - eBay (item 370096539135 end time Oct-19-08 01:21:45 PDT)

work well as supplemental side light? Or maybe I should just buy 60 of them for each chamber?

Uh ok... why not wood? it's light and strong... pretty cheap too...

Well, I feel that none of my suggestions were good enough for you... so I am not sure I am going to be able to help you...

A "thank you for your time" would have been nice... but it's ok... I'm not picky...

As for the lights you posted, I am not sure if you are serious or not... but if it were me... and I wanted to do side lighting... I would deff. look into using T-5 tubes, as they would be much more efficient...

But again... none of my other ideas were helpful.. so...

If you have any more questions, I will be glad to answer, but for now, I will let the other growers chime in with some new ideas...

Sorry I couldn't nail it for you, I tried...

Best of Luck...

Gypsy...

GypsyBush said:

Uh ok... why not wood? it's light and strong... pretty cheap too...

Well, I feel that none of my suggestions were good enough for you... so I am not sure I am going to be able to help you...

A "thank you for your time" would have been nice... but it's ok... I'm not picky...

As for the lights you posted, I am not sure if you are serious or not... but if it were me... and I wanted to do side lighting... I would deff. look into using T-5 tubes, as they would be much more efficient...

But again... none of my other ideas were helpful.. so...

If you have any more questions, I will be glad to answer, but for now, I will let the other growers chime in with some new ideas...

Sorry I couldn't nail it for you, I tried...

Best of Luck...

Gypsy...

Click to expand...

I apologize if I came off as ungrateful, I do appreciate your help.

I'll probably end up using wood, but I was thinking that some kind of tubing would be easier to build with, since I wouldn't need to nail or cut.

If money allowed, I'd use t5s for side lighting; however, that's not the case, and 1 or 2 packs of those flourescents is all I can afford now. They seem pretty strong; 1600 lumens each, and they're each only slightly over $1. I don't know where I'd get a socket, or fixture, or ballast, or whatever that thing is called that CFLs screw into, though. Ebay doesn't seem to have many, and I don't know which one I need. So I'll probably start with the T5s only, and get the CFLs once I know something about lights.

By the way, how much horizontal space do you have? And is the ceiling of your grow area sloped or flat? Where is the four feet measured at?

Doctor Pot said:

By the way, how much horizontal space do you have? And is the ceiling of your grow area sloped or flat? Where is the four feet measured at?

Click to expand...

Sloped. The tip of the slope is about 4.5 feet, so the T5s could be mounted there and I'd probably get ~4 feet from the lights to the ground. I have a fair amount of horizontal space, though it's somewhat limited because I need to grow to the side of the attic, away from the fiberglass insulation. Or will the insulation not affect the grow?

Oh man... no worries...

Have you looked at these...?

High Tech Garden Supply

I would think about something like that 2' or 4' long and 2 to 8 on your space...

But I would consider a set up that included these items... even if you have to wait a bit and buy what you need in steps...

Check these thing out...

400 watt HPS/MH GROW TENT CABINET LIGHT 400w hydroponic - eBay (item 180159720185 end time Nov-07-08 12:53:12 PST)

I know... it's a lot of money... but you can save a few paychecks and so it right...

It's so easy to start with poor equipment and get frustrated and quit...

Save your money and get the right equipment... you will not regret it...

I ran up a shopping cart over at HTG for you... this would be a good set up for a small/medium cab...

Don't jump to the total and go Holly Shit!!!!!

There is a light and complete ventilation system...

A set up that you can add to any small (not micro) set up.... and get kick ass "High Times like" buds...

Don't set your self up for failure... or disappointment ...

Advice from the heart man...

Here is the list...



Let me hear your thoughts...

Oh and what are the dimensions you have?

Cheers...

G

piFFstAr407 said:

dude cfls are the worst possible option... period, unless ur in ur first 2 weeks of veg or starting clones..

Click to expand...

that isn't true at all. otherwise people wouldn't grow with cfl's... period. now stop telling newbs bad info before they go buy a 400w hps for no reason.

Scroogeness said:

that isn't true at all. otherwise people wouldn't grow with cfl's... period. now stop telling newbs bad info before they go buy a 400w hps for no reason.

Click to expand...

Well... you have a very good point... people do it all the time... but they are certainly CFL buds...

And Scrooge... although I agree with you... people do all kinds of things that aren't the best for them... everyday... so...

and there is a very good reason to get a 400 HPS... but not every wants big dense mouth watering buds...

If I am going through the trouble.. and a light bulb makes a big difference... in quality and yield... why bother with less...

Same time same work... more, better buds...

anyway... different people do things different because they see from different points of view...

I grow for personal only and do not make a dime in profit... it's for me... so it's the best I can make it...

