Live Stoner Chat About to begin first grow. Super excited. Have a few questions.

[1guy1plant]

Long time smoker, middle aged professional moved to a new state a few years ago and I have had a very hard time finding a source of consistent smoke. About a month ago my glass pipe busted from trying to scrape resin for about the 50th time. So I have pretty much spent all my free time since researching auto flowers and this is where I am at.

I built a 40'h x 20'w x 36'L grow box. I plan to grow 2 plants. I am waiting on some nirvana blue mystics to arrive any day now. I have 3 gallon pots and plan to hang 4 CFLs over each plant and adjust height as plants grow. (hopefully) For veg, I will use (2) 5000ks and (2) 2700ks. For Flowering, I will use (3) 2700ks and (1) 5000k. I also plan to LST, on a very limited basis, because it looks fun to me and I am hoping that it increases my yield. I plan to germinate my seeds in some jiffy seed starter mix using the tiered method. I have one 120mm computer fan blowing in at the bottom of the box and two 120mm computer fans blowing out from the top of the box. I have lined the grow box with mylar and each 4 light set up will have a DYI cardboard mylar lined reflector. I will put the box in a utility closet because my garage is to hot. The closet has 9 foot ceilings and is probably 5'x6'. I could spend alittle more money on set up but I am already thinking about how I would build my next box better and would like to save $ for next build. My hope is to get two or three grows from this set up. I have 5 auto seeds coming. I am thinking grow two first and then maybe in the second grow I will try three.

Any thoughts about this set up would be appreciated and any answers to any of the questions below would also be appreciated.

Questions are in no order just what is on my mind right now.

1. How early should I start LST and for how long during plant's life can I LST?

2. Do I have enough Lights?

3. I am using the fox farms trio for nutes. I will buy soil at home depot. I am thinking equal parts manure, top soil (no fertilizers), and perlite. Will that work?

4. I am worried about smell. My GF is pretty cool but she won't want the house smelling like weed. We have guest and her parents visit. I choose blue mystic because it says low odor. I am wondering if I can get away with no filter for blue mystic or if I need to go ahead and get one. I would like to wait until I build my next box because I know I will want to try new strains out.

5. Do I have enough air flow circulation? Should I put a desk fan in the box?

6. I am going to use solo cups to germinate. Should I cover with syran wrap until they pop up?

Any thoughts about the above would be appreciated along with any ideas that you think might help.

 

[TheGreenBastard]

Welcome 1guy!

Let me see if I can help you out.

1. I recommend LST after the third set of leaves. You want to have some decent growth past the seedling stage. Be vary patient with LST, the fibers in the plants need to get used to the bending so it takes a few days of light pressure before you anchor down. Its like stretching the muscles or working out, you want ease into it.

As for lights they will work, but I would recommend an entry level LED. Then if you wanted to supplement with some CFLs I would get 1 or 2 25w or 40w CFLs. A UFO plus 2 25w CFLs would probably give you a better yield. Those seeds aren't cheap, so I don't want you to be disappointed.

Your soil/nutes will work for sure. I would go heavy on the perlite. If you can find compost at your local home and garden center, it would be better than manure I think and its relatively inexpensive. Also use square pots over circular pots. Or grow bags such as smart pots would be the best, because of better root development.

Hard to say about the smell, many factors but I know they always have odor some more than others. Keep your box away from family rooms and buy some Ozium from Walmart. Spray just a bit of that before company and wallah, no stink. It will smell like a new car or lemon haha. Its sold in the auto parts department and last for months for about $5.

If you can fit a oscilating fan inside its def a good thing.
Your airflow seems fine, you have twice as much exhaust as intake which should work just fine.

I would go on YouTube and look at other peoples designs that are successful and steal some of their ideas and work with it until you find a design that works for you. Its going to be a learning experience but a fun one. Growing your own is so much better than dealing with people on the streets and all your hard work will make it that much more enjoyable.

I look forward to seeing your nifty box grow. I've seen some incredible grows in small spaces, there's no reason you can't do the same.

