I have only grown outdoors and I want to start indoor. I have Qs!

[Girlswholovetogrow]

I’m completely new to indoor! I have a garage that I want to use a 10x10 space to grow in. I have read that you get better yields from not using a tent. Is this true? And how many lights will I need in this space? Can anyone recommend some really good lights? My home is mostly solar powered. My walls in the garage are all finished sheet rock. And I’m also curious about temperature control in a garage, what are the best options? We get real hot days here. And how many plants would you recommend for that space size?

 

[Johiem]

This is gonna take a minute.Gimme a sec . Ok refreshed. Indoor growing is more limited space wise so you can typically expect smaller plants than grown indoors. That said, I've seen a 14 footer grown indoor, she was in an arboretum but she was enormous. you say "finished sheetrock"... what about insulation? My garage is finished, but no insulation in it, cost cutting corner most home building companies exploit without homeowner knowledge.
Even with that much space, I would recommend starting small. Im not saying you can't go whole hog and dropa few grand for lights, heating, cooling, odor control and pest management. If you're going to run that whole room you'll need at least a couple dedicated circuits in your breaker box. These are all upgrades I intend for my grow... over time. But starting small will get some knowledge going and let you find out how passionate you are about growing cannabis. What kind of lighting are you planning on? Hps, LED, Quantum, halide, fluorescent, hybrid?

Keep the Qs coming i'll help as much as I can. For creds: only 2 years growing cannabis, always indoor with very limited temperature and humidity control in Oklahoma(I fully understand extreme temps and variation) , Dwc method, two tents, one flower tent and one veg, auto seedling and clone tent.

 

[Snoopy808]

Electricity. You are mostly solar? Your energy needs in that room might be greater than your solar panels and batteries can offer. Might need a generator. Lights, dehumidifier, fans, exhaust and then your basic house and living energy needs can your solar system handle it?

A garage unfinished for growing will have seasonal environmental issues to mitigate. But thats fixed with gear.
Mold loves growing on drywall. Killz paint or white primer every 6 months to keep it clean looking and mildew down.
Your 10 x 10 space should resemble more room than garage, might be worth it to frame a space, or use a tent to have a better enclosed environment.

 

[ilovereggae]

Electricity. You are mostly solar? Your energy needs in that room might be greater than your solar panels and batteries can offer. Might need a generator. Lights, dehumidifier, fans, exhaust and then your basic house and living energy needs can your solar system handle it?

A garage unfinished for growing will have seasonal environmental issues to mitigate. But thats fixed with gear.
Mold loves growing on drywall. Killz paint or white primer every 6 months to keep it clean looking and mildew down.
Your 10 x 10 space should resemble more room than garage, might be worth it to frame a space, or use a tent to have a better enclosed environment.

"mostly solar powered" makes me think @Girlswholovetogrow still has the grid available so wouldn't need a generator. first thing to find out is if the garage has an outlet that is tied to the grid directly, and what's the amps on the circuit (as well as what else is currently plugged in to that) so we can figure out how much juice is available.

I also agree that a tent is the way to go. Easier environmental control and one more layer to keep out pests.

In fact I would consider getting 2 tents so that you can keep seperate veg and flower spaces. If it were me I would try to fit a 4x8 for flower and a 4x4 for veg.

If budget allows, I would definitely go LED from the start, it will pay for itself long term with energy savings. Make sure to use a top rated brand like HLG, Fluence, Gavita etc if you are buying a pre-built fixture. You can save quite a lot and do a DIY custom strip build with even better coverage if you have the time.

AC, RH controls / exhaust etc should all be accounted for. Where in the world do you live? What is the temps/rh in the garage now in each season?

Can u give us a sketch and/or a photo of your space?

 

[Girlswholovetogrow]

"mostly solar powered" makes me think @Girlswholovetogrow still has the grid available so wouldn't need a generator. first thing to find out is if the garage has an outlet that is tied to the grid directly, and what's the amps on the circuit (as well as what else is currently plugged in to that) so we can figure out how much juice is available.

I also agree that a tent is the way to go. Easier environmental control and one more layer to keep out pests.

In fact I would consider getting 2 tents so that you can keep seperate veg and flower spaces. If it were me I would try to fit a 4x8 for flower and a 4x4 for veg.

If budget allows, I would definitely go LED from the start, it will pay for itself long term with energy savings. Make sure to use a top rated brand like HLG, Fluence, Gavita etc if you are buying a pre-built fixture. You can save quite a lot and do a DIY custom strip build with even better coverage if you have the time.

AC, RH controls / exhaust etc should all be accounted for. Where in the world do you live? What is the temps/rh in the garage now in each season?

Can u give us a sketch and/or a photo of your space?

Yes we still have some grid available. There was a 10x10 grow tent and a smaller one for clones here last year before I moved in here... I don’t know how it was hooked up but it worked... I will find out about the circuit.
I see a lot of recommendations for grow tents, I thought they yielded less that’s why I was thinking of not getting one but that is what I originally wanted to do. I have only grown outdoor 2xs, the first time just outside, second time in a greenhouse. I know indoor is completely different, so I have a lot to learn
As far as lights I definitely want to do led I just wasn’t sure on brands or watts. And i would need pre built fixtures because I would have no idea how to do a diy type of thing with that...
I’m not sure how hot the garage gets here, I have only lived in the house for 3 months. but we have hot temps here in the summer. I am in CA
I will upload a picture of my space when I get home...

 

[Girlswholovetogrow]

Electricity. You are mostly solar? Your energy needs in that room might be greater than your solar panels and batteries can offer. Might need a generator. Lights, dehumidifier, fans, exhaust and then your basic house and living energy needs can your solar system handle it?

A garage unfinished for growing will have seasonal environmental issues to mitigate. But thats fixed with gear.
Mold loves growing on drywall. Killz paint or white primer every 6 months to keep it clean looking and mildew down.
Your 10 x 10 space should resemble more room than garage, might be worth it to frame a space, or use a tent to have a better enclosed environment.

Yes we have solar but also have some grid available. This house had a tent grow before so it can handle it. I have no idea if the walls are insulated I need to check, they are all painted though. I’m thinking a tent may be worth trying...

 

[Girlswholovetogrow]

This is gonna take a minute.Gimme a sec . Ok refreshed. Indoor growing is more limited space wise so you can typically expect smaller plants than grown indoors. That said, I've seen a 14 footer grown indoor, she was in an arboretum but she was enormous. you say "finished sheetrock"... what about insulation? My garage is finished, but no insulation in it, cost cutting corner most home building companies exploit without homeowner knowledge.
Even with that much space, I would recommend starting small. Im not saying you can't go whole hog and dropa few grand for lights, heating, cooling, odor control and pest management. If you're going to run that whole room you'll need at least a couple dedicated circuits in your breaker box. These are all upgrades I intend for my grow... over time. But starting small will get some knowledge going and let you find out how passionate you are about growing cannabis. What kind of lighting are you planning on? Hps, LED, Quantum, halide, fluorescent, hybrid?

Keep the Qs coming i'll help as much as I can. For creds: only 2 years growing cannabis, always indoor with very limited temperature and humidity control in Oklahoma(I fully understand extreme temps and variation) , Dwc method, two tents, one flower tent and one veg, auto seedling and clone tent.

I want to use led lights im just not sure what kind yet. I have a friend that said he would come and set up some kind of circuit box for me. He sent me this picture ‍Is this what you mean? I am going to find out about insulation, I’m not sure yet. I have no idea... seems like a lot of users on here use tents, I was told not to use a tent, because it makes you yield a lot less so that’s why I was thinking of other options but now I’m second guessing that.

 

[Oldreefer]

Controlling your temps will be your primary issue....I ditched tent growing because of height limitations....less reflective walls now but real advantage is the light height adjustability.

 

[Johiem]

If that baby is wired in properly you're set. I wonder if they offer one half that size?

