CFL closet grow

my own version of a growing tub you've probably seen in High Times. perlite in the bottom, soil on top of that so there's a water reservoir. a pipe that goes directly to the bottom so it doesn't attract gnats with wet soil. some sand on top of that to deter them even further. pretty simple. these pics were at 4 weeks vegetation. right now the plants are in week 1.5 of flowering. these are also in a closet with a 180cfm squirrel fan blower and small oscillating fan. 10 CFL's mixed between 6500k and 2700k bulbs. also the temp. is usually quite lower than 82.9 as it shows on the thermo. they also look a little droopy due to lack of water. only home on the weekends so this is a great set-up that keeps water throughout the week and that anyone would hardly have to mess with. any questions or comments that aren't derogatory or mean are quite welcome. toke it up folks.


BTW just messin' around with bagseed from some pretty decent green and testin' these tubs out.

Very interesting.... so is the pipe for watering? or to let the system breath?

the pipe is for watering. i'll take some more pics this weekend. had a gnat problem so this is one of the easiest ways to water and keep the topsoil from becoming too damp. i also threw sand over the topsoil to deter the gnats, along with an insect called an Antlion, or as we call em in texas, "doodlebug". they burrow themselves in the ground and make a little cone in the sand to catch prey that's unfortunate enough to fall in. quite a few under a pecan tree on my land. hope to hear more from ya.

I like your use of natural pest control by using the ant-lion... that's a great idea with your type of setup.

I hope you don't mind me asking more questions... this is an interesting and new setup to me, so
Do you ph the water before adding it to your set up?
Do you add nutes to the water?

aw hell yeah man nice set up nice use of sand and peat moss never would of thought of suttin like that pretty smart is it like a drip system??? and dont u think more than one part of the root will need water????

Wolfman,


I do ph the water prior to adding it. then after as well. let the water sit for about an hour and a half and then ph the run off. i drilled a hole in the bottom front of the tubs and threaded a screw with teflon tape so i'll let it sit for a while then let out excess water, ph it and just drain it into a millk jug. these are 13 gallon tubs and i've found that if i water with about 3 1/2 gallons per tub i don't have to water again for AT LEAST a week. Nutes- i use 1ml of Superthrive per Brita purified gallon of water along with some vegetative or flowering nutrient in their respective stages. also, when i mixed the soil for this, yes i'm using a soil medium, i took some organic Miracle-Gro from home depot and dug some dirt up in the backyard. put the backyard soil on a baking pan and set it at 350 for a half hour to kill of any microscopic organisms that might wanna hang around and damage my kids.

pretty cool idea.. i like your tech. youve spent some time on it. i have the stupid gnat prob and thinking about adding sand. do you just cover the top of your soil w sand? a thin layer or how thick should it be applied?

actually Noob i don't use peat moss. and no it's not a drip system, just 3 jugs premixed per tub and i'm done watering for the week. i'll give ya a sketch of what it the tub would look like split in half. and the roots are just fine. it's almost like i'm flooding them. what i do is pour the water into the tube, let it sit for an hour and half and soak up the water from the bottom so that the roots grow downward. the plants seem quite happy with it and the root growth is tremendous.

maybe a half inch of sand, just enough to cover the soil but make sure you cover the edges of the tub or pot that you're growing in. also, (due to the water making the soil expand when watered and retract a bit when it starts getting dry) made the mistake at one point of not totally covering the edge where the soil meets the side of the tub and the little shits found a way into the crack. should look like your plants are growing in a little desert oasis haha.

tdubya03 said:

maybe a half inch of sand, just enough to cover the soil but make sure you cover the edges of the tub or pot that you're growing in. also, (due to the water making the soil expand when watered and retract a bit when it starts getting dry) made the mistake at one point of not totally covering the edge where the soil meets the side of the tub and the little shits found a way into the crack. should look like your plants are growing in a little desert oasis haha.

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good tips thanks.. im on it

Yes.. do get us a sketch of what the tub would look like if cut in half... I know about all the layers, and understand what you are doing.... obviously it's working =] .... I'm still trying to figure out why you are not having problems with lack of oxygen in the lower levels... hmmm

Oh and is there a type of drain to the system, or does the watter sit at the lower levels till it is used up by the roots? ........ lol I swear I'm pretty sure I get the idea, and it's working, but all my thoughts tell me that you should have a root rot problem.... but you don't... now I"m trying to figure out why... (which is not important... as long as it works! =)

Nice setup

well not exactly a sketch but i had free time at the office so i figured i'd play with some paint.

appreciate it Organik

Wolfman Zen said:

Yes.. do get us a sketch of what the tub would look like if cut in half... I know about all the layers, and understand what you are doing.... obviously it's working =] .... I'm still trying to figure out why you are not having problems with lack of oxygen in the lower levels... hmmm

Oh and is there a type of drain to the system, or does the watter sit at the lower levels till it is used up by the roots? ........ lol I swear I'm pretty sure I get the idea, and it's working, but all my thoughts tell me that you should have a root rot problem.... but you don't... now I"m trying to figure out why... (which is not important... as long as it works! =)

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well as i mentioned earlier Wolfman, the tub is drained of excess water about 1 1/2 hours after watering. the perlite holds the majority of the water but the pipes i water in are completely hollow down to the perlite and i have an oscillating fan that inadvertently blows across the tops of the tubes. we all know that perlite is good for holding water but it also leaves some nice opens space. for example, the most widely accepted way i know to start clones is in perlite so that the roots have plenty of moisture and room to grow. so i figure it makes sense to have a nice amount of perlite in the bottom.

tdubya03 said:

well as i mentioned earlier Wolfman, the tub is drained of excess water about 1 1/2 hours after watering. the perlite holds the majority of the water but the pipes i water in are completely hollow down to the perlite and i have an oscillating fan that inadvertently blows across the tops of the tubes. we all know that perlite is good for holding water but it also leaves some nice opens space. for example, the most widely accepted way i know to start clones is in perlite so that the roots have plenty of moisture and room to grow. so i figure it makes sense to have a nice amount of perlite in the bottom.

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i tried about a month go with some clippings. i put them in perlite, with wicks running through the perlite into water. after 12 days i had some nice roots going. they seem to be doing well now that they are in veg.

I like seeing new grow methods... thanks for sharing this one, and keep us updated =]

well since i'm sittin' at the office doin' nothin', i have some time to give a quick update. girls look good from the pic my caretaker took with his cell and sent to me. we'll find out on friday. and post some pics. buds are definitely developing.

I have a similar setup with only three clones and there growing very slowly, i have them under two 3000k curly cfls and one circle 22 watt light, it seems that my outdoor clones seem to be growing faster then these indoor ones which i was hoping to get bud off of sooner, any suggestions pleaseeeee,,, firsttt indooor attempt thankssss

Buddman said:

I have a similar setup with only three clones and there growing very slowly, i have them under two 3000k curly cfls and one circle 22 watt light, it seems that my outdoor clones seem to be growing faster then these indoor ones which i was hoping to get bud off of sooner, any suggestions pleaseeeee,,, firsttt indooor attempt thankssss

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so if you're using the 3000k lights i'm guessing you're already flowering correct? and what wattage are those lights? any pics? if you're in vegetation then u need a higher spectrum of light such as 6500k. and prolly 4 bulbs at least if u have 3 plants. depends on what the wattage of the lights is as well. i actually have 10 lights on those little mofos while i'm flowering. and they're all 3000k or less. so a standard rule would be...

3000k or less for flowering and 5000k or more for vegetation. pics would be helpful but i'm guessin' the lack of light intensity is the main problem. get back to me and i'll be happy to help