1st grow- Indoor CFL's

[emptypockets7]

So I'll start off by saying "hey" to anyone on here I haven't "met" yet. I'm new to growing but I've been smoking for a while. I've gone to a few stores over the past few days (usually Wal-Mart) and bought some stuff. I'm gonna spread out my purchases so no one gets too suspicious (overly paranoid but it's a small town- don't need this getting out any time soon). I'm going to keep a list of costs in my journal just for kicks and to help give future growers an idea of the initial cost and upkeep. I'm going to estimate my energy usage as well to calculate the cost of growing. I want to have an idea how cheap/expensive this hobby is when you do it on your own. Not gonna lie I'm kinda sick of paying $35 for mids and $60 for nugs around here when they taste like crap anyway. Homegrown is like candy.

I don't know what strain these seeds are from. My buddy had a big grow going and accidentally blew the fan on some pollen sacks and it all went shitty. He grabbed a bunch of the seeds off one of the plants and that's what I'll be growing with. I also have a bag full of good seeds (KGB, OG Kush, maybe some White Widow, etc that he gave me).

Anyway, here are my costs so far and the format. Each block of items is a separate purchase.

# of items (Cost in US dollars)- Description

3 ($6.28 )- 26W 2700K CFL (3 pack)
1 (7.89)- 26W 6500K CFL (2 pack)
1 (2.73- Fish tank thermometer
1 (4.71)- Organic Choice Potting Mix

1 (7.89)- 26W 6500K bulbs (2 pack)
3 (4.36)- Socket adapter
1 (2.65)- Aluminum Dome
1 (2.09)- Wire connectors
1 (1.56)- Electrical Tape

2 (10.07)- Fans

1 (5.82)- Tape Measure
3 (13.64)- Socket splitter

($69.67)- TOTAL

Not suspicious at all, right? Haha

I do have some items that aren't on my list so you'll just have to account for those. For example, I already own a bunch of wiring, some tape, the styrofoam, etc.

My growing spot is going to be in my closet but it's going to have to be semi-small and definitely stealth. It's going to be 18"x18"x42" so I hope to get about a 3' tall plant which should net some decent buds.

I'm going to make the box out of that pink stryofoam stuff that they use when building houses. I have some laying around and I'll be cutting it up tomorrow and building the box on Friday. The seeds are currently germinating and I started them around noon today.

Here are some pics of what I've done so far.

Closet Space

All pics relocated to Post # 37

Clothes covering where the box will be. This will help keep it hidden even if for whatever reason someone goes in my closet.


Hood (only have 4 6500k's right now but I'm considering 2 more. Only bummer is the cost. Will 2 more make a worthwhile difference?)


How the setup is mounted


Making babies


I'd like to keep this journal as uncluttered as possible so if you have any questions/comments, please PM them to me and if I think it's worthy, I'll post it in the journal and give you credit and +rep.

Thanks for stopping by. This should be a fun.

(Anyone know how to scale down the pics? I don't want this thread to take forever for people to load. They'll quit stopping by. Haha)

 

[ImarriedMARY]

very clever lights i have the same things you have y sockets and the outlet sockets too but never thought of this. that is a good idea

 

[emptypockets7]

very clever lights i have the same things you have y sockets and the outlet sockets too but never thought of this. that is a good idea

Thanks man. I saw the idea on here somewhere but it's basically what I had in my head from the start.

UPDATE: I've got all my measurements and I have the box pieces cut. Now I just have to build the box and then line it(Tin foil, Mylar, White paint). I'm probably going to go with tin foil because I can't find Mylar around here but maybe I'm just blind. It should be assembled around noon tomorrow and I'll get more pics. I need to get the fans in it and I need to run all the wiring but that shouldn't take too long. Also, the seeds should be about ready to go in the dirt.



When I said not to post in here, I didn't mean to come off like a dick- I just meant don't have convos and stuff. I want this to be easy for new growers to find stuff. I don't want them to have to search through pages of us talking. Feel free to stop in a say "hey" or "looking good" like ImarriedMARY did though.

 

[ImarriedMARY]

Thanks man. I saw the idea on here somewhere but it's basically what I had in my head from the start.

