Please critique my grow space and equipment. Journal coming after set up!

Canadalien

New Member
Hey RUI.

About to set up an RDWC grow room and just thought I’d share my room and set up.
I see there are various pages for lighting and hydroponics but I’m going to try to clump all my set up stuff here, and begin my journal after I’m finished completing the room, and I’ve germinated my seeds. Stay tuned!

The room:
An empty cold cellar, 8x8x8 feet. Concrete on 4 walls minus the doorway. The ceiling is half wood and half concrete. I’ve painted the walls white, and left the floor and ceiling as not to arise suspicion.

The lighting:
1000w digital dimmable ballast and 6 inch cool tube reflector. HPS for bloom and MH for grow. No yo-yo’s because I’ve cut my lamp cord short to accomadate a previous grow space, and now cannot raise or lower the reflector. The ballast and longer lamp cord was causing interference, killing the wifi to my mine and the neighbours houses, and I was advised to shorten the lamp cord. It worked, but I am still researching this issue without much luck in finding an answer. I’m on the hunt for a new cord, to lengthen the lamp cord without splicing into the scrap I kept to shorten the cord in the first place. It’s possible I will buy a new reflector in the future..

The system:
Alien hydroponics XL 30 L pot 4 site system, modified with larger eco plus pump 396 Litres per hour. The original equipment was useless as it was wired for outlets in the UK. I’ve also swapped out the original 30T air pump that came with the system and am using a hydro farm 70litre pump, making over twice the air,to 4 pots, the res and header pot. 6 air stones in total. I’ve also upgraded the air stones that came with the system to those cylinder ones found at the LGS. The header pot is connected to an active aqua 1/10 hp chiller with a max gph of 396 litres per hour. The same as the system water pump. Chiller set to 19° C.

The exhaust and carbon scrubber:
I have a chlorophyll carbon scrubber, that was originally meant for external use. I’ve created a housing using ducting parts and various reducers-found at your hardware store, to encapsulate the filter. The air runs from the cool tube, does a 180° ( I know this is not efficient, but had no choice in order to keep the reflector in the centre of the room ) and is sucked through the carbon scrubber, into my home made chamber until it hits the exhaust fan. A 4 inch fan the is capable of 377 cubic feet per minute. That fan then blows the cleaned hot air through 8 feet of dryer tubing and out the bulk head in my ceiling. I’m unable to vent to the outside air, but am venting into 1000 square feet of indoor basement, finished.
There is also a second fan in the room to circulate air and price a breeze to encourage cooler temps, and stronger more robust stalks.

Lab equipment and Nutrient:
I used to use various bottles by House and Garden. Aqua flakes. I’ve decided with this grow I would pay for Ph perfect and am using sensi grow and bloom by Advanced Nutrients. I still have bottles from my previous grow and will try to burn them off accordingly before buying substitutes for my current House and Garden bottles, or cheaper versions of advanced nutrients. More on nutrient when I begin the grow journal. I will be monitoring my solution with future harvest Ph and PPM pens. I have various beakers and syringes to accurately measure nutrient and additives.

The strain:
The strain will be Cropking Seeds OG Cali Kush X Amnesia Haze. I dont use rock wool, and prefer the use of Oasis cubes as they’re Ph neutral. The four net pots will be filled with small hydroton clay orbs.

Preliminarily temp testing has begun and I’m in the process of cleaning the grow space and the equipment. Nothing other than the lamp is running right now and a fan, as I’ve started my out door vegetables indoors before the onset of planting season. I will snap some photos of the space and complete this thread, before beginning my grow journal which will begin when the seeds touch the water glass. Thanks for joining my thread and please comment on my set up choices and stuff. Thanks.
 

