Virgin here, teach me wise ones.

Hi folks, I'm preparing for my first grow (and subsequent first toke), and I wanted to post the plan I've got so far, and ask for any suggestions you all might have, and since I want to do it with CFLs I figured this would be the right place to start.

Here's the stupidly large walk-in closet that my apartment has. I'm obviously not using it for anything. It's about 5' wide with room for about 2' of depth and 5' clearance below the shelf, which I can remove if necessary.

W 5' D 3' H 5'-8'

I am going to be trying to do this grow as stealthy as possible, so I plan on building a full enclosure with double doors upfront and a removable center wall, in case I later want to do one half veg/one half flower. I think ideal dimensions for that would be 4' wide by 2' deep, allowing for 6" of clearance on all sides. I'm not sure if I want to keep it short, 5' or less tall, or take out the shelf, and build it close to the top of the room.

In the ceiling I have access to the attic, which would give me an excellent place to vent.


One of the biggest questions I have is that of volume. With a 4' by 2' space, I was planning on going for 4 plants. Is that going to be enough room, or should I expect to have extra space?

Also, I've read through your section of the forum pretty thoroughly, and I'm still unsure about the quantity of light I'll need for this much space. Assuming that 4 plants is a good density, how much wattage should I have for my box? Will I need more or less depending on the stage (veg vs flower)? (I get the 2700k vs 6500k, I'm just talking quantity)

I'm still a little puzzled about nutes and such, and I was debating between soil and hydro, but after reading Concord Dawn's journals (nice writeup bro) I think I'm going to go with soil.

Anyway, I'm pretty excited, I ordered some seeds from Attitude, G13's Poison Dwarf Autoflower, because from the sound of things, autoflower is supposed to be easier, if not a great yield. Ultimately, I'd like to grow some Blueberry, cause that shit sounds tasty.

So yeah, anything you all think might be useful, let me know, I'm going to go back to studying the forums.

-Daveytrees

get a 400w hps.

You seem like you're off to a great start, do as much research as you can!
As for lights, a good rule of thumb is 70-100 watts per square foot...
As for space, you should be able to grow 4 plants in there with no problems, you can probably throw in more because you're planning on growing autos...
And as for nutrients, get something with a high concentration of N for veg...and something with a high concentration of P and K for flowering
Oh! And don't forget to pick up proper equipment to test the pH and ppm's of your water!

SLB

darkdestruction420 said:

get a 400w hps.

Click to expand...

or you can do this, which would be a great move...

SLB

As far as the lighting goes the bigger the better. However the bigger the light the harder to cool so get what you can afford and keep in mind the cost of the fan. Soil or hydro, soil seems to be what most people recommend for new growers because you have more time to fix the problems then you do in hydro. I am working on my first grow now and went with hydro because it grows faster and it interested me more then soil. And for the space it really just depends on how you plan on growing the plants. You can cram a shitload of plants in there and get a lot of small pants or grow a few big ones with srog or lst, up to you.

Get the remote ballast option and have the ballast outside the grow, it helps immensley with heat, all you have to worry about is the heat from the bulb itself, a aircooled hood takes care of that. you should be able to keep the light 4-6 inches from the tops http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=47929 . This is what i have, i got the euro reflector option and high output bulb option. along with 6 inch fan and ducting and a 4 inch can fan w/carbon filter.
http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=46447
http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=54325
http://www.htgsupply.com/viewproduct.asp?productID=52531

on a first grow i wouldnt suggest using hps...i would go with the cfl...first off..much cheaper...and a lot less power to run the lights.get the hang of growing in general then take the step up to hps and hid.if you have attic access you can still vent the heat out just the same with the inline fans you would need to get for a hps anyways.and yes..i know i know...hps is much better....but gotta keep in mind the grower.get what works best for your needs and upgrade as you go along...ive seen a ton of people blow a ton of money on a grow setup...put more time into what they are going to grow with then what they are growing.then after having little knowledge...they fuck up their first grow then give up.baby steps.......a $400 hps system is pointless if you end up with all males/hermies...not to mention the added fire hazard if you have a hps system that isnt wired perfect...if not a fire then your gonna be blowing those $80 bulbs over and over again

bulbs are like 35. A monkey could grow with an hps, its not rocket science. lol, plus youve got so many more variables for a first timer to deal with if you go with a cfl setup, if you master growing with cfls and get everything dialed in youll just have to re-learn and re-dial in the hps system next grow when you decide to step it up. Your right its up to the grower in the end, but he also asked what i/we think he should do, so i did.