 

[briman]

Welcome to AFN 1 guy! I would certainly get a carbon filter before you get anything else! Soil from the big box stores, I would look for Sunshine Mix #4 aggregate in the BIG 3 .8 CF bail. Best buy on a soillesss medium out there. I would put a desk fan in the box. I would skip the jiffy pucks and germ in a shotglass with plain water for 24-48 hours in a warm dark place.(top of the fridge works nice with a dark towel.) Then go straight to final container. Start to LST after the plants get 2-3 nodes and start easy. bend her over lightly for a day or two, then you can pull her over. you want some good roots established, so you dont pull her up! I go straight to final pot to take out a few unneeded steps of the process. When you go to final container, you can cut the top off a 2L bottle(clear) and place it over the seedling for a humidity dome. when you get the seeds to show a tap root, always put in tap root down in the medium and only go about a 1/4 inch down. I use a pen cap to do this. then just use your finger to pull a little dirt to cover the hole. I would get a small temp/humidity gauge for the inside of the box too! You didn't mention a ph pen. That is a must have tool!! Best of luck! Karma your way!

Jiffy pucks can stunt your plants.

 

[1guy1plant]

Thanks for the replies. They are all good ideas. I have a ph pen and I have spent some time learning about ph levels. I plan to oxygenate my water before watering. I have read that helps the roots take the nutes better. I am going tonight to by a bigger exhaust fan and take try at building a DYI scrubber. I started off wanting a consistent source of medicine but I have been surprised at how much fun it has been putting everything together and researching how to grow. I a hoping my seeds will be here by Saturday.

 

[Eekman]

Hello 1Guy

It looks like you are getting some god advice.

One thing I didn't see, is if you have a vent out, then you can cover it with nylon hosery, and spread some stuff called "Ona" on it. It is supposed to cover the smell


Also, when you said "I plan to germinate my seeds in some jiffy seed starter mix"

I would have to say that the Jiffy, is the best starter mix I have ever used. (store bought anyway).

Good start, you have done some good homework.

Good luck.


Eek

 

[1guy1plant]

Thanks, I have two computer fans on top of box blowing out and one on the bottom blowing in. I am worried I don't have enough circulation and the computer fans on top won't blow hard enough to put a homemade filter on. I like the ONA option but I have heard that it will effect the taste and smell of plant if it is too close. I am thinking about closing one of the top fans and adding a six inch duct fan with a DIY carbon scrubber. I would rather use ONA if Possible. Would like to know how anyone has used ONA before.

 

[Dazed]

Thanks, I have two computer fans on top of box blowing out and one on the bottom blowing in. I am worried I don't have enough circulation and the computer fans on top won't blow hard enough to put a homemade filter on. I like the ONA option but I have heard that it will effect the taste and smell of plant if it is too close. I am thinking about closing one of the top fans and adding a six inch duct fan with a DIY carbon scrubber. I would rather use ONA if Possible. Would like to know how anyone has used ONA before.

Hey bro welcome!

I use ONA but only alongside my filter, ONA will not cover the smell of a plant alone.

Hope that helps and good luck!

 

[epenguin]

Hey there fella, you have a lot of answers to digest, so I will limit myself to saying, see how it goes with the aroma issues. I don't have a problem myself and don't see the need for a carbon scrubber. See how you go.
There are some who do not approve of ONA, you may want to research it a bit more.
Otherwise, a huge welcome to AFN, eP.

 

[Gonzo]

Welcome to growers club, 1guy1plant.

If you want to cover smell, carbon filter is a must. I have bought ONA Fresh Linen and never use it, because of bad experience. Bad experience does not mean that ONA is not a good product, it just has limits and I used it out of that limits. I had transported plants in big solid paper boxes and had put a big piece of ONA gel into every box thinking that piece would be big enough to cover smell. Since that were photo plants, some kind of stinky skunk, that transport was a disaster from safety point of view, that I would not like to experience any more. I can not describe you that disgusting stink of stinky skunk and something that should smell like fresh linen but it was more like some chemical smell joint to ganja odour. But that does not mean, that ONA does not work well for smaller workloads like covering little smell flowing around your room.

Carbon filter that you do yourself will not be very efficient, because carbon has to be shaked strongly with machine help when put inside, otherwise there are to many holes in material, that let air through without cleaning it. I have heard that bigger and more responsible grow shops use special machines to refill old carbon filters, otherwise they do not recommend refilling at all.

Carbon filter is very ineffective when humidity is high and home made ones are especially unefficient in such cases. That means that it stinks all around what is bad, because humid ganja stink more than dry one. It stinks like piss. Have in mind that there are lows and highs of stink intensity and you want to cover all situations.

 

[1guy1plant]

Thanks, that gives me something to think about. I have not considered the humidity aspect which is a big deal to me because I am in Florida. I am starting with the blue mystics because I think they are easier to grow and don't smell as much but I hope to try different strains later and to me the stronger the smell the better the smoke. (just my preference ) I have some time. I am expecting seeds any day now. I appreciate the advice. Hopefully, I can pay it forward sometime.