dvdr
Member
Howdy all,
Just joined the site last night while doing extensive research on setting up a small, two plant, indoor grow op. It's my first attempt and I have decided upon using LED lights while trying to make my own Drip Feeder and Ebb&Flow hydroponic system. After lots of looking around I have, perhaps foolishly, decided that i can combine the drip feed and Ebb&Flow system into one simple design. I want to go over the key aspects of my build in the hope that someone can offer some valuable insights, hopefully bettering my overall design. The two areas I am focusing on currently are light and water.
lights
I have read lots of conflicting information on the use of LEDs, but given my situation, namely space and inadequate heat dissipation, it's my first choice. If it fails, lesson learned. Hopefully not. I don't really want to debate the efficacy of LEDs in general, but rather given the three lights that I am looking at, discuss which would be most suitable to my needs. As mentioned, i want to grow only two plants. No clones at this time. I want to turn two seeds into buds as quickly as possible. My grow area is roughly 3'w X 2'6"d (6' tall if important). All of the lights I am considering are very similar, they really only differ in their watts, LUX and PAR values. given only two plants I am tempted to get their smallest light, though part of me thinks i should just get the largest light.... anyway, here are links to each:
100w 1 panel 64x3wLED 5120lm
200w 2 panel 96x3wLED 9600lm
400w 4 panel 192x3wLED 20000lm
They also have a 3 panel 300 watt light, but i find it too wide for my purposes. I figured i can either use the one panel for both plants or the two panel - one for each, or just bombard them with 2 panels each (if you look at the pics you will easily know what i mean). Each light has two settings, one for growth (veg) and one for budding (bloom). The lights use a 7:1:1 ratio for the corresponding colors: red,blue, white [side-note:i don't get why i can only find one listed ratio - shouldn't it change depending upon which setting (VEG / BLOOM) i use?]. The light spectrum details, for either setting, are as follows:
Veg: 430-475nm,620-630nm, 660nm and white
Bloom:430-475nm ,620-630nm, 660nm ,730nm and white
I have looked at millions of lights online and while lights like this or this have better listed specs, i just get a bad feeling from them. The spec's almost seem unbelievable. More reputable, but also much more expensive options could include: Calafornia Lightworks's 800w SolarStorm, SunShine System's 600w GrowPanel Pro or StealthGrower's 1000w SG 1250 HO. Why have i listed all these other lights? Well.. good question, i suppose i hope that someone has personal history with some of the previously mentioned, or similar, lights. I also am curious, if after looking over all the different lights and comparing the specs vs prices, what would YOU choose? Forget price, shipping, and logistics - purely from a product point of view and given all the links posted thus far, which LED light would you recommend for a two plant, seed-to-harvest operation?
water
My mind is far from made up here, but i was hoping to start my plant out using a drip feed system and then when budding use an ebb and flow system. I know i mentioned i am only growing two plants so why bother, but i hope to eventually have two separate grow rooms. I want to have one vegetative room, where i can keep my mother plants and start my clones and then 1-2 budding rooms, hopefully having crops being produced monthly. (Note: i have not begun reading into growing cycles and as such do not know if my assumptions about how long it takes to properly clone, then bud a plant, but i think it takes 2 months to bud a clone? and maybe 2 months to get a clone ready to bud? )
Anyway, i want to have an both the drip and ebb and flow system to be connected to the same (8".. maybe larger) wide piece of pvp pipe (thoughts on using PVC, alternatives?). After realizing i cant speak english well enough to properly describe the system, i drew a picture. Please forgive my lack of art and PC skills (im on my gf's mackbook.. and paintbrush sucks! ><), but it should give you a basic idea of what i am thinking. I will explain it.
