A noob's guide to doin it right the 1st time

Yeah, I know. But it's like getting a light saber and being told you can't use it or something. I'm just anxious to get started since I've been planning and saving for about 4 months now, and the only thing I'm really waiting on is my beans.

whatd u end up doing for ventilation?

well, i've decided to modify my plan. i'm looking at a 465cfm inline fan just for my filter, and using the 250cfm duct fan for cooling the cooltube. i think part of my problem was that i was trying to use just 1 fan with such long duct work, it was reducing the fan's effectiveness. so i will be using the lower vent port for intake for the light, and keeping the fan on the upper vent port. i wasn't taking in any fresh cool air with the old setup, and trying to filter AND exhaust the air all at once.

in the meantime, i've found the only way to keep temps down it to leave the hut unzipped halfway and the closet open all the way. this is going to suck because i sleep in that room, so i'll be getting only 6 hours of sleep while my light is off until i get the other fan.

after playing around with the setup some more, i've come to realize that my problem is in fact my duct fan. it seems to blow just as much air as it sucks, meaning that the blow-back equals the amount of air output. essentially, this is what i get for buying a cheap fan.

so for those of you out there in rollitupland, beware of the pre-wired 250cfm duct fans. while they seem like a bargain, they are cheaply made and essentially worthless. i have a hunch it may have something to do with the cheap plastic fan blades, but who knows. i'm pissed at myself for wasting $40 on this worthless contraption, and setting this project back at least another 2 weeks.

i am quickly becoming frustrated with all of this, and i haven't even received my seeds yet. i'm beginning to contemplate just saying fuck it and selling all this crap on ebay for uber cheap just so i can have my fucking closet back. i haven't had a reliable source for smoke for the last 3 months as my dealer has been on the DL, but i found out last night he may be back in it. so $90 for an oz. of regs it looking pretty good compared to the $900 i've spent on this project which has yet to go anywhere at all. not to mention the waiting for probably another 4 months for the grow to complete assuming i ever get my seeds.

hate to say it but growin really isnt for everyone. sux about the seeds not arriving and the fan sucking ass, but what can ya do ya know?

Thats a huge reason why ppl decide to start with small bagseed/fluoro grows, to keep the cost low and to work on growing techniques/working out the bugs.

If U can, u should practice germinating and getting some bagseeds started off as this is usually the hardest part about growing for 1st timers. hopefully by the time u get it down, you can get ur real grow underway.

Don't give up now, you're almost to the good part. It's fun watching your plants progress. I just switched mine to 12/12 for the first time to start flowering, about an hour ago. They've been in veg now for 38 days, but it seems like just yesterday I was ordering my seeds, and my hydro setup online. I remember being very anxious to get everything up and running too. I'm glad I didn't rush things, because I have changed a lot of my original plans for the better, based on the excellent advice I have received from people on these forums.

^^^im with him

after having slept on it, i have come to my senses. i have been offered some good advice about the heat situation which i will try this evening. i'm glad this has come up before i actually had a grow going, cause that would have sucked a hell of a lot more. thanks for your advice guys!

the problem with the inline fan seems to be my 6 inch to 4 inch reducer. it is creating too much back-pressure, causing the fan to expel air from both ends simultaneously instead of pulling through one end and out the other. the problem is that my particular model of the HydroHut comes with 4 inch holes and flanges. there are only 2 solutions i can see here: 1, buy 6 inch flanges and cut larger holes in the HydroHut to allow for increased airflow or 2, buy a 4 inch inline and figure out something else to do with the 6 inch. any of you guys have other ideas here which may work?

i'd go with the 6" and cut bigger holes. more is better when it comes to airflow.

i was thinking the same thing, but wanted to avoid cutting if at all possible. it's looking like it's not possible. i posted a thread about this problem, but i think my question has already been answered

beans arrived today!!!!

gotta sleep now though so no germination until tomorrow

Northern Lights and AK 48 here I come!!!!!

congrads,,, did u get your temps under control?

not yet, as i'm still waiting for pay day, however i do have a plan

updates: ok, so i got my seeds. i currently have them soaking while i have my rockwool soaking in water ph adjusted to 5.5

i ended up performing surgery on my HydroHut to cure it of its anemic airflow problem. as of now, with just the 6 inch duct fan, temps hover at around 86 degrees with about 37% humidity. this is of course without water in my reservoirs.

i took base measurements of my water to find it's not as bad as i thought. it's about 7.13 Ph out of the tap, and precisely 342 ppm. i have made note of this in a little log i'm starting. so......today is pay day. i might end up getting another 6 inch duct fan today so I can hook it up to the cooltube, further cooling the whole setup down

so tomorrow, everything goes in the hut to begin my exciting first grow! i will have pictures up either late tonight or early tomorrow morning to show how i fixed my ventilation problem in case any others have similar problems with their huts as well.

that's all for now

pictures were promised, so pictures there will be! i know you guys like this eye candy.

i am currently soaking my rock wool cubes in 5.5 PH water to get them ready to accept my seeds. reservoirs are filled and air curtains running.

fyi, this HydroHut is customized to accept a 6 inch duct fan. this is just a temporary solution however. what i did was trace the circumference of the fan on the inside and make 8 cuts on the cardinal compass points to the edge of the circle and apply with duct tape. later on i will actually use 6 inch collars (available at your local home dePOT) and drill holes to make a secure connection. i still have yet to purchase another 6 inch for a closed loop system just for my cooltube, but all things in due time

thanks for turning on, tuning in and dropping out. i hope you guys are taking notes, cause i am

updates updates.....

so on the 6th i put my beans in a wet paper towel using FDD's method of germination. today, i noticed some action so i got my butt in gear and did a few things. first things first, i needed to get the Ph of my water down, it had climbed up to around 8.5 in my reservoirs which i had let set w/ bubbles going for over 24 hours to let the chlorine evaporate. after that, i shook out the excess water in my rockwool cubes and ran my hydroton under water for a long time. then i placed my seeds/pot nymphs in their respective cubes and transferred the whole lot to the grow chamber. it took me a little while to figure out how to program my timer, as it's one of those fancy digital models. so i have my light running now just to test and see if it will turn off when i told it to. if so, we're all set except for a few odds n' ends here and there. right now my light is about 18 inches above the sproutlings which hopefully won't be too close. i only germed half my seeds in case i screw up, i still have some more. well, now the game really begins! wish me luck!

the first pic is the whole setup. the 2nd pic is my NL all star, and the last two are my AK all stars

lookin good, hows the temps? also you better cover that rockwool or youll get algy.

sweet deal man cant wait to see how your grow turns out

well i'm fairly happy with everything thus far. today was the first day running everything 18/6. timer kicked on like it was supposed to, and on time. temps never got above 86 which is good considering i still haven't been able to use my cooltube properly. there's some action in my rockwool cubes. my rudimentary germination skills got a bump which is good cause i see i have some that aren't going to make it. i'll probably soak some more tomorrow and plop in some more seeds. also, this is my 420th post!!!!!!!!!