Grow Setup Advice

Hi everyone. I'm planning a new grow with a plant limit of four and made a proportionately accurate diagram of the 3x3 tent configuration with a list of basic equipment I plan to purchase. I've watched an endless amount of tutorials on YouTube and read a lot on Rollitup too, but would appreciate any advice or tips from experienced growers before I make the big financial investment soon. I'm trying to keep this grow as compact and stealth as possible, while producing high quality bud.

My biggest concerns with my planned setup is enough height for hearty plants, and will it be able to produce about a pound of quality bud a year? That's my goal. I picked up some DNA Genetics 24 Karat Gold (Tangie x Kosher) seeds as well some TGA Jillybean. Will be scrogging too. Thanks in advance for any constructive feedback, cheers!

go a 7 gallon pot and only do 1 plant ...scrog the whole thing out to fill your area
change the 6 inch fan to a 4 inch fan 170 cfms (your area 72 cf 3x3x a 6 inch would be massive over kill at 400 cfms
change out the feed to the Go Box just type that into amazon .........it is organic feed so the soil PH stays in balance less issues for first time
the light area thing is only in effect for HID lighting LED they are good 8 inchs 1 foot
and the soil already has perlite in it u do not need anymore unless mixing soil (roots organic / fox farms ocean forest)

if u really want weight do hydro anything hydro can grow massive and make LBs at a time .......it is harder and less forgiving
with Photo plants u are in control u can veggie it longer allowing the plant to be bigger and make more sites for more weight.....this can be done in soil or in hydro so the amount u end up with up to u

Watch your nutrients... make sure you understand how to really use them. Don't over-water. Get decent genetics. Use good water.

Fox Farm are pretty conscentrated from what I've heard from just about everybody who's ever used them. Keep nutrients basic till you get the hang of things... Keeping it simple here will reward you the most. Don't start adding all their supplements, or snake oils is what I call 'em, till you've got some what of a hang on things or you'll just end up shooting yourself in the foot.



The biggest thing... Patience!! You will get there.

Just make sure you flip them before they get to tall.

More plants = less height needed. You just want to get them big enough to collect all the light, a full canopy. With 4 plants you shouldn't need more than 3ft from top of pot to top of plant. If you haven't bought that light yet I would encourage you to look at cheaper options to get very similar light output. Look at CMH or even cheaper HPS with supplemental florescent. LEDs are way too expensive still. They aren't any more efficient than better HIDs, about the same now, but cost multiple times the price.

If you are going to use Fox Farm, be sure to water without nutrients for the first couple weeks after transplanting them. Fox Farm Ocean Forest soil is made pretty hot and will lock your plants up if you introduce too many nutes to it. Also, add some extra perlite as that soil takes longer to dry out. Have you looked at the Sun Systems 315 watt LEC? Keep 3 or 4 plants in the tent, its easier to lose 25% of a harvest if one plant dies, than to lose your whole harvest because one plant died.

Thanks for the feedback everyone, I greatly appreciate your input.

@ justugh - I like your idea of a 1 bucket DWC setup so much that I made this new diagram (see below). I had considered a hydroponic setup previously, but didn't want to change multiple buckets or have to worry about leaking and space issues with a RDWC system. The one bucket setup does put all my eggs in one basket, but I'm willing to take a little risk for larger and quicker yields. I'm just hoping between the pump, bubbles, and fans that the noise level stays under control.

@DirtyMcCury & boilingoil - Great tips, thank you.

@nomofatum - 4 plants would be ideal for multiple flavors and minimizing risk as well, your configuration definitely has some upsides to consider. I know the Spectrum King is very expensive, and I don't have extra cash to burn, but I'm willing to pay more upfront if it means better value in the long run. What I like about the Spectrum King is the full spectrum light, low power consumption, runs cool, quality build, and not needing to replace bulbs. Downsides are price and it's a bit bulky, but I'll definitely keep my eye open for quality less expensive options until the last moment before purchase.