Basic idea is to use the 8" PVC pipe as a basin to place the plants inside with my reservoir placed below. The top of the basin would have been cut off, providing access into the pipe. Both sides of the PVC pipe would be capped with a hole being made on one side, this is labeled as DFi. Below this, near or on the bottom, of the 8" pipe a hold would be made and a nozzle would be attached and a properly fitted hose would be connected, this is labeled EFi. On the bottom I would make another hole and fit it with a nozzle connected to a hose running directly into my reservoir, labeled EFo. Inside the 8" PVC pipe i would add on a short length of hose / tube roughly 8" long - this would serve as an overflow / draining mechanism while using the ebb and flow system. when using the drip feed, i would remove this extra piece and the hole could function as a drain for the drip feeders. The hoses going to both DFi and EFi could be attached to the water pump inside my reservoir. If i want to run the drip feeders i attach Line A (and use EFi and EFo as drains). If i want to run the Ebb & Flow i simply detached Line A and attach Line B to the pump. I put the overflow tube on the inside of EFo. Of course i would have to put some sort of medium into the PVC pipe to hold my plants - some sort of grow rock or whatever (again havent done enough research to know what to say). While seedlings i would use the Drip Feeder onto peat pellets or whatnot, eventually moving them to some sort of pre-formed growth medium (i saw these grow cubes online). When large enough and i wanna bud them i would place the plant into a soil medium (rocks etc) and bud them. I think i would want the PVC pipe on a very very slight up angle, to help with draining. I think it makes sense, but do you think this system could work? or, what have i overlooked?
it may be a bitch to clean, or remove all the rocks... but ultimately i would house my parent plants in this large PVC setup (potted) and add a secondary PVC pipe in front which would be connected to the drip feed system and capable of being hooded for my clones. I would then recreate a an Ebb & Flow system based on what i tested here for my other 'budding' setup. i just want to test BOTH systems.
Going over this makes me wonder one more thing - why do i want both? The first grow video i watched, which kinda sparked this whole grow mission i am currently on, used two systems. However, is there any logic behind this? is E&F better for budding plants, whereas drip systems are better for young plants or growing plants? Does one provide better nutrients? any insight into the differences between these two systems would be helpful.
Anyway, i plan on posting this in a few different sections - they all seem relevant. Any (constructive) thoughts would be appreciated. Again, I am not trying to debate whether LEDs are a smart lighting choice, just which LED merits your recommendation? I am interested in any thoughts regarding the benefits of using different hydroponic setups, or the benefits of using different setups at different stages in the plant's life, but the main question is whether my E&B and Drip system sketch makes sense and COULD work given proper craftsmanship?
Just joined the site last night while doing extensive research on setting up a small, two plant, indoor grow op. It's my first attempt and I have decided upon using LED lights while trying to make my own Drip Feeder and Ebb&Flow hydroponic system. After lots of looking around I have, perhaps foolishly, decided that i can combine the drip feed and Ebb&Flow system into one simple design. I want to go over the key aspects of my build in the hope that someone can offer some valuable insights, hopefully bettering my overall design. The two areas I am focusing on currently are light and water.
lights
I have read lots of conflicting information on the use of LEDs, but given my situation, namely space and inadequate heat dissipation, it's my first choice. If it fails, lesson learned. Hopefully not. I don't really want to debate the efficacy of LEDs in general, but rather given the three lights that I am looking at, discuss which would be most suitable to my needs. As mentioned, i want to grow only two plants. No clones at this time. I want to turn two seeds into buds as quickly as possible. My grow area is roughly 3'w X 2'6"d (6' tall if important). All of the lights I am considering are very similar, they really only differ in their watts, LUX and PAR values. given only two plants I am tempted to get their smallest light, though part of me thinks i should just get the largest light.... anyway, here are links to each:
100w 1 panel 64x3wLED 5120lm
200w 2 panel 96x3wLED 9600lm
400w 4 panel 192x3wLED 20000lm
They also have a 3 panel 300 watt light, but i find it too wide for my purposes. I figured i can either use the one panel for both plants or the two panel - one for each, or just bombard them with 2 panels each (if you look at the pics you will easily know what i mean). Each light has two settings, one for growth (veg) and one for budding (bloom). The lights use a 7:1:1 ratio for the corresponding colors: red,blue, white [side-note:i don't get why i can only find one listed ratio - shouldn't it change depending upon which setting (VEG / BLOOM) i use?]. The light spectrum details, for either setting, are as follows:
Veg: 430-475nm,620-630nm, 660nm and white
Bloom:430-475nm ,620-630nm, 660nm ,730nm and white
I have looked at millions of lights online and while lights like this or this have better listed specs, i just get a bad feeling from them. The spec's almost seem unbelievable. More reputable, but also much more expensive options could include: Calafornia Lightworks's 800w SolarStorm, SunShine System's 600w GrowPanel Pro or StealthGrower's 1000w SG 1250 HO. Why have i listed all these other lights? Well.. good question, i suppose i hope that someone has personal history with some of the previously mentioned, or similar, lights. I also am curious, if after looking over all the different lights and comparing the specs vs prices, what would YOU choose? Forget price, shipping, and logistics - purely from a product point of view and given all the links posted thus far, which LED light would you recommend for a two plant, seed-to-harvest operation?