But I will stop and let people make their own decisions...

As I usually say .. GO With What You Know....

Best Luck to all...

Gypsy...

lgolos said:

Sloped. The tip of the slope is about 4.5 feet, so the T5s could be mounted there and I'd probably get ~4 feet from the lights to the ground. I have a fair amount of horizontal space, though it's somewhat limited because I need to grow to the side of the attic, away from the fiberglass insulation. Or will the insulation not affect the grow?

Click to expand...

I can't imagine fiberglass insulation would have any effect on your grow. It's very inert. If you brush up against it, it'll itch, but that's about it.

By the way, you don't have to buy all the growroom stuff right away. Just get some CFLs or a fluorescent shop light at the hardware store and start your seeds. Unless you've done that already. But you don't need the powerful lights until your plants are a few weeks old.

If you haven't yet, take a look at this light:
High Tech Garden Supply

A hundred bucks, and a HPS light that size would be too small to fry your plants. But if you have the space, a 4-foot 4-bulb T5 is probably the way to go. 216 watts and you can grow more plants under that. Plus, those sativas you're looking to grow will be pretty fluffy anyway. I'm just starting some Arjan's Ultra Haze #1 myself. All 5 seeds came up, so far so good.

Oh, how manageable is heat for you? It's moving on winter in the northern hemisphere, so heat may not be a problem for you for a while.

GypsyBush said:

Well... you have a very good point... people do it all the time... but they are certainly CFL buds...

Click to expand...

I read Buds For Less, and the yield after 69 days from 3 plants under 16200 lumens of CFL (6 1600 lumen bulbs) was 8 oz dry. So I'm not sure what you mean by "CFL buds", but the yield seemed very good.

48 COMPACT FLUORESCENT LIGHT BULBS Save70% CFL 23w 100w - eBay (item 320311071488 end time Oct-18-08 21:41:05 PDT)

Could I just buy that, 24 Y adapters, and 24 light bases and have 24 CFLs in each chamber? That'd make 38400 lumens in each chamber. Are there any practical limitations to this? On paper it sounds like a brilliant idea. The only problem is that the Y adapters cost much more than the lights themselves.

Dr. Pot: I'd be starting late october, so it'd be around mid autumn.

Could I just buy that, 24 Y adapters, and 24 light bases and have 24 CFLs in each chamber? That'd make 38400 lumens in each chamber. Are there any practical limitations to this? On paper it sounds like a brilliant idea. The only problem is that the Y adapters cost much more than the lights themselves.

Click to expand...

lol sounds like a retarded idea.

blatantly obvious limitations:

it would be hotter than a bonfire in there.
you have 54 bulbs to wax your money on.. and grams per watt would be minimal.
why would you even consider 54 cfl's over hid?

why are people so afraid of hid?

CFLs aren't designed to efficiently send light in one direction, they're designed to send light all over the place. As a result, a lot of the light ends up wasted. If you want to use a lot of fluorescent light, T12 shop lights sound a lot more convenient. Each 2-light fixture is around $10, and 40-watt tubes for the fixtures are about $3 each.

One core problem with fluorescent lights is that they often take up too much space to pack together close enough to get really bright light. With that many CFLs, you'd definitely have that problem.

Doctor Pot said:

CFLs aren't designed to efficiently send light in one direction, they're designed to send light all over the place. As a result, a lot of the light ends up wasted. If you want to use a lot of fluorescent light, T12 shop lights sound a lot more convenient. Each 2-light fixture is around $10, and 40-watt tubes for the fixtures are about $3 each.

One core problem with fluorescent lights is that they often take up too much space to pack together close enough to get really bright light. With that many CFLs, you'd definitely have that problem.

Click to expand...

What if I coat the box with mylar or panda film and use reflectors on the lights? It seems like more side lighting would make up for the limited 'penetrating power' of Flouros.

GypsyBush said:

Well... you have a very good point... people do it all the time... but they are certainly CFL buds...

Click to expand...

lgolos said:

I read Buds For Less, and the yield after 69 days from 3 plants under 16200 lumens of CFL (6 1600 lumen bulbs) was 8 oz dry. So I'm not sure what you mean by "CFL buds", but the yield seemed very good.

Click to expand...

lol... I obviously don't know what I am talking about... I don't read anything...

Go with what you know...

Best of luck...

G

I think the most difficult part of my grow will be choosing what lights to use. If only there weren't so many options...

thats bad..

lgolos said:

I think the most difficult part of my grow will be choosing what lights to use. If only there weren't so many options...

Click to expand...

You'll get a lot more bud from T5 or HPS than you will from CFLs or T12s. If your goal is in fact a perpetual harvest, use T12s or CFLs for the vegetation stage, then use the big lights for the flowering stage.