 

[ilovereggae]

I want to use led lights im just not sure what kind yet. I have a friend that said he would come and set up some kind of circuit box for me. He sent me this picture ‍Is this what you mean? I am going to find out about insulation, I’m not sure yet. I have no idea... seems like a lot of users on here use tents, I was told not to use a tent, because it makes you yield a lot less so that’s why I was thinking of other options but now I’m second guessing that.

that thing is awesome to have. it's more of a lighting controller than a breaker itself.

if you can also take a pic of your electric outlet itself, as well as your breaker panel. I am going to assume you have a standard 120V outlet but it might be 240V if it was originally for a dryer or other large appliance.

here's how to figure how the breaker and power u have available. the electric outlet in that room is wired to some circuit in your house. plug in a small lamp and turn it on. if you go to the breaker box, it might have them labeled. if not, you just turn them off one at a time until your lamp turns off. then make note of the breaker size. it will most likely be 15 or 20A. then go around and see what other outlets in your house, lights, fans etc are running from that circuit.

then you will take the total A x 120V to get total wattage for that circuit. 15A x 120V = 1800W. however since your grow lights and fans run 24/7 you want to stay at about 75% of the total. So 1400W would be about the max I would put through there. If you have a 20A circuit you could do @ 1800W. if you happen to have more than one circuit in that room then you would add the totals together.

disclaimer im not an expert and there are other members here that can give better advice. but this should give you some rough numbers as a starting point.

 

[Johiem]

How much are you looking to grow? I run a basically perpetual (variable finishing times can be irritating) I've got 3oz mimosa curing and just pulled at least 4 from a pineapple Express(still drying) and a quart jar a piece of trim for the bubble bags all from a 32"x32"x56" and a 4'x3'x6' tent. With my monster ripening right now. Im anticipating 5+ from her. It's almost to the point of finding people to give it to. I don't grow for profit, familial usage only.

 

[Rurumo]

10x10 is a huge space for someone who's never grown inside before, and a massive financial commitment. It's totally different from outdoor growing, so you will need time to dial in your space and methods before you get good at it. I'm not saying you will get a crappy harvest your first time out, you might do just fine, just be sure you can handle the time and financial commitment for something that is by no means a sure thing.

 

[OSBuds]

recommend some really good lights?

 

[DaFreak]

I’m completely new to indoor! I have a garage that I want to use a 10x10 space to grow in. I have read that you get better yields from not using a tent. Is this true? And how many lights will I need in this space? Can anyone recommend some really good lights? My home is mostly solar powered. My walls in the garage are all finished sheet rock. And I’m also curious about temperature control in a garage, what are the best options? We get real hot days here. And how many plants would you recommend for that space size?

I used about 37.5 watts of LED light per square foot. So that would be like 3750 watts of lights. I think the biggest size are like 1000w so 4 of those I guess and run them at less than full strength. As everybody as has said controlling your temps is where it's going to be a challenge. I grow with low 80s lights on and low 70s lights off in the winter and a few degrees more in summer. If it's too hot in summer then you'll probably have to grow in a closed system with Co2. That's why basements kind of rock because they are so much cooler.
Plant size is dependent on a lot of things, if you're legal how many you can grow and if not, how does the law deal with 10 huge plants vs 100 small ones etc. It's easier to get more weed with a lot of small plants than it is to get with a few large ones. I think you're looking at 25 medium sized plants. And yes, it is better to not have a tent because you get cross lighting from all the different lights and they hit more spots.


If I were going to use a space like that I would have the plants on coasters or use a rail system for rows to move a row of pants at a time and I would also love to play with light timing, in a chess board pattern using only half the lights at any given time. You'd get less than having them all on but more than only use half the wattage.

 

[ilovereggae]

10x10 is a huge space for someone who's never grown inside before, and a massive financial commitment. It's totally different from outdoor growing, so you will need time to dial in your space and methods before you get good at it. I'm not saying you will get a crappy harvest your first time out, you might do just fine, just be sure you can handle the time and financial commitment for something that is by no means a sure thing.

I agree with this too. Maybe start with a 4x4. Get everything dialed. Then add a 4x8 when you are ready to expand.

As for wattage needed, each 4x4 space will need 480-600W of LED.

HLG 600 Rspec is what I would get as far as pre-built fixtures. Might be overkill and you may need to dim it, but is best bang for your buck and will be a solid light for years to come

HLG 600 Rspec®

High Efficiency Commercial Indoor Horticulture LED grow light designed to replace a 1000watt HID with just 490 Watts. 1522 PPF @ 2.55 PPF/W. Full-spectrum. Reliable passive-cooled design. Powered by Samsung LM301H LED and Deep Red LED 660nm

horticulturelightinggroup.com