UPDATE: I've got all my measurements and I have the box pieces cut. Now I just have to build the box and then line it(Tin foil, Mylar, White paint). I'm probably going to go with tin foil because I can't find Mylar around here but maybe I'm just blind. It should be assembled around noon tomorrow and I'll get more pics. I need to get the fans in it and I need to run all the wiring but that shouldn't take too long. Also, the seeds should be about ready to go in the dirt.



When I said not to post in here, I didn't mean to come off like a dick- I just meant don't have convos and stuff. I want this to be easy for new growers to find stuff. I don't want them to have to search through pages of us talking. Feel free to stop in a say "hey" or "looking good" like ImarriedMARY did though.

yeah i can't find mylar either so i was going to get either glossy or matte white paint for my growbox (that's where i've got my clone) but i also didn't see the don't post in here sorry but yeah it looks nice so far i've got mine doing lst

 

[emptypockets7]

Ugh! I'm way too busy with life right now. I got the box built in only a few hours. I had to rush because I had to work and the g/f was coming over afterwards. It turned out alright but the biggest problem is that I built it out of insulation. I guess I just wasn't thinking because it holds the heat in pretty bad. With 4 26W CFL's going, the box was over 90 degrees so I unscrewed 2 of them. Now it's down to around 75-80. One seed took off like a rocket but the other is really slow. I almost started over tonight but then I checked it and it ended up sprouting. I have 3 more seeds germinating because I don't want to get all males a few weeks down the road. I'll keep the strongest looking plants and only grow 2 in the box (it's gonna be a tight squeeze). I still need to take care of some light leaks but I'll handle those once I get the venting taken care of. Extra holes means extra ventilation.

I bought more stuff but need to find the receipts to post more prices. I also didn't use a few items so I'll be returning them to get some refunds.

I bought chain to hang the light fixture on but haven't had time to assemble it. I used string for now because it was a quick/easy fix and I needed to get to work but wanted my plants to get some light ASAP.

Here are some pics so far.

Stealth box in my closet

Sprouts



Intake fan


Exhaust fan


Lights (Only have 2 going and I have room for 6!! I need better ventilation without too much light leak and noise)


Temp guages (don't need 2 but I wanted to see how accurate they were and they both read the exact same temp)

 

[ImarriedMARY]

i would put the lights as close as you can to the cup (like an inch or 2) so your plant doesn't stretch

 

[emptypockets7]

i would put the lights as close as you can to the cup (like an inch or 2) so your plant doesn't stretch

Thanks man. I never knew that was why you put the light so close to them. I'll see how easy this will be to lower it. Chains would be SO much easier.

 

[emptypockets7]

FEEL FREE TO POST IN HERE



I'm new to this site and to growing so feel free to post in this journal. I thought it would be nice to keep it from being cluttered but if I'm doing something wrong, I'd rather have someone speak up ASAP for me and for the future growers who might read this.

Any advice/tips/tricks would be awesome or just drop in to say what's up.

 

[blaze1camp]

nice space i got the same y splitters they work out nice...Im on my first grow also so good look heres a pic of my little cabinet...yeah keeping um close is a must mine are only 4 inches and going on 3 weeks since sprout.

also if thats foil on your walls you may want to swap that out for something else go to wal-mart and get an emergency blanket there in the camping section under $3.00...

 

[emptypockets7]

nice space i got the same y splitters they work out nice...Im on my first grow also so good look heres a pic of my little cabinet...yeah keeping um close is a must mine are only 4 inches and going on 3 weeks since sprout.

also if thats foil on your walls you may want to swap that out for something else go to wal-mart and get an emergency blanket there in the camping section under $3.00...

What's with the different colored lights? Do you have 6500's and 2700's in there at the same time?

Also, what's in the bottle and the shot glass? So far I've just been watering with plain tap water after letting it sit out for 24 hours. I'm going to try to find some nutrients but it's slim-pickings around here this time of year.

I put a box under my cups today to raise the plants up since I can't lower the lights easily. I turned a 3rd light on and the temps are staying around 80. Too hot?

I have heard that tin foil is bad for the plants but why exactly? I'll hopefully do some renovations this weekend including a filter and another exhaust fan.

I have them in party cups now but I plan to move them to larger pots with drain holes and a dish to prevent root -rot.

So how soon after they sprout do you switch to a non 24-0 cycle? I waited a day and switched them to 20-4. The little one that was having issues took off today. Between 8am and 11am it seriously grew half an inch. I didn't know they could do that!

