Total Noob...Appreciate your thoughts

@ebcrew

Cheers mate. the Auto Pot I linked was $12 a pot, plus $35 or so for a 35Litre reservoir.

What I liked about it, is it is self watering, and hopefully I'd only need to check it once a day. I thought it provided a full system.

Where did you get $65 from? is that for all 4-5 pots and reservoir? to be honest I'd probably have to buy 8 pots, 4 for flowering 4 for veging.

If you can link me to a better/cheaper hydroponics system, I'd be greatful.

Something i've been reading about is bubbleponics, does that sound like something I can set up to be reliable?

Sugar....I didn't see that price tag. Maybe you're right dude....65 a pot is ridiculous.

I'm stumped here. How can I set up a reliable, as self sufficient as possible system?

Is this a solution?

http://www.newagehydro.com/shop/details.php?prodId=244

I cant help you with hydro, ive only done soil grows. Im sure with your budget you could do anything. However, my question is why are you so set on hydro? Why not consider soil?

I guess I should clarify that I'm looking for a low maintenance hydroponics set up. I'm willing to do the learning to get it right.

I need a system that will last. I'm getting help with building all of this, so i'm considering building a hydro set up as well. I'd rather buy one that works though if i could find a reasonably priced one.

soil can have pests and is harder auto feed isn't it?

hydro is faster and has less chance of pests, it's easier to treat root rot pre-emptively.

from the reading I think it feels like I can set up a system and if it's working right, I'll only need to check on it daily.

ok, even i feel i'm sounding lame.

Is soil easier?

the articles i've been reading are heavily leaning towards hydroponics

Im really not the one to ask about hydroponic systems i know nothing about it. I cant compare it with soil since ive never done it.

I'll let someone else help you with that.

Guys maybe i've dived in a little early for asking questions.

I've got a couple of grow guides for beginners. I'm going to go back to reading them and come back later with questions.

cheers

tightpockt said:

Lol, this dude is telling you your final weight before you've even popped a seed. That's some pretty clairvoyant shit right there...he must be a master grower.
Anyway...With one of those tent deals heat is gonna be your major concern, especially growing in a shed with a 600w setup (which is about what you should have for your space).
If your entire shed is 2m wide x 1m deep x 2m high it'd be cheaper and less complicated to just line the whole the inside with panda film. Do you want a separate space for veg and flower so you can continually rotate or do you want to use 1 space for the whole process?
If you're worried about plant count and just want to grow one monster look up scrog, topping, mainlining, etc..Even if you get .5g per watt that's still 10oz. Reasonably a beginner should expect a little less but you could get more...pulling a pound isn't unheard of.

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My space is 2m wide x 1.2m deep x 1.65 high. I'm worried that if i get a 600w system it'll be too big for my space. I'd have to get genetically short seeds wouldn't I? Or can I control how big the plants get by getting them to flower early?

Ideally I would have a separate space for veging and flowering, and a shelf in the veging space for clones. Half the above space for each.

If we split that space in two, so 1m wide x 1.2 deep x 1.65m high, is that too small for a 600w HID? would LED's be a better option?

Where do you find those lights you mentioned below? can you please link me to a few? during my reading I've heard people warn away from cheaper led components, that offer less than optimal growth, and the ones that offer great growth (white light spectrum, 90 degree focus thingy) are just outrageously expensive.

Can you grow good weed with cheap led's? Led's would solve my heat problem

tightpockt said:

Here's how I would spend $1000 if I were you.
400w worth of led cobs (flower) =$600 (you never have to change bulbs, low heat, high effeciency)
100w (veg) = $150
Fan/scrubber combo = $100 (more for a quieter fan)
Nutrients = $30 (dynagro sample pack)
Ph and Ec meters = $30
Figure another hundred or so for hangers, pots, razors, and all the other miscellaneous stuff you're gonna need.
That should set you up for a pretty nice grow.
The main thing you're gonna have to do is read, read, read and read some more. If you have a question just search for it. It's been asked..trust me.

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Chill man, u are on the right track seeking knowledge. Ur asking the right questions.

I am a noob, and have had a smooth smart (2 weeks so far) in hydroponic - hand watered pots with 50% perlite/50% vermiculite. My hydro shop guy recommended it as an easy way to get into things, so don't be discouraged from trying a medium based hydro setup.

Advantages so far
-total control over what your plants are getting at each stage
-rapid growth
-holds enough moisture so you don't need to stress about watering for 3 days

Disadvantages so far
-total control over what your plants are getting at each stage
-need to get pH and nutrient strength right

My space is just a little smaller than yours and 400W HID is at the top of the temperature range (with an air-cooled hood)

You should be able to manage in your height fine, just direct your reading towards plant training:
-scrog (screen of green) or LST
-topping (not suitable for auto flower strains, but will drop the height of the plant significantly and give you more but smaller buds)

Best of luck, and get growing - weed costs way too much down under.

SSS2015 said:

My space is 2m wide x 1.2m deep x 1.65 high. I'm worried that if i get a 600w system it'll be too big for my space. I'd have to get genetically short seeds wouldn't I? Or can I control how big the plants get by getting them to flower early?

Ideally I would have a separate space for veging and flowering, and a shelf in the veging space for clones. Half the above space for each.

If we split that space in two, so 1m wide x 1.2 deep x 1.65m high, is that too small for a 600w HID? would LED's be a better option?

Where do you find those lights you mentioned below? can you please link me to a few? during my reading I've heard people warn away from cheaper led components, that offer less than optimal growth, and the ones that offer great growth (white light spectrum, 90 degree focus thingy) are just outrageously expensive.

Can you grow good weed with cheap led's? Led's would solve my heat problem

Click to expand...

