o I think I've decided to make a small grow closet. So tell me what I should plant in there. First let me say I'm using this burpee self watering seeding 4x4 cell kit for growing them right now. Of the 16 spots, I have 8 of them with its own plant growing they are 4 inches tall and only have their first 4 leaves right next to each other. The other 8 spots I just put a bunch of seeds in each, I'm guessing I will have to throw these away, I just germinated way too many. Also 1 CFL 300 watt bulb.
I am planning on heading to Home Depot and buying some wood. The goal is....
1x of 6 foot by 4 foot piece of wood, this is the back of the box
2x of 6 foot by 2.5 foot piece of wood, one with a 6 inch circle cut into it 4 feet up in the middle (for putting a fan on it), these are the sides of the box
2x of 4 foot by 2.5 foot piece of wood, this is the top and bottom of the box
1x of 2.5 foot by 1 foot piece of wood, this is for holding the fan I will have pushing air into the box (or should it be out of the box?)
2x hinges to hold the 2.5 by 1 foot piece of wood
Thats the box I want to make tomorrow, I'm hoping it wont cost more than 30 bucks. Then I will need a way of getting light to the plants. What are my cheapest options? What are my options from home depot or somewhere like home depot? Maybe a pet shop? Can I get a strip of lights that I can put CFL bulbs in like christmas lights except with normal sized bulbs? What lights can I get that I can just plug into the wall?
Now I will also need a way of positioning the lights super close to the plants and being able to move it back slowly. What can I do?
I will also need some sort of drape over the front. What are some good options that aren't prone to burning a house down? That being said whats a good option to keep the wood from catching on fire that the box is made of? Just a bunch of aluminum foil? Which will also multiply the lights.
Anyone think this is a good idea? How many of these plants should I transplant into this closet kit? 5? 2? 1?
Also... what kind of soil can I buy from home depot that will work well by itself? Do I really need "nutrients" if so what are they called at home depot? I mainly want to get everything I need to get at home depot, I have a huge home depot gift card from a lawnmower I returned.... so I want to spend it lol.
Additionally... if someone has a post on the website they know of that shows exactly what pieces of wood to buy... or all of the pieces of equipment to keep it lit up all from home depot... or you could reply here with what they are?
In short, this is a horrible idea. Im having difficulty figuring out the size of the box. Whats important is the bottom measurements. An 8' x 4' box will need two 600 watt hid lights to have the correct size "footprint" of light desired. That means the bottom two dimentions of the box are 8'x4' = 32 square feet. So one 600 watt light covers 16 square feet or a 4x4 area. For what your looking to build im guessing youll need around 15 42 watt cfls totaling abot 150 bucks, plus fixtures, splitters, extenders, and power strips youll be at around 300 bucks, the same price as one 600 watt hps setup. One light to raise and lower, one timer, no worries. But remember it will only cover 4x4. If your doing a 4x6 area youll need a 1000 watt setup which will cost about 360. Light is the most important part of the equation so i covered it first for you.
Next lets look at your box situation from what i think your trying to build 30 bucks will get you one 8x4 sheet of 5/8" plywood. Youll need way more than one. Maybe 5, plus hinges, nails, 2x4s, eye hooks, and dont forget extra 2x4s because youll always need more. Personally id just measure my space and buy a GOOD name brand grow tent. You arent exactly blowing my dress up with your carpentry lingo so i figure youd probably do more damage to your thumb than the nail anyway. Also if your design doesnt work your out 200 bucks, oh ya, i forgot to mention you need to seal it with caulking and drill probly 6" holes in it and that drill bit itself is around fifty bucks lol. Dont forget that your door also has to be light sealed, any outside light isnt good during the plants dark period ever.
ok so lets wrap this up. The amount of plants you are going to put in there depends on your growing style. SOG or Scrog or natural or LST. Ill leave you to figure that out for yourself, homework. As for tin foil, keep that shit away from your grow room. Your mom will be pissed and it doesnt do shit except make you look like a noob. You want panda film or whit paint with a matte finnish, or nothing at all.
Nutrients are a must. Youll want something with high N ratio for the veg stage and somthing else with high P and K for flower stage.
So your questions are answered now heres my opinion. Check out luigis super mini plants grow journal. He optimized the fuck out of a small space and paid for what he bought in one grow. That could be you. Your home depot card will pay for most of the equiptment used and youll gain great expirence.
Or
fall off your wallet and spend 360 on a 1000 w light, 200 for a secret jardin tent, 100 bucks on nutes, 20 on a timer, 30 on a fan, 200 on an inline vortex, 200 on a presh carbon filter, 30 on fox farm ocean forest dirt, 8 bucks on pearlite, 30 bucks on a cheap ppm meter, and 8 bucks on a ph drop test kit, 50 bucks on smartpots and saucers, and then take a year to make that back. But if you plan on becoming a good little hobbit and never leaving your house or telling anyone your secret your better off doing it the right way first but if you cant afford that, do ot luigis way and work your way up.
If you want to know luijis box plans just tell him your a noob and you need help, drop my name if you want, he will probably be glad to help. This cost alot more and takes a lot longer to see returns than anyone imagines and theres still a chance that you wont see any returns. If it were easy to do everyone would be doing it and it wouldnt sell for 250 an oz
good luck. Personal message me if you have any more questions.
