Newbie with a Rough Situation but a Hopeful Plan. Please Help!

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Robweed

Active Member
I've only smoked and ive never been around a plant so i do not know what the odors are like . . .

do you think for three plants that a carbon air purifier sitting outside of the tent would clean up the air enough? so maybe just have one strong fan blowing in and no out fan?
 
MrDank007

MrDank007

Well-Known Member
I really wish someone with more experience would chime in, but this is how I see it. You have 2 options unless you really want to torture yourself.

1) Find or build a box. Minimum 2 feet wide, foot and a half deep, 3 feet tall (although 4 would be better) PC fans mounted for intakes and outakes with 12v adapters. Follow CFL forums for advice on colors and how to arrange. Deal with the smell as best you can.

2) If an expensive/big carbon filter fan is a must: Get something at least 5 ft high and run a HID light. I would research these if it is top priority and build around it. Best options would probably be a tall amoire or tent.
 
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growone

Well-Known Member
here is one possibility for high stealth, the file cabinet grow
cheap ones are available, around 2+ feet tall, metal doesn't burn, nice safety feature
definitely large enough for 1-2 plants with LST, SOG could be done
i haven't tried the file cabinet yet, but i might in the future
 
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Robweed

Active Member
file cab is a good idea too.

im just worried about having the smells sealed and taken care of.

i have this slide thing to put under my door so shit dont leak into the hall. but still. . .
 
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growone

Well-Known Member
you don't really need a tight seal, when in operation, any airflow will come into the cracks and out through the exit
when not running, smell isn't such a problem, i smell nothing from my setup when lights are off
 
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Robweed

Active Member
Alright. Good deal. What kinda light should I do? Will that one in that link be fine? Will that be a good fit for my three by three grow hut?
 
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growone

Well-Known Member
from memory, this i think is the standard recommend for hps grows

3 x 3(feet) - 400w hps
3.5 x 3.5 - 600 hps
4 x 4 - 1000 hps

i think a 2 x 2 is closer match for a 150w, though the watt per square foot will be a bit less than optimum
 
choempi

choempi

Well-Known Member
Stick with cfls never gonna control the heat in that bin or in a dresser with any size hps. Even the 125 watt cfl is not gonna cut it in the bin and prob not the dresser either. 125 watts is only 1 amp. You never gonna notice that in your bill. Think some more about what you gonna do.

Do the bin with 3 or 4 small cfls, like 20 watters.
 
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Zetch

Member
I've never done a box grow like this but I am having a really difficult time imagining being able to restrain a plant's growth to these dimensions. Even with a scrog. That just seems like too little space to be working with. I'm the first to admit I am very biased but I'd suggest finding a broom closet before trying to grow in a rubbermaid containter.
 
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Robweed

Active Member
Yeah I'm skipping the rubber maid idea and I'm gonna try and do a three by three foot grow tent with a 150 hps.

That would work right? According to his wattage chart there and I would have fans for ventilation to help control the heat.
 
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Robweed

Active Member
Alright so I need to decide to use either multiple cfl lights or one 150 hps for my three foot by three foot grow tent. If its better for my setup I could even use a strip of cfls. Anyone wanna link me with the best lighting option?

I have heard arguments for both lights so would cfl be the way to go where hps would be over kill or would hps be perfect and I would get a great yield using lst?
 
MrDank007

MrDank007

Well-Known Member
I think you better go CFL if your not giving yourself anymore height. HID in a cool tube is still 4-6 in off the plants. Most people seem to keep it at least 12in without a cool tube. The heat from the HPS is going to be an issue with your height restrictions (I'm not sure why 3 feet is the limit) Unless you want to go taller, I think CFLs. Plus that thing, with the built in ballast is going to take up some height. You really need to make a sketch. I think you are missing how much room all this stuff takes up without any plants. Over the long term and after your 1st grow you are probably going to figure out what you really want to accomplish. The CFLs will be less of an investment.
 
