New Grower, planning my new grow space

[The70’s]

I think you may end up designing something yourself, but you will always be happy to have the tent. It has lots of uses. The main thing is to get a grow under your belt. The easier the better. You will have plenty of problems and unknowns to fret over. Most people (myself included) get a tent, extractor, filter, grow medium - soil of some type, PH pen, and ... drum roll ... light. You need to read up on them. More to the point how to interpret what they do (their footprint, par value, energy, heat).

Since it’s going to be legal the police won’t be a problem, but someone who thinks you’ve got a pound of buds might want them. So not talking about it is advisable.

Yessir!! I’ve had my nose in all the forums, so in the mean time i will be doing a piece by piece purchase plan.

I would like to assemble the tent, get it up and running, check out the temp and humidity to see if its a good fit, all the parts. We’re not legal yet :0/

I think for now a nice 4x4 will do. I have started a journal like i did with my theaterroom, it helps me organize my tnoughts/plans, purchase plans, budget, ect ect

 

[Calvados]

A journal is probably the most important thing. I keep one in word that I duplicate on this site. Putting it on this site allows people with a lot more experience to chime in when you screw up and/or things go wrong.

A 4x4 will more than do for you and a group of your mates.

If I was choosing a light now, I’d be looking at quantum boards. They aren’t cheap, but they are very cool. They are modular, so you can chop and change them. They have dimmers, so you can regulate the power. I’m sure there is other/better stuff, but that’s the one that has caught my eye.

 

[Old Salt]

A journal is probably the most important thing. I keep one in word that I duplicate on this site. Putting it on this site allows people with a lot more experience to chime in when you screw up and/or things go wrong.

Even if things go right, it will help whenever you start second guessing yourself.

A 4x4 will more than do for you and a group of your mates.

You should see a yield of at least 10oz for your first grow. As you gain experience a lb or more per grow is achievable in a 4 x 4.

If I was choosing a light now, I’d be looking at quantum boards. They aren’t cheap, but they are very cool. They are modular, so you can chop and change them. They have dimmers, so you can regulate the power. I’m sure there is other/better stuff, but that’s the one that has caught my eye.

If your budget won't support a high end light such as the quantum by Horticulture Lighting Group, or one of the COBS by Timber Grow Lights, take a look at KingLED's X series. I have one of their X6 Dimmables in my 2 X 4 tent and am pulling at least 8oz per grow from it. At $235 each, two of them would give you a decent harvest from your tent. They draw 300W each from the wall. At a later date you can upgrade or build your own.

 

[Old Salt]

There's a lot of associated items you'll need. Some will depend on your grow medium.

Other than the light, ventilation/odor control, and tent, you'll want:
- insulated platform, if your tent sits on concrete
- sheet of Styrofoam insulation between the tent and outside wall, if tent is against the wall
- heater, if temperature in grow tent drops below 65°F
- ultrasonic humidifier - humidity will drop as the temperature rises
- heat and humidity controller
- possibly an air conditioner in summer
- SCROG/support screen
- bits and pieces of ducting to tie your ventilation system together
- stealth window to bring in outside air/exhaust your tent
- pH meter
- TDS meter
- temperature/humidity monitor for your tent
- grow media, nutrients, and supplements
- plant tray, high humidity dome, and seedling mat for germination and initial growth
- pots to grow in
- drip trays for your pots
- pump to drain the drip trays
- plant twist ties for training
- buckets for water and mixing nutrients
- weight/volume measuring devices for water and nutrients(scales, oral syringes, possibly graduated cylinders)
- 6" fans (at least 2 in a 4 X 4 tent)
- surgical scissors to prune your plants
- either an optical or digital microscope to check trichomes (is it time to harvest yet?)
- pruning shears and snips to harvest and trim your buds
- some method of hanging your buds to dry
- timers for lights and possibly other tasks such as automatic watering
- power bar, and possibly extension cords

Count on spending a minimum of $500 on this. Actual cost can easily be more than your light, ventilation, tent, and seeds.

