Multi-Chamber GrowBox

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draxlin

New Member
Hello ALL!

I have been lurking for awhile and figured I would finally introduce myself. Over the past weeks I've been scouring the net and various forums to absorb as much info as possible. Like many people, I'm tired of paying $$$ for good quality smoke. Around here I pay $300 a zip, which last me anywhere between 3-4 weeks. So I decided to undertake my first grow-box build!

This is my first grow-box ever. I hope that with the research I have done this will work for my needs. I'm posting here in hopes of getting feedback, tips or anything else useful. I'm not providing a "material list" for this build; because I have been to the hardware store more times than I care to count! However, I will try to answer any questions anyone has.

At this point the build is 90% complete, but I haven't taken any pictures of it yet. I have been actively updating my design though and it is fairly accurate to the component itself. I will provide a few screenshots of the design plans to give you a better idea of the build itself. Obviously I will add a few pictures of the grow-box itself, but that will likely be a couple days.



Lighting: I've decided to go with both CFL and T5 light sources throughout.

Clone Chamber Dimensions & Lighting (7000 lumens):
- 13"(width) x 23"(depth) x 20"(tall)
  • 1 x 125watt - Hydrofarm
  • (bulbs: 125 watt, veg bulb)

Mother Chamber Dimensions & Lighting (10000 lumens): (planning to bonsai mothers)
- 13"(width) x 23"(depth) x 19"(tall)
  • T5 Grow Light (2ft 4Lamps)
  • (bulbs: 4 @ 6500k)

Flower Chamber & Lighting (32000 lumens):
- 29"(width) x 23"(depth) x 43"(tall)
  • 1 x - HydroFarm Hood
  • 200 watt bulb
  • 2 x T5 HO Grow Light (2FT 8Lamps)
  • (bulbs: 12 @ 3000K, 4 @ 6500k)

Ventilation / Scrubber:
I am using an idea from another forum, using a Panasonic FV-11VQ5 WhisperCeiling 110 CFM .

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Additional Design Images: (again build is 90% complete and I will upload actual pictures in a few days)




More info to come - just wanted to get this posted today.
 
Thanks for checking out my build and the comments! I started putting the lights in the flowering chamber last night. I'm hoping to get all the lighting and ventilation in place this weekend. Once I get those items in place I will add a few more pictures.

kiki1990 said:
wow amazing!!
now you start a grow journal ya? :)
Click to expand...
I have not started one yet. My plan as of now, is to a start germinating a few seeds as soon as the cabinet is complete and tested. If all goes well with my install items this weekend, I can start testing temps and such. My biggest concern is going to be making sure the ventilation is working well and finding out my temps with the lights running.

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?? Any input on my lighting ??

I would appreciate some input on my lighting PLANS. In the start of this thread, I listed and linked the lights I have for the build. With the space I have and the type of lights I'm using, is it enough? Concerns?
 
bikiki1990 said:
listen man I think your lights are fine how they are... you have a great setup!
growing is the real thing, and the only way to know what works and what dosn't...
i say just start.. but whatever that's me...
Click to expand...

Thanks Man! I really want to start my grow. I've been struggling with my choices on lighting this week, mostly because the equipment (lights) I have for the flowering chamber were really cramping the growth height chamber more than expected. That's why I ordered this new LED.

I'm planning this cabinet as a SCROG setup, but even so the current lights took over 1/2 the flowering chamber. So anyway the new plan is to use the 8 bulb T5'S in both the clone & mother chambers. Making each chamber 192 watt.
 
Will this cabinet be in a climate controlled environment, air conditioned and heated, or no? An unheated garage in the Midwest will have wild temp and humidity variations throughout the year, for example. Have you chosen a strain to suit a cabinet grow?
 
Sorry I haven't posted anything new yet. I've been extremely busy these past few days. Last night was the first time all week I could find time. I went out cleaned and rearranged part of the garage to make the cabinet a new home. Tonight I am running my exhaust vent for the garage. I do not have an attic above my garage to vent through, so I'm going to run this: 90 Degree Inlet / 90 Degree Outlet Space Saver Duct It will be inside the wall behind pegboard so no one will see it.

Stormycirca65 said:
Will this cabinet be in a climate controlled environment, air conditioned and heated, or no? An unheated garage in the Midwest will have wild temp and humidity variations throughout the year, for example. Have you chosen a strain to suit a cabinet grow?
Click to expand...

Those are good points I have considered, beings I am located in the Midwest and it's in an unregulated garage. However it is attached and insulated, so the temps don't get nearly as high or low. On my cabinet I insulated the outer walls and ceiling of the chamber areas. Even so, I do realize that I may have some issues needing addressed down the road. To that point, I am hoping I can manage it.

The cabinet is built with a passive air intake system consisting of three, 4 inch louver vents. Yesterday it was 86° here, I had not opened the cabinet for probably 24hrs. I opened to check the temp and humidity out of curiosity. It was registering 70° and 60% humidity. Mind you there are no plants, lights or anything running in there at this time. I was still happy to see that it was considerably cooler in the cabinet then the rest of the garage.

The exhaust is going to be vented outside. I figure if the temps and humidity do become issues, I will work on an active air intake from the house crawl space. Fingers crossed that I won't need too though ;), but it is an open option if necessary.
 
Stormycirca65 said:
Have you chosen a strain to suit a cabinet grow?
Click to expand...
I have a few strains to try and have the seeds in hand, but I haven't settled on a strain for the first grow yet.

Here are feminized seeds to pick from:
  • AK47 (Vision Seeds)
  • Pineapple Chunk (Barney's Farm Seeds)
  • Kiwi Milky Way (Kiwi Seeds)

I also have non-feminized seeds:
  • ICE (Nirvana)

I was leaning towards using Pineapple Chunk or maybe the AK47 for my first grow. thoughts?
 
I haven't really posted here since I have started my seedlings. I posted a few comments or updates about the cabinet in my Grow Journal, but I may as well copy that info to this more relevant thread.

======================

Cabinet Update: (9/23/13)
I've finished the lighting in both my mother and clone/veg chambers. I do have temp issues right now that I'm attempting to sort out. I have four, 120mm fans that are intended to distribute the air between the chambers. I purchased these specifically with stealth in mind and they are not doing the job. So I've purchased and am awaiting delivery of the replacements.

Current fan specs:

  • Dual Ball Bearing - 120mm
  • RPM: 1200 +/- 10%
  • CFM: 46
  • dB: 20.4dba

Replacement fan specs:

  • 2 Ball - 120mm
  • RPM: 2000 RPM
  • CFM: 103
  • db: 35 dBA

Air Flow Diag
Cabinet-airflow.jpg
 
I truly believe I have a deign flaw on my part. Now to address it...

I received and installed my new fans on Tuesday 9/24. This did help with the heat some, but my clone chamber is still getting to hot. I have a 24", 8 bulb, T5 fixture in there. When running just 2 bulbs the temps stay around 84°-86°, but with 4 bulbs running the chamber hits anywhere from 97°-99°. On a side note the BIG chamber on the right has stayed at a constant 73° since turning on the LED.

Anyway, If you look at the "air flow" diagram above you might be able to see the issue. The clone chamber is the topmost chamber on the left of the diagram. The left outside wall is the air passage. If I were to rebuild this, I would place the intake vents at the bottom of the wall in the clone chamber and than exhaust them out the top. Basically...for some stupid reason I reversed the design and the hot air isn't circulating the way it should to properly cool and exhaust this chamber. I should have duplicated what I had done to the Mother Chamber (the one below).

It's too late now to make structure changes, because the actual build of this cabinet is complete. I have a couple options...I think

First Option:
Buy an LED for the clone area. This would need to be a smaller unit. I really like my new LED light from TOPLED GROWLIGHT and would most likely buy a unit for my needs from them again. I just don't know which light would be best for such a small area or which would be best for clones.

Second Option:
I doubt I will do this unless I have too. I was basically thinking of running a small pvc exhaust duct, from the upper chamber through the flower side up to the main exhaust chamber.

I guess a good question to an experienced grower would be this. How many watts should I target for the clone chamber? I was originally planning to run just 2-4 of the 24w T5's. Though this was completely my best educated guess from reading others experiences. Maybe I'm wrong, but is it correct that you do not need as much light for the clone process?
 
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