@ Pinnacle Consultation - Wow, I've looked at more lights than I care to admit, but I hadn't come across the Sun Systems 325 watt LEC, that looks right up my alley with the full spectrum light and low power consumption features, and the fact it's less than half the price of the Spectrum King definitely gets my attention. Clearly you know watts up LOL, excellent suggestion!

I'll have to ponder the four plants vs. one dilemma (currently leaning towards one), along with the lighting unit. If anyone has any further advice on the hydro setup below, please feel free to chime in, I won't be moving in to my new place for another month, so I still have some time to further refine my plans. Thanks again to all of you, I didn't expect so much solid information to be shared so quickly, cheers!!

Remember efficiency is what helps with heat. If you pay way more for the same efficiency you will also get the same heat. A 400w led puts out exactly the same amount of heat as a 400w HPS or a 400w incandescent would. Watts are what heat is measured in. The difference is how much leaves the bulb/emitter as light vs heat, the light will turn into heat once it is absorbed by something. A CMH 315w is as efficient as any LED I have seen. A 600w HPS is also about as efficient. To get less heat run the most efficient light so you can run a lower number of watts with the same par watt/lumen output as a higher watt option.

@Lime_Gum

ok DWC good plan ........now u just need a few tweets
1 the bucket u need it sitting 4 to 6 inches higher (this lets u drain the water out using the fill hose/lvl marker )..i use 4x4 2 1 foot section little higher would of been nice
2 move your air pump outside the tent near the coldest point u can .....cold air pumping in water helps keep it cold
3 your water u need to get a temp senor/reader like for fish tanks and put it on the bucket so u can read it (like 3 bucks pet store or beer brewing store has them)
4 u need to have a emergency cooling plan in place to drop those water temps if your HPS is to much at the start once into flowering should be ok aslong as keep intake temps low 60s
5 think about using a drip ring too with the dwc cooling trick is why

for the cooling plan.......i use to keep frozen water bottles take one out drain some water out of the system into a water jug i cut and use the water bottle as a ice cube.....the drip ring will keep roots ok if system is little low ......20 mins later dump that water back in cooling off system repeating

All these guys have it right,

Most importantly is patience and expectations, there's a learning curve...

I personally would use a tote with the DWC, size that best fits your area, make sure you have good genetics, more resilient strain, use nutes not organic, keep your nutes simple, all in one, as far as lights, if you have the ventilation, air cooled hood, use a 400/600 max, I cannot vouch for LEDs.

Most importantly, do your research, everyone tends to overdue everything the first time. Try to keep it simple. Buy good meters, make sure you calibrate them and store properly, many of them will drift upwards over time. Last, you don't need a remedy for every little yellow leaf, remember, you will make mistakes, information can prevent them.

those are just some things I overlooked at first.

But these guys here know there shit! Trust them!

Spread the seed!

Hey everyone! Below is a new diagram which shows I'm completely on board with the great suggestions I've received, can't thank you all enough for sharing your experience and knowledge. Further setup tweaks and growing tips are welcomed and encouraged, the feedback you've given so far has likely saved me from multiple disasters and cut the cost of the investment by a third of what I initially planned to spend, so I'm all ears if anyone has further advice: )

@nomofatum - I researched the Sun Systems 315 watt LEC and it's PERFECT for a 3x3 tent, the savings are also phenomenal over a Spectrum King. Thanks for the breakdown, you changed the way I look at lighting units, very helpful.

@justugh - You're rocking my world with awesome tips, I'm rolling with all your suggestions and love the cooling trick, that's brilliant!

@jonjon777 - I will consider a tote and appreciate the other advice too, thanks.

Does anyone think a CO2 system of any kind would be a good idea in this tent?

Any guess as to what this setup has the potential to yield in one grow under optimal conditions? I can't help but wonder Cheers!!

I've heard of those lights, are those the new ones they're trying to compare to the 600?

Anyways, let me begin by saying that one tote is much easier to manage compared to multiple buckets, even if you plan on doing one bucket, one plant those roots are going to grow. I'm doing tons of bubble buckets ATM and hate it lol. I like the dwc sog better, 3" net pots, Anyways, you could get a four inch fan for that area all day but if you plan on upgrading in the future you might as well buy a six, as far as your air pump goes get a good pump not fish tank pump lol, big air stones too. there was something else I was going to say at the moment but I forgot I'm sure I'll remember...