 

[Calvados]

I have most of that stuff, but none of the climate control. The UK is temperate and most houses don’t have AC. We have to come up with ways to deal with extremes. It’s not bad. Just not as good as being able to control temp and humidity. I think weed would do great here in greenhouses. Hopefully it will be legal in a couple of years.

 

[Old Salt]

I have most of that stuff, but none of the climate control. The UK is temperate and most houses don’t have AC. We have to come up with ways to deal with extremes. It’s not bad. Just not as good as being able to control temp and humidity. I think weed would do great here in greenhouses. Hopefully it will be legal in a couple of years.

Too many people think they're off to the races with a light, ventilation, tent, and seeds. They expect to drop their beans in pot of soil add water and voila - nugs galore! We've learned the devil's in the details. That list is a reality check for noobs.

 

[The70’s]

Only reason you'll need multiple tents is if you run perpetual harvests. Meaning one tent is dedicated for vegetation plants on a 18/6 light schedule. The other tent is for flowering plants, running a 12/12 light schedule. With this system, once you harvest from the flower tent you are able to "reload" from the veg tent.

The dual veg/flower refers the lighting needed during that time of growth. Nothing advanced at all. Typically, during vegetation time you run veg only, then when you goto flower you'll flip the flower switch leaving the veg on also. Some folks late in flower will flip the veg switch off running flower only to simulate late season outdoor light conditions. Inside, yer trying to do what the sun does naturally. So the plants perform as they would in nature. Lots of good info here by helpful growers. Good luck

Thanx again, im really dig’n the research part of this since i do have some time to plan.

 

[The70’s]

Too many people think they're off to the races with a light, ventilation, tent, and seeds. They expect to drop their beans in pot of soil add water and voila - nugs galore! We've learned the devil's in the details. That list is a reality check for noobs.

Yup, startup costs were expected. This is the reason for this thread, gotta get the plan well planned :0)
Great list too !

 

[jodyhighrollr]

Don’t get overwhelmed. You were given a lot of details but growing weed truly isn’t that difficult. I grow in super soil(subcools recipe) which has a ph buffer and it can be as easy as just adding water. I supplement it a little more organically but it doesn’t have to be too stressful. I train my plants and keep an eye on them to look for bugs or deficiencies but besides that its just a EWC compost tea and epsom salt and water. Climate control is a must if you want good quality bud though. I struggled with heat last summer and it definitely effected my taste/flavor in my last grow. Harvesting the grow in my journal tonight/tomorrow. Good luck buddy

 

[hedzenmedz]

Hi 70’s - We have made a number of grows over the past 16 months. (Mostly Autos). One thing you may want to consider is ease of access to a grow tent. We ended up building a 13’ x 8’ x 6’3” high grow room in our basement (low ceiling, I know - however, that is the only space that we currently have). The motivator for us to limit grow tent usage was ease of access. I’m 65 and found it difficult to properly care for our plants in tents (especially when you maximize your grow space). LST, leaf trim, trichomes examination can all be awkward and painful when you have to work inside a tent. We grow 9-10 plants at a time on a 4x4 drain tray. We have 2 feet of room on all sides to perform any garden maintenance. Also, we do have a 1metre x 1 metre x 6’ high tent that gets used for clones, drying, et al and it’s not too bad to grow 4 plants at a time. I still like the freedom of movement that I have without the tent though.

 

[Calvados]

If I had the luxury of space, I would put my plants on rollers about knee height. I’d have an inspection station.

 

[Nickystickybuds]

Yessir!! I’ve had my nose in all the forums, so in the mean time i will be doing a piece by piece purchase plan.