I appreciate the responses so far!

I'm really leaning toward CFL if for no other reason than it seems easiest to not fuck up. Also, I have a fairly large electrical bill as is (I'm a computer nerd with several rigs running non-stop) and I like to keep my place cold, so my AC is constantly running, I really don't want to tack another 150-200 bucks onto my power bill.

Also, would it be worthwhile to stick some normal tube style fluorescent lights on the sides of my box to light the sides of the plant?

darkdestruction420 said:

bulbs are like 35. A monkey could grow with an hps, its not rocket science. lol, plus youve got so many more variables for a first timer to deal with if you go with a cfl setup, if you master growing with cfls and get everything dialed in youll just have to re-learn and re-dial in the hps system next grow when you decide to step it up. Your right its up to the grower in the end, but he also asked what i/we think he should do, so i did.

Click to expand...

and what is the response from everyone...get an hps...hps isnt for everyone...or everyone would be using them.he being new needed more than "get an hps" answer...which is what i gave....and as you can see...there is a reason why someone shouldnt just go out and buy a hps system.and bulbs at a hydrophonic store might be that much...but for people like me that dont have a store like that local and when you factor in shipping and handling on those...for a decent one its going to run more then 35

a 400w hps doesnt add nearly close to that. I switched all my household lights to cfls and it was more than enough to offset the cost of running my hps and all the related stuff. To be honest i grew with only cfls for a long time, Hps is much easier and more worth your time and in the long run ends up being much cheaper as cfls watt to light ratio are half of an hps. But its cool if you want to use cfls, i just wanted to clarify that a bit. 400w of cfl(ive got 10 40w bulbs,well, 24 actually, but for this example we'll say 10 so it works)=27,000. 400w hps=55,000.
Best of luck.

Bend over.

djruiner said:

and what is the response from everyone...get an hps...hps isnt for everyone...or everyone would be using them.he being new needed more than "get an hps" answer...which is what i gave....and as you can see...there is a reason why someone shouldnt just go out and buy a hps system.and bulbs at a hydrophonic store might be that much...but for people like me that dont have a store like that local and when you factor in shipping and handling on those...for a decent one its going to run more then 35

Click to expand...

DD420 is right about the HPS man, it's far more advantageous, yields more than twice as much, & the light penetrates the canopy far better than CFL's. CFL's are great for small grows, but once you step up to a decent sized closet or bigger there's no reason not to run an HPS. Especially when they only cost $120.

darkdestruction420 said:

a 400w hps doesnt add nearly close to that. I switched all my household lights to cfls and it was more than enough to offset the cost of running my hps and all the related stuff. To be honest i grew with only cfls for a long time, Hps is much easier and more worth your time and in the long run ends up being much cheaper as cfls watt to light ratio are half of an hps. But its cool if you want to use cfls, i just wanted to clarify that a bit. 400w of cfl(ive got 10 40w bulbs,well, 24 actually, but for this example we'll say 10 so it works)=27,000. 400w hps=55,000.
Best of luck.

Click to expand...

I agree 100%

daveytrees said:

Hi folks, I'm preparing for my first grow (and subsequent first toke), and I wanted to post the plan I've got so far, and ask for any suggestions you all might have, and since I want to do it with CFLs I figured this would be the right place to start.

Here's the stupidly large walk-in closet that my apartment has. I'm obviously not using it for anything. It's about 5' wide with room for about 2' of depth and 5' clearance below the shelf, which I can remove if necessary.

View attachment 1112878W 5' D 3' H 5'-8'

I am going to be trying to do this grow as stealthy as possible, so I plan on building a full enclosure with double doors upfront and a removable center wall, in case I later want to do one half veg/one half flower. I think ideal dimensions for that would be 4' wide by 2' deep, allowing for 6" of clearance on all sides. I'm not sure if I want to keep it short, 5' or less tall, or take out the shelf, and build it close to the top of the room.

