When do I start the light cycle?

Mihow

Member
I have my little seeds germinating and I will move them into little cups today or tomorrow but when do I start the light cycle (400w HPS)? Right away after it's in the cups or not 'til later? Also, they will be housed in a 24x48x60 mylar grow tent. Any other tips for a first timer? Any little thing helps, thanks!
 

sworth

Well-Known Member
What do you mean by "light cycle"? Way early to think about 12/12, start 18/6 cycle straight off if that's what you're asking..
 

Mihow

Member
Pretty much exactly what I was asking, thanks! I guess one more question, how far away should the lights be @ this point?
 

ROBSTERB

Well-Known Member
you want the 400 as far away as possable to start off, then move it closer every day so the plants get used to th light, if it was me i would start of with a couple of 20 watt cfl until they grow abit. (5-6 inches)

just be carefull with the 400 while the plants are that young
 

Mihow

Member
^ and another thank you. When they meet in the middle how far apart should the light / plant be than?
 

ROBSTERB

Well-Known Member
i take it your using a normal shade? if so then 12 inches is good! the easiest way to check is put your hand palm down on the top of your plant, if it burns your hand or it gets uncomfortable then move it up, once you think you've got the right height then move it up an inch or two to be sure,
 

ROBSTERB

Well-Known Member
what you growing? good luck, if you get stuck along the way theres plenty of people here than can help you out.
 

Mihow

Member
Homegrown Fantaseeds Homegrown Skunk #1 x4 because I heard it's really easy to grow. + 2 freebies from attitude (purple haze/pineapple). I bought some seeds from a less reputable place and yea they never came. If all goes well I'll be looking for a few all indica strains next. I smoke very little but just got tired of 'shortages' or skeezy ass people so figured I should try growing some. Plan on surprising my friends when all is finished with a few months of bud :D
 

ROBSTERB

Well-Known Member
sounds good, i used to grow with a 400 and you can pull some nice bud from 1, i used to do 6 white rhinos and pull around the 10 oz mark, i think it was the 6-7 on my first grow, only bit of advice i can give you on the surprising you friends is dont ever tell them you grew it infact dont tell anyone! its the number 1 cause of getting busted, infact in my opinion its probs close to 80-90% reason.
 

Mihow

Member
I'm 27 and have told my one friend and his wife (he's been my friend since we were 12) and he's my main friend I smoke pot with. I figured if he says anything to anyone I deserve what I get for having such a shitty friend for all these years. They are planning a greenhouse in their backyard next year and I can't wait for that. Another question I have thought of tho, how strong is the smell when growing? Just the room will have the odor right? It won't be permeating the air outside?
 

sworth

Well-Known Member
"The first rule of fight club;you don't talk about fight club.."
She's going to Smell! Carbon filter;job done.
The smell can quite easily be smelt outside.
My son was walking home from school a while back and smelt herb. Told the person outside the house, who was washing their car, and she gave him £5! So, an open upstairs window will still get into the street. In fact some f$£%er is growing in my street without a filter; I can smell it!:cuss:
 

sworth

Well-Known Member
Yep! They do a great job, I got a new set up (fan. filter, ducting) off ebay for £50. The fan was slightly noisy so I put in a small cardboard box with some insulation, and that got it down to "aquarium" noise level.
I don't know how people manage without them really...
 

Mihow

Member
I found the same just now on ebay. Will the smell be bad the first 2/3 weeks? That's how long it'll be before I can purchase it. Also, when we are talking about smell, will my house smell or will it permeate through walls to my neighbors? I live in apt rentals that basically look like the letter U. There is 7 apts on the left/7 on the right and 3 on the bottom of the U. My bedroom has 2 fairly large windows but I can never smell anything from the outside. But yea gonna get the filter anyway, thanks!
 

sworth

Well-Known Member
In veg the smell is generally little, but it's down to strain really (you're gonna hear that a lot! ;-))
First 2 weeks of flower..there aren't any flowers! ha ha! (Generally..it depends on the strain!)
So I think you're on the right track.
No the smell isn't bad (good?) enough to permeate the walls...just your brain at a later date.:weed:
 

Mihow

Member
Ok cool. I think I neglected to find a way to 'cool' the mylar grow tent I got. Another thing to look into!
 

maineyankee

Active Member
Ok cool. I think I neglected to find a way to 'cool' the mylar grow tent I got. Another thing to look into!
What you might want to do is get a 4 inch intake fan and install that on the bottom and then get a 4 inch outtake fan so that it takes the heat out of your tent. It's always the little things that might mess you up along the way, but don't get too concerned ... there is always some good advice on here at RIU if you get into a bind with something.

Good luck on your grow Mihow :-) (+ rep)
 
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