sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
I think we'll try the Orca with the air gap. Thanks, that was super helpful.
Build Journal: Turning a 7'x7' Shed Into a Grow Room
- Thread starter sheckylovejoy
- Start date
Blue brother
Well-Known Member
glad to be of assistance
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Sinking The Pier Blocks
Today we got in the pier blocks that will support the wood-frame foundation.
Tomorrow and the weekend are going to be 95F here, so were gonna take the days off. Back on Monday. Glad we started plenty early for our Nov 1 start date.
Today we got in the pier blocks that will support the wood-frame foundation.
- First we dug holes at the corners and tamped them down really good.
- As you can see in the first photo, we topped the bottom of the holes with some sand so we could get the floor of the foundation exactly level
- In the second photo, you can see all 4 blocks in place, at the correct grade, with the 4x6 beams in place. The floor joists will go between the beams.
- You can also make out the grade. Notice how the top left pier block comes the farthest out of the ground and the bottom right is the lowest. This is because the downward grade is going up and to the left in this picture -- the top left is the lowest point.
- It took us a while messing with the laser level and regular level, but we were able to get the beams perfectly level to support the floor.
Tomorrow and the weekend are going to be 95F here, so were gonna take the days off. Back on Monday. Glad we started plenty early for our Nov 1 start date.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Solid Foundation
Today we got in the foundation and ran electric under the house to the site. We have 2x 20A breakers that will go to both an exterior GFIs and also regular grounded outlets inside the shed. We will do the rest once the shed is in.
Tomorrow we will insulate the foundation, and start building the shed.
Today we got in the foundation and ran electric under the house to the site. We have 2x 20A breakers that will go to both an exterior GFIs and also regular grounded outlets inside the shed. We will do the rest once the shed is in.
- In the first photo, you can see the almost finished foundation in place. We just did 4 screws at the corners of the plywood for now, as we have to lift it off to apply the insulation underneath. The floor joists run top to bottom in this picture. I'll take a picture tomorrow when we pull the plywood back off so you can see the frame.
- We mixed some pea gravel and sand with my clay soil and packed it around the drain in front to give it a nice hard pan around the drain. The 4x6 scrap behind the drain is slightly above grade, and will provide a sight dam to force water back into the drain.
- The pipe coming out of the hole in the foundation is for the interior drain.
- The second photo shows the view underneath the foundation from behind. To the left of the interior drain, you can make out one of the floor joists. You can see the slight V-shaped slope of the gravel towards the center to move water into the rear exterior drain.
Tomorrow we will insulate the foundation, and start building the shed.
ruwtz
Well-Known Member
Nice work! Shame you couldn't go bigger but I know what its like when space is limited.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
It's a fun and expensive hooby this...
ruwtz
Well-Known Member
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Floored
Today we god the foundation insulated and finished and started on the floor, which will require some mods.
The 1st photo shows the frame of the foundation without the plywood on. The floor of the shed is screwed into those 3 cross-beams in the corners. Though we modified it to make it more robust, this is the design of the wooden structure that Suncast recommends
The 2nd photo shows the the furring strips we put in to help keep the insulation level. We also nailed in the the insulation once in place.
The 3rd photo shows all the insulation installed. Note the interior drain popping up in the back. There will be a second hole near it for a dampered air intake for when the A/C causes too much negative air pressure
The 4th photo shows the floor in place, which is how we left it for the day.
I hope to get most of the shed up tomorrow now that the weather has cooled off.
Today we god the foundation insulated and finished and started on the floor, which will require some mods.
The 1st photo shows the frame of the foundation without the plywood on. The floor of the shed is screwed into those 3 cross-beams in the corners. Though we modified it to make it more robust, this is the design of the wooden structure that Suncast recommends
The 2nd photo shows the the furring strips we put in to help keep the insulation level. We also nailed in the the insulation once in place.
The 3rd photo shows all the insulation installed. Note the interior drain popping up in the back. There will be a second hole near it for a dampered air intake for when the A/C causes too much negative air pressure
The 4th photo shows the floor in place, which is how we left it for the day.
I hope to get most of the shed up tomorrow now that the weather has cooled off.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Holes
We spent a ridiculous amount of time on holes today. Seriously.
First we did all the pre-assembly of the different panels and steel reinforcement. You can see some of this in this photo.
Once we unpacked and examined everything, we realized the lights will easily hang from this slotted steel bar that runs along the roof peak. One problem solved.
