Need help with grow box decision

shaun2000 said:

On the subeject with LEDS something that ive been learning tons about.
The intial cost is defiantly more expensive but They Pros outway the cons. (U need to get a good LED panel though)
They Use less energy saving u money, They Generate hardly any heat
They are tuned more for growing, Meaning they dont waist pumping out non needed light. More on subject look into PAR

Now there is tons of LED Grow's showing that yes an led Can match a 1000w Hid and even beat it, But They Cost a bundel $2000.
I Myself Will be investing in a Proper LED setup soon

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what ive found in researching LEDS is its better to go with multiple smaller units (180w or 240w) when trying to cover a large area since they are at there peak effectivness right beneath them. this can also be cheaper then getting a giant unit that may or may not give better results

Hi, there. I love the scientific side of growing, and expect to have done a lot of reading before I choose a hydroponic system. I was told that there are pump systems for people like me who can't lift, so I need to investigate that. There are other things I don't have answers to yet, but I believe it will work out the way it should. I have to keep exploring...

I really appreciate hearing what you've learned about LEDs, and I like your photos very much. I will be so happy when I have some plants of my own!

Yeah Leds Have the Coverage issue, But To be fair they can also Be Lifted up to alot higher then say CFLS (not sure off hand on Distance of hids/mh)

The biggest issue from having your leds almost touching your plants is Bleaching.

Also On LEDS Every group seems to do similar things

What ive found to be best, and what to look for is this. Wattage of bulbs, 3 w is best, Lens that the led uses, Or Viewing distance, Some to 90deg some 180deg for a wider coverage, but They are defiantly a very directional Light, Hence why they are so great as you arnt wasting tons of light like u would with HIds. In fact u could proberly get away without having a reflective box as u want the light focused on your plants.

Also Look for wave lengths. These days they seem to be adding up to 6 bands. So not just red and blue these days.

whatever you decide on make sure its best for you.
wish i was near you i would tend to anything you needed for sake of a nice man getting some good meds.
if detection is a problem def go with the most discrete some you have posted look like toolboxes and who would know any better?
good luck and i wish you the best.
i agree with cheap to make but to make them run for 50,000 hours no maintenance? and about no heat is a good option not sure if thats a problem. just a good option in my opinion. do not know i am full cfl at the moment my girl is about to be topped in a few days.

Heat is only an issue For people like where where ambient heat can be Up to 30c-40c without lights on . Also check the warranties on the LEDs. Some company's offer Replacement boards that can be shipped off to u without a fuss. also 50k hours is 5 years and a bit, i think thats a pretty good investment considering the savings on electricity and extra cooling.


Your topping that little seedling? O.O. It hasnt even dropped its Baby leaves yet lolz

To the OP, ive learned that the cannabis plant is EXTREMELY hardy, its very hard to screw it up.

As shaun pointed out above, LED's are the new thing, i dont know too much about them, but i can tell you that LED's allow the manufacturer to "tune" the spectrum for your plants so it emits the correct amount of light for optimal health and growth, the downside is the price. If your in a position to, i would make the cupboard i sugested, for as cheap as humanly possibly, and outlay your money on the light. After all its the light thats fuelling/driving your growth, I know people who have grown hydroponically with basically water (ok, minimal nutes), It just grows ALOT slower.

I think you will find it quite easy, i found it very daunting and intimidating setting everything up, but as long as you have no light leaks into your resovoir, and tend to your baby every day, you pretty much cant go wrong.

Then on top you have awsome support and advice on this site, heed my signature and avoid advice from people listed in it, feel free to friend me

Again, im not an experienced grower but im happy to share what im 100% sure on, only wish other people would extend the same courtesy and refrain from guessing.

Shaun maybe not that soon. I believe so since every day or 2 it has new nodes out the top. check my thread will not go on about it here.

