First Experiment

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tripp96

Member
Hey everyone,

First time posting, nice to meet you all.

Just looking for some clarification/suggestions here. I have a small, maybe 2x3x4ft(tall) space on my desktop and am curious to know if I could get any sort of worthwhile yield just by a few CFLs and maybe a small fan for only one plant in that space. I wasn't lying when I said 'First Experiment', haha... I'm dealing with limited space and this is about the best I can come up with for now. I can get feminized seeds cheap enough, so I wouldn't mind trying this out if it was worthwhile.

My consumption also isn't that great, and I stretch a quarter oz out well over a month. My only concern would be that it is enough space, and that I'd have ample lighting/ventilation.

Since my desk is in the corner of the room, I was thinking I'd just put some mylar on that portion of the wall, construct a little make-shift wall to complete the other portion of the walls (also covered in mylar). If I had 3 CFLs (I was thinking these : http://www.lowes.com/pd_302257-3-26966_4294935637__?productId=3202347&Ntt=6500k+cfl+bulbs+&pl=1&currentURL=?Ntt=6500k+cfl+bulbs+&facetInfo=) in this space, would I have sufficient light for the plant? Would I need to consider ventilation? I can carve a hole large enough to fit a couple small fans in either section of the box if that'd be necessary. I was also wondering about keeping the top of the box open? I've got a shelf above this space that I'd be able to attach the CFL lights too -- perhaps on a chain so that I can adjust the height. If the top of the box was open, would I need fans?

I'm thinking I'll try a indica strain (assuming this all works) which will grow shorter than any lanky sativas; any suggestions there?


Thanks for any and all recommendations, and for tolerating the newbie questions :)

Have a great week

--Tripp
 
Jus Naturale

Jus Naturale

Active Member
That's definitely enough space, and you could probably get another plant or two in there. As for fans, they are always a good thing, as the plants need fresh air, and the moving air helps strengthen the stems.

You could/should use more light. The general rule of thumb seems to be 100 actual watts per plant, so I'd recommend you get splitters for your sockets, thus doubling your lights.

You would probably be fine with the no top on the box thing for a veg, but when you turn to flower, you'll need total darkness, so you'll want to plan for a top at least.

Good luck and happy growing!
 
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tripp96

Member
Thanks for the fast reply!

What sort of a unit would I buy to plug all those lights in? One that would fit say 8 CFLs that is? And how are they on heat when that close together in a confined space (of drywall and wood)?

Also, how pungent are a couple of these fellars in the flowering stage?

Cheers!
 
Jus Naturale

Jus Naturale

Active Member
I assumed you had the light socket thing figured out already, but you've got several options. Anything from clip-on lamps to sockets that plug into power strips to building and wiring an awesome hood yourself. Spend a bit of time looking at people's set-ups in the CFL section (and the DIY section if you're really ambitious), and in the electrical aisle as Home Depot, and you'll get tons of ideas.

Watch the heat, though. I've toasted a plant with CFLs. Even though they run much cooler than a HID light, they can be too close. Keep them about an inch to two away from the plants and you should be fine. That's also why you'll need fans and air movement.

As for smell, I'm about two weeks from my first harvest, and they smell up the area a bit, but it's nothing bad (I love the smell of weed, period, though). Then again, I don't need to keep anything secret, so I don't care if the smell wafts a bit. If you're trying to be stealth, you may want to look into a carbon filter.

Good luck.
 
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r1291

Active Member
2 lights for 10 dollars is quite expensive..however, 6500K CFL do tend to be more expensive and extremely hard to find in my area. You can get 4 bulbs for like $9 at wal-mart but good luck finding anything above 5000K. I say look around some more. CFL's DO generate some heat when they're in confined spaces and not adequately ventilated.
 
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tripp96

Member
Thanks for all that! I'll take a look at the CFL section.

With smell, since I'm renting a place right now I'll soon be living with a few random people that I do not know -- so I'm just thinking out of consideration for them mostly. I'm also in the works of getting my MMAR forms processed so I otherwise shouldn't have to be concerned with smell/stealthness. Smoke is containable within my room, so I'm hoping the smell of the buds is equally manageable.

I'm going to make use of the search tool and quit pestering you now lol, but should I be looking for 6500k lights or what should I be looking at for lighting specifically? Can I get stronger bulbs and use 4 instead of 8? etc..

Thanks!
 
Jus Naturale

Jus Naturale

Active Member
The higher the numbers (i.e., 5000k, 6500k) the more blue the light. 6500k is or there abouts is what you'll want for veg. For flowering, though, you'll want to switch some up for 3200k, which is more of a red spectrum. 6500k are often called Cool White and 3200k is often called Warm White.

As for getting bigger bulbs, that's definitely one way. However, many people believe that more smaller bulbs are better, as they can be rearranged more easily, and they get less hot so they can be closer to the plant. I tend to agree with this thinking, as my lower growth exploded once I added some side lights, but I've never tried bigger bulbs.

Since you're in your planning stages, too, you might want to look into T5 high output lights too. They're tubes, so they're not quite as flexible as CFLs, but I understand the output is much better.
 
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tripp96

Member
Thanks again for the replies guys. I did some home depot shopping and dropped around $140 on some supplies (wow those big CFLs add up quick).

I'll post some pics on what I'm working with. I basically got a work light type frame for my lights (a silver dish-looking thing) with an extender coming out of it, and a splitter so that I can fit two bulbs beneath it. I'd like to get a couple more lights in there, but my space is pretty limited and I'm not sure how I'd be able to mount them. So far I found two 6500k 42W daylight CFLs from Hope depot -- would this suffice for even one plant? I know you mentioned around 100W/plant -- but how would 84W work out? Should I try and cram a couple more bulbs in there somehow? Especially if I'm looking to get another plant in there? Will reflection help my case at all? I was thinking I'd coat the inside of my little box with mylar (and hopefully hit the bottom of the plants as well).

I've been reading guides on keeping plants short, and thinking I'll flower them around the third week? I saw some pretty decent results with a few CFLs from some guys that flowered around the 2-3week mark, or even straight from seed. Any opinions on this? I am not sure if I have the wattage to be moving that quickly either...

I'm heading home tonight, and will visit my local dispensary/seedbank this week. I should be able to start germinating by the weekend and will start a new thread with pics at each stage.

I appreciate all the helpful tips!

--Tripp
 
Sand4x105

Sand4x105

Well-Known Member
The "Y" lamp splitter where you split your 'work lite' into two sockets, is great, and you can add another two to give you four lights...
Keep on the right path...
Smell, roomates, you might want to [if you can not add any kind of carbon filter-check the DIY section here] get some ONA gell, might work with one plant... and maybe a Hepa Air purifier... to put just outside your plant box...
Good Luck man, and Happy Growing...
 
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tripp96

Member
Sand4x105 said:
The "Y" lamp splitter where you split your 'work lite' into two sockets, is great, and you can add another two to give you four lights...
Keep on the right path...
Smell, roomates, you might want to [if you can not add any kind of carbon filter-check the DIY section here] get some ONA gell, might work with one plant... and maybe a Hepa Air purifier... to put just outside your plant box...
Good Luck man, and Happy Growing...
Click to expand...
I take it the worst of the smell will occur during the flowering stages? Thanks for the suggestion -- ONA gel looks pretty cool!

I'll get some pics up once I get setup and you guys can see what I'm workin' with a little easier.

Thanks for the tips! Keep'em comin'!
 
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