Monster room setup! need help :P

i've done a few outdoor gorilla grows now and i'm in the position to put together a large indoor op. ventilation, odor control, and growing i can handle. but when it comes to lighting and spacing i could use the help. in the past mother nature had all that covered... i had all the room and light i needed. i've doon some researching and this is what i came up with:

i'm working with a 12x24 grow space and i plan on utilizing every sqft. i have the utmost intentions of keeping it simple. i plan on anywhere to 6 to 12 plants per 4x8 area (aiming more towards 9 but depends on veg/flower cycle lengths) all in soil (5 gal pots). that brings me anywhere from 54 to 108 plants and i'm aiming for 81. most of my concern is in the lighting. breaking the growroom into 9 - 4x8 sections at 2000w hps per section i come up with 18000w total. if i do my math correctly that's 1,980,000 to 2,520,000 lumen total and over 6875 lumen per sqft.

there is more room than 12x24 but that is the total grow-space. so my questions are ... is 18000w of hps too much or too little? and do i have unrealistic expectations about the amount of girls my room can handle?

also, would it be easier to tend to a larger crop with a hydro system? i know soil is "simple" but, if it would make things easier in the long run i think it's something i should consider.

i'm open to any comments and suggestions!

I will comment, for a system that big, go hydro. It will make your life ALOT easier. Now, I think it is a bit much light. I have read in a few places plants cant use more than 3k lumens per sq ft so. I may be wrong, not sure. Again Figured I would comment, I know what its like to have a question unanswered so.

thank you for commenting! i figured soil would be easier to set up and use because i'm familiar with it. but, the longer i've been planning this the more i started to think a hydro setup would be better.

3k per sqft sounds great that will definitely save me money compared to my 7k + lumen per sqft. then again, from what i've gathered, everyone has an opinion about lighting...

thanks again!

All good, what I would reccommend would be a DWC to start. Deep Water Culture. It is very easy to take care of and setup. Can all be ran from a resevoir so you only need to mix nutrients once, and you can build it all yourself. The source on the 3k per sqft is either Ed Rosenthals grow bible, or greg greens. I forget. I do remember it was a 1k min, 3k max for efficiency. Granted you can give the plants more, but I have heard of too much light so, you could risk bleaching out the plant.

thanks a lot LSDremer! i appreciate your help.

i assume you're talking about a recirculating dwc, with a central rez? this sound a whole heck of a lot easier. does anyone have experience with this system, large scale or small?

i need to toke up trying to take this system from a full-time work load into a hobby is giving me a headache.

a "do it yourself" rDWC system i stumbled upon this evening. http://www.myspace.com/thegrowroom420/blog/399709190
i'm sure i can modify this to accommodate my needs.

Yeah bro go for a hydro setup!!! Look at the indoor setup I have in my video (look at my signature)
Bascially use those principals but x 10 in size lol.

good lookin grow deza! just got done with both vids. what is the size of your grow tent?

I Dont think its too much if i read it correctly your going to run 2 1000watters per 4x8 which is 1k per 4x4 right?? I grow in a 4x8 tent with 2 1000watters and it rocks.....

If you are use to soil id stick with it......Hydro can be very unforgiving....You might be better off doing the majority in soil and start maybe one 4x4 section for hydro that way you can still be productive and pump out yeilds but whille your doing that you can be learning to grow hydroponicly on that 4x4 1k light section....Then when you profect it you can switch your entire opertation over to the hydro setup you have been experimenting with......

Also i grow in 5 gallon pots and im doing 6 plants per 4x4 space and its very crowed if you went more then 6 plants id go down to a 3 gallon pot and veg less time.....

FootClan said:

I Dont think its too much if i read it correctly your going to run 2 1000watters per 4x8 which is 1k per 4x4 right?? I grow in a 4x8 tent with 2 1000watters and it rocks.....

If you are use to soil id stick with it......Hydro can be very unforgiving....You might be better off doing the majority in soil and start maybe one 4x4 section for hydro that way you can still be productive and pump out yeilds but whille your doing that you can be learning to grow hydroponicly on that 4x4 1k light section....Then when you profect it you can switch your entire opertation over to the hydro setup you have been experimenting with......

