Help to get started

Hi everyone
Ive just ordered seeds and trying to decide on what gear to get for my grow. Basicly i was just going to get a grow tent 1.2 x 1.2 x 2 meters ( Australian so im in metric sorry ) and then run 600w hps for the hole grow was only going to do one plant cause i thought there wouldnt be room for 2 but if i can get 2 in there i mite as well (will there be room) also have read alot in the last few days and a bit confused about pot sizes and grow mediums to use as well as nutes. I would go into a hydro shop but i dont have one within 1000km of me ( metric again sorry) so this forum is my info and the Internet is my shop also ventilation set ups are another thing id need to figure out . Will be growing in aircon space so outside the tent should be around 24 c all the time. I think ive got the jist of growing enough to have a crack anyway, its just the equipment i want to get right and then i can work on technique

Thanks a lot

I'll start you off and others will chime in.
Your tent is about 3 1/2 feet by 3 1/2 feet by 6 1/2 feet for conversion purposes. A 600w bulb will give you about a 4'x4' footprint. 1.3m x 1.3m so 2 plants should be fine. An air cooled reflector would be nice.
As far as HPS many people use HPS all the way through....many use a T-5 or MH for vegging, then HPS for flowering.....different light spectrum. You can always add veg CFL side lighting if you want.

My first question should have been what's your budget? Throughout your grow temp and humidity will need to be watched...24C all the time is fine, but your HPS will heat the tent up and dry out the air. What is your plan for venting and odor control? There is also a good thread on "grow room design...we're here to help." Good info there.

What seeds did you buy? If you grow two strains you may want to keep their growing times close. Ask a lot of questions and if anyone flames...ignore them and do not respond.
Good luck!!

i grow in a 1.2 tent and i have a 600w duel spec hps. you will definitely need a cool shade i'm in england and when the ambient temp is at 24c then the grow tent is at 32c with the shade its a steady 26c. i have 4 plants growing in there for maximum yield they are 14 days in to flower if you want to check my journal. with the cool shade get an extractor fan and ducting on one end of it and stick a carbon filter on the other.

Just the set up I used to have catainahab,I'd agree about the air cooled light as well; it's a must.
Four plants would have plenty of room, and is probably the right number for the tent (without Scroging or LST etc...)

Dogbolter said:

firstly thanks for the reply guys it is really helpfull getting feedback from guys that are doing it. Well i found out today that my mates light is a 400w hps with ballast and a reflector hood, Is this what you mean by air cool reflector bro Numsi and i think you called it a cool shade catainahab. is this right or am i off the mark.
so now i know what light im playing with for starters do u think i will still get 2 plants under it and will need that big a tent or could i get by with something smaller, i dont want to do any more then 2 plants.

how big an extraction fan do u have catainahab and what size is the ducting i'm now basing my setup a little on yours as it seems to be cloase to what i want to do. do you also run a fan at the base of your tent just for circulation and to get the stems stronger. i read your journal and will keep a close eye on it cheers.

I was just going to hand water can i still do this or will i have to set up a pump set up, sorry about the dumb ass questions fellas.

Brother numsi i dont really have a budget but im not going out for the best system just want to get started suss it out and then take it from there i guess, but im not going to just slap some shit together cause i do want to smoke the stuff and i would like it to taste good and feel good. i think i mite shell out for mh lite if i can screw into the socket my mate haas i will suss it out when i get it off him.

I had looked at that grow room designs thread but i was on my phone so got sick of reading on there mite have to have a look again tonite.

I wish i had read a bit on here about what strains to grow before i odered my seeds as i was a little bit like a kid in a candy store. Its been a 8 years since i was a regular smoker and it was just hydro or bushy back then dont think we ever new what strand we were smoking any way i got a couple of different types
AK 47 fem
White widow Fem
early skunk regular
and something called the church its a blend of. Swiss sativa x Super Skunk x Northern Lights fem
Dont ask me why i chose these seeds like i said i was a bit like a kid in a candy store they all really apealled to me. I was trying to get some straight nl but there was none available.

Anyway thanks again guys i feel like im getting a little further along now just need to decide on a tent size and hope like fuck these seeds get through customs.

