Complete Grow Box - 150 HPS

So I'm currently growing in my closet, but I'd rather have a sealed (not completely) box to work with. I also want to be able to have it stealth so that no one will question it, so I'm deciding to build a grow box/ fish tank stand. This way, no one will be asking about the wires that are exiting my box. I already love fish so this will be fun anyways because I just got rid of my 55 gal and I'm using my 20 gal now so it doesn't have to be too big and also because I'm moving soon so i could just keep it with me in my new place in case my closet is too small or something.

So I planned out a couple of things and I took a few measurements of my light, fish tank and factored in a couple of things like how tall the plant will get, how much room the plant needs, etc.

The completed box will be 40'' x 40'' x 14''

I made a paper model of what it would look like when it's done too. [picture posted]

I started this 2 Days ago and I have no car so I've been asking friends to take me to and from Lowe's/ Home Depot whenever I need to go haha
I bought some 1.5'' x 1.5'' wood and cut it out to the proportions I thought were correct and put it together for the frame. I also put wheels on it to make for easy transportation.

I did a lot of shaving when putting on the back and side panels because the idiot at Lowe's can't measure the wood and cut it correctly- the pieces were off by 1'' or more!

I still need to cut out holes from the front panel, place on a top piece, put in a panel to separate the two bottom sections, and cut out holes for the computer fans and ducting. Then the electrical wiring will come in and finally I'll hang up the light and see how everything is. I might put in racks in the back and a tray so I can easily move things towards or away from the light.

A couple of pictures show what I've completed so far and surprisingly, everything is level- even though I basically just put random screws into the wood to hold it together. I mean the 1.5'' x 1.5'' pieces were measured and cut (correctly) so that I could just put them together. The whole measuring and planning process probably took me a whole day and this is what I've come up with so far.

Looking good man! So is this a fish tank stand? What you planning for ventilation? Keep us posted!
Chillums

yeah its a fish tank stand, just to mask the fact that wires are coming out of it. I'm using 3 120mm 78cfm fans. two placed on the bottom blowing in and one by the light blowing out. i also have 4'' 80 cfm fan to exhaust the heat from the light, which will go into the smaller section just for more room in the bigger area. ill post pictures soon.

Good idea looks good!

very nice plan i've seen these kind of boxs before and they work great. keep us updated on the build!

Alright... so this is what I've done:
- cut out holes for where the duct goes and the 3 computer fans
- put in extra holes so I can have the wires easily organized
- put in extra bars on the sides so I can easily adjust the height of a tray I place in
- placed extra supports at the top where I have a bar to hang the light from.
- lightly primed the exterior for later paint -> black with silver trimming, silver handle, silver locks... you get the theme.

I haven't placed the front panel on yet just because I wanted to be able to access everything on the inside with my drill before the panel went on. I did do some work on the front panel though; cut a small piece out and outlined everything else.

I feel pretty good about this. There's always room for improvement though, not sure what I need to do haha but I've been just playing this by ear after the frame was built. Help me out if you want- let me know your suggestions

johnni blaze said:

Alright... so this is what I've done:
- cut out holes for where the duct goes and the 3 computer fans
- put in extra holes so I can have the wires easily organized
- put in extra bars on the sides so I can easily adjust the height of a tray I place in
- placed extra supports at the top where I have a bar to hang the light from.
- lightly primed the exterior for later paint -> black with silver trimming, silver handle, silver locks... you get the theme.

I haven't placed the front panel on yet just because I wanted to be able to access everything on the inside with my drill before the panel went on. I did do some work on the front panel though; cut a small piece out and outlined everything else.

I feel pretty good about this. There's always room for improvement though, not sure what I need to do haha but I've been just playing this by ear after the frame was built. Help me out if you want- let me know your suggestions

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looking really good! what is the top shelf for? ballast and all other wires orr??

what are you gonna do about smell? because cords are the least of your worries in a stealth build. looks very promising though.

Let's see... So I ended up purchasing a Black and Decker jigsaw for $20 from Wal-Mart and this sped up everything!

