New Grower Yes this is my first grow and build, but my mommy says im no dummy. Share your experience with me!

[Rmj512]

Hey Guys,

So here is the delio, i have been bouncing around with different resources of friends and growers I closely know...Reddit seemed at first to be my only source of most of my grow knowledge these days..until I stumbled upon AFN and for the last two months i have been ghosting on the website so I decided to become a part of the community and hopefully get some help and feedback. (Mod if this is not in the right spot, please move it, thanks)

Be mindful this is my first grow and I built and put this all together on my own with some influences from online. I really have a pretty good mind about engineering and building, but i still can always benefit from others. Please feel free to throw around your two cents, just dont kill me, put a lot of hard work..oh and that $$$$

Thanks for taking your time to read up and help a fellow American out!! Thanks GUYS! Happy Growing!!!

INFORMATION AND PICS!!!!!
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Setup

Lighting: 250w Grow Light with 5k bulb; plan to have 8 23w CFLs(2700k & 4 6400k) on either side of the grow box as well.

Reflective Material: I Bought some JACK BLACK flat white elastomeric roof paint from Lowes for $20, I think it should work.

Pots and Soil: Just ordered 5 Smartpots and FOX Farms Ocean Forest soil, so good there.

Exhaust: I have a 120mm fan for exhaust, with three 40mm fans blowing up toward the exhaust. ( Keep in mind most of this is planned not all finished as evidence of the pics) Going to also have a 80mm for intake on the bottom right of the box. I also would like to have a clip on fan in there somewhere as well.

Seeds: 3x Seedsman Easy Ryder Lowryder AF and 2x Fast Buds Green Crack AF

I Guess my questions are as follow:

My exhaust is kinda shaky i feel like, but I am trying to stay on a budget, any suggestions there? I think I wanna to get a $30 Duct fan at some point, but I am running out of room. Any Ideas?

How is my light situation? Its 434 watts i believe too.

Someone google and tell me if the paint i got will work, I have a wood box and i'm afraid the plastic like texture of the paint wont allow it to breath? I dont know. Help me lol

Painting over that firecaulk shouldn't be an issue as far as reflection and hot spots right?

GROWBOX ALPHA OMEGA
Dimensions of Grow Box= 51" x 36" x 24"

i'd say with my light at the very top, I have about 30" to play with for plant height.

Here is pics of my grow box​

-Gotta put caulk around fan and cut hole in the side of the box, then going to take 3 40mm Computer fans and attach them to a piece of wood and put it underneath the exhaust wood and caulk it to ensure a better exhaust suction. Pic below

- Also going to put a piece of 2x4 under this to have 4/8 CFLS on it

This is the top of my box, my shelf if you will. It has a cover as well not seen in the pics.

Here is a front shot with no door on

I need to get something to secure the light and heat inside when the door is closed. i've read weatherstripping. Door ones maybe?

Door closed.

Another view of the mess

That piece of wood is my floor, but it is not secured down because i haven't decided if i am going to need the extra three inches when i remove the wood. Going to paint it all anyways.

So this is where i plan to cut this 2x4 and make it fit in between to have my CFLS on it to mirror the one across the box

the paint!!

where i plan to put the three 40mm computer fans with wood. see above

 

[Rmj512]

bump for first post!!!!

 

[Waximus]

Hi, Rmj512

Great looking setup your building!
I agree that the weak link is likely to be the exhaust fan setup.. And, if it were me, I'd put either a 4", or 6" inline fan to pull the air out of the box- you probably would only need the exhaust fan, as it will intake from the intake vent holes. Here is the 6" model- just a link, from Amazon:
Amazon product ASIN B005KMTYFK
I use one of those as the exhaust for my auto closet, which is 42"x32"x 82". With an intake vent at the bottom of the closet, it provides adequate exhaust venting You can find plenty of criticism of these kind of fans, but for small enclosures, and QUIET operation, they work great.
Now.. That much wattage in CFLs might get pretty hot in there, so you'll want to keep a close eye on it. I recommend a dry run for a day or two, once the enclosure is completed, where you run it as though you're growing, and see what the temps do over a day or so. That info will let you know if you need more exhaust, and whether an LED panel might be a better choice, for max light with minimum heat.
Is that paint "paint" or more of a spackling/drywall mud consistancy? If its thin, like paint, it should do the trick. And, painting a flat finish won't cause any hotspots, etc.. You should be fine, there

I gotta run for a bit, but will check in later...
Best to you on your first Grow!
Tokes to you

 

[Rmj512]