Then we finished the floor, spending an inordinate amount of time of the interior drain and the air intake. You can see the finished look in these photos. Notice the two holes in the drain for the AC and dehumidifier hoses. The air intake has a damper that will open easily when the air pressure inside gets too low.
Then we caulked every seam, including between the floor and the plywood under it
We will add some more caulk in the morning, then get the walls and roof up.
We spent a ridiculous amount of time on holes today. Seriously.
First we did all the pre-assembly of the different panels and steel reinforcement. You can see some of this in this photo.
Once we unpacked and examined everything, we realized the lights will easily hang from this slotted steel bar that runs along the roof peak. One problem solved.
Then we finished the floor, spending an inordinate amount of time of the interior drain and the air intake. You can see the finished look in these photos. Notice the two holes in the drain for the AC and dehumidifier hoses. The air intake has a damper that will open easily when the air pressure inside gets too low.
Then we caulked every seam, including between the floor and the plywood under it
We will add some more caulk in the morning, then get the walls and roof up.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Finally, Something Shed-Like
Got the walls and the roof up today.
In the first picture you can see the mostly complete shed from the front. We also attached some scrap 2x6 to the fence on the left so we have support for the canopy, which is going to be a TIGHT fit. More on that later. The vents and windows will obviously be covered and sealed.
In the second picture you can see the slotted roof rail which the lights will hang from. We pre-installed the eye-hooks which are nut tightened on both sides with a little glue to keep the top nut and washer in place. I'm about 170 lbs and I was able to hang off one of the eye-hooks without bending anything, so it looks like we have plenty to strength to support our ~30 lbs light rig.
The third picture shows the seams between the parts, which we pre-sealed with silicone caulk before assembly. We will also do a pass with silicone on all the seams from the inside.
The fourth picture shows how the corners of the shed look. As you can see, it's very thin-walled in there with a big gap. We're going to shoot some foam spray in there to fill and insulate.
The fifth picture shows the completed shed with the doors open
Today, we start modding and insulating
Got the walls and the roof up today.
In the first picture you can see the mostly complete shed from the front. We also attached some scrap 2x6 to the fence on the left so we have support for the canopy, which is going to be a TIGHT fit. More on that later. The vents and windows will obviously be covered and sealed.
In the second picture you can see the slotted roof rail which the lights will hang from. We pre-installed the eye-hooks which are nut tightened on both sides with a little glue to keep the top nut and washer in place. I'm about 170 lbs and I was able to hang off one of the eye-hooks without bending anything, so it looks like we have plenty to strength to support our ~30 lbs light rig.
The third picture shows the seams between the parts, which we pre-sealed with silicone caulk before assembly. We will also do a pass with silicone on all the seams from the inside.
The fourth picture shows how the corners of the shed look. As you can see, it's very thin-walled in there with a big gap. We're going to shoot some foam spray in there to fill and insulate.
The fifth picture shows the completed shed with the doors open
Today, we start modding and insulating
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Electric Maths
Yesterday turned into a short day, as we all wound up with stuff to do in the afternoon. In the morning we got the exterior GFI outlet and j-box hooked up, ran conduit and wire into the shed for the dual outlets, put in the tray stand and started taking measurements for all the mods.
Note that we are going to cut the legs of the stand so that it is only 2" above the reservoir lid so I can save valuable vertical space (about 9")
Since there's little to report, I'll talk a little about our electricity needs. One of my goals in designing this shed was to keep the wattage low. Extra money spent on efficient appliances will reap benefits down the road. We are not a good candidate for solar (our roof is very shaded), so every kWh saved is money saved. All my calcs are in this GSheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Hsoc3rliEA1rJnED8buKDRPFfGmRAk-Haeb_awbR0X4/edit?usp=sharing
The first decision related to power is to reverse the natural daylight rhythms and run the lights mostly at night. Obviously, with a 18/6 veg schedule, it will have to run some in the daytime, and even 12/12 will bleed into daytime in some parts of the year. Secondarily, I will likely only do 2 crops a year, and not run in the very hot summer months. I'll remain open to the possibilities of running in those months, but I'm not counting on it. In any event, the reverse daylight schedule should lower climate control costs considerably.
I started with the lights. I decided to go with COB LED's primarily for their effectiveness and efficiency. There will be 12 of the CREE CXB3590s in a 4x3 array in a 5'x3' frame, which matches the size of the scrog screen. I will get into that further when we build the lighting rig, along with my to-scale diagrams. The advertised actual wattage is 600W, though the DIY COB calculator (attached) puts that number at 591 Watts. I've used the larger number in my calcs to be on the safe side.
