First Grow

Hello All,

This place seems to be jam packed with great information, so glad I found it.

Anyway, I just germinated my seeds, and have been running my closet for just over a week to ensure I have temperarture lights and exhaust just right for my new babies. I got one Sensi Star and two Automation2 sprouts.

The closet is running about 75-79 above the light, but if I measure below the light its more like 85-89 (due to the light hitting the thermomitor i think) How do you all measure your temperature? I read one post that says at canopy level, what does that mean exactly? at the hight of the light canopy wiht out the light hitting it?
I have a 400w HPS with an air cooled shade venting out my roof with an inline 200cfm blower, this acts as my exhaust as well.

I think I have it all about right just worried about burning my new little babies if its to warm under the light. I have lots of air flow, with a couple fans inside to stir it all up.

This is a 2x5 closet and I am only doing three plants this first run, if all goes well I plan on adding a fourth.

Plan at this point is to veg for 2-3 weeks, take some clones, then start flowering. trying to keep them under 5 ft to finish so I figure I need to start budding once they are 2-3 ft.
I am using tap water and just ajusting the PH as required (hate these color matching kits, i think im colorblind LOL) Have PH at about 6.0.
I am also using whats called a single shot garden, 4 gallon bucket hydro using air to push the water through a constant drip. With this system I am contamplating putting another air pump in place with air stones for the buckets not sure if this is needed, what do you guys think? Just dont want a million air pumps going, have three as it is, one for each bucket pushing water.
The other thing I did was make some covers for the black hydro pales, i dont want my water/nute mix to heat up so I fugured the black and white platic on the bucket like a bib will help keep light off it and there for any heat build up.

Anyway enough rambling on my part.....

Anyone have suggestions or things I might need to be watchfull of?

That's too hot and as a former closet grower, I can tell you the solution is lots of AC in the room the closet is in. Measure temps at the top of the foliage, but that is a combination of radiant and ambient temp. Then measure several places around the closet that are not in direct light, that is ambient. Your ambient is best below 75. If the foliage tops look at all burned or stressed, raise the light. A 400 hps can be as close as 12 inches to the foliate top with no problem.

That system sounds unnecessarily complicated to me, but if it works.....

Looking forward to see how things go man, good luck!! I got two 400watt hps one on each plant in a closet with one fan, i've managed to hold everything down pretty well u'll do fine you got some kit!!!

What exactly sounds complicated to you? The hydro setup? I contemplated using soil but figure hydro in the small space will help produce more, if I can keep PH and nutes right.

Its my first round so if the hydro system does not do well I will go with something simple next time like soil. I am even thinking I might add a fourth plant in soil just for compairision this round.

the temps I posted are at the end of a 16 hour light cycle, I have AC in the room its pulling from. Each day the temp seems slightly different depending on the weather, the AC unit is helping keep the temps fairly consistant

After 5 hours this morning I am at 82 under the light and about 74 ambient. I will watch it closely over the next few days and ajust accordingly. I have the light right now about 1.5ft from the top of the pots, so this could be raised a bit i think.

the highest I had it ever go ambient was 89, and once i seen that I knew I had to lower it, last night before it turned off my ambient was 77.6, so even though its slightly high, after 16 hours of light i think i might be ok. what are your thoughts?

I have had some sucess, I put in powered intake vents (cheap$20 fan power floor register) and moved my ballast out of the room, now ambient of 74.3, and hovering 80 under the light. The plus side my bedroom does not feel like a freezer now, as I was able to raise the temp on the AC!
Night time temp goes down to 68.5 or so, a bit cool but should be fine i think.

I am still worried about these Hydro buckets, Single Shot Garden, http://www.rambridge.com/products/garden/hydroponic/hsupplies.aspx Anyone have any experience using these?
I am thinking the roots might not get the air required once they get big and get to the bottom of the bucket.
Planning to change the water every week at first, see how it goes from there i guess.
My seedlings are all up one droped the seed cover today, i figure by tomorrow I can take off the dome and start lowering the humidity for a few days before i drop them in the grow area.