Apalchen

Well-Known Member
The only problem I see is the 4 inch exhaust fan, but with only one light to cool you might be okay. The only other thing I see is that you don’t have enough light for the whole room and that will be fine as long as you keep to a 5x5 canopy. That also means that you will lose some light to the sides since your not using a tent. I would imagine with it being a cellar the ceiling isn’t very high so I don’t think it will be a problem to have the short cord you should be fine running close to ceiling height (unless I’m wrong about ceiling being low.)
 

Apalchen

Well-Known Member
You could use some curtains made from reflectivex to keep the light on your canopy area if you notice your losing too much light to the sides.
 

Renfro

Well-Known Member
If you want a super deal on a bad ass fan go here:

https://growershouse.com/vortex-inline-powerfans

Select a 10 inch and check that price! $114 bucks! Thats cheaper than the 4 inch! I snagged one for my tent instead of a 6 inch and I just put it on a variac to slow it down. A variac wont make it groan like some cheap speed controllers do. It's silent running at 45 volts and does exactly what I need it to do.
 

Renfro

Well-Known Member
You can fix the light cords. Buy some 14 gauge or if you wanna make them long use 12 gauge 3 conductor cable with a shield. Two current carrying conductors, one ground. Ground the shield and you have no RFI problems.
 

Canadalien

New Member
You can fix the light cords. Buy some 14 gauge or if you wanna make them long use 12 gauge 3 conductor cable with a shield. Two current carrying conductors, one ground. Ground the shield and you have no RFI problems.
I have a piece of wire left from when i shortened the original cord. I could heat shrink and solder a piece back in, but am very anal about that sort of thing and am still hunting down a replacement cord.

The wire i have is 3 wires, green black and white. It’s insulated but not sure what you means by ground the shield. Can you be more specific on instructions here? If i get a longer lamp cord I don’t want the RFI, so exactly how to do this would be awesome.

I know 2 600’s would be better for my space, i have the pots tight to keep the light pyramid inside the square at the brightest lumens possible.

The 4 inch fan seems to do the job, will look at upgrading if i begin to struggle. With eat during bloom.
 

Canadalien

New Member
The only problem I see is the 4 inch exhaust fan, but with only one light to cool you might be okay. The only other thing I see is that you don’t have enough light for the whole room and that will be fine as long as you keep to a 5x5 canopy. That also means that you will lose some light to the sides since your not using a tent. I would imagine with it being a cellar the ceiling isn’t very high so I don’t think it will be a problem to have the short cord you should be fine running close to ceiling height (unless I’m wrong about ceiling being low.)
I have 8 feet in height. It’s a modern house with a cold room not so much a dirt cellar. Just a concrete space without climaTE CONTROL NEAR THE OUTSIDE EDGES OF THE HOUSE. ITS ABOUT 90 INCHES IN HEIGHT AND 84 INCHES TO THE BOTTOM OF THE REFLECTOR
 

Renfro

Well-Known Member
It’s insulated but not sure what you means by ground the shield
Shielded cable is a special cable, you can find it at electronic supply stores and online. The "shield" is inside the outer insulation and around all the conductors, its often foil like, sometimes a wire braid like in cable coax. When it is properly grounded it will act like a faraday cage around the conductors preventing them from radiating the RF interference. This method worked for me back in the early 2000's when digital ballasts were first coming out, the old silver lumatek lol. Otherwise the conductors act like an antenna.

The 4 inch fan seems to do the job, will look at upgrading if i begin to struggle
Still, that 10 incher is an incredible deal, I am tempted to buy another just to sit on the shelf as a spare part. Vortex makes very high quality blowers.
 

epbadger

Well-Known Member
If you want a super deal on a bad ass fan go here:

https://growershouse.com/vortex-inline-powerfans

Select a 10 inch and check that price! $114 bucks! Thats cheaper than the 4 inch! I snagged one for my tent instead of a 6 inch and I just put it on a variac to slow it down. A variac wont make it groan like some cheap speed controllers do. It's silent running at 45 volts and does exactly what I need it to do.
Now they are doing %10 off ... That 10" fan comes out to $102.73.
 
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