Also i grow in 5 gallon pots and im doing 6 plants per 4x4 space and its very crowed if you went more then 6 plants id go down to a 3 gallon pot and veg less time.....

Click to expand...

yes, 1000w hps per 4x4 was my initial estimate. after looking around a few grow journals and other setups i have seen great results with much less. so lighting may be something i'll be playing with for a few grows.

i do like your idea with a small hydro setup along with majority of the girls in soil. soil still seems like a lot of work with such a large setup... then again i can always start simple and update as i go.

so you get 6 plants in 5 gal per 4x4. if that's correct i could fit 9 in a 4x8 giving a little more room since you say you're a little crowded with 6 in a 4x4.

saviorcelph said:

good lookin grow deza! just got done with both vids. what is the size of your grow tent?

Click to expand...

Thanks mate, the tent is 1 x 1m and 1.8 in height but if you got room to play with set it up like mine but a big ass version!

All i do is check it up daily thats it make sure everything is running; everything else is automated on timers... and twice a week i check the PH level of the tank and nutrient level of the tank.. THATS IT!
if you get a big ass grow tent; you could fit a big ass hydro flood and drain tray that can hold 6 or 10 plants.. but thats upto you and what results you want out of it.

as you can see.. only running a 400watt MH very close to the plants via cooltube and in the second week it tripled in size plus more!

i can make a video with further detail on my setup if you want a shopping list.

I can tell you this, I am currently running 18 plants in 7.5g squat pots. I need to water them about once every 4-5 days. I am using a 44gal pickle container, an electric pump, and a garden hose to water. Now even with 18 plants, watering takes a good amount of time. I dont have much to do so I dont mind doing it, but if you are planning to run the setup you are talking about, a DWC would be BY FAR the easiest solution. I would almost say run like, 2-4 resevoirs instead of just 1 big massive one. That way incase an issue arrises, It will be isolated. Also you would be able to test different sets of nutrients in each one, figure out what works best for you. If you plan to do this all DIY, it may seem daunting at first, but it all comes together quite fast and it is really an easy system to handle. If you are in the CA area id be willing to lend a hand with setup, I am no pro, but I have done a good amount of DWC DIY setups for friends and for myself. Any questions or problems arise, ask away.

saviorcelph said:

yes, 1000w hps per 4x4 was my initial estimate. after looking around a few grow journals and other setups i have seen great results with much less. so lighting may be something i'll be playing with for a few grows.

i do like your idea with a small hydro setup along with majority of the girls in soil. soil still seems like a lot of work with such a large setup... then again i can always start simple and update as i go.

so you get 6 plants in 5 gal per 4x4. if that's correct i could fit 9 in a 4x8 giving a little more room since you say you're a little crowded with 6 in a 4x4.

Click to expand...

thats exactly correct im a little over crowed infact tomorrow im taking 6 of my 12 plants out( im growing in a 4x8 tent 2k lights) and moving them to a seperate grow and then im going to space out the remaining 6 plants under the 2k lights which will be 3 5gallon pots under each 1000watter.....

Heres pics of my 6 girls packed into my 4x4 space you can see how they start out fitting just fine in the 3rd pic then in the 2nd pic you can see them starting to fill out and then in the last pic you can see them right before i flip to flower and the first pic was takin yesterday.... you can see on the right side there much bigger and on the left side i have 6 plants of a different strain and there much smaller, those small ones are the ones im moving out and the big ones on the right side are the ones im going to space out under the two lights..

do you have the power at your house to handle this? you are looking at 80 amps of 220 for the lights alone. you will need an electrician to wire all safely.
I would also guess this size grow would take several hours a day to maintain.
last thought. stay under 99 plants as the penalties jump when you have 100 plants

LSDreamer said:

I can tell you this, I am currently running 18 plants in 7.5g squat pots. I need to water them about once every 4-5 days. I am using a 44gal pickle container, an electric pump, and a garden hose to water. Now even with 18 plants, watering takes a good amount of time. I dont have much to do so I dont mind doing it, but if you are planning to run the setup you are talking about, a DWC would be BY FAR the easiest solution. I would almost say run like, 2-4 resevoirs instead of just 1 big massive one. That way incase an issue arrises, It will be isolated. Also you would be able to test different sets of nutrients in each one, figure out what works best for you. If you plan to do this all DIY, it may seem daunting at first, but it all comes together quite fast and it is really an easy system to handle. If you are in the CA area id be willing to lend a hand with setup, I am no pro, but I have done a good amount of DWC DIY setups for friends and for myself. Any questions or problems arise, ask away.