PS- I feel like I have children. Haha. I woke up this morning and normally I snooze for a bit but I jumped outta bed and ran to check on them. They were definitely thirsty.

 

[ImarriedMARY]

What's with the different colored lights? Do you have 6500's and 2700's in there at the same time?

Also, what's in the bottle and the shot glass? So far I've just been watering with plain tap water after letting it sit out for 24 hours. I'm going to try to find some nutrients but it's slim-pickings around here this time of year.

I put a box under my cups today to raise the plants up since I can't lower the lights easily. I turned a 3rd light on and the temps are staying around 80. Too hot?

I have heard that tin foil is bad for the plants but why exactly? I'll hopefully do some renovations this weekend including a filter and another exhaust fan.

I have them in party cups now but I plan to move them to larger pots with drain holes and a dish to prevent root -rot.

So how soon after they sprout do you switch to a non 24-0 cycle? I waited a day and switched them to 20-4. The little one that was having issues took off today. Between 8am and 11am it seriously grew half an inch. I didn't know they could do that!

PS- I feel like I have children. Haha. I woke up this morning and normally I snooze for a bit but I jumped outta bed and ran to check on them. They were definitely thirsty.

here read my post and then read rosemans post
https://www.rollitup.org/indoor-growing/267086-confused-lighting.html#post3349610

plain tap that has been sitting out is great better then just straight tap but have you checked it's pH?

80 is just fine


the tin foil creates hot spots for the plant it's kinda like putting a magnifying glass to an ant

thats awesome you can wait til there a little bigger

leave them on any cycle but don't keep changing it you can go from 24/0 - 20/4 but it's better to put it 18/6 instead


an they are your babies

 

[ImarriedMARY]

are you growing in soil or rockwool? or what? be careful not to overwater that's one of the easiest things you can do

 

[emptypockets7]

here read my post and then read rosemans post
https://www.rollitup.org/indoor-growing/267086-confused-lighting.html#post3349610

plain tap that has been sitting out is great better then just straight tap but have you checked it's pH?

80 is just fine


the tin foil creates hot spots for the plant it's kinda like putting a magnifying glass to an ant

thats awesome you can wait til there a little bigger

leave them on any cycle but don't keep changing it you can go from 24/0 - 20/4 but it's better to put it 18/6 instead


an they are your babies

I have not checked the pH yet. Gonna grab some testing stuff the next time I'm at the store.

Hmm... Definitely don't want to toast my plants. Hopefully the camping section is still fully stocked.

I'll switch it up to 18-6 tomorrow. I wanted to give them a little time at 24-0, ease them to 20-4, and then ease them a little more until I get to 12-12.

are you growing in soil or rockwool? or what? be careful not to overwater that's one of the easiest things you can do

Just in organic soil right now. I can't find perlite around here anywhere. Gonna go try a greenhouse (might be closed for the season) to find something to aerate the soil.

Since they're in clear cups, I can see the water level in the bottom of the cup and I can feel the dryness on the top. I've just been watering them when I see that the water in the bottom of the cup is gone and the top is starting to dry out. What kind of schedule do you go off?

 

[ImarriedMARY]

I have not checked the pH yet. Gonna grab some testing stuff the next time I'm at the store.

Hmm... Definitely don't want to toast my plants. Hopefully the camping section is still fully stocked.

I'll switch it up to 18-6 tomorrow. I wanted to give them a little time at 24-0, ease them to 20-4, and then ease them a little more until I get to 12-12.



Just in organic soil right now. I can't find perlite around here anywhere. Gonna go try a greenhouse (might be closed for the season) to find something to aerate the soil.

Since they're in clear cups, I can see the water level in the bottom of the cup and I can feel the dryness on the top. I've just been watering them when I see that the water in the bottom of the cup is gone and the top is starting to dry out. What kind of schedule do you go off?

yeah thats fine

yeah

and do straight 24/0 til there in veg not just sprout then go 18/6 cause if you ease it it may cause more stress then going from 24/0 to 18/6 to 12/12 it's less light change

that's what i've got backyard compost (sifted) no perlites either yet but my drainage is just fine and you don't want water to stay in the bottom you want drainage so one you don't drown your roots and it keeps them clean and healthy and clear cups aren't the best either cause roots shouldn't get any light

and the watering schedule by what your saying is so far good

 

[emptypockets7]

yeah thats fine

yeah

and do straight 24/0 til there in veg not just sprout then go 18/6 cause if you ease it it may cause more stress then going from 24/0 to 18/6 to 12/12 it's less light change

that's what i've got backyard compost (sifted) no perlites either yet but my drainage is just fine and you don't want water to stay in the bottom you want drainage so one you don't drown your roots and it keeps them clean and healthy and clear cups aren't the best either cause roots shouldn't get any light

and the watering schedule by what your saying is so far good

How do you know when they switch from sprout to veg?

