First Ever Grow

Belesar

Active Member
Hello to everyone at RIU

Ive been dabbling with the idea in my mind about growing my own plants for awhile and as luck would have it i found a bag seed from a white widow cross i think it was.

So i took that as fate telling me to give it a go (whats the worse that can happen?). So after doing a few weeks research into growing i decided to go down the CFL route as its cheap and relativly straight forward.

Im limited on space so decided to make a grow box out of an old double kitchen unit, the box is 1.5ft W x 2ft L x 3ft H. Ive wired 2 PC fans as an Intake from the top and Exhaust from the back. I also lined the box with black/white mylar.


Wiring 3.jpgFinished look 1.jpgWiring 2.jpgWiring 1.jpg

Finished look 1.jpgFinished look 2.jpg

As i dont have that much knowledge at growing or money at the moment i decided to go down the cheap route. Ive used norm compost from the local DIY store for now and im growing under a 45w blue spectrum 6400k CFL bulb, ill hopefully be adding more lights when i get the money and figure out how to wire mutliple lights to one plug. For nutrients im using (Plant magic plus - Old timer) 5-3-3

Nutrients.jpg

To Germinate the seed i used the paper towel method on a plate covered by a bowl and stored in my wardrobe, after 3 days the seed germiated and was planted straight away in a pot (dunno what size) lol, My plant has now been sitting under the light for 15 days and she seems happy enough i hope lol :-P

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15 Days Old 2.jpg

If anything seems wrong with my setup or if you can offer a complete nub some advice ill happily listen.
 

420RedEyes

Member
I really like the cabinet you're using. I would love to have something like that.

As far as setup goes, I noticed you said your intake fan is on top of the box. For best results I would suggest having your intake fan as low as possible in the box and using the fan on top for exhaust, as cold air is more dense than warm air, causing the warm air to rise.
Obviously more lights would be great but you said you are already planning on that. If you want to use multiple lights on the same plug, look into buying a couple "Y" socket adapters (a.k.a E27 splitter). They are cheap and very effective. Here is a link to one.. http://www.woomaa.com/product_info.php?language=en&currency=USD&products_id=10621

Hopefully someone else can step in and give a little more advice. Good luck with the rest of your grow!
 

lee harvey

Well-Known Member
red eyes pretty much summed it all up.. but im diggin that box man its nice and clean!! keep reading up on this site bro, thats the best advice i can give you.. but your doin great so far man keep it up
 

CHIEF PUFF PUFF

Well-Known Member
What's up Belesar, what a great cabinet you have made and Red Eyes has given you accurate information on your ventilation and lighting. Check out Riddleme and Uncle Ben threads. THIS IS THE BEST ADVICE I CAN GIVE YOU! The information for newbies is invaluable. You will find a great deal of information about growing on this site, sometimes it's overwhelming, conflicting, confusing, and down right wrong. By reading their threads, you get reliable information, interesting growing techniques, and a few tricks on yielding more from veteran growers. This is only my 2nd grow, I listened to many people and ignored those growers with a great deal of knowledge. My 1st grow paid for this mistake. I did more reading, and tried a few new techniques ........................Check out my 2nd grow in my signature:) To see what I mean.
 

Belesar

Active Member
Thanks for all the great feedback so far.

I like the idea of that splitter for the bulbs but i want to try and have the 2 lights i will have to be independant so i can move them around easier.

If anyone has any ideas on how i can wire up 2 bayonet light fixtures to be run from one plug would be great
 

Belesar

Active Member
Thnx everyone for the positive response on my cabinet, im really happy with it myself, took awhile for me to figure how to setup it up right and build.

Also ive been doing some brain storming and think i have figured out my electrical problem, ill just wire the main plug to a junction box and then run the lights from the junction box. Ill find out if it works tomorrow after ive been to the DIY store
 

angryblackman

Well-Known Member
You will go through several revisions of this cabinet I think. I will be changing mine up as soon as the weather gets better here. :)
 

Belesar

Active Member
You will go through several revisions of this cabinet I think. I will be changing mine up as soon as the weather gets better here.
Yeah your right there ive already got through 10 revisions of my original design and now that im sitting here toking and bored ive come up with another 5 different things i can do to improve my cabinet lol
 

Belesar

Active Member
Update, Im a fucking genius lol.

Been wondering for the last 2 days how to have 2 lights independant of each other but both be adjustable. And i think i have just come up with the mother load of ideas lol

Epic Idea.jpg

Yep its that simple 2 coathangers modified to make a simple guide and clamp for the wires so once ive actually put it together, I should be able to have a light either side of my plant so i wont have to worry over much now on the vertical space the bulbs were taking up.
 

jhod58vw

Well-Known Member
like the box setup as well i usually after each grow end up doing some upgrades on mine have a 3'x'5' x 3-1/2' tall flowering chamber going with a 3'x5'x3' veging chamber going
 

Belesar

Active Member
Well since i mentioned my brill idea i havnt stopped and heres the result !!!!!!

Light Hanger.jpg

This should allow me to place my bulbs at either side of the plant while also being able to individualy heighten/lower a light.
 

Gastanker

Well-Known Member
Brilliant - we've got a MacGyver here :) Everything looks great - box, light, plant, ingenuity - congrats and best of luck!
 

Belesar

Active Member
Just checked on my little lady and it seems like she has outgrown her pot god damn it, I picked her up for inspection today and she has 1 root sticking out the bottom of the pot by about 3 inches, Wasnt planning on re-potting her but guess ill have to.
 

Belesar

Active Member
Just re-planted my little baby

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I hope i havnt stressed her to much in doing this, Ill see how she responds in the next few days and if everthing is fine ill be topping her next week when my new light arrives, Buying a 65w blue spectrum 6400k Cfl bulb to go along with my 45w, then u will see my coat hanger in action lol.
 

Belesar

Active Member
Hi all, Just got a quick question, Ive just bought some weed and found a white seed in it, do i germinate it? or store it till it browns?
 

420RedEyes

Member
From what I understand, that seed will stay white. If it is white then it means it didn't mature enough to the point of being brown before the plant was cut. Again, I could be wrong. So I would like to here what any one else has to say on this.
 

Belesar

Active Member
Quick update till later, I ordered my 64w 6400k bulb yesterday and it arrived today and man it takes some getting over the size of the bloody thing.

New light bulb.jpg

Also while having a wander around the DIY store i found these:

PICT0290.jpg

They are upright pulleys, So im gonna scrap the coat hanger idea and use these instead. Ill post back later with more pics of when everthing is setup.
 

Belesar

Active Member
UPDATE - Day 18 from seed.

Hi everyone, The upright pulleys are working like magic, Im so happy i found them and so easy to install. Also wired a dimmer switch to my fans to try and increase the RPM, well it didnt work the dimmer wired fine just didnt increase anything lol. So i think i will just stick to buying a 6" fan to put inside.

With the new bulb here im currently running a total of 110w 6400k CFL`S. Might increase this soon though.

Ive got both my lights up and running either side of my plant about 2-3 inches away, Will this setup be ok?

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