Indoor Cool(er) weather grow

[Unoriginalussername]

I need help please! I have had one really nice harvest along with a few epic fails making me very much a neophyte grower. Right to the problem....I grow in a garage so temps are a constant battle. My latest brilliant idea is to run a mars hydro ts 2000 in a 27" x 27" tent to help heat in the winter (summer is impossible to grow ) . Anywho, in all but the most extreme cold in my area I can keep the tent 73-78 day and 66-70 night. My PAR is sitting around 350, PH is good , soil in 3 gal pots. Humidity 50-70.

My seeds sprout and slowly grow into veg. At this point they will stretch a little and just stop growing. Mephisto freebies are the experimental strains while I get it dialed in, if ever. Help a fustrated old man running low on meds out I beg.

 

[Arthur]

Slow growth is definitely be a sign of temps being too cool. Your daytime temps aren’t terrible (I’m usually in the 75* area) but your overnight could use a push. Guessing your running lights 24/0 to help with the heat?

Are you using bags? Pots? Setting on cement? Or tent bottom on cement? That’ll leach heat right out of your containers.

I put a foam pad down before my tent when putting it up on cement.
Find a way of getting your containers off the floor.

When we refer to the temps of a tent, like 78- 82 (LED) these are to give the surface of the leaf temp in the right area. With hps your looking for temps in the low 70s LED HIGH 70s low 80s.

I think your issue is the temperature of your root zone more than tent temp.

 

[namvet25]

Weed doesnt like cool temps and grow best between 75 and 80 degrees How cold does it get in your tent?

 

[Unoriginalussername]

This is my setup. I snapped this when I first got up this morning before starting the garage heater. Yes to 24-0 light cycle

 

[paulg]

I’m in a 27x27 tent too. My solution was to get a small ceramic heater. I keep it on the low setting with the thermostat full up. The Inkbird controller acts as the thermostat now. Works great. You have to keep an eye on you pots getting too hot. Hasn’t been a problem but safety first! You can also see the Vernado humidifier I use. Definitely tight in there with three plants!

 

[Rick Dirte']

They have these small/under desk oil filled radiator heaters that might work for you.
Also think about getting a microbial product
like Real Growers Recharge to get things moving along.

 

[BII]

Consider adding insulation before resorting to running a heater in the tent. I have a 2 x 2.5 ft. tent in an unheated room running 255 watts of high efficiency (not the best heat source) LED lighting, with the exhaust fan thermostat coming on at 78˚F. Besides putting 1.5 inch of cheap styrofoam boards lining the floor, I totally cover the tent (other than vents) with an old sleeping bag and blanket. So far the lowest temp. I've seen is mid-70s. As it gets colder, I'll likely have to add more insulation (blankets), and a heater if needed. I'm in mid-East Coast US.

Presuming your exhaust fan runs on a thermostat, with less air being exhausted when it's cold the humidity will go up. You should have a fan within the tent, with good air circulation lowering risk of mildew/mold.