All your ideas are really helping. I'm beginning to lean toward using a closet in the house that's a 1950's built-in. Inside measurements: It is 53" wide, 70" tall if you take out the shelf (otherwise 62" to the shelf), and 27" deep. I think the area above the shelf would be a good place for seedlings and clones. It is off the floor, because it has two drawers underneath it. It is accessible by the crawl space and it is also against an outside wall. I wish a few of you could be here to help, too! That would be awesome! You have convinced me to use LED lights. I will be studying them today. I want to get setup NOW, so while I'm recovering I can get my seeds started. Maybe my license will come early....my therapist told me that some people go to the health dept. and bug them to get it sooner. Plus, NM is going to vote on legalizing pot pretty soon. It didn't make it on the last vote, but people are thinking it will on this one.

I wonder if anyone has used an Atmosphere Controller? They are supposed to keep temp and humidity where you want it, and some even do CO2. Don't you have to get a script from a doctor to get an oxygen tank??

The reason I ask about the controller, is because I think it's going to be hard staying at the right temp here. It gets cold in the winter and hot in the summer, with only the thermostat to control the heat in the winter. I will also need to filter the water. The minerals are so bad that we throw out a coffee pot about once every 18-24 months.

VapeItNow said:

All your ideas are really helping. I'm beginning to lean toward using a closet in the house that's a 1950's built-in. Inside measurements: It is 53" wide, 70" tall if you take out the shelf (otherwise 62" to the shelf), and 27" deep. I think the area above the shelf would be a good place for seedlings and clones. It is off the floor, because it has two drawers underneath it. It is accessible by the crawl space and it is also against an outside wall. I wish a few of you could be here to help, too! That would be awesome! You have convinced me to use LED lights. I will be studying them today. I want to get setup NOW, so while I'm recovering I can get my seeds started. Maybe my license will come early....my therapist told me that some people go to the health dept. and bug them to get it sooner. Plus, NM is going to vote on legalizing pot pretty soon. It didn't make it on the last vote, but people are thinking it will on this one.

I wonder if anyone has used an Atmosphere Controller? They are supposed to keep temp and humidity where you want it, and some even do CO2. Don't you have to get a script from a doctor to get an oxygen tank??

The reason I ask about the controller, is because I think it's going to be hard staying at the right temp here. It gets cold in the winter and hot in the summer, with only the thermostat to control the heat in the winter. I will also need to filter the water. The minerals are so bad that we throw out a coffee pot about once every 18-24 months.

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That Space Definalty Would Be A great Grow Area, Just Keep in mind that If your going to Run Seedlings along side of a few Vegging of flowering plants to make sure that no light Leaks to the other chambers, as it will make you sad
LED Lights Are Great and I Keep Loving them more and more, but do your research There Is a section in these forums in the led section that lists at least 8 companies Personally I Would Be asking them How easy it is to replace a broken led (I know one company will Actually send the full PCB with the leds off to u, so u dont suffer any downtime and dont have to send shit to them first)
Also Look into using multiple lights as it may be a more efficient way to improve canopy coverage.

I Hope Your Licence comes early and that you have a good op

I Personally haven't used an Atmosphere controller but to be honest after hearing from so many people to control my temps between night and day, only to see no ill effect when i haven't i tend to control my temps By Lowering heat only, As Its rare that my box goes under 25c(77f) norm hovers around 30c(58f) -(Until recently, Brought some ducting and connected it to my personal aircon unit To Keep my plants alive .

This is My opinion And im not sure if it will hold true but i see it this way and i actually buy seeds Based im my current climate
The way i see it is that the weed plant and its strains have been surviving in the wild for thousands of years (Oldest stash with seeds is like 2k years old google it) So Since i believe in evolution i believe that these plants have adapted to the climates and therefor can cope very easily with The Drops in temps between night and day and winter and summer.

Im Wondering what you want the oxygen tank for? For Co2? Most co2 generators are just a butane burner of some sort that just burns off and makes the by product of co2. I Dont know enough to comment more as i use yeast/sugar/water and heat under pressured slow release caps to produce my co2


Its Always exciting to start a new project and I Do believe that growing to Be A very addictive activity. Dont worry to much on your mistakes as it will only make you grow and learn, Also Rember that no matter how much you read, nothing beats Pure experience, so dont be afraid .