If I were just starting today I'd go with led...go into the led forum and read all about the cree and vero diy builds. don't go cheap here..cheap led's are worthless. If you wanted to go HID 400w minimum, but i'd recommend 600w..it's more efficient and the heat is roughly the same.
Again, heat is the issue. It's a headache. If you go LEd it's less of a headache but a little more upfront. I'm making the switch now after years with HPS, tired of the noisy fans and air conditioning. A 1mx1m flowering space is good for a personal grow and lends well to a single plant scrog.
Good luck!

Here is an easy set up to try out,
I have a tray made for hydo flood and drain or top drip feed,it is about 4 feet square.I tried an experiment using 3 gallon and 1 gallon nursery pots filled with potting soil and perlite.Than the 23 plants were set up under 1 600w hps.Veg time 24/0 light period untill the girls were 1 foot tall.hand water when pot gets light with nutes and ph water.
I went 12/12 for 60 days,the trics were a mix of clear-cloudy-and a few amber.
Total light bill was $140.00...yield dry was 300 grams of tight buds.

None of the LEDs you need to grow are cheap. If heat is an issue and you don't have the clearance for and HPS/MH then stick with CFLs. As far as height on your plants themselves... You can always do LST. Most autos will be shorter though.... And should be fairly forgiving for your first grow. If you're doing autos then only use LST to train as you won't have the time for effective SOG or ScrOG with adequate recovery time. You can do these advanced techniques if you're using photos to keep the height down and proper use of light penetration.

In regards to a hydro system... I suggest just making your own. A simple DWC, bubble ponic, or ebb and flow will do you well... Since you're limited on space, I recommended making a DWC system, you can't build it for less than $30US

SSS2015 said:

My space is 2m wide x 1.2m deep x 1.65 high. I'm worried that if i get a 600w system it'll be too big for my space. I'd have to get genetically short seeds wouldn't I? Or can I control how big the plants get by getting them to flower early?

Ideally I would have a separate space for veging and flowering, and a shelf in the veging space for clones. Half the above space for each.

If we split that space in two, so 1m wide x 1.2 deep x 1.65m high, is that too small for a 600w HID? would LED's be a better option?

Where do you find those lights you mentioned below? can you please link me to a few? during my reading I've heard people warn away from cheaper led components, that offer less than optimal growth, and the ones that offer great growth (white light spectrum, 90 degree focus thingy) are just outrageously expensive.

Can you grow good weed with cheap led's? Led's would solve my heat problem

Click to expand...

Ps...there was no difference in plant size between the 3 gallon and 1 gallon pot.
and none were root bound

stoner in WA said:

This is what it feels like when you dab for the first time hahaha

Click to expand...

My first hit of Buddha Thai, I literal woke up, later, out in the yard.

fandango said:

Ps...there was no difference in plant size between the 3 gallon and 1 gallon pot.
and none were root bound

Click to expand...

Huh? I can root bind a 2.5 gal container with a 3 foot Vegger in 8 weeks. But, that is inert coco.

Next time I will, transplant into 5 gals a few weeks before light switch. Outdoors I've seen them planted in 50 gal plastic garbage cans, in holes so the don't fall over.

So, I don't know much about roots yet, but I know I can bind them.

SSS2015 said:

My space is 2m wide x 1.2m deep x 1.65 high. I'm worried that if i get a 600w system it'll be too big for my space. I'd have to get genetically short seeds wouldn't I? Or can I control how big the plants get by getting them to flower early?

Ideally I would have a separate space for veging and flowering, and a shelf in the veging space for clones. Half the above space for each.

If we split that space in two, so 1m wide x 1.2 deep x 1.65m high, is that too small for a 600w HID? would LED's be a better option?

Where do you find those lights you mentioned below? can you please link me to a few? during my reading I've heard people warn away from cheaper led components, that offer less than optimal growth, and the ones that offer great growth (white light spectrum, 90 degree focus thingy) are just outrageously expensive.

Can you grow good weed with cheap led's? Led's would solve my heat problem

Click to expand...

You can put 1000w in there if you can get rid it of the heat. If you can't rid the heat, almost nothing will work.

SSS2015 said:

I guess I should clarify that I'm looking for a low maintenance hydroponics set up. I'm willing to do the learning to get it right.

I need a system that will last. I'm getting help with building all of this, so i'm considering building a hydro set up as well. I'd rather buy one that works though if i could find a reasonably priced one.

Click to expand...

Really there no such thing as that. The problem with hydro is water temperature, and pumps. The more you pump it around and the more you expose it to your grow lights, the more heat you have to take out.

If you don't keep it pumped around it will lose it O2. And warm water with low O2 will bloom pythium and wipe you out with root rot.

Well, if you get a water chiller like I did, even a small one will cost you $500 a month in electricity.

So, the hybrid system is to use multiple reservoirs with small pumps. I have 10 gals and a 400 liter pump for every 2 plants. Really the pump size is the smallest for the lift you need to top feed.

So, I build a stack. It has two feed emmiters, I use rings, that feed 2 buckets, the buckets sit on a low table with drains back to the reservoir. The drain back adds O2 to the water. The last item is a timer for the pumps.

The buckets keep the roots from hanging in the water. But, the buckets don't contain soil they contain coco coir and hydroton 50/50.

I feed once a day.. It is low maintenance. Everything is on timers. And the totes are easy to work with individually. I insulated them, and they are under the table for shade, and the pumps only run once a day. If there are no roots in the water, no pythium, no root rot.

IMO coco on a timed drip is the easiest, most forgiving and least complicated setup for a newb who doesn't want to fuck with soil.

dude you've got no idea. This is stressful.

I'm overwhelmed.

gotta get the light situation right.

People are having ok results with cheaper led's, cheaper led's which are still more expensive than HID bulbs.

So I can control the height of my plants with the plant training.