First Ever Grow. Closet + CFLs. Posts Welcome!!!

Good luck~

lookin good man...i got 16 27w 6500k and 1 65w 2700k does the job

Nice setup....You keep the lights that close all through the grow or just for the germanation?

Lookin good, brah! Ya can use 2700K fer veg, as well as flower, FYI

Gastanker said:

Was talking about the actualy powercord/socket, not the splitters

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Ahh the socket. Yeah I was super pissed that Home Depot didnt have ceramic work lights at ALL. I would have been stuck building a ceramic fixture and it would have ran about $13 a pop vs. $7,97 for the worklight. What really pissed me off is when I saw the ceramic ones you're talkin about at walmart for $9.97 today, grrrrr.

Gastanker said:

Did you see the 105w for $5 more? http://www.buylighting.com/105-Watt-...105-50-med.htm

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Yeah that sucker is huge!! I went ahead and swapped all 5 of my 2700k 26w for 4 6500k 26w & a 5500K 26w, then added another 5500K 26w to the mix. I also bought another 65w 2700k today at Home Depot which brings my total to 3 of those , so I think I'm done buying lights for now, hopefully for good haha.

Meen Green said:

Nice setup....You keep the lights that close all through the grow or just for the germanation?

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Yup, with CFL bulbs you always want them as close as possible to your plants without burning them, which is usually 2 inches or less from what Ive read. I actually moved them a bit closer than whats in the pics and they are all doing great.

Where in the hell am I? said:

Lookin good, brah! Ya can use 2700K fer veg, as well as flower, FYI

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Yeah Ive read that, saw it on your grow as well. See I was going to buy more 2700K 26w bulbs for side lighting during flower, so when I found out my veg lights were 2700, I just replaced them with 6500 & 5500 so that I can use the 6 2700s for flowering. Im just worried about stretching my plants too much. I was thinking of hanging just one of my 65w 2700K bulbs though after a few plants reach 6" or so, any input on that? too much too early or would it help?


Well in other news, got all the new 5500 & 6500 lights in place. i found some 3.5 gallon buckets at Ace for like $4 each, they are squatty not tall. Anyone know if a 3.5gal bucket should be good enough till harvest> i read that you should have 1gal per 1ft of plant height, and I'm hoping for 3.5-4ft plants, I just don't want to use a 3.5gal bucket if it wont be enough. I also don't want to use too big of one so I can get the max grow height out of my limited closet space.

As for my plant table, I will begin modifying it tonight for when I transplant into pots. I will need some excellent drainage to avoid pools & root rot so heres what I was thinking: I was going to cut 4 roughly 9"x9" squares in the top of the table in each corner, leaving a big plus sign in the middle. I was then going to put some pieces of wire laundry shelf over each hole so I can set a large, or multiple small pots on the wire shelf and they would drain through to some sort of tray. I have never used a jigsaw before but my dad was happy to lend his to me, so hopefully I make it out with all 10 digits. I fully expect the cuts to be crooked or jagged, but hey its not like im putting it in my living room haha.

As far as my babies go, 1 more sprouted up bringing the total to 4, the tallest being just over 2 inches. I will take some pics after I modify the table & everything. Thanks again to everyone following my post and sorry for making you read so much

Peace
KB

Ya spent way more than ya needed on yer pots. All ya need is 1 1/2 gal pots fer yer desired height. I read the 1 gal per foot a long time a go, as well, but it isnt very accurate. Look at wat RandyRocket does w/16 oz cup! Others use 2 liter bottles (thats wat I'll be doing). We limit our plants potential, just do the most she'll let ya! Lollipoppin is a gr8 way of gettin more from smaller pots

Where in the hell am I? said:

Ya spent way more than ya needed on yer pots. All ya need is 1 1/2 gal pots fer yer desired height. I read the 1 gal per foot a long time a go, as well, but it isnt very accurate. Look at wat RandyRocket does w/16 oz cup! Others use 2 liter bottles (thats wat I'll be doing). We limit our plants potential, just do the most she'll let ya! Lollipoppin is a gr8 way of gettin more from smaller pots