I would like to assemble the tent, get it up and running, check out the temp and humidity to see if its a good fit, all the parts. We’re not legal yet :0/

I think for now a nice 4x4 will do. I have started a journal like i did with my theaterroom, it helps me organize my tnoughts/plans, purchase plans, budget, ect ect

My first grow i used an auto flower. Can't screw up and you get a lot of info from the plant. I'm using Fox Farm Ocean Soil
Perlite and that's about it. Water when dry and wait! Good luck theres a ton of good peoole here so your grow will turn out great!

 

[The70’s]

A 4x4x6 grow tent has 112cu ft, so i dont go crazy with too big of a unit, what cfm inline
Duct fan (not a boosting fan) would be enough, how many times per minute
Should the air exchange, then we can get into your thoughts on what filter also.

Is this a constant exchange of air or is the fan on a timer too.

 

[The70’s]

Good luck theres a ton of good peoole here so your grow will turn out great!

I can see that !!! :0)

 

[Nickystickybuds]

A 4x4x6 grow tent has 112cu ft, so i dont go crazy with too big of a unit, what cfm inline
Duct fan (not a boosting fan) would be enough, how many times per minute
Should the air exchange, then we can get into your thoughts on what filter also.

Is this a constant exchange of air or is the fan on a timer too.

If you don't have any worries about odor than u don't HAVE to use the filter but ventilstion is impotant. My tent is small 2×2×4 so i use my inn line booster as my exhauzt fan. I get gtest circulation great temps n humidity. What I'm finding out is that th medium u grow in,PH,AND Nutes are theholy trinity. After that its all preference. But ph is huge

 

[Old Salt]

A 4x4x6 grow tent has 112cu ft, so i dont go crazy with too big of a unit, what cfm inline
Duct fan (not a boosting fan) would be enough, how many times per minute
Should the air exchange, then we can get into your thoughts on what filter also.

Is this a constant exchange of air or is the fan on a timer too.

The absolute minimum is a complete change once every five minutes. Double this value to account for bends, long ducts, filters etc. get a fan at least one size bigger. So, a 4' x 4' x 6.5' tent is 104 cu ft. This indicates a minimum air flow of 21cfm, and the fan should be 42cfm or more. That's the basics. Practically, go oversized. I use an Atmosphere Vortex S-Line 6" exhaust fan, that can move 347CFM coupled with a speed controller for a 2 x 4 x 7 ft grow tent. If you do the math, all I really need is 25 CFM. The fan and filter are outside of the tent. The filter will be in a box sized to take 6" or 8" filters up to 24" long. I'll be able to use the same exhaust fan for several tents. I'd go no more than 400 cu ft total for all the tents. This results in a slower air speed through the vents, and much quieter operation.

The fans should be on 24hrs/day. You could slow them to 1/2 the airflow at night, but the hasstle isn't worth it.

 

[The70’s]

I use an Atmosphere Vortex S-Line Atmosphere Vortex S-Line 6" exhaust fan6" exhaust fan

Ok.......Can i want one of these fans just cause its so flippin cool !!!!

So, the real quality about this fan is, dialing down the speed and the motor not loading up, and its ability to “pull” air, unlike a booster fan that does litttle more than spin Lol

I looked up quickly this 6” filter, is this the type i’ll be using

6 Inch Inline Fan Carbon Filter with Reversible Flange Odor Control Activated Charcoal Filter

 

[The70’s]

If you don't have any worries about odor than u don't HAVE to use the filter but ventilstion is impotant. My tent is small 2×2×4 so i use my inn line booster as my exhauzt fan. I get gtest circulation great temps n humidity. What I'm finding out is that th medium u grow in,PH,AND Nutes are theholy trinity. After that its all preference. But ph is huge

Gotcha, thanx ! I definitely will add that to my “growing” notes hahaha.

 

[The70’s]

If I had the luxury of space, I would put my plants on rollers about knee height. I’d have an inspection station.

Funny you say that, i was thinking a 4x4 base, on rollers

 

[Calvados]

Ideally, you’d want one for each plant.