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Robweed

Active Member
alright

yeah i have height restrictions because three by three fits in my living room nicely and shelves and cupboards if i need to hide it for any reason. its easy to cover up. i live in a small one bedroom apartment so security comes before yield because if i get caught, whats the point of having ultra nice plants?

going with that one 150 watt hps isnt a huge investment because itll cost me a hundred bucks and then i plug it in and im done with my lighting.

what kind of cfls do you think i should go with? any links for me to check out? and how many?

ill post some pictures of my grow tents frame for you to see. its basically a scaled down version of that black rack/ shelf in my other pictures.
 
MrDank007

MrDank007

Well-Known Member
For CFLs: 6500k bulbs (daylight) for veg/2700k (soft white) bulbs for flower. You can get a 6 pack for 10 bucks at walmart, home depot ect. You can vary the spectrum 3 to 1 and some people think it helps. For example, if you do 6 CFLs total: You would have 4 6500k and 2 2700k during veg and 4 2700k and 2 6500k for flower. I would say 3-4 CFLs per plant if you are using the 23-26watt. In reality, as many as possible while keeping the top of the canopy 80-85 degrees or less. You want to keep them about 2in from the plants. Closer the better because they don't have that much penetration.

If security is an issue, I would research some of the stealth cabs on this site. People make things out fridgerators, dressers, armoires, ect. So you can get more height. This video is going to help you a lot, give you the short cuts and some ideas for how this is all supposed to work. There are 24 parts so you have to keep clicking 2 of 24, 3 of 24, ect. out to the side when you are done with the section.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFictLf-cDM
 
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Robweed

Active Member
MrDank007 said:
For CFLs: 6500k bulbs (daylight) for veg/2700k (soft white) bulbs for flower. You can get a 6 pack for 10 bucks at walmart, home depot ect. You can vary the spectrum 3 to 1 and some people think it helps. For example, if you do 6 CFLs total: You would have 4 6500k and 2 2700k during veg and 4 2700k and 2 6500k for flower. I would say 3-4 CFLs per plant if you are using the 23-26watt. In reality, as many as possible while keeping the top of the canopy 80-85 degrees or less. You want to keep them about 2in from the plants. Closer the better because they don't have that much penetration.

If security is an issue, I would research some of the stealth cabs on this site. People make things out fridgerators, dressers, armoires, ect. So you can get more height. This video is going to help you a lot, give you the short cuts and some ideas for how this is all supposed to work. There are 24 parts so you have to keep clicking 2 of 24, 3 of 24, ect. out to the side when you are done with the section.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFictLf-cDM
Click to expand...
ah man that video helped so much.
Im basically doing the same thing but im going to build my own dimensions. mine will be a bit bigger then his.

So my new option dilemma is I can either use CFL bulbs and If i do that, i plan to use a total of 12. (will that just drive my energy bill suspicially through the roof? I dont need them coming out to my place and scooping things out)
or I can use tube lights. Like the long flouresent tubes and pretty much cover the whole ceiling of light.

which do you think is best? and if i used the tube lights, do they have them for the same temp specs as the ones you recommended for vegging and flowering?
 
MrDank007

MrDank007

Well-Known Member
Yeah that helped me with wiring fans, lights and drilling fan holes. Easier to visualize when you can see it instead of read it.

Some say those T5 HO lights are good (they don't sell those at hardware stores. They are for aquariums or hydroponics.) Yes, they have the same temp specs. You would have to get the 2 footers.

Running 12 CFLs may increase your bill $5-$10 max. The difference will most likely be negligble. In an apt complex, there is more variance in bills from AC/Heat preferences among the renters. Don't worry about all that, just pay your bill. As far as what to use, I would still say CFLs. They are easy to customize and you can put them high and low to surround the plant. If you want to switch it up on the next grow, you have a couple year supply of light bulbs for your place! If this something you end up liking, I can almost guarantee your gonna change on that height for your next grow. Call it a hunch....
 
MrDank007

MrDank007

Well-Known Member
You will see a lot of different opinions on the lights. As far as CFLs it's probably easiest and most cost effective to use the 100w equivalents (usually 23-26 true watts). I would stay away from the cheap LED's set ups. At least for the immediate future. Do some searches on here and you will see why.

I know you have mentioned LST, SOG, ect. One thing you are going to have to be very aware of with that height is that the plants will double to triple in size once switched from veg to flower. They stretch like crazy in the first couple weeks of flower. So you are going to have to stay on top of them and plan accordingly from the get go.
 
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