Which nutes you looking into?

Best of luck!

@Lime_Gum

the only other info i can share is
1 a PH meter (the pen kind will work for a short time but if u plan to do this for awhile go for the ones with detachable/replaceable probes)
2 u need calibration solution 4.0 7.0 10.0 (all 3)
3 u should get at least 1 quart of phUP and phDOWN
4 get 2 spare buckets (can be home depot orange ones) one while the plant is in veggie before u Scrog in u can take the basket out set the plant in that one and wash the roots and clay off with PHed water (this lets u just dump water out of bucket into other 2nd bucket to dump .....if need be the bucket growing in can be cleaned )

the last one is personal choice but your air stones have u seen the Micro pore defusers (smaller bubbles they hang on the roots longer and the smaller size more gas transfer to water )
http://www.greners.com/i/pumps-irrigation/air-stone/micro-pore.html?PageSpeed=noscript

If you are stuck on going dwc make sure you monitor your res temps. The air pump will be constantly pumping in warmish air into your res causing it to warm up slowly. Warm res temps in dwc=unhappy plants. This is another reason a bigger res would help some.

Also with dwc you will have to watch your pH a little closer. Something about aeration causes pH to drift upwards.

It does drift, especially at first, its horrible, a good water source helps, peroxide for some reason does the trick to, I think it allowsmore oxygen the form which actually sounds backwards. when I fill my totes at first load balance between 5.5 and 7, for about a week, I begin to used filtered water in peroxide now it is only a few points compared to a dozen.

Hello again. I made an updated diagram with a couple of tweaks incase anyone else out there finds this 3x3 stealth setup a good solution. I'm very pleased with how uncluttered the tent is despite being such a tight space, there's easily room for a humidifier if needed.

I'm going to stick with a 5 gallon bucket for the first grow to make sure I get the hang of the nutrient regiment before scaling up to a larger water reservoir, but I can see how a tote would be a worthwhile upgrade down the line. And since justugh was kind enough to share his cooling trick, I feel like I have a good emergency plan in place incase the small bucket size becomes an issue for water temps getting too high.

I'm a little concerned about noise levels, but there are plenty of tips online to dampen the sound of inline fans and air pumps, so I should be able to tackle the problem if it becomes an issue.

I'm also guessing that to start from seed, I should start with a lid that has four basket sites, wait until the four plants are able to be sexed, and then go with the strongest female and transplant it into a single basket lid and dispose of the rest. Right?

@jonjon777 - Yes, the Sun Systems light is being compared to the 600. I upgraded the air stone and pump if you check the current equipment list at the top of the diagram. I need to keep my plant count under five, so SOG isn't an option, unfortunately. I'm planning on using Skunk Lab Horticulture's nutrients, I hear their customer service is stellar.

@justugh - Thanks for the detailed equipment list, I'll be purchasing all of those items. I'm really impressed with the Micro Pore air stones, excellent suggestion!

@DirtyMcCurdy - When I start thinking of all the pump and water noise, it does begin to make soil look more civilized LOL. I wasn't aware of aeration causing upward PH drift, great tip, thanks!

Okay, I'm still open to new suggestions and tips if anyone has something to add, thanks again for the thoughtful comments, this exchange has been extremely helpful!

I can tell you if your concerned with noise, just put the air pump in the tent, its not going to give off any extra heat you can measure, if I'm getting this right. just mounted up high away from the bucket.

Also, there's an awesome little trick I learned to dampen the sound, there's an intake hole, the one that sucks the air in through, anyways if you stick a small cheap air stone on there it fits in perfectly and reduces noise by almost 70%. I have neighbors below me and mine was rambling on the floor so I put mine in a bucket of perlite try of course after that you can't even hear it outside of the room, of course I'm talking about 1700 and 950 gph pump, I suggest you go with the 450, I think it's the smallest one they make that's not meant for a fish tank.

all in all honestly it really looks good, just remember not everything is going to go quite as you plannedyou are going to have to make modifications and that's a good thing don't try to find a remedy for every little detail.