How do you water yours? I've heard some people flood it til the bubbles stop and then let it drain out of the bottom. I'm gonna try that method next.

I'm either going to cover the clear in tape or switch them to dark party cups. I thought I'd heard somewhere about roots not getting light or it's a bad thing. You just confirmed it.

I took some more pics. I have 5 seeds going right now and 4 are sprouts. The 5th I just planted today. I wish I would've just germed 5 or 6 in the first place but live and learn.

2 6500K's and 1 2700K

I wish I wasn't doing a stealth grow. Then I could run all my lights and more fans/exhaust/venting. Gonna keep tinkering with it though. Planning on putting in a 2nd exhaust fan and an oscillating fan as soon as the plants get tall enough and I can fit it all under the light hood.

 

[DaCDaC]

Yo! Whats up EP!

great grow so far! I just read through the whole grow real quick and everything is looking good.
Just a couple suggestions Ill make : )

Deff. Keep your lights 1-3 inches from your plants.
80 is fine but wouldint let it go much over that.
When they sprout, switch to 20/4 or 18/6,doesint matter which one, there both fine.
ya cover the cups with duct tape. Right now isint so important, But when they start getting alot bigger then you want the roots to have no light.
The flood method of watering is more for an older plant that can recover easily. A seedling cant. Water about 1/4cup of water daily for the first week,itll be fine.
Foil is fine just as long as your temps are staying down. but you do have a reflector on your lights so a lining on the walls isint doing much anyway. your light is already directed.
About the pH thing. I wouldint go out and buy a pH tester. At wallyworld the gallons of water (green lid-78Cents) are Reverse-Osmosis treated. So its pH buffered. The pH will stay at a perfect 6.8.

When you transplant(2 or so weeks) the soil I suggest is at wallyworld, Its the Miracle Grow like basic mix or somthing. Watch out, Dont get the african violet mix or anything odd like that.(will cause problems later)


Well Thats pretty much all I can think of for now! lol! I have to go check on my babies now! : P

Subbed and +REP for the great job so far!
Ill be following this one!



Laters
DaCDaC

 

[emptypockets7]

Yo! Whats up EP!

great grow so far! I just read through the whole grow real quick and everything is looking good.
Just a couple suggestions Ill make : )

Deff. Keep your lights 1-3 inches from your plants.
80 is fine but wouldint let it go much over that.
When they sprout, switch to 20/4 or 18/6,doesint matter which one, there both fine.
ya cover the cups with duct tape. Right now isint so important, But when they start getting alot bigger then you want the roots to have no light.
The flood method of watering is more for an older plant that can recover easily. A seedling cant. Water about 1/4cup of water daily for the first week,itll be fine.
Foil is fine just as long as your temps are staying down. but you do have a reflector on your lights so a lining on the walls isint doing much anyway. your light is already directed.
About the pH thing. I wouldint go out and buy a pH tester. At wallyworld the gallons of water (green lid-78Cents) are Reverse-Osmosis treated. So its pH buffered. The pH will stay at a perfect 6.8.

When you transplant(2 or so weeks) the soil I suggest is at wallyworld, Its the Miracle Grow like basic mix or somthing. Watch out, Dont get the african violet mix or anything odd like that.(will cause problems later)


Well Thats pretty much all I can think of for now! lol! I have to go check on my babies now! : P

Subbed and +REP for the great job so far!
Ill be following this one!



Laters
DaCDaC

Oh I know I really want to lower the light but I gotta find time to get the chains hooked up right. I couldn't find exactly what I wanted so I'm gonna have to build it kinda janky. I'm SO busy right now. I called in sick today from work just to try to get my life straightened out. Sucks because I need money to pay the bills but wow is everything hectic right now. I think it's the holidays...

So right now in their current state, should I have it on 24-0 still or back it off to 18-6/20-4?

