Building single-plant growbox, I want your opinions!

Fractus said:

Tonight is my plant's first 12/12 day. I'm gonna keep a close eye on it and hope it doesn't grow balls

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Hey fractus, ya shithead!

I see you've switched to 12/12, but have you wrapped that cooler up in some duct tape or something to not let light get in (seeing as it glows like hell when the lights are on, I'm sure light gets in too)?? Have you made some sort of light trap for your fans/intake holes so light doesn't get it? huh? HUH?!? Just hoping ya didnt forget about light leaks bro.

By the way, what is the age of your plants now? Do ya know the exact day?

i think he has the grow box inside the closet so as long as he stays out of the closet during dark time light leaks should be a nonproblem

Fractus said:

I'm already running 2 x 2700K's and 2 x 6500K's ever since I transplanted. I do have 2 extra 2700K's with mounts just laying here though so maybe tossing that in will help "her".

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absolutely more light will help. you cant over do it with cfls. why would you move the light up when you switch to 12/12? you should probably wait till it starts to stretch and really get close to the lights before you move them. otherwise your just asking it to stretch more.

well it just doesn't have any height at all, but the lights are quite low over it and I want it to use up all of the space it has, right now you can tell it's height is very restricted by where my lights are. I think I'm gonna have 6 cfls about 6 inches higher than it is now, i'll show you what I mean when I do it and i'll post some pics.

Yes it is safe in my closet but I drape a blanket over it anyway that has holes cut in it for ventilation purposes

When growing with CFL'S, its best to keep the lights within 2" of the plant.

They are going to be stretching anyway because of flower and the change to red spectrum light (2700k). Therefore, moving the lights up away from the plants at a distance of greater than 2" will only add to this stretching effect, which, in your particular situation, is not desirable.

ive only grown once but i think this is a great idea i read this whole thread and im gonna follow this cuz i might try something similar. are you adding any nutes to the soil?

Right now the lights are less than 2 inches from the leaves, but it really doesn't matter because I haven't raised them for quite some time and when I did it just raised to the lights and stopped there. So if I raise my lights (also considering the dynamics of my "glow-box" and the albedo of styofoam) the plant will grow up and out in all directions and then slow down when it reaches the lights again. The biggest it is going to get in there from what I've observed is the space that I give it. As far as Kelvins go, I think I want to invest in 2 more bulbs, but 4500K. So then I would have 3x6500s promoting leaf surface to increase my photosynthesis, and the 2x4500s which peak at the optimum part of the red range used in the chlorophyll, and also 3x2700s for even longer wavelengths. Really recreating the sun inside a box.

Fractus said:

Right now the lights are less than 2 inches from the leaves, but it really doesn't matter because I haven't raised them for quite some time and when I did it just raised to the lights and stopped there. So if I raise my lights (also considering the dynamics of my "glow-box" and the albedo of styofoam) the plant will grow up and out in all directions and then slow down when it reaches the lights again. The biggest it is going to get in there from what I've observed is the space that I give it. As far as Kelvins go, I think I want to invest in 2 more bulbs, but 4500K. So then I would have 3x6500s promoting leaf surface to increase my photosynthesis, and the 2x4500s which peak at the optimum part of the red range used in the chlorophyll, and also 3x2700s for even longer wavelengths. Really recreating the sun inside a box.

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Sounds Pretty good. I can't Find any 6500k CFLs around my town... so all I've got is 4 5300k, 2 3500k, 2 2700k and another big 2700k... My grow has moved along quite nicely since we started talking on your thread Fractus, you should check out my journal! ;D

I'ma keep my fingers crossed for ya that ur plant turns out female! (hope mine do too lol, I'm going 12/12 in 3 days.)

after the changes you made would the whole setup still be under 112?

sweet island skunk09 said:

after the changes you made would the whole setup still be under 112?

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To be honest I don't really know. I've made so many changes I wasn't keeping track. But now that I have it finished I could probably put a parts list here with approximate prices so you will know how much it costs start to finish to build one just like it. I'll post it in a little bit.

I like your setup, very cost efficient especially for your growing goal... you propbably could use that same setup and grow a couple lowryders in there...im a cfl and low budget grower also so i like what you have done...considering making a box like yours as an early vegg room than have my current room be a flowering room...good job

Thanks dude! Here check it out, this is a list with rounded values of what it would probably to cost to build from nothing.