And most of all have fun

i would not worry to much about the co2 yet.
get used to growing first. to use co2 temps have to stay around 90 or so i have read.
not positive so should research that before you get setup and have no way to get heat to the right temps.

Hi guys.

Yeah, I can feel the addictive part of growing already. I used to grow vegetable gardens, and I just loved that. My grandmother could never understand how my garden was better than hers, lol. So, I REALLY appreciate the encouragement, and think I will start studying all the components today. I will call the Dept of Health on Monday and see what I can arrange about maybe getting my license sooner.

I should grow my seedlings separately then. I could get one of those nice units with a temp adjuster on the heat mat. What do you think about also growing clones and a mother plant in the closet? The main things I'm worried about doing myself are the ducting for air and odor filtering.

Some of the kits offered CO2 kits, so I thought maybe I would need that. If it's not necessary, then that's great!

I am going to study the upcoming vote to legalize pot in NM. I am wondering how it will affect people who grow their own if it is passed....

Go to the newbie forum and check the sticky how to grow marijuana great read will def give you an insight into your endeavor.

VapeItNow said:

Hi guys.

Yeah, I can feel the addictive part of growing already. I used to grow vegetable gardens, and I just loved that. My grandmother could never understand how my garden was better than hers, lol. So, I REALLY appreciate the encouragement, and think I will start studying all the components today. I will call the Dept of Health on Monday and see what I can arrange about maybe getting my license sooner.

I should grow my seedlings separately then. I could get one of those nice units with a temp adjuster on the heat mat. What do you think about also growing clones and a mother plant in the closet? The main things I'm worried about doing myself are the ducting for air and odor filtering.

Some of the kits offered CO2 kits, so I thought maybe I would need that. If it's not necessary, then that's great!

I am going to study the upcoming vote to legalize pot in NM. I am wondering how it will affect people who grow their own if it is passed....

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It really is amazing how well some plants thrive with abit of TLC.

Most growers Will Try and Seperate things So they Can Have what you would call a constant harvest. Meaning they have a mother , a seedling room/chamber ect , A Veg Room and a Flowering room. Personally i dont Keep much light on my mother or seedlings , But rember to keep the light close to avoid Stretching..

With Oder it really depends on how many plants you grow and What strain. To be fair If your legaly allowed to grow i wouldnt be to worried about smell unless your going to be growing more then 6 at a time (Guestimet, some strains pong worse then others)

With air intake its pretty simple, intake hole near bottem, output hole near top. this helps more hot air out since heat rises. Also Having a small Fan Can Help Strengthen Your trees as it mimics a soft breeze. Just Keep in mind that any air flow and heat will Speed up dehydration in your plants.

From My understanding and my exp Co2 is a must have for ever grower. Since im a poor grower i use What i can (Yeast co2) and even that does wonders.

Things id look for in a new setup

light
soil (good soil if going this way)
proper ph levels and good nutes (if going hydro)
good seed stocks (A Really must have) - try growing 6 plants and pick one as a mother and do clones
Co2 injection
temps
nutes of course
plant food (Ie i use seasol)
Heat (not to hot - not to cold) (Though personaly i have been growing my plants way above the norm recommended temps as i dont have a choice most of the time)
Patience .

If your going to do a DWC system. READ THIS http://www.420magazine.com/forums/deep-water-culture-dwc/111069-deep-water-culture-tutorial-sh-kit-diy-7.html
If not read it anyway!

Hi Vapeitnow, First of all best wishes in regard to your health.

Made your decision yet? Though I would prefer to buy Canadian, I will be going with the supestar. 16 plants in a relatively small unit suits my needs. Just wanted to suggest you save money on the Co2 unit. Rather than mess with tanks and refills, etc. look into the EZ Co2 bag or a reasonable facsimile. They run around $25 and last from 6 to 8 months. As Co2 is heavier than oxygen, simply hang the bag above your plants and under the light.

This will be my first time growing indoors. Let's keep each other posted.

All the best,

Bigwoof

if you put a tent in the closet you can point your vent out the open closet door and just close the closet door when you have company

i have a problem with the same valve leaking iin my heart