I still think you should use a bigger container I don't care if you use a tote you can use a kayak for all I care I just have some experience with these bubble bucket now, slimes no fun. yes and when you do get slime my suggestion is don't bother with peroxide use a low dose of bleach, I know some are totally against it but it works great for me and kills things peroxide cant...

your gonna grow your own way though...

where do you decided as far as newts?

jonjon777 said:

I can tell you if your concerned with noise, just put the air pump in the tent, its not going to give off any extra heat you can measure, if I'm getting this right. just mounted up high away from the bucket.

Also, there's an awesome little trick I learned to dampen the sound, there's an intake hole, the one that sucks the air in through, anyways if you stick a small cheap air stone on there it fits in perfectly and reduces noise by almost 70%. I have neighbors below me and mine was rambling on the floor so I put mine in a bucket of perlite try of course after that you can't even hear it outside of the room, of course I'm talking about 1700 and 950 gph pump, I suggest you go with the 450, I think it's the smallest one they make that's not meant for a fish tank.

all in all honestly it really looks good, just remember not everything is going to go quite as you plannedyou are going to have to make modifications and that's a good thing don't try to find a remedy for every little detail.

I still think you should use a bigger container I don't care if you use a tote you can use a kayak for all I care I just have some experience with these bubble bucket now, slimes no fun. yes and when you do get slime my suggestion is don't bother with peroxide use a low dose of bleach, I know some are totally against it but it works great for me and kills things peroxide cant...

your gonna grow your own way though...

where do you decided as far as newts?

Click to expand...

Thanks for the noise reduction tips. I'm upgrading the pump to a Hydrofarm 60 Watt as per your suggestion, that should definitely rock a 5 gallon bucket or even something bigger.

Yeah, I'm keeping my expectations low for the first grow, just hoping to make it all the way through harvest successfully.

Okay, you have me strongly considering using a 10 gallon tote or bubble bucket. I'm just weary of messing up my nutrients and needing to discard an expensive 10 gallon mistake, but maybe I'm being too cautious.

For nutrients I'm planning on using the Skunk Labs Horticulture line. Their instructional videos show great results and I've heard people say they reply immediately to questions, which could come in handy for a newbie like me.

I think its actually the other way around, a smaller dwc would be harder to deal with, compared to a bigger volume resi, as for temps and nutrient content, a bigger resi is going to keeps temps lower and the nuts levels will not bounce around as much, there's more nutes available for plant to use at same ppm so let's say... You have 5 gallon, goes from 1500 ppm to 1300ppm in a week, a 20 gallon tote will go from 1500 to 1450, as far as actual consumption, providing a stable environment. Less topping off to do, easier to check the levels, if you use 3" netpots its cheaper, you can have 12 in beginning, get and extra lid, do as you like... just some things to consider

I was also very weary of using smaller net pots in the beginning it didn't make complete sense to me and I guess didn't seem as stable but looking back now I would never change from actual 3" netpots.

either way don't put too much thought into it because the small details are going to change as you learn more.

Also, your using eBay or amazon I hope, I mean I'm all for shopping local but you can save 50% nearly shopping online!

Like I said before, get a simple nuts package, like the maxigro/maxibloom, you can use the powder, you can get a kilo of each for 30 bucks and it will last you an entire Gro easily, it has everything in it you will need, taking all the guesswork out of multiple compounds and dosing.

when I had slime I had to change my reservoir every 3_4 days which meant putting new nutes in every 3_4 days for 2 weeks until I boiled airstones.

Nutes aren't that expensive if you know what to get and shop around, just get something reputable that's an all in one two phase, like maxigrow and maxibloom.

also my suggestion as a failsafe to your meters pH, TDs, ppm, or whatever least have some strips on hand that way if you ever question your actual level you can just get in know that your meters right, or calibration solution. Remember, calibrate and store pH meter or it will drift lol