- the holes in the front panel were cut out and placed on the whole thing
- doors were cut out, hinges, handles, etc. were put on (just to see what it looks like)
- painted everything black
- lined the top shelf with this waterproof lining- it looks nice and fits well
- put a lock on the main door and a latch on the other door
- set up my light and exhaust

Things I still need to do:
- line the doors or the door frames with this weather sealant I have to block all light coming in and out
- wire my computer fans and place them in there (I'm using a window fan right now just because I have no electrical tape)
- build an extra shelf in the main section between the two existing shelf supports
- make an extra hole to bring in the wires from the fish tank and all
- MAYBE find a top to the box for the fish tank to sit on, it's sitting on the frame right which supports it just fine so I don't know if I want to use the money on that

Hope yall enjoy the fish tank too! It's just a 20 gallon long freshwater tank. I have 4 baby Convict Cichlids, a baby Pepper Cory, and a Pleco I've had for about 2 years now. Our power went out about 2 months ago for like 3 days so my heater was off and the weather was cold so everything froze to death except for the Pleco.

Well I will hopefully be updating sometime again this week- summer classes start tomorrow so I'll be stuck with the books for awhile.

If any of yall have suggestions or anything let me know!

Stay lifted

Bud000420 said:

what are you gonna do about smell? because cords are the least of your worries in a stealth build. looks very promising though.

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For smell, I haven't really thought about. Maybe I'll get a carbon filter for the whole thing... I don't know. What do you think I should do?

Looks good. My next cab I would like to build from scratch unless I find something real close to what I want . Yeah you def need a carbon filter for the smell. Also have u checked the temps yet? High temps have been my only real prob's so far. Knock on wood! Looks like ur on top of it keep us posted.

I am definitly subbed to this man. Good work with the cabinet. I have a real similar setup using a 150w hps in a set of stealth shelves and LST. Temps and smell will be a huge issue for ya. It was for me anyway. I am just about to harvest.
I love what you have done with the fishtank cabinet. It should serve you well.
+rep for another 150w hps stealth lst grow. There aint many of us around.
I'm not trying to steal your journal. Just give you an idea of what you can work with in a small space. Best of luck, I will keep an eye on this grow.

Bagz I am sure he could use a little info on what you did to offset the smell and temp in your grow. Since it is somewhat identical he could benefit from your knowledge.

illtoxic said:

Bagz I am sure he could use a little info on what you did to offset the smell and temp in your grow. Since it is somewhat identical he could benefit from your knowledge.

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I am here to help with anything I can.
In all honesty this is my first grow using the stealth shelf setup but it has worked a treat and I have done it all on a tight budget.
I made my own DIY carbon filter for smell. Temps were a huge issue too. So yeah, feel free to ask away, I may be able to help out. I will stop by on this thread regularly cause its good to see someone with a similar setup. I had a lot of people help me with my grow so I am happy to help out. It looks like a sweet setup. I like the DIY approach

looking good i like the fact you spent a day measuring

I've never actually tried a stealth box setup but am interested in it. My only question is how do you get the plants to fit in such a short area? Every plant I've grown has turned out 5+ feet tall. I'm not an expert horticulturist by any means btw so any helpful tips would be nice.

Igabod said:

I've never actually tried a stealth box setup but am interested in it. My only question is how do you get the plants to fit in such a short area? Every plant I've grown has turned out 5+ feet tall. I'm not an expert horticulturist by any means btw so any helpful tips would be nice.

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To grow in small area's and still get a decent harvest you need to train them LST (low stress training) works wonders, also a grill can help. You can train your plants to grow in almost any kind of space just requires the right training

Cabinet looks really good, wish u the best

Very dope
just got theses babys hope they come out like youresView attachment 944218got a journal going myself maybe you can stop by give a helping word or 2.plus rep cab looks great 1st grow dr60 150 hps

have you lined the inside of your box with a reflective surface or painted the inside a bright white? that will help light penetrate everywhere without getting absorbed. and a couple of carbon filters or any filter will help i use dryer sheets also and just change em every week or so. it works great for me in hiding the smell