Lighting Questions.

So I'm growing in a 2x4x6 space, and am planning on doing a 30 plant SoG setup, I have a clone mother that I will be using for the SoG pulling 30 clones, they will veg for 2 weeks, and then be flipped into flower, max height should be around a foot to a foot and a half. Just curious on ideas for a few lighting setups. Price is not an issue. My initial idea was to run 2 x 250W SunSystems with Integrated Ballasts, one running an MH bulb the other running an HPS, they would both be run 24/7 through Veg, and 12/12 through bloom, when lights are on, both an MH and HPS would be running, and would produce full spectrum. Other options are to get a switchable 600W MH/HPS or a switchable 1000W MH/HPS, and run the MH through Veg, and HPS through bloom. I really like the idea of running full spectrum through both Veg and Bloom, however, I'm worried that 500W on 30 plants is going to be sub par. Any thoughts or comments are appreciated!

If using 250's in that space then good on yoi keeping plants finishing at only 1' to 1.5' as a 250w HID has very little canopy penetration.

2 x 4 = 8 square feet

500w/8 square feet = 62.5w per square foot.

So you'll be in the sweet spot as far as watts per square foot.General rule of thumb is 50w per square foot minimum (I wouldn't recommend going over 65w per square foot).

Now,when it comes to mixed spectrum,general rule of thumb is 2:1 ratio meaning;2x HPS to 1x MH and usually on a rotating light mover (moves around in a circle and that ain't hapening in that small of a space.

Do either 2x 250w HPS's or 2x 250w CMH's.I'm not sure if they make 250w CMH's though.

Now,what are you going to do about ventilation to supply fresh air intake and cooling of lights?

General rule of thumb if using one exhaust fan to both ventilate the grow and cool the lights is a fan that can exhaust the grow 2x per minute.

2 x 4 x 6 = 48 square feet

48 cubic feet x 2 = 96 cubic feet per minute

This does not take into account though pressure losses from connecting ducting and a carbon filter to your exhaust fan nor take into account pressure losses from any bends in your ducting.

Attaching a carbon filter to your exhaust fan will reduce the fans cfm/airflow by 25% to 50% depending on size of filter.Also,any bend in ducting will reduce cfm/airflow if your fan.90° bends in ducting can reduce airflow of the exhaust fan by 25% per 90° bend.Try to keep any bends in your duct run 45° or less where possible.

Also,ambient temperature (temp of the room the tent will be pulling it's fresh air intake from) plays a factor in what size exhaust fan you'll need.

I would say get a good 6" 440cfm inline centrifugal exhaust fan (vortex,can fan,eco plus,hurricane,elicient) and a can 33 filter ir similar sized carbon filter.

Read ventilation 101,it has all the info you'll need and can be found in my sig below.

Also,you should know that weed can stretch anywhere from 2x to 5x it's height when flowering.

Indicas typically stretch 2x to 3x their height when flowering depending on how pure of an indica they are.Sativas anywhere from 3x to 5x their height once flowering is initiated.

To combat this,start flowering when plants are 4" to 6" tall.

If I can be of any more help just let me know.

Ou8aCracker2 said:

I would say get a good 6" 440cfm inline centrifugal exhaust fan (vortex,can fan,eco plus,hurricane,elicient) and a can 33 filter ir similar sized carbon filter.

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I am currently running a 440CFM inline fan with carbon filter, and yes I am using it as both an intake and exhaust for the room.

how they hell you fitting 30 plants in there Dixie cups ? I could not even fit 1 plant in that small space . idk how you guys do it .

kinddiesel said:

how they hell you fitting 30 plants in there Dixie cups ? I could not even fit 1 plant in that small space . idk how you guys do it .

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SoG or ScrOG Methods, ScrOG can be done from seedling to harvest, SoGing is a cloning method, you take 2-3" clones, root them, and flower them when the reach around 6-8" tall, the end result is a dense canopy of bud from one side of the room to the other. Remember, when you pull a clone, your a effectively taking the age of the mother plant and applying it to the new clone, therefore, it does not have to veg nearly as long before flowering, because the plant already holds it's age.