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400-watt HPS is perfect for what you want to do. I wouldn't hesitate to use it even if it is NOT an air-cooled hood. Get growing. Improve as you move so to speak. An air-cooled hood is NICE but far from necessary.

start simple mate you will always want more "toys" as you learn, no point buying heapsa fancy crap that you will find is useless. Once you sus the basics then you should look at bigger and better setups. Im no expert but ive been gardening a while and im still learning with every grow

Thanks guys ill take that onboard mite order some equipment now honestly cant wait to grow,

400 watt hps over 2 plants is spot on. your heat will be lower than mine and you may not need a reflector like mine but you will definitely need an extractor 100mm is good for a start 150mm would be better but not essential. your plants will get tall. including pots your on about a 3-4 foot for short plants 4-6 foot for medium plants, plus 12 inchs for the distance to the light at full growth and 4 to 5 inch for the light an another 6 inch from the top of the light to the top of the grow space. the width is different to judge you can usually go for a quarter meter per plant if your topping or training it. i once squeezed 9 plants into a 1.2 tent but they where really short plants (topp 44).
you got some tasty seeds on order have you decided what your method of grow is going to be

Hey catainahab yeah looking at a carbon filter and 150mm extraction set up not to sure on the fan type though, seen a setup on here today that looked like it had a centrifugal fan compared to like your industrial inline ones, is one quiter then the other cause I think I'd go with the quiter one, will have to find that setup again looked like what I want. I'm just going to start with a soil setup and hand water mainly because I don't want to muck around with pumps and what not just yet. Have read a few different blends so mite read into it a bit more and just run down that track. Just ordered my tent my lights on its way and hopefully the seeds rock up.

good choice on soil it tastes alot better with the right nutes. as for the fans unless you get an acoustic fan (fuckin expensive) they will make noise. not alot but a constant hum. there are 2 types of fan you can get the cheap inline like i have or a rvk fan. rvk is more expense but a much better design and moves air better, if you look on ebay you will find fan, ducting and carbon filter deals that are quite cheap.

Yeah ebay is my friend. Ok so noise will be slight anyway so mite just get the inline fan. Do u suck through your carbon filter or blow through, i spose it doesnt matter but just for interest sake. Do u use ph tester on soil to keep it in check or just flush every so often.
Hey just want to say thanks for your help nice to have someone to bounce questions off. I spose ive just got to get going now and suss things out as i go.

Any nute recommendations

GH GO box..its organic and forgiving. It a general organics full line..about $34 usd

add 20+% perlite to whatever soil you choose and a tbsp per gallon of soil of dolomite lime.

gh have good nutes but i used biobizz on soil for pure ease of use just dont go over 3/4 strength. its a 3 part formula grow bloom and top max.

i find it more productive to pull the air through the carbon filter but some people go the other way.

a ph tester is important, again ebay for cheap digital ones. test the water that you feed the plant with the nutes mixed in if its a feed day.
you want the ph stable between 6.2 and 6.6. the same if its a water day (veg cycle feed,water,water- bloom cycle feed, water, feed)

your first grow is trial and error. its good to look for answers on here but most of the time you'll find that you will have a problem with the ph being out of sync or too strong a nute feed. dont go rushing to sort a problem out and try 10 different things. you will make it worse.
if the ph is out correct and feed. if the nutes too strong and causing nute burn drown the pots in water then feed a quarter strength

More than likely you will have no probs at all

what ever nute and soil mixes you go for you will not need to go near the recommended dose, for some reason they are always too high and you will fry the roots

Happy Growing

Ok no worries i think i understand most of that im in australia ao having trouble finding general hydro organic nutes they have all there other stuff but looks like there is only one dealer. Thanks for the suggestion coho i really did like the sound of tbe organic and read some good stuff on here about the taste and smoothness of the end product but cant seem to find it in oz. I run a R.O for drinking water in the house so mite just use this for my watering have seen ph testers but was unsure if the cheap ones would be any good, mite just grab one. Cheers again guys

Dogbolter said:

Yeah ebay is my friend. Ok so noise will be slight anyway so mite just get the inline fan. Do u suck through your carbon filter or blow through, i spose it doesnt matter but just for interest sake. Do u use ph tester on soil to keep it in check or just flush every so often.
Hey just want to say thanks for your help nice to have someone to bounce questions off. I spose ive just got to get going now and suss things out as i go.

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Fans as little as you guys use should force air through hoods or filters as they cannot generate enough vacuum to pull sufficient air through much of a line. Every bend, dip, rise or curve also slows the flow so as straight a shot as possible.