Click to expand...

thank you lsd! i was planning on running, at least, 4 reservoirs. ideally i would like more so i can contain a problem with less collateral damage. i consider myself to be fairly handy but, i'm no pro either. the DIY RDWC seem really simple and i think i can play with the design without causing much of a headache!

FootClan said:

thats exactly correct im a little over crowed infact tomorrow im taking 6 of my 12 plants out( im growing in a 4x8 tent 2k lights) and moving them to a seperate grow and then im going to space out the remaining 6 plants under the 2k lights which will be 3 5gallon pots under each 1000watter.....

Heres pics of my 6 girls packed into my 4x4 space you can see how they start out fitting just fine in the 3rd pic then in the 2nd pic you can see them starting to fill out and then in the last pic you can see them right before i flip to flower and the first pic was takin yesterday.... you can see on the right side there much bigger and on the left side i have 6 plants of a different strain and there much smaller, those small ones are the ones im moving out and the big ones on the right side are the ones im going to space out under the two lights..

Click to expand...

some beautiful girls ya got there! thanks that gives me a good indication of what i can handle. how long did you veg?

mrmadcow said:

do you have the power at your house to handle this? you are looking at 80 amps of 220 for the lights alone. you will need an electrician to wire all safely.
I would also guess this size grow would take several hours a day to maintain.
last thought. stay under 99 plants as the penalties jump when you have 100 plants

Click to expand...

power is not a concern as it is a commercial property. electrical work is not my strong suit but i have some friends that are electricians. the opportunity arose and all the pieces are fitting together nicely. i must say it's a lot larger than i intended for my first indoor but, my benefactor prefers it this way. it's all still in the planning stages, trying to work out all the ifs, ands, and buts before i jump into this.

you may consider starting with one 4x8-2k room and getting a system dialed in. There are so many unforeseen things that can rear their ugly head and fuck up an indoor op.

FootClan said:

I Dont think its too much if i read it correctly your going to run 2 1000watters per 4x8 which is 1k per 4x4 right?? I grow in a 4x8 tent with 2 1000watters and it rocks.....

If you are use to soil id stick with it......Hydro can be very unforgiving....You might be better off doing the majority in soil and start maybe one 4x4 section for hydro that way you can still be productive and pump out yeilds but whille your doing that you can be learning to grow hydroponicly on that 4x4 1k light section....Then when you profect it you can switch your entire opertation over to the hydro setup you have been experimenting with......

Also i grow in 5 gallon pots and im doing 6 plants per 4x4 space and its very crowed if you went more then 6 plants id go down to a 3 gallon pot and veg less time.....

Click to expand...

Well, I was just about to ask if 8 plants (5 gal bags) in a 2x4 tray would be considered "too crowded"... lol... I guess I might end up shifting things around more than I planned. Probably doesn't help that
they vegged longer than needed while I was getting things ready...

As for a soil option, there's ways to make the maintenance easier like using a drip-feed system or if in trays... and I'm not sure on this... but you could use the flood/drain to waste
approach for bottom feeding.... and that could be easily automated I believe...

Wick system. Self watering, no overwatering, no underwatering. Just like a reservoir system with no pumps, timers ect. Just gotta maintain water quality.
EdRosenthal's-Marijuana growers handbook. Changed my whole thought process.

I've done rdwc, soil with nutrients and the organic composting method discribed by subcool. Organics is by far the least time consuming and the end product has the best quality. With subs method all I do is water no worring about ph, ppm and no ridiculously priced nutrients. A little less quantity than I used to get but I'll take quality over quantity any time.
If you could make a watering system that waters everything automatically it would be even more self sufficient.
Once you organic you won't go back unless quantity is your only worry.
Good luck.