The biggest users of of wattage are the AC and heater. Most electric heaters run at 1500W. I chose the DeLonghi HMP1500 Mica Panel Heater because it has a low power mode of 750W and is a flat panel design, which will save valuable space in the shed. It was about $30 more than the other model I was looking at (a tower design), but I think the 750W mode will really pay off down the road.
The AC is my biggest gamble, the LG LP0815WNR. Portable AC units are notoriously awful, and this is only an 8000BTU model. I don't really have the exterior space for either a window/wall unit or a minisplit. I chose this model because it is well-reviewed (for a portable AC), is rated for 200 sq ft for a 45 sq ft space, and will actually fit on a shelf. In any event, we'll see how it goes, and I will cut bait quickly if it won't do the job. In any event, it runs at 110V/880W.
Next biggest user of power is the dehumidifier, the Frigidaire FFAD3033R1. I use this in my curing closet and it works like a champ. It uses 360W on high, which is actually the most efficient way to use a dehumidifier (uses more watts, but on for much less time).
After that, the appliances become much more power-friendly. After a super dry day in the curing closet, I decided that my original choice for humidifier had too small a tank, and I'd be refilling too often, so I switched to the Vornado Evap40 which takes me from a 3-liter tank to a 4-gallon tank. I prefer the evaporative console style humidifiers anyway. Extra cost, but it will save a lot of hassle. Uses 39W (as opposed to only 25 for the other model) on low setting, which will be plenty for 322 cu ft of space.
The water pump in the reservoir, though running for just a few minutes a day, uses 36 W and the air pump, which runs all day, is just 2 W.
The circulation fan, on 24/7, is the Honeywell HT-908. It's a little larger than I would have liked, but has a nice low power mode of only 25W.
I've also added a "Misc" line item for things like power draw from surge suppressors, the humidistat and thermostats, etc. I've estimated this at 5W, but that's probably way too high
So how does this all shake out?
We are running 2 lines to the shed on 20A breakers, so we have a total of 2400W per line. We will be coming in way below this.
Line 1 will have only the AC and heater, on the assumption that they will never be running at the same time. So this line will have a max power draw of 880W when the AC is running, or 1500W if I have to really blast the heat (unlikely imo). Either way, there is plenty of headroom.
Line 2 will have everything else in the shed.
I outlined 4 extreme-case scenarios: hot/dry day, hot/humid day, cold/dry night, cold/damp night. Assumptions: heat and AC will never run at the same time; humidifier and dehimidifier will never run at the same time
You can see in the Gsheet how this all plays out. The biggest power draw scenario is a hot, humid day, when the lights are on in the morning. The total draw will 1868W, but each line will remain under a kW even then. The lowest power draw is during cold, dry nights, where the total draw is only 1457W.
Feel free to download the sheet and play around with the numbers.
Back to it on Monday.
Yesterday turned into a short day, as we all wound up with stuff to do in the afternoon. In the morning we got the exterior GFI outlet and j-box hooked up, ran conduit and wire into the shed for the dual outlets, put in the tray stand and started taking measurements for all the mods.
Note that we are going to cut the legs of the stand so that it is only 2" above the reservoir lid so I can save valuable vertical space (about 9")
Since there's little to report, I'll talk a little about our electricity needs. One of my goals in designing this shed was to keep the wattage low. Extra money spent on efficient appliances will reap benefits down the road. We are not a good candidate for solar (our roof is very shaded), so every kWh saved is money saved. All my calcs are in this GSheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Hsoc3rliEA1rJnED8buKDRPFfGmRAk-Haeb_awbR0X4/edit?usp=sharing
The first decision related to power is to reverse the natural daylight rhythms and run the lights mostly at night. Obviously, with a 18/6 veg schedule, it will have to run some in the daytime, and even 12/12 will bleed into daytime in some parts of the year. Secondarily, I will likely only do 2 crops a year, and not run in the very hot summer months. I'll remain open to the possibilities of running in those months, but I'm not counting on it. In any event, the reverse daylight schedule should lower climate control costs considerably.
I started with the lights. I decided to go with COB LED's primarily for their effectiveness and efficiency. There will be 12 of the CREE CXB3590s in a 4x3 array in a 5'x3' frame, which matches the size of the scrog screen. I will get into that further when we build the lighting rig, along with my to-scale diagrams. The advertised actual wattage is 600W, though the DIY COB calculator (attached) puts that number at 591 Watts. I've used the larger number in my calcs to be on the safe side.
