New to growing, a few quick questions.

?

*.*

Member
Okay, so I'm planning on making a decent size grow box, and it will be a DVD case that will actually hold DVDs on the top so that it doesn't look out of place.

I'm planning on it being 4Lx3Wx3H, but I may only be able to go 2W.

I will be using CFL's, as they are just about my only option right now.

Okay, so for the questions.

1. How many plants could I make in the box if it's 3 feet wide? 2 feet? Basically, how much room does a smaller plant need, and would it help if I did that low pressure training where I tied the plants down so height isn't a problem.

2. How many watts will I need if it's 3 feet wide? 2 feet? I'm using a lighting fixture I bought at Lowe's that holds 6 lights, rated at a max of 60W for each light. Would it be dangerous to do more than 60W on each of them?

3. If heat becomes a problem, what are some ways to sound proof the inside of the box? I'll be using MDF and painting the inside of the box with this Sta-Cool paint that is supposed to reflect light.

4. What is the safest way to wire up 12-18 42W lights together? I'll have 2-3 fixtures that they will be on, so should I wire them all to 1 plug and then plug it in? Should the surge protector that everything will be plugged up to be inside the box or outside?

5. Are you able to germinate in pure water only? I read somewhere that you could, so I put some bag seed, it's all I have until my seeds come in the mail. I did place it under a LED lamp that puts off some heat, and they all sank but 2-3 that I trashed at the 24 hour mark. I put them in a mixture of soil and then had them under 4 26W lights and it's been 2 days and I still see nothing growing.

I'm sure I'll have more, but right now I've been nearly 24 hours without sleep and I think it's about that time.
 
KaleoXxX

KaleoXxX

Well-Known Member
you need more space bro

youd probably only fit 3 very small plants

ya you can germ in water, i like paper towel method. you should see some sprouts by tomorrow on the next day
 
sqhschief

sqhschief

Active Member
*.* said:
Okay, so I'm planning on making a decent size grow box, and it will be a DVD case that will actually hold DVDs on the top so that it doesn't look out of place.

I'm planning on it being 4Lx3Wx3H, but I may only be able to go 2W.

I will be using CFL's, as they are just about my only option right now.

Okay, so for the questions.

1. How many plants could I make in the box if it's 3 feet wide? 2 feet? Basically, how much room does a smaller plant need, and would it help if I did that low pressure training where I tied the plants down so height isn't a problem.

2. How many watts will I need if it's 3 feet wide? 2 feet? I'm using a lighting fixture I bought at Lowe's that holds 6 lights, rated at a max of 60W for each light. Would it be dangerous to do more than 60W on each of them?

3. If heat becomes a problem, what are some ways to sound proof the inside of the box? I'll be using MDF and painting the inside of the box with this Sta-Cool paint that is supposed to reflect light.

4. What is the safest way to wire up 12-18 42W lights together? I'll have 2-3 fixtures that they will be on, so should I wire them all to 1 plug and then plug it in? Should the surge protector that everything will be plugged up to be inside the box or outside?

5. Are you able to germinate in pure water only? I read somewhere that you could, so I put some bag seed, it's all I have until my seeds come in the mail. I did place it under a LED lamp that puts off some heat, and they all sank but 2-3 that I trashed at the 24 hour mark. I put them in a mixture of soil and then had them under 4 26W lights and it's been 2 days and I still see nothing growing.

I'm sure I'll have more, but right now I've been nearly 24 hours without sleep and I think it's about that time.
Click to expand...
Yes more than 60w is a potential fire hazard. Place them in water for 24 hours and then go to soil. Give at least 5-7 days to be sure they are not going to sprout.

Your going to wire 18 42w cfl's together? Holy crap man. :o
 
?

*.*

Member
Why would I need so much more space? I've seen much smaller boxes, even those 20+ gallon buckets that were less than half my size, growing 2-3 plants just fine. I'm not calling you a liar, I'm just really surprised that I'm being told that I need more space. Any other opinions? I hate to think my space is not enough to grow a decent amount....
 
?