Hi, Rmj512

Great looking setup your building!
I agree that the weak link is likely to be the exhaust fan setup.. And, if it were me, I'd put either a 4", or 6" inline fan to pull the air out of the box- you probably would only need the exhaust fan, as it will intake from the intake vent holes. Here is the 6" model- just a link, from Amazon:
Amazon product ASIN B005KMTYFK
I use one of those as the exhaust for my auto closet, which is 42"x32"x 82". With an intake vent at the bottom of the closet, it provides adequate exhaust venting You can find plenty of criticism of these kind of fans, but for small enclosures, and QUIET operation, they work great.
Now.. That much wattage in CFLs might get pretty hot in there, so you'll want to keep a close eye on it. I recommend a dry run for a day or two, once the enclosure is completed, where you run it as though you're growing, and see what the temps do over a day or so. That info will let you know if you need more exhaust, and whether an LED panel might be a better choice, for max light with minimum heat.
Is that paint "paint" or more of a spackling/drywall mud consistancy? If its thin, like paint, it should do the trick. And, painting a flat finish won't cause any hotspots, etc.. You should be fine, there

I gotta run for a bit, but will check in later...
Best to you on your first Grow!
Tokes to you

Thanks for the speedy and awesome response. I googled the fan you were talking about because the link was broken, but the one i stumbled upon was for $80 and although i don't want to spend that much, it may be needed.You dont think those $30 duct fans i see on HTG as good enough?

As far as the paint goes, its more of a polymer putty like consistency , like its a paint too. People use this on RV roofs and Shed Roofs, but its a generic brand. I was trying to get as close to Kool Seal White Elastomeric Roof Coating without having to pay to have it shipped because no where near me has it in stock. (smaller gallon anyways) I'm uncertain a 100% which is why i haven't applied it yet.

Also i was only thinking to go with that many cfls, because i am worried that my 250 wont give off enough for my 4 plants, but i could just be acting silly here. I have read people starting and finishing their grow with nothing else but a 250, which is why im trying to get a feel for whats best.

Thanks again Waximus!

 

[Rmj512]

Bump for awesome response and awesome people!!

 

[surffreak]

Hello and welcome to AFN!

Looks like a nicely planned little cab buddy!
Waximus seems to have covered it, just wanted to add that I have finished 2 autos under a 125 watt CFL in a reflector when I first started autos and they came out ok, I definitely wished I'd have used some side lighting like you're thinking. One of the problems with single large CFLs is they only cover a small area with adequate light. If you were to get the same wattage spread out over 6 to 10 bulbs the production goes way up.
Hope it goes smoothly, can't wait to see some growth!

 

[Rmj512]

Hello and welcome to AFN!

Looks like a nicely planned little cab buddy!
Waximus seems to have covered it, just wanted to add that I have finished 2 autos under a 125 watt CFL in a reflector when I first started autos and they came out ok, I definitely wished I'd have used some side lighting like you're thinking. One of the problems with single large CFLs is they only cover a small area with adequate light. If you were to get the same wattage spread out over 6 to 10 bulbs the production goes way up.
Hope it goes smoothly, can't wait to see some growth!

Appreciate the info man, really i do. This thread is going to pose as my reference center to better my box lol I think with a better exhaust set up i will be in good shape with the cfls spread out. Like im going to keep it real simple and just tack up a surge protector with 4 socket adapters on either side.. and run 27k, 64k, 27k, 64k ect. Get as much balance and light as i can ya know. I wont be using the the big ones tho that shouldnt matter right? i mean 8-10 23w should be fine imo.

I ordered the seeds last week and soil yesterday, just got to add some final touches and we're in business; please check back in later when I start the actual grow

thanks

 

[surffreak]

Sounds like a good idea man!

Just so you know, the color of light can affect the time autos start flowering to some extent. The blue light (6400 etc.) Will keep it in veg growth for longer so it gets bigger before starting to flower, if it is under the more red lights (2700 etc.) It will be more likely to start flowering earlier. So depending on how big you would like them to get, switch colors appropriately for veg and give em mostly 2700k bulbs during flower. Most of the lumen outputs are better with the cool color fluorescent bulbs also.

Of course lumen rating is not everything for plants because lumens refers to visible light for humans....

 

[Rmj512]

So you think instead of having all 8-10 at once maybe do 4-5 on both sides with 250w making sure to have the proper lighting. All good info!! thanks so much i really cant stop saying it. I know its only two reviews but I really put a lot of thought and heart into my little old box over here and i think with some great feedback it will be even better!

Cheers

 

[elsamurai]

nice start on tour DIY cab. Waxi and surf freak look to have you sorted pretty well. I seen no mention of any kind of carbon scrubber. you'll definitely will need one sooner than later. and you can get all different kinds of door seal, the stick on foam type at your local hardware store. but the best advice I've seen is do a test run to make sure your temps stay in the proper ranges. a little to get you started off on the right foot