The biggest users of of wattage are the AC and heater. Most electric heaters run at 1500W. I chose the DeLonghi HMP1500 Mica Panel Heater because it has a low power mode of 750W and is a flat panel design, which will save valuable space in the shed. It was about $30 more than the other model I was looking at (a tower design), but I think the 750W mode will really pay off down the road.
The AC is my biggest gamble, the LG LP0815WNR. Portable AC units are notoriously awful, and this is only an 8000BTU model. I don't really have the exterior space for either a window/wall unit or a minisplit. I chose this model because it is well-reviewed (for a portable AC), is rated for 200 sq ft for a 45 sq ft space, and will actually fit on a shelf. In any event, we'll see how it goes, and I will cut bait quickly if it won't do the job. In any event, it runs at 110V/880W.
Next biggest user of power is the dehumidifier, the Frigidaire FFAD3033R1. I use this in my curing closet and it works like a champ. It uses 360W on high, which is actually the most efficient way to use a dehumidifier (uses more watts, but on for much less time).
After that, the appliances become much more power-friendly. After a super dry day in the curing closet, I decided that my original choice for humidifier had too small a tank, and I'd be refilling too often, so I switched to the Vornado Evap40 which takes me from a 3-liter tank to a 4-gallon tank. I prefer the evaporative console style humidifiers anyway. Extra cost, but it will save a lot of hassle. Uses 39W (as opposed to only 25 for the other model) on low setting, which will be plenty for 322 cu ft of space.
The water pump in the reservoir, though running for just a few minutes a day, uses 36 W and the air pump, which runs all day, is just 2 W.
The circulation fan, on 24/7, is the Honeywell HT-908. It's a little larger than I would have liked, but has a nice low power mode of only 25W.
I've also added a "Misc" line item for things like power draw from surge suppressors, the humidistat and thermostats, etc. I've estimated this at 5W, but that's probably way too high
So how does this all shake out?
We are running 2 lines to the shed on 20A breakers, so we have a total of 2400W per line. We will be coming in way below this.
Line 1 will have only the AC and heater, on the assumption that they will never be running at the same time. So this line will have a max power draw of 880W when the AC is running, or 1500W if I have to really blast the heat (unlikely imo). Either way, there is plenty of headroom.
Line 2 will have everything else in the shed.
I outlined 4 extreme-case scenarios: hot/dry day, hot/humid day, cold/dry night, cold/damp night. Assumptions: heat and AC will never run at the same time; humidifier and dehimidifier will never run at the same time
You can see in the Gsheet how this all plays out. The biggest power draw scenario is a hot, humid day, when the lights are on in the morning. The total draw will 1868W, but each line will remain under a kW even then. The lowest power draw is during cold, dry nights, where the total draw is only 1457W.
Feel free to download the sheet and play around with the numbers.
Back to it on Monday.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Rained Out
We were rained out today, so we spent the time planning out the shelving, AC exhaust, insulation and some other mods. Nothing to show.
So, a word about the layout. Space is tight, inside and out, so I have to be careful.
Here is the layout:
The floor is beige, the appliances are the white squares, the pink circles are 1' cone representations of the lights, the black circles are the 5-gallon smart pots. Arrows indicate air-flow direction. The white border on the floor is the 2" of insulation. The canopy is represented as a single 3x5 rectangle
One thing to note is that the AC sits about 3' off the floor on a shelf with the heater underneath. I may switch the circulation fan to that spot later. Either way, we are stacking the largest appliances. The hot air from the AC will exhaust out the back.
As you can see space is tight. There is less than a foot between the appliances and the sides of the scrog screen, but it's enough for me to slide in there and tend.
I've also uploaded the original Photoshop file with all the layers intact so you can play around with it if you like. The layout is exactly to 1" = 1' scale (so 1:12 for you metric people). You can find the file here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxPBHofkrVlxQmtZQW9KZWwxbXc/view?usp=sharing
We were rained out today, so we spent the time planning out the shelving, AC exhaust, insulation and some other mods. Nothing to show.
So, a word about the layout. Space is tight, inside and out, so I have to be careful.
Here is the layout:
The floor is beige, the appliances are the white squares, the pink circles are 1' cone representations of the lights, the black circles are the 5-gallon smart pots. Arrows indicate air-flow direction. The white border on the floor is the 2" of insulation. The canopy is represented as a single 3x5 rectangle
One thing to note is that the AC sits about 3' off the floor on a shelf with the heater underneath. I may switch the circulation fan to that spot later. Either way, we are stacking the largest appliances. The hot air from the AC will exhaust out the back.
As you can see space is tight. There is less than a foot between the appliances and the sides of the scrog screen, but it's enough for me to slide in there and tend.
I've also uploaded the original Photoshop file with all the layers intact so you can play around with it if you like. The layout is exactly to 1" = 1' scale (so 1:12 for you metric people). You can find the file here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxPBHofkrVlxQmtZQW9KZWwxbXc/view?usp=sharing
Turbo head
Well-Known Member
Hey mate noob here i have one of those aircons abd i bought a 6 inch booster fan for the exhaust and it works a dream
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Thanks I'm going to look into that. What size unit and room do you have?Hey mate noob here i have one of those aircons abd i bought a 6 inch booster fan for the exhaust and it works a dream
Turbo head
Well-Known Member
My aircon is 8000btu and my room is 7x8
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
How is that working out for you? That's right about my setup.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Sorry no post yesterday. Had to work all night.
Yesterday and today started with running electric into the shed. If you recall, we ran 2 20A lines under the hose to a j-box next to the shed, where we put in an exterior GFI outlet (just because why not), and then ran PVC conduit underground, through the floor and to an interior outlet. We put it about shoulder height so it will be easy to access.
Next, we sealed everything up with silicone and foam spray for larger gaps at the corners. We ran out of both so we will finish this up tomorrow.
Finally, we installed the wooden supports for the shelving unit, which is made for this shed by Suncast. It is made to just screw into the plastic wall and hold 100 lbs total over two shelves (50 per). We will be using only 1 shelf here to hold the AC unit, which is 48 LBS. But the 2" of EPS insulation creates a little problem of how to mount the shelves, so we decided to build out the areas where the rail attaches with wood. The wood is glued, screwed in, and also resting plumb on the floor. The rails will be drilled into these instead of the wall directly and we will also strap it in with a ratchet strap once it goes up.
Back to it in the morning.
Yesterday and today started with running electric into the shed. If you recall, we ran 2 20A lines under the hose to a j-box next to the shed, where we put in an exterior GFI outlet (just because why not), and then ran PVC conduit underground, through the floor and to an interior outlet. We put it about shoulder height so it will be easy to access.
Next, we sealed everything up with silicone and foam spray for larger gaps at the corners. We ran out of both so we will finish this up tomorrow.
Finally, we installed the wooden supports for the shelving unit, which is made for this shed by Suncast. It is made to just screw into the plastic wall and hold 100 lbs total over two shelves (50 per). We will be using only 1 shelf here to hold the AC unit, which is 48 LBS. But the 2" of EPS insulation creates a little problem of how to mount the shelves, so we decided to build out the areas where the rail attaches with wood. The wood is glued, screwed in, and also resting plumb on the floor. The rails will be drilled into these instead of the wall directly and we will also strap it in with a ratchet strap once it goes up.
Back to it in the morning.
Greenthumbskunk
Well-Known Member
That shed size would be ok with me for a stadium grow and have a couple of 1000 watt bare bulbs on light movers. You could put over 200 6" (depending on stretch) tall clones and get some very nice yields.
sheckylovejoy
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the suggestion. I did look into that originally and settled on scrog. One of my biggest issues is vertical space. The wall are 6' high and then the roof starts angling in, limiting what I can do. The other thing is that I'm a big fan of LEDs generally, and I don't think you can use them for stadium grows, is that right? Anyway I may revisit this at some point, but for now, I'll see how this goes. I have a lot of outdoor growing experience, but this is my first try at indoor, so I'm trying to mostly keep the hydro part simple
Greenthumbskunk
Well-Known Member
Ive seen a guy build a cob system that was 360 degree light on here and he was a commercial grower. He said that it wasnt in the same ball park as his hps on yield and quality. As of right now youre limited on what a flat service led will provide as far as area coverage goes. One guy posted a pic of a grow with 1 1000 watt hps bare bulb and has a stadium type of grow 360 all around it and claims he pulls over 8lbs.
I have some leds as well but im using them on veg right now. To me led has its place and it all depends on what youre doing and climate youre growing in. I grow inside during winter and i like hps giving off more heat to help heat my room. Led gives off heat as well but not as much.
U can grow some good weed with led but hps will be a little better.