water
My mind is far from made up here, but i was hoping to start my plant out using a drip feed system and then when budding use an ebb and flow system. I know i mentioned i am only growing two plants so why bother, but i hope to eventually have two separate grow rooms. I want to have one vegetative room, where i can keep my mother plants and start my clones and then 1-2 budding rooms, hopefully having crops being produced monthly. (Note: i have not begun reading into growing cycles and as such do not know if my assumptions about how long it takes to properly clone, then bud a plant, but i think it takes 2 months to bud a clone? and maybe 2 months to get a clone ready to bud? )
Anyway, i want to have an both the drip and ebb and flow system to be connected to the same (8".. maybe larger) wide piece of pvp pipe (thoughts on using PVC, alternatives?). After realizing i cant speak english well enough to properly describe the system, i drew a picture. Please forgive my lack of art and PC skills (im on my gf's mackbook.. and paintbrush sucks! ><), but it should give you a basic idea of what i am thinking. I will explain it.
Basic idea is to use the 8" PVC pipe as a basin to place the plants inside with my reservoir placed below. The top of the basin would have been cut off, providing access into the pipe. Both sides of the PVC pipe would be capped with a hole being made on one side, this is labeled as DFi. Below this, near or on the bottom, of the 8" pipe a hold would be made and a nozzle would be attached and a properly fitted hose would be connected, this is labeled EFi. On the bottom I would make another hole and fit it with a nozzle connected to a hose running directly into my reservoir, labeled EFo. Inside the 8" PVC pipe i would add on a short length of hose / tube roughly 8" long - this would serve as an overflow / draining mechanism while using the ebb and flow system. when using the drip feed, i would remove this extra piece and the hole could function as a drain for the drip feeders. The hoses going to both DFi and EFi could be attached to the water pump inside my reservoir. If i want to run the drip feeders i attach Line A (and use EFi and EFo as drains). If i want to run the Ebb & Flow i simply detached Line A and attach Line B to the pump. I put the overflow tube on the inside of EFo. Of course i would have to put some sort of medium into the PVC pipe to hold my plants - some sort of grow rock or whatever (again havent done enough research to know what to say). While seedlings i would use the Drip Feeder onto peat pellets or whatnot, eventually moving them to some sort of pre-formed growth medium (i saw these grow cubes online). When large enough and i wanna bud them i would place the plant into a soil medium (rocks etc) and bud them. I think i would want the PVC pipe on a very very slight up angle, to help with draining. I think it makes sense, but do you think this system could work? or, what have i overlooked?
it may be a bitch to clean, or remove all the rocks... but ultimately i would house my parent plants in this large PVC setup (potted) and add a secondary PVC pipe in front which would be connected to the drip feed system and capable of being hooded for my clones. I would then recreate a an Ebb & Flow system based on what i tested here for my other 'budding' setup. i just want to test BOTH systems.
Going over this makes me wonder one more thing - why do i want both? The first grow video i watched, which kinda sparked this whole grow mission i am currently on, used two systems. However, is there any logic behind this? is E&F better for budding plants, whereas drip systems are better for young plants or growing plants? Does one provide better nutrients? any insight into the differences between these two systems would be helpful.
Anyway, i plan on posting this in a few different sections - they all seem relevant. Any (constructive) thoughts would be appreciated. Again, I am not trying to debate whether LEDs are a smart lighting choice, just which LED merits your recommendation? I am interested in any thoughts regarding the benefits of using different hydroponic setups, or the benefits of using different setups at different stages in the plant's life, but the main question is whether my E&B and Drip system sketch makes sense and COULD work given proper craftsmanship?
(I have the same problem, specially when Im stoned witch is always) 
, i have simplified my post to three questions:
