Hello all! On the coattails of my recent grow, recent and first, I took note of a few things I may have done wrong, and few of the right things I could have done better.

1-Light leaks are your enemy.
if you think you can get away with a tiny crack of light during flower, you're wrong.

2-Proper ventilation and cooling makes for happier plants.
at times I allowed the grow space to reach temps of 92, though possibly OK for a hour or so, definitely not OK as a consistent temp.

3-Growing CFL means growing smaller plants.
my last girl grew out of control, at times I was overwhelmed, if you want to be successful with CFL, accept you'll be blooming sooner than you may wish

4-(IMO) CFL needs soil
hydro is fun and sounds exciting, but it also has a much more rapid rate of growth. growing CFL you have fewer lumens and slightly less usable light
so, do yourself a favor, grow in soil which has a much more moderate rate of growth, and therefore is more likely to make better use of available light

With these lessons in mind, I set out to build a minimalist DIY Grow Tent, to make better use of my growing closet.
The design is simple and this isn't a step by step by guide of how to construct what I am doing.
More like an ongoing journal of its construction. (not too complicated you could figure it out for yourself after one look)
(I should throw this out there now, my girlfriend would like the house to be grow-free for a bit, so this will be slow build..)

The project as she stands now, looks something like this..

..not TOO exciting I know. (unless you are myself and you see all the potential in store!!)
She measures 23"W x 13"D x 56"H


Phase 2 - installing fans. I plan to use 4" 120VAC fans, two attached to the very top of the unit for exhaust, and one attached to the lower back for intake (I'll be doing up a panel to hold the lower fan in place, that may have a step by step guide)

Phase 3 - entails wrapping the unit in Panda Poly-Film, the goal is wrap her up like a christmas present, using zip ties to hold in place and lastly a strip of duct tape (black for aesthetics sake)

Phase 4 - sticking on a pair of adhesive zippers to the front of the unit, one on either side running the height for complete access

Phase 5 - internal air movement, considering a 6" spring clip-on fan attached to one of the posts to keep air moving and get that early developing plant strong and sturdy

Also, I'm sure someone will ask, "Hey.. what's with the hood, thought you said CFL?! WTF?!?! ZOMG!!?!" CALM DOWN!!! Your eyes do not deceive you.
That is my 125W 2700k Mogul Base CFL. Which may or may not get re-used this go 'round.
Looking into ramping it up to a 200W CFL, regardless will be purchasing a 5500k CFL, similar style for veg.
Again before I receive any guff for using such a CFL and not HPS or MH or HID (which CFL is) or BMF or UGK or other damn abbreviation..
I used that bulb on my last grow, with decent results (all other factors aside) and it BARELY made a noticeable difference on my utility bill.
So put that in your pipe and smoke it (after you're done smoking your homegrown )
One last note, the shelf the hood hangs from is completely adjustable, for any height desired.
That is all for now, keep checking back and subscribe! The build (as its not truly that labor intensive) should be done in about a week or two.
Followed promptly by the cracking of beans in early-mid November.
Happy growing RIU!!


Shack

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Closet Grow in GH WaterFarmDIY Grow TentDIY Stealth Cabinet

SUBSCRIBED

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PARTY CUP GROW

glad to have you SICC. trying to spread the project out about (picking up the pieces needed as i find the best prices and have the cash to spare)



Shack

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Closet Grow in GH WaterFarmDIY Grow TentDIY Stealth Cabinet

After some preliminary testing (this is without the film "shell") temps are cruising pretty steadily between 82-84 degrees. Lets hope adding the film doesn't mess with this too much. MY guess is it will, but only by about +2-3 degrees. Keep in mind I will have a exhaust/intake fans going and a circulation fan inside as well. I'm also cooking up an idea in my head about a "heatsink" style fan mounted on the shelf above the hood, used for cooling CPU's i think i might be able to attach it to the shelf/hood in a way that it could be useful. My gut tells me though it would only lend a difference of about 0.5-1 degree so I'll decide later if its worth the cost/tinkering.


Shack

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Closet Grow in GH WaterFarmDIY Grow TentDIY Stealth Cabinet

Looking good, stop by the dollar store and get some mylar. Look in the bag stuffing isle!

~GG420

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just read thru everything, sounds like a great project, im gettin a 125 watt CFL as well, with both the Veg and Flowering lights, along with the trip lights at 2,000 lumens each, so it should be good, we'll see,


i'll be posted

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PARTY CUP GROW

trip lights? i missed something there. tell me more!


Shack

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Closet Grow in GH WaterFarmDIY Grow TentDIY Stealth Cabinet

lol it was a typo, some light strips, something like that, im gettin it from a friend and thats what he told me, he used them but i guess he lost some plants from it being to hot

ima look at it today, so i should be able to get an idea what they are, but he's hookin me up so whatever it is, i'll take it, plus at 2,000 lumens each, and he has a couple of them, i'll let you kno when i get it figured out

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PARTY CUP GROW

sounds good to me.. i'm definitely interested in something like that... this little space i could use some thing for under the canopy in addition to the hood.


Shack

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Closet Grow in GH WaterFarmDIY Grow TentDIY Stealth Cabinet

Regular CFLs will give you more performance in numbers vs higher wattage/lumens. I suggest standard 23W CFLs for supplemental lighting. Light reduces on the inverse of square and those lights run hotter so an increase in distance will equal about the same as a 23W in light intensity. Plus with 23W'ers you can get a good spread of light if you space them out and place them an inch or two away from the plants.

~GG420

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