In the ceiling I have access to the attic, which would give me an excellent place to vent.
View attachment 1112883

One of the biggest questions I have is that of volume. With a 4' by 2' space, I was planning on going for 4 plants. Is that going to be enough room, or should I expect to have extra space?

Also, I've read through your section of the forum pretty thoroughly, and I'm still unsure about the quantity of light I'll need for this much space. Assuming that 4 plants is a good density, how much wattage should I have for my box? Will I need more or less depending on the stage (veg vs flower)? (I get the 2700k vs 6500k, I'm just talking quantity)

I'm still a little puzzled about nutes and such, and I was debating between soil and hydro, but after reading Concord Dawn's journals (nice writeup bro) I think I'm going to go with soil.

Anyway, I'm pretty excited, I ordered some seeds from Attitude, G13's Poison Dwarf Autoflower, because from the sound of things, autoflower is supposed to be easier, if not a great yield. Ultimately, I'd like to grow some Blueberry, cause that shit sounds tasty.

So yeah, anything you all think might be useful, let me know, I'm going to go back to studying the forums.

-Daveytrees

Click to expand...

Don't buy autoflower seeds. The genetics are unstable & the yields are generally horrible. You can grow any strain from seed on a 12/12 light cycle with a 400 watt HPS in 60-70 days, just like an autoflower. The opinion I am starting to hold is they are a gimmick. Also, don't choose blueberry until you have at least a handful of grows under your belt. Blueberry is a very sensitive strain to nutrients & PH. Get something easy, like Northern Lights or Skunk. Or try bagseeds if you have some, they always turn out great for me.

Now, as far as nutrients go, did you want to use regular fertilizer or strictly organics?

rombomb420 said:

DD420 is right about the HPS man, it's far more advantageous, yields more than twice as much, & the light penetrates the canopy far better than CFL's. CFL's are great for small grows, but once you step up to a decent sized closet or bigger there's no reason not to run an HPS. Especially when they only cost $120.

Click to expand...

trust me i know that hps is much better..i was giving tips to a first time grower from seeing past grows.i just dont think someone should go out and blow that much money on a hps on their first grow...make sure you can grow anything at all then step up to the big boy lamps

djruiner said:

trust me i know that hps is much better..i was giving tips to a first time grower from seeing past grows.i just dont think someone should go out and blow that much money on a hps on their first grow...make sure you can grow anything at all then step up to the big boy lamps

Click to expand...

I think unless the boy can't read he can probably get r done man. My first grow was with a 1000 watt MH/HPS. Just depends on if he wants to take advantage of the space he has.

rombomb420 said:

I think unless the boy can't read he can probably get r done man. My first grow was with a 1000 watt MH/HPS. Just depends on if he wants to take advantage of the space he has.

Click to expand...

Indeed, like i said before hps is actually alot easier to grow with, i dont know how anyone who kept it nice and simple and did a little research could not be able to grow with hid but with a more complex cfl grow that requires more maintnence and such have no problems. Cfls are alot harder to get good yeilds from, i grew with only cfls for over 2 years and trust me, the hps growing is so much easier than with cfls. He also seems to have the ability to make a real good ventilation system since he can vent the heat from the grow right into the attic, thats the only thing that he might have had problems with. I mean how hard is it to get a light, hang it up, connect the fans and venting and put the plants under the lights?

darkdestruction420 said:

Indeed, like i said before hps is actually alot easier to grow with, i dont know how anyone who kept it nice and simple and did a little research could not be able to grow with hid but with a more complex cfl grow that requires more maintnence and such have no problems. Cfls are alot harder to get good yeilds from, i grew with only cfls for over 2 years and trust me, the hps growing is so much easier than with cfls. He also seems to have the ability to make a real good ventilation system since he can vent the heat from the grow right into the attic, thats the only thing that he might have had problems with. I mean how hard is it to get a light, hang it up, connect the fans and venting and put the plants under the lights?

Click to expand...

It was incredibly simple the first time I did it & it was in a real similar closet, only I didn't have an attic, so I fitted a new door panel on the front with intake fan by the floor for cool air & exhaust directly outside to the backyard routed out of the reflector exhaust fan assembly. 6 juicy indica plants later I had my first official grow under my belt. It's totally doable.