I'll try to get the cups covered or replaced soon. If I transplant them into new cups but leave the dirt unharmed, will the plants know any better? I don't want to freak them out this early.

1/4 cup daily, huh? I'll give it a shot. Last night I took a razor blade and cut slits and holes in the bottom of each cup and man it was a mess!! Some just dripped but some poured! I'm SO glad I did it. I'd hate for that water to sit in there killing my babies.

The weather just got a lot cooler (easily dropped 10-20 degrees in the past week or 2) and my temps are way down. I'm sitting at around 70-80 lately with the lights on. It's still on 24-0 so I'll let you know what the temps are when the lights are off.

I put the foil on the walls to help reflect light to the lower leaves. Once they get big and bushy, I figured it would help to get the lower leaves a little better. Not to mention my box is made with that pink styrofoam stuff so it keeps all light inside the box.

I'll go check out that water at Wal-Mart tomorrow. That sounds like a nice solution to save me from having to do all the pH testing crap. Thanks for that tip (which will also save me money- until they get big and thirsty anyway. Haha)!!

The Wal-Mart here is pretty much fresh out of gardening stuff. They've switched over to Christmas and snow related stuff. There are a few local hardware stores in the area that probably have some summer stuff still sitting on their shelves.

Thanks for all the advice! +rep for sure! I really appreciate the help.

 

[fk13]

nice bro hope your plants live but what are you going to do then someone comes over and is about the put there coats away??? hope your little brother dont jack your shit

 

[emptypockets7]

nice bro hope your plants live but what are you going to do then someone comes over and is about the put there coats away??? hope your little brother dont jack your shit

Man every time someone comes into my room I'm paranoid they're gonna look in the closet (for no reason- I'm just on edge about it. Haha)

I don't live with any relatives so I don't have to worry about that part. This closet is in my room so no one puts their coats in there either. My only worry is if my g/f decides to do my laundry or something (yeah, right...) or if one of my buddy's needs something. My housemate sent me a text the other day asking to borrow my hair buzzers and they're in my closet- MAN I got home fast. I walked in the front door and he was already getting his hair cut and my heart stopped but then I realized he was using his own clippers.

We kind of have a "free reign" policy where we go in each others rooms to get stuff because we know we're not gonna steal. I sort of want to end this but I feel like it would send up a red flag.

 

[ImarriedMARY]

Oh I know I really want to lower the light but I gotta find time to get the chains hooked up right. I couldn't find exactly what I wanted so I'm gonna have to build it kinda janky. I'm SO busy right now. I called in sick today from work just to try to get my life straightened out. Sucks because I need money to pay the bills but wow is everything hectic right now. I think it's the holidays...

So right now in their current state, should I have it on 24-0 still or back it off to 18-6/20-4?

I'll try to get the cups covered or replaced soon. If I transplant them into new cups but leave the dirt unharmed, will the plants know any better? I don't want to freak them out this early.

1/4 cup daily, huh? I'll give it a shot. Last night I took a razor blade and cut slits and holes in the bottom of each cup and man it was a mess!! Some just dripped but some poured! I'm SO glad I did it. I'd hate for that water to sit in there killing my babies.

The weather just got a lot cooler (easily dropped 10-20 degrees in the past week or 2) and my temps are way down. I'm sitting at around 70-80 lately with the lights on. It's still on 24-0 so I'll let you know what the temps are when the lights are off.

I put the foil on the walls to help reflect light to the lower leaves. Once they get big and bushy, I figured it would help to get the lower leaves a little better. Not to mention my box is made with that pink styrofoam stuff so it keeps all light inside the box.

I'll go check out that water at Wal-Mart tomorrow. That sounds like a nice solution to save me from having to do all the pH testing crap. Thanks for that tip (which will also save me money- until they get big and thirsty anyway. Haha)!!

The Wal-Mart here is pretty much fresh out of gardening stuff. They've switched over to Christmas and snow related stuff. There are a few local hardware stores in the area that probably have some summer stuff still sitting on their shelves.

Thanks for all the advice! +rep for sure! I really appreciate the help.

i didn't even know that about the water i'll check it out i have a water pH kit but not soil (unfortunately my tap is about 7.2) and same over here our walmart in the gardening section is x-mas, toys, and only one thing for the garden (bug killer) lol

and foil creates hot spots i use it too but it can cause heat stress to the plant that's why people use and suggest white walls or mylar