1st time grow. err..help?

started off with bagseed in a 3x3x3 cardboard box with leds. they sucked.
went out and bought a 400w hps badboy and a basic clip-on fitting. do i need a reflector? ive got a wardrobe thats 6ft tall 4 ft wide and 1.5 foot deep. have i gone a bit overkill?
i need to drill some holes and get a fan or 2 in there it seems.
ive gone from 2 10w led panels to a 400w hps. hopefully ill see some improvment

thats a pretty big fuckin jump but you can manage if you are willing to put time into it. That 400W is going to make your closet very hot so you could use a fan to circulate air and something else to help extract the heat...you can get some kind of fan that attaches to your light that draws heat out through a tube. I would advise using the reflector unless you have paneled your wardrobe with mylar

yeah well my 1st batch are looking way too long and leggy and theyv gone into bud with only a small little bud in the middle of each plant, maybe the size of a british 5 pence piece. bearing in mind that the plants are over 3ft tall each.
im going to line it with kitchen foil and get a few small desk fans to pump air in and out thru holes i will drill.
mylar is a bit expensive for me. i could probably make a reflector out of some old aluminium i have.
i am only planning on growing 2 plants under this light but i intended them to be super plants so thats why i got the light. im pretty learned with all the soil and watering ways so thats all good.

Do not use kitchen foil, it is designed to keep heat in, not reflect light, you could cook your plants, especially if you have no extraction. For that sized space, you can get mylar for a few £ or flat white paint will be better than cooking foil. You will need an oscillating fan for air movement, this helps simulate wind and strengthens the stem and stops mould. You will also need an inlune fan for air exchange. This is needed to replace the air because the plants use the CO2 in the air which needs replacing. You needd to exchange the volume of air in the space at least every 2 mins, I prefer 2x per min. Length x Width X Height = volume x2 gives 2 exchanges per min. Add 15% for a bend in ducting and add 25% for a carbon filter. This calculation will tell you how powerful a fan you need to get for the space. Buy one too big, you remove humidity and waste energy, too small, you get heat build up and the plants cant breath properly. W

im starting to think hps is pretty complicated for a first-timer hahah.
since ive got my bulb. ive realised i need a reflector, a ballast, a carbon filter, ducting..
this all seems very complicated when most of my friends are guerrilla gardening and are just saying whack the suckers in my garden and hope for the best.
but i realy want to utilize this wardrobe, and ive found a cheap ballast and reflector for my 400w. i was wandering if the carbon filter and ducting was necessary as i have a hole right next to where i would hang the light where i can fit an exhaust fan. and there is also another hole at the bottom wich i can fit an intake. the door is also very big and could be left open.

You'll need to keep that door closed for flowering. Carbon filter is optional, I don't use one.

ok cool, just won an auction on fleebay for a 400w ballast and reflector. nice n cheap at 40 pounds.
got 2 fans, going to fit them to the holes today.
the ballast and reflector should come tomorow so ill hang that in there and fit the bulb.
not going to go for a carbon filter. why will i need to keep the door closed?

buddt43 said:

why will i need to keep the door closed?

Click to expand...

So you can flower your plants properly. The plants will need 12 continuous hours of darkness. Screwing this phase of the grow cycle will either produce lower quality buds, or worse, turn your plants into hermies depending on the severity of the light leak.

^yeaman... forget to close it at lights off or forget to open it at lights on... fuck up your grow

400 should be fine just keep the girls short and have plenty of air flow in and out fan would be good,mylar or the like would make it better,try and light seal the drobe best you can also less is more when it comes to nute dont over feed so easy to do if quants are followed on nute bottles,all the best and blucky

That 400w will greatly improve your grow! You've started down the right path to a solid indoor grow. I suggest refining this wardrobe.

just think about...
Where does the hole in the wall lead, this is where will you be venting your heat/odor.
How many plants do you want? That may change your mind about a filter once those babies bud!

ive got 2 in flower at the moment, these are just bag seed, on 2x10w led panels (buds are small and only in the centre on the top node, just starting for on the 2nd lowest node)
ive got 2 auto northern lights, also sharing the light but are elevated to 3 inches below the light.
all in all i only want a max of 2 plants, the 2 budding ones will finish and ill just keep the 2 autos.
i have lights on in day and off at night, currently set to a 9am-9pm. so even if i leave the door open, no daylight gets to them and i only use a small desk lamp next to my computer on the otherside of the room if at all as i dont realy need it due to me being asleep by 12pm and i normally chill out downstairs untill then.
so im thinking, once i get this HPS set up i can intall the fans, and leave the door open and tha will keep the temp sweet.
also the air would just be vented thru the house out the windows of the back-side of the house onto fields and old people. plus if i only have 2-3 plants i didnt think the smell would be so much of a problem.

also, if i am just using 1 400w hps and have the fans going and the door open, would there be any danger of the feds detecting the heat from the bulb?

absolutely no worries on heat and police dude! throw that one out the window. Old people on the other hand tend to be nosy and don't think they are stupid either, they've been around the block and if you're plants are dank enough, count on those old people to:
a.)know what it is
b.)find out where its coming from
2 plants you're fine in my book on anything though, and keeping the door open will def keep down heat. I'd say you're good to go. only thing is with the doors open, you allow light to escape. light escaping is light your plants arnt using.

that sounds like great advice guys, love it.
as for the nosy oldies, the air has to go thru the house to get out, by that time my dirty roomate's room of doom would of masked the smell hahahah...stinky bastard.

good luck man!

sorry for complete lack of punctuality. i completely orgot about this thread when i harvest. the bud turned shitty. got 2 oz dry of sour/citrusy buds. not too nice, shuda cured but it was alright. check out my other thread, 4x4 600w scrog