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Well, I only bought 4 of the 3.5gal buckets since my plan it to have 4 of the biggest fattest ladies that my grow space can hold. I will be grabbing a dozen or so 1gal round bottles today from work to transplant them into when they are ready. I am assuming that 1gal containers should be plenty big enough to use until I can sex them right? Will I be harming my plants in any way by using the 3.5gal buckets? Will it lower the yeild? Surely not. Since I already have them would you recommend to just go ahead and use them? I really want to see how much bud I can get out of each plant and I want PLENTY of room for the roots to grow.

On a side note, I decided to go home today on my lunch break and check on my babies. When I went to bed last night 4/13 were all that had sprouted, and on lunch only ONE has not. So that brings the official total of plants to 12 for the time being. I gave them each a healthy dose of water and setup a small fan to blow on them while Im gone to help stimulate strong stems.

I remembered after my post last night that it was too late to be running a jigsaw in my garage, so I went ahead and just made the marks for it. It should turn out nicely! I will take pics as soon as possible and get them posted, after all pics are what keeps people commin back At least thats how I am anyway.

KB

Brah, uer good w/wat ya got, and yer plans are solid. I was just sayin ya didnt need the pots that big, but since ya got em. . .Of course it wont harm them, I was just puttin in my 2 pennies, YER GOOD, brah!

Alright everything is moving along pretty well. Every single plant has officially sprouted, so I have 13 healthy little plants all 1-3 days old.

I finished drawing the 9" by 9" squares that I will cut out soon on my plant table. The plan is to place some wire shelf pieces over the holes and place the pots on them. This will allow for good drainage to some containers below. Here is a pic of the table before putting the plants back on it.

All the plants together

Oldest 3

2nd oldest

Youngest ones

Youngest @ less than a day old

Oldest @ almost 3 days old

My current light setup, all daylight 5500-6500K 26w bulbs. I also added my small fan & turned it on low, just enough to get the plants moving a little bit. Any more and the lights sway pretty bad. The fan is on the same size bucket that my 4 final plants will be in. 3.5 gallon.



Its getting to be alot of fun. I will load a bowl and just sit in there lookin at em and relaxing. Would be so nice to have a walk in garden or greenhouse full of these things....maybe one day
My temp has been right around 80F, and humidity topped out last night at 50%, and from what I read both of those are about optimal so no need to cut a hole in the wall for ventilation.....yet

Peace
KB

Hey - sounds like things are doing real well - Definately think you have enough lights With those big pots you'll grow monsters for sure! My ladies are in 3 liter pots, a bit cruel but gets the job done. Those smaller pots should be quite fine until you sex them. It's starting to get exciting huh? Take it all in cuz man they grow fast.

Gastanker said:

Hey - sounds like things are doing real well - Definately think you have enough lights With those big pots you'll grow monsters for sure! My ladies are in 3 liter pots, a bit cruel but gets the job done. Those smaller pots should be quite fine until you sex them. It's starting to get exciting huh? Take it all in cuz man they grow fast.

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Haha, yeah its gettin real exciting. I find myself hangin out in the closet more than the rest of my house sometimes. I put another bucket in there upside down for a seat Yeah I have those light plus a LOT of 2700K lights. I have 3 of the 68w big ass 2700ks, 2 30w 2700k, and 6 26w 2700k. I will try and have lights allover the plants. Id like to hang 2 of the big ones between the plants if possible.
As for the pots I have them in, I will need to transplant soon for sure. They are the Jiffy peat pots made out of peat moss so they are REALLY starting to fall apart haha. I have some 1gal jugs I will put them in while I wait till they show their sex. The great thing is you just plant the pot & all, it decomposes into the soil after time.