Item (Quantity) = Approximate $ Value
Styrofoam Cooler with cover (2) = $20
80mm 35cfm Computer fan (2) = $30 (You could use other less expensive fans that I'm sure would work just as well)
12v DC adapter for fans = $8
Light Bulbs (6) = $18
Light sockets (3) = $9
Socket Y-Splitters (3) = $9
Basic 24h On/Off Timer (1) = $8
Extension cords (3) = $6
Duct Tape (1) = $5
Thermometer/Humidity-meter (1) = $7
Activated Carbon (1) = $10
Total = $150

Yesterday I woke up and my room stunk like hell, so I made a new carbon filter. I built it out a 2litre milk carton, cut out the sides and put screening on the inside of it, taped all of the edges inside the carton. Then I took a longer strip of screen and rolled up the outside of the carton with it, taped around the bottom, filled up each compartment on all four sides of the carton with activated carbon. Taped the opening, and mounted it over my exhaust fan. Not a hint of any odour coming through it. All I paid for was the carbon, the screen was a busted one from a window Here's a couple pics of the attached finished product:



Got the blanket draped over it in this pic. Keeps it nice and dark.
Now for whoever's interested, a couple recent pics from INSIDE the box:




Still too early to tell if it's a guy or a girl but the nodes are swelled up huge now compared to two days ago before changing the lights. I think it will have definitive genitals in 2 days time lol

what a little bush fractus! def one of the best first time grows ive followed. i dont think ive seen your plant hurt once, and thats almost unheard of for new growers. i have to give you mad respect for sticking to your original design no matter what people said. and im just amazed how good your plant looks for being >20 days old

haha thanks dude! it seems like the secret is to starve the plant. I rarely fed it and only gave it very very small doses of that Miracle Gro shit simply because it is Miracle Gro. I couldn't find any Fox Farms stuff locally and didn't want to order over the internet. I never overwatered, I water once every two to three days just enough to soak my soil, wait for it to dry out almost all the way to the bottom, really forcing my roots to stretch and get every last bit of moisture and then soak them and it explodes 12 hours after watering every time. I'm pretty surprised at how quickly it grew up too. If it's a boy then I'll be flowering a new one in another 20-30 days anyway And thanks again for stickin with me all along the way haha. I'll probably never stop growing for the rest of my life now though. It's fun as hell.

Fractus... what can I say...

Your plant looks real healthy...

Smells healthy too haha, but we both know it probably would't look half as pretty if you weren't a part of it. If confidentiality wasn't such an issue I'd mail you a taste lol

Thanks dude...

But you're the one doing it...

Have you started thinking about the next grow?

I would love to see you out of the $20 foam cooler and into a $50 tent...

I am still so afraid of a malfunctioning CFL melting the foam and starting a fire...

But...

Your plant looks really good...

...but I love my cooler lol. Someday I might do that but I don't think I need to try upgrading anymore for a while. I want to hang onto this setup until I move out of this apartment a few months down the road. I found something simple that works. Again I understand your concern, but I'm quite confident in my knowledge of electronics and I'm reallllly sure that thing won't set fire. I can't risk having a fire hazard here anymore than you can, but frankly my laptop is more likely to ignite the wooden desk it sits on than my styrofoam igniting from a CFL. Worst case scenario, something comes unplugged. Wood has a lower flash point than styrofoam you know Sytrofoam just looks more intimidating than it really is lol.

Someday I'll have a sick home-made fireproof mylar tent with temp control to the tenth of a degree, auto-watering systems when soil moisture drops below a certain point, and an automatic pH controller of some sort, and constant humidity, and dimmer lights on timers so it actually has seasons and mornings, noons, and evenings. And variable winds. All wired to a computer when you adjust the environment of the inside of the box to whatever you want, and fill a feeding reservoir with any premixed food you like and have it on a scheduled dose. And when I do this I will post it here, but that is my next project and I won't upgrade until I have it planned out to every detail. Expect it 6 months from now haha. Maybe I should mass-produce them and start my own company because it would be sick!! haha. Kinda running off on a tangent with this whole idea but that is my goal sooner or later. It won't be cheap either.

All it would take is a malfunctioning CFL ballast to overheat and melt the foam...

Water, electricity, foam... in a clutterd room/closet...

It worries me...

Not when everything is ok... but when something does go wrong... and it can...

But I'll shut up.. I know you do not want to hear t his...

sorry...

No worries dude. Listing possible hazards is helpful despite my reaction or argument to it. The only water near it is inside the soil and there is no wiring ever in contact with the bottom half of the box anymore. It's all up in the top. But I'm just making the point that if the ballast got hot enough to melt my styrofoam, it would also be hot enough to ignite a wooden cabinet. This is no more risky than anyone else's setup. Unless your box is made out of aluminum, you're just as likely to have a CFL set fire to any cabinet as my box. A common misperception about styrofoam is that it ignites and/or melts easily. You pretty much need an open flame to even phase it, which is just like any other building material aside from metal.. Also just to put your mind at ease, the ballast doesn't touch the styrofoam in my setup, the socket is built into the cover and the tip screws in as the ballast projects out from it. But could they really sell lightbulbs that can possibly just overheat and set fire?