Can I please get some tips on how to make the most out of my grow room?

I have a 4x4 grow area, with 1-4200 lumen 68watt CFL 2700k, 4-1600 lumen 26watt CFL 6500k, 2-1750 lumen 27watt CFL 5100k, 1-2800 lumen 42watt CFL 6500k, 1-3850 lumen 55watt CFL 2700k. My total lumens 20,260 and I can always add more lights to my setup. I use tinfoil as a reflector. I have all the lights evenly distributed, overhead as well as the sides of the plants. The temperature ranges from 82-90 degrees(rarley gets that hot). I have great air circulation. I am looking for tips on how to utilize my situation and make the most out of it. I have done a grow there with 5 plants, I made a mistake and used a woody organic soil and watered too much/often, needless to say my roots didn't spread much and suffered severely stunted growth. I am planning on using a new medium blend of 2 parts peat moss or shagnum moss, 2 parts perlite, and a bit more that 1 part sand. For fertilizer I have the several different time released both being nitrogen heavy with varying levels of P, K. I also have a 30-10-10 fertilizer, a 10-15-10 fertilizer with other general nutrients, ground eggshells for calcium, Epsom salt for magnesium and sulfer. I am asking for tips using what I have to maximize a yield in my 4x4 area. I am considering 4 plants in 5 gal buckets using my medium(peatmoss, perlite, sand). I will mix in some of my calcium(eggshells), epsom salts, a bit of time released fert 12-5-7 for backup, while using the 30-10-10 weekly once my plants hit veg. I think I will switch to the 10-15-10 fert sometime and from there I don't really know? I really would appreciate some help, thank you.
 

jdmcwestevo

Well-Known Member
dont use tinfoil for reflective material that will focus light and cause hot spots to burn your plants. and try to stay away from cheaper time release ferts
 
okay, I am willing to simplify my fert situation. If I don't use the time released fert in my medium, will the moss,perlite,sand blend have enough nutrients for the seeding stage or will I have to add some fert? Also what other reflective material would you suggest?
 

jdmcwestevo

Well-Known Member
i would suggest panda film or black and white poly if you have a tight budget which i imagine you are based on your lighting choices. if u were a baller like yours truly you could spring for orca film shit is amazing lol.

as far as ferts seedlings wont need nutes for a while they are cool on just water. after that a simple fert like jacks classic works well in soil and its affordable
 
thank you for the fert suggestions. I am a beginner and didn't want to invest too much while I am learning. My work out to be about 5000 lumens per sf, I can add some more if its neccessary? thanks again
 

jdmcwestevo

Well-Known Member
another thing lumens dont mean shit to plants. lumens are a unit of measureable light to human eyes. plants grow off the PAR spectrum that is unrelated to lumens. just remember though even with all those CFL you wont beable to match an HID and a 250w or 400w might be good investment for flowering to make it worth the trouble
 
well the PAR spectrum is that measured by degrees kelvin and nanometers? I am going to invest in a different light setup by flowering. Don't plants need so many lumens per sf?
 

jdmcwestevo

Well-Known Member
that is a way people on here who are misinformed plan out their rooms. PAR is measured with a spectrum analyzer and most bulbs from good companies will show their bulbs spectrum. i would recomend the ceramic metal halide 400w it is almost no heat and has best spectrum of any bulb check my journal you can see it
 

zem

Well-Known Member
hey dude i'm only here to help and don't mean to be rude, but you're doing most things wrong. you want to make most use of a 4x4 1st thing is you need to get rid of these fluros, they're no way near your requirements, and they will cook your room with heat. you need at least 600w HPS or 1KW. 2nd you need to remove the tinfoil, paint it flat white or pada film. what do you mean by "great air circulation"? you need an exhaust fan that exchanges the air 2-3 times per minute. an aircooled hood is probably needed with that light. as for fertilizing, just get something that works and stick to it, stop messing up your medium with crushed egg shells and so. reaqd and ask and learn more, good luck ;)
 
My room is larger but I only can utilize 4x4 space for the plants and lights above. I haven't started anything yet not even seeding. The lights I have set up are just ones I've gathered over my first grow and am in agreeance that I need to go with a 250watt setup with with a switchable MH/HPS ballast to switch lights, MH for veg and HPS for budding. I can't paint the walls because its a rental and no matter what I will have one side of the 4x4 area without a wall there so I was using the tin foil as a wall and reflector. Obviously the light I buy will have a reflector but what am I to do with the 4x4 area when I only have 3 walls? I am confused about ferts, what I mean is that I understand organic fert to be slower absorbing and there for its N,P,K ratio is different than chem fert which is easily absorbable, so with something like 20,5,5 chem fert, what would be the organic comparison be? Or do organic fert and chem fert N,P,K, ratios universal? I don't think they are so I just want to go organic on this grow, so should I get 20,5,5 organic fert for veg, and 5,15,15 organic fert for budding?
 

zem

Well-Known Member
250w is not enough for 4x4, get bigger light or shrink the room. remove tinfoil put some panda film or something. foil reflects very little light
 
Top