New to hydroponics growing and need some hand-holding

So I decided to make a hydroponic PC Stealth box and I have the following, but I'm trying to figure out what is left that I need before I can start assembling a hydroponic system:

For case:
A nice sized PC case (20.5"h x 20.5"d x 10.1"w)
4 silent 120mm case fans
Mylar reflective car sunshield
Power strip (8 outlet)
Mechanical timer switch
Hot glue gun with strong adhesive sticks
Stick-on aquarium thermometer
12v 350mA A/C to D/C transducer
4 x 6500k 1600lu 26w CFL's
4 x 2700k 1650lu 26w CFL's
4 x outlet plugs

For hydroponic system:
6" air stone
Whisper 20-60 air pump w/25' hose
Hydrofarm Round 3 Inch Heavy Duty Net Pots (a dozen)
2 Dark Blue translucent shoe-box sized totes
General Hydroponics GH1514 Ph Control Kit

Miscellaneous:
Ona Block Pro (odor control)


What I need help with:

• What's the best nutrients system?
• Is there a specific type of hydroton clay i should use?
• Do I need a pH meter and if so, what should I look for?
• What else do I need to go from seed to plant that I don't already have?
• Do I need rockwool?
• I plan to do a SCROG system, but wasn't sure if I should just use chicken wire or if there is something better?

Thanks for any and all help in advance. I'm really excited to get my kit going.

Thanks,

jesse

Is your PC case like a tardis, little on the outside but fookin huge inside?...... Thats a lot of growing in a little box.

MrMeanGreen said:

Is your PC case like a tardis, little on the outside but fookin huge inside?...... Thats a lot of growing in a little box.

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I searched high and low for the right case but something that was wide inside so that I had a lot more volume, and this case is just gigantic inside. I hope I don't get in trouble for posting a link, but here it goes:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002UDK9U6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_8?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Out of curiosity, why a pc box? For the cost of that thing, you could buy an old wheeled cabinet from the thrift store. More space and probably less money.

kpmarine said:

Out of curiosity, why a pc box? For the cost of that thing, you could buy an old wheeled cabinet from the thrift store. More space and probably less money.

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I went with a PC Stealth box because I have several computers now, and one sitting innocently among the rest is a great way to keep attention away. Besides, I wanted to try one of these myself after seeing successful build story after build story. Also, since I don't know anything about growing, I figure, if I get the case and system down, learning the growing process and the trimming, sexing, flowering, and cultivating would be the easy part.

Honestly, I'm looking for a mentor to walk me thru some stuff cause I am more and more excited the closer I get to having it running, and I would really benefit from a little tutoring.

jessenj said:

I went with a PC Stealth box because I have several computers now, and one sitting innocently among the rest is a great way to keep attention away. Besides, I wanted to try one of these myself after seeing successful build story after build story. Also, since I don't know anything about growing, I figure, if I get the case and system down, learning the growing process and the trimming, sexing, flowering, and cultivating would be the easy part.

Honestly, I'm looking for a mentor to walk me thru some stuff cause I am more and more excited the closer I get to having it running, and I would really benefit from a little tutoring.

Click to expand...

That's tight dimensions, even for one plant, if you're going from seed. That's going to be alot of training. As far as nutes go, I'd suggest GH Maxi line. One grow and one bloom, keeps things simple and I've never had a ph problem with it. Good results for me so far. Are you going to keep going straight from seed every time? If so, I'd suggest fem seeds due to your limited space.

I thought the dimensions were pretty good actually, since the case is 10" wide, and with 2-3 plants in a SCROG, it should produce (with a decent amount of initial training) some dense growth from short plants.

if you're starting with seeds, stick with an indica that will stay short and stubby and start it under 12/12 to keep vegging to a minimum. i've cloned sativas under 12/12 and they won't stretch at all. in fact, mine are only 4" tall and are flowering. the other issue you're going to run into is res volume. the larger your res, the more stable your system will be. something you can think about is having an external res and running your supply and drain lines out of one of the back of the case. i think nft might work better than flood/drain since nft will take up much less vertical space inside the case, assuming you setup an external res. i would switch to 2" netpots and go with a 3" PVC pipe. you can also go with 3" netpots and use 4" PVC pipe or a 4" PVC fence post. if you're going to do flood/drain with stacked totes, you'll have to give yourself enough clearance to be able to access the lower tote. the water pump also has a minimum vertical clearance. by the time you add the CLFs to the top of the case, you're going to be left with probably less than 6" for the plants. consider getting a high output mini T5 fixture instead of using the CFLs. that'll help you reclaim another inch or two. as far as meters go, get a decent ph, ppm/ec, temp meter and don't skimp on the calibration, cleaning, and storage solutions. you'll need them if you want your meter to last for more than a few seasons. i like my hanna, but people also seem to like blue lab.