*.*

Member
Well what is the best method of doing it? I'm pretty sure that I was told that I'd need at least 12, and up to 18, 42W CFL's for my size. I'd love for that not to be the case, because those bulbs are damn near $10 each! They alone literally make up half of my project cost.
 
KaleoXxX

KaleoXxX

Well-Known Member
i dont know, those PC cases dont seem worth it to me

3 feet turns into less than 2 when you factor in pot size and how much space the cfls take up

just my .02
 
KaleoXxX

KaleoXxX

Well-Known Member
no you dont need that many bulbs or such hight wattage, you could start with a few, 1-2 per plant, then add more as you go along
 
?

*.*

Member
The CFL's will take up about half a foot, so I will still have 2.5 feet for everything else.

I didn't really even think about the pot size.

I guess I could make the box 3.5 feet high, so I'd have close to 2 feet for the plant alone and I'll be LSTing.
 
?

*.*

Member
I may be able to make half of the box about 4.5 feet, it will require a whole lot more wood and a completely new plan for the DVD case, but I guess it's worth it being able to get an extra foot of space for the plants.

So say I used the LST method for the limbs to lean out towards the side that is only 2 feet wide, how many plants would I be able to put in there with it being 4 feet wide?
 
sqhschief

sqhschief

Active Member
KaleoXxX said:
a plant probably wants 1 square foot for its self.
Click to expand...
You can pull it off, but like Kaleoxxx said you don't need 18 42w bulbs to start out, more like 1-2.

BTW, what is the lumen output of those 42w? And whats the color temp?

And, if you were going to use 18 42w bulbs, your looking at an upwards of 750w in your grow room, that's probably way too much heat than you'll be looking for. If I were you I'd forget about the cfls and go with a 250 or 400w HID system.:weed:
 
M

mrmadcow

Well-Known Member
instead of CFLs, how about making the box about 52 inches long and putting 4 foot fluorescent fixtures in?
T12 are cheapest at about $20
T8 are pricer but throw better light
or you could go to T5s -costs more but much better light output.
T8 or T5 also come in shorter lenghs or in U tube but they get expensive. 6 to 8 bulbs should get you plenty of light for your needs
if heat becomes a problem, you could relocate the ballasts outside your box as they create most of the heat.
 
?

*.*

Member
Well saldy, I have to stick with CFL's for this grow. I'm hoping that I get a decent harvest, that way I'll be even more motivated to go for more and by that time I should be able to have a much bigger area. Actually, I'm HOPING that I'll have my own house 600 miles away from where I live now, and I'll make a secret room just for growing. I'll probably put a real book shelf with a secret lock that will open and lead to the room where I can grow all I want/need.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dop8G3cuLoQ

With something like that, don't you think I would be able to get 4 plants in there?

If not, wouldn't I be able to have a decent amount of plants in there and be able to pick the best 3 females? I do plan on having another small grow box, 1.5x1.5 to start clones in, so I believe I'd come out good enough with 3-4 plants since I'll have some clones ready to be put into the main box once the others are harvested.
 
?

*.*

Member
I guess that is what I will do.

I just bought a pack of 10 seeds, should I really go ahead and germinate them all if I'll only be going for 1-3 good plants?
 
sqhschief

sqhschief

Active Member
*.* said:
I guess that is what I will do.

I just bought a pack of 10 seeds, should I really go ahead and germinate them all if I'll only be going for 1-3 good plants?
Click to expand...
I was wondering the same thing bro. I just bought 10 WW seeds myself, but I know I will only have room for about 5-6 max, but I know that about 40% will me male, so I suggest germinating twice the amount so you def have many females ftw.
 
?

*.*

Member
sqhschief said:
I was wondering the same thing bro. I just bought 10 WW seeds myself, but I know I will only have room for about 5-6 max, but I know that about 40% will me male, so I suggest germinating twice the amount so you def have many females ftw.
Click to expand...
Well I got my seeds in, and I'm germinating them all.

That way, if anything happens to them or I get too many males, I'll have how ever many I need. If I run out of room, I can always sell the other females for much more than I paid for the seeds I KNOW, so I'll come out pretty good.

Or...I may just make another small grow box just for a single plant if that's all I'll have that won't fit in my box I'm going to be making.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top