Newbie CFL closet setup, thoughts?

Looking to grow 2 to 4 plants, constantly from Veg to Flower boxes. Stealth op. I'm planing to use a 3 grow box setup to maximize the limited and odd shaped closet space. This is what it would look like:


Grow box 1: For starting growth, and cloning
- (2) 40w CFL 5000k
- soil, manual watering
- passive in/out airflow
- 26" box height, 28" width, 16" depth

Grow box 2: Mother box/Veg box
- (2) 80w CFL 5000k
- soil, manual watering
- passive in/out airflow
- 40" box height, 28" width, 16" depth

Grow box 3: Flower box
- (3) 105w CFL 2700k
- soil, manual watering
- passive in, active out air vent
- 66" box height, 40" width, 36" depth


Questions:
1. Heat output from CFL; can the light be 2 inches away from wood/plaster wall/mylar and be fire safe?
2. Are my light colors optimal? 5000k for veg/ 2700k for flower?
3. This is a medium sized closet with no ventilation (except if I open the door). All boxes are venting to and from the air in the closed closet. What degree of heat and smell problems can I expect throughout the process?

THANKS

1. I think CFL's aren't supposed to produce a ton heat, so I'd imagine 2 inches would be fine. I'd double check this though.
2. I'd go with 6500k for veg, 2700k for flower.
3. I have no idea about heat but I'd imagine the smell would get pretty strong after a while, especially with no carbon filters.

1. CFL's do not produce too much heat as long as there is a fan blowing on the lights.

2. I use 6500K CFL's for veg and 2700K CFL's for flowering. The plants will thank you

3. You are going to need a lot of fans inside and outside the boxes to keep things cool. I would suggest a box fan to bring cold air into the closet and then computer fans or small in-line fans to vent each box individually.

Tom

If you dont vent the closet its going to get pretty warm in those boxes. The bulbs themselves dont get very hot at all (but they can burn your plants if touching for a while)but the self contained ballasts put out some heat. I'm struggling to keep my OPEN door closet cool enough. 2 inches is fine. You can even put them closer than that. You can use your hand to feel how warm they get.
That's a fairly aggressive set-up for a 1st timer but you can do it. Smell will also be a concern. There are some good home-made carbon filter ideas in here. I'm going to make one myself soon. Hope it helps some. Good Luck!!

Thanks for the input everyone!

I noticed the 6500k lights have significantly lower lumens than equivalent wattage 5000k's. Is that a good trade off? Also, is 3000k CFL a respectable replacement for the preferred 2700k CFL? (Having trouble finding 2700 at my desired 105 wattage.)

I'm having trouble finding the exact lights I wanted at 1000bulbs.com. I'm looking around more, any links appreciated. (My local hardware place has a very limited selection.) Also looking for a good source of small (4x4") inline fans (AC rather than computer fans).

A carbon filter would be nice, but thats a little outside of my starter budget. Maybe I'll be able to find an alternative.

You need a mix of flouro's to cover color spectrum of light used during photosynthesis. I added it up and you are pulling a total of 555 watts with all those flouros. Two 250 HID's (one MH for veg one HPS for flower) would be a better investment and would produce more light and more bud for less power consumption. You could also make the veg box a clone box too if you did it that way. Your lack of ventilation is of concern and may stunt growth as well. I don't think you are going to be producing much bud with that set-up. As for fans you can by cheap 4" inline fans from home depot.

heat will be your main problem, make sure to keep those boxes well vented, and keep a fan blowing on your CFLS to keep the temp down. CFLS do not produce too much heat but in a small grow box the heat will be a issue.

hadubnano said:

Thanks for the input everyone!

A carbon filter would be nice, but thats a little outside of my starter budget. Maybe I'll be able to find an alternative.

Click to expand...

Check the DIY forum for some good, cheap ideas.

Wheres the PICS lol