So does anyone have any personal experience with the Sunshine mix I bought? there is a pic of it a page back or so. It is very light & fluffy with peat moss, vermiculite, & some other stuff. The potting soil I bought is very heavy compared to it, and more dense. It has sand mixed in, which if I remember right isn't that great for cannabis right? I am asking because I will be transplanting my ladies soon into some 1gal containers and I would like to use whatever is best out of what I already have. I also have a little 5lb bag of bone meal, I am open to all suggestions on how much to mix in. I will experiment with everything as much as possible because I know not every plant or situation is the same.

Thanks in advance for any input
KB

looks real good mate,
subscribed!

I havent used that bag of sunshine, but Ive used 2 diff types of sunshine brand soils and had gr8 results w/each

Where in the hell am I? said:

I havent used that bag of sunshine, but Ive used 2 diff types of sunshine brand soils and had gr8 results w/each

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Awesome, so glad to hear it. Thats the first opinion Ive heard of it and its a good one, so that is a relief!

My only concern right now is heat. I have 5 26w 6500K and 3 23w 5500K daylight bulbs in there now and max temp today reached 84F or 29C with 45-50% humidity. From my reading, thats about top of the scale. When I switch to my 3 68w, 2 30w & 6 26w 2700Ks Im sure the heat will be much higher right? Or do the softer lights put out less heat?

My plan to fix this if need be is to cut a hole in the drywall and install a "fart fan" like what goes in a bathroom haha. Its somewhat drastic but Im no quitter!! I watched about 4 "how to patch drywall" videos and I feel that I am fully capable of doing so when it comes time to move.

Let me know what you guys think, I know some of ya have had heat issues of your own too so all input as always is welcome!

KB

KolorBlind said:

Awesome, so glad to hear it. Thats the first opinion Ive heard of it and its a good one, so that is a relief!

My only concern right now is heat. I have 5 26w 6500K and 3 23w 5500K daylight bulbs in there now and max temp today reached 84F or 29C with 45-50% humidity. From my reading, thats about top of the scale. When I switch to my 3 68w, 2 30w & 6 26w 2700Ks Im sure the heat will be much higher right? Or do the softer lights put out less heat?

My plan to fix this if need be is to cut a hole in the drywall and install a "fart fan" like what goes in a bathroom haha. Its somewhat drastic but Im no quitter!! I watched about 4 "how to patch drywall" videos and I feel that I am fully capable of doing so when it comes time to move.

Let me know what you guys think, I know some of ya have had heat issues of your own too so all input as always is welcome!

KB

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God damn heat! Unfortunately the heat will only go up. The bigger your plants get the hotter it gets and adding lights definately will up it a bit as well. Any chance you know how long it stayed up there? A vent would of course be best but remember that ideal is not always necessary. Some summers are hotter than others and I don't see all the plants dying Pretty sure it gets over 100 in Jamaica with 100% humidity and they still seem to grow right? But then I tend to be overly optimistic after smoking.

Gastanker said:

God damn heat! Unfortunately the heat will only go up. The bigger your plants get the hotter it gets and adding lights definately will up it a bit as well. Any chance you know how long it stayed up there? A vent would of course be best but remember that ideal is not always necessary. Some summers are hotter than others and I don't see all the plants dying Pretty sure it gets over 100 in Jamaica with 100% humidity and they still seem to grow right? But then I tend to be overly optimistic after smoking.

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Brah, outdoor plants are able to take higher temps due to the outdoor air (elevated Co2, etc).

KolorBlind said:

Awesome, so glad to hear it. Thats the first opinion Ive heard of it and its a good one, so that is a relief!

My only concern right now is heat. I have 5 26w 6500K and 3 23w 5500K daylight bulbs in there now and max temp today reached 84F or 29C with 45-50% humidity. From my reading, thats about top of the scale. When I switch to my 3 68w, 2 30w & 6 26w 2700Ks Im sure the heat will be much higher right? Or do the softer lights put out less heat?

My plan to fix this if need be is to cut a hole in the drywall and install a "fart fan" like what goes in a bathroom haha. Its somewhat drastic but Im no quitter!! I watched about 4 "how to patch drywall" videos and I feel that I am fully capable of doing so when it comes time to move.

Let me know what you guys think, I know some of ya have had heat issues of your own too so all input as always is welcome!

KB

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If ya plan on using Co2, yer temps will be ok, maybe! Definitely put in yer exhaust fan! Patchin drywall is uber easy! Not to mention the heat of the lights, yer girls themselves will be puttin out heat the further along in flower, not to mention the buds will actually affect yer humidity levels. These factors are not significatant enuf on their own, but its good info to know, I think.
Just keep burnin, brah!

Where in the hell am I? said:

If ya plan on using Co2, yer temps will be ok, maybe! Definitely put in yer exhaust fan! Patchin drywall is uber easy! Not to mention the heat of the lights, yer girls themselves will be puttin out heat the further along in flower, not to mention the buds will actually affect yer humidity levels. These factors are not significatant enuf on their own, but its good info to know, I think.
Just keep burnin, brah!

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OK so I just called my wife who is off today so I could get the high temp & humidity levels from her. I have a temp/barometer that records current, low & high temp & humidity. She said after watering and leaving the closet door open it was 53% humidity and 85 degrees. The high on my gadget said 59% humidity and 86 degrees and by my count that is WAY too high, especially for not even a week into growing.

I had her take the cup of water out of the room as low humidity doesnt seem to be a problem for now. The small fan is cranked up to medium, any higher and the lights start swaying pretty bad, which is about the only disadvantage Ive seen to hanging them so far.

So Im almost certain that this weekend a friend and I will be cutting a hole in the wall and trying to find a cheap exhaust fan. I am already about $200 into this, and Id like to spend as little more as possible. Can anyone recommend a good fan for like $40 or less or is that just not realistic? I will have no inlet other than the small crack at th bottom of the door, I was also thinking I may remove the weatherstripping from the door frame since I have the light proof curtain hanging now. I also need to find a way to keep my curtain from being sucked in toward the lights when the fan is on, like some track for them to stay in along the sides of the curtain, any ideas or suggestions??

Oh and I do NOT plan on using Co2. Sounds expensive, bulky and risky. And im trying to limit all 3 of those factors as much as possible haha.

Thanks guys
KB

KolorBlind said:

OK so I just called my wife who is off today so I could get the high temp & humidity levels from her. I have a temp/barometer that records current, low & high temp & humidity. She said after watering and leaving the closet door open it was 53% humidity and 85 degrees. The high on my gadget said 59% humidity and 86 degrees and by my count that is WAY too high, especially for not even a week into growing.

I had her take the cup of water out of the room as low humidity doesnt seem to be a problem for now. The small fan is cranked up to medium, any higher and the lights start swaying pretty bad, which is about the only disadvantage Ive seen to hanging them so far.

So Im almost certain that this weekend a friend and I will be cutting a hole in the wall and trying to find a cheap exhaust fan. I am already about $200 into this, and Id like to spend as little more as possible. Can anyone recommend a good fan for like $40 or less or is that just not realistic? I will have no inlet other than the small crack at th bottom of the door, I was also thinking I may remove the weatherstripping from the door frame since I have the light proof curtain hanging now. I also need to find a way to keep my curtain from being sucked in toward the lights when the fan is on, like some track for them to stay in along the sides of the curtain, any ideas or suggestions??

Oh and I do NOT plan on using Co2. Sounds expensive, bulky and risky. And im trying to limit all 3 of those factors as much as possible haha.

Thanks guys
KB

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Drywall is super easy to work with. You'll have the entire closet tricked out in no time and wonder why you even considered not doing it I wish I had some pot projects to do - living in an appartment is fuckin killin me.