# If You Had Four Grand...



## its419ugottamin (Jan 30, 2012)

Hey blades. Been working on a complete setup for a hydroponic grow and  decided to start a thread to see not only what I may have left out but  to also see what ideas are floating out there.

Here is what I have to work with:
Either build a standalone shed or build an addon to the current 10x10  shed (inside the house is no option due to no space). The shed is wooden  and sits about 20' away from the house with the electric service an  additional 10' away.
Everything will have to be purchased (lights, ventilation, odor control, nutes, ph/tds meters, etc.).
Stores included are Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes and local hydro store (45 drive) not planning to buy online for this setup.  Sorry :cop: no paper trail for you :laugh:.

Thus far, I plan on setting this up with diy cloner for root development, ebb&flow, til girls are about 8"-10", and transplanted in a rdwc  to finish vegging. These will be under T5 lights. Then moved into  another rdwc setup under HPS (unsure on air cooled overhead or a vert  light) to flower. Planning to take a cutting prior to flower to be  placed into the cloner.

I will be starting the build in two weeks and a journal will begin. Past  experience has been in soil and this will be my first in hydro and  wanted to get experience. Any questions will be answered asap.

By the way, the house is on a dead end road (only house here) surrounded  by woods. About 200 yards on one side is a road with a VFD another 100  yards away, other side has about 100 yards with hunting grounds hunted  by one guy past that. and behind is 500+ yards of woods which another  occasional hunts. Both parties hunts away from the house of course but  does get as close as 100 yards to get to where they hunt on an old log  road.


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## PuffinNugs (Jan 30, 2012)

i think not buying online is a mistake, youll save $100s ordering online compared to hydroshops.


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## ozzydiodude (Jan 30, 2012)

Hello :welcome: Look thru a few threads and you can find alot of ways to build alot better grow system than those that are name brands and alot cheaper.

You need to kill the off site live links too there not allowed.


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## its419ugottamin (Jan 31, 2012)

ozzydiodude said:
			
		

> Hello :welcome: Look thru a few threads and you can find alot of ways to build alot better grow system than those that are name brands and alot cheaper.
> 
> You need to kill the off site live links too there not allowed.



I been looking thru threads and was just curious what others may have planned diff. Links have been killed sorry just wanted to give examples of something similar.

Will be finalizing plans this week and will post something this weekend.


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## Grower13 (Jan 31, 2012)

Welcome..... I see you live in the south...... if your going to grow from May to September you need to think about cooling it.


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## OGKushman (Feb 1, 2012)

Puffin makes a very good point, and so does grower13. In my experience in hot SoCal, you need 1 watt of cooling per watt of HPS lighting in mid summer. So 1000 watt light needs a ~1000 watt a/c


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## The Hemp Goddess (Feb 1, 2012)

its419ugottamin said:
			
		

> Everything will have to be purchased (lights, ventilation, odor control, nutes, ph/tds meters, etc.).
> Stores included are Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes and local hydro store (45 drive) not planning to buy online for this setup.  Sorry :cop: no paper trail for you :laugh:.



IMO, you are in far greater risk walking into a hydro store where local Leos can watch and record all who go in and out than it is to buy supplies online.  I'm not sure why you believe that the risk is greater buying online--it is not.  In addition, as mentioned, you will most likely find better deals online and spend less money for the same setup.

I would say the first step should be getting power to your shed.


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## nugatronica (Feb 1, 2012)

Yeah I bought most of my equipment online and found it to have better deals then the stores in the local area just my 2 cents


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## its419ugottamin (Feb 1, 2012)

OK will check out online for better deals not much on Craigslist in this area. should be SC not socal. will check profile thx. 

as far as power is concerned, I have electrical, construction and plumbing experience. 

still in planning stage, trying different methods in various stages of growth (cloner bucket to ebb & flow til 8 to 10" to rdwc under T5 for veg to seperate rdwc for flower under least 1000w HPS) all diy of course. love to see an operation go from ground up with diy. 

will be burning bowls searching threads vaping research ripping bong shopping/comparing prices puffing on j's. btw not in exact order lol.


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## Roddy (Feb 2, 2012)

its419ugottamin said:
			
		

> OK will check out online for better deals not much on Craigslist in this area. should be SC not socal. will check profile thx.
> 
> as far as power is concerned, I have electrical, construction and plumbing experience.
> 
> ...



Onlinegrow stores, reputable stores on the internet. I suppose you can buy used from places like Craigslist and ebay as well, but I think these guys were suggesting an online store. 

Here's an example, there's a lot more with varying deals: hXXp://www.virtualsunhydroponics.com/Agricultural/nav/grow-lights/kits.asp

Change the XX's to tt's and you'll get the site!


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## nvthis (Feb 2, 2012)

Generally speaking, leo doesn't need a search warrent to search outbuildings. That means sheds...

If you build one, attach it to your house


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## Kushluvr (Feb 2, 2012)

PuffinNugs said:
			
		

> i think not buying online is a mistake, youll save $100s ordering online compared to hydroshops.



..if the shop is cool, theyll match or beat anything u see online!

from my experience!


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## orangesunshine (Feb 2, 2012)

nvthis said:
			
		

> Generally speaking, leo doesn't need a search warrent to search outbuildings. That means sheds...
> 
> If you build one, attach it to your house



probably gonna need a sub-panel to handle the power for your new space---you might think of adding up all the amps for your lights, fans, pumps, and double it before selecting your new panel


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## Rosebud (Feb 2, 2012)

Kushluvr said:
			
		

> i disagree with this statement..if the shop is cool, theyll match or beat anything u see online!
> 
> from my experience!



i agree, but I understands both sides to the argument. I like to give my business to local folks before anyone else. They too will match the internet price. Besides, the real reason, is if my ballast blew up or something  besides a light bulb, I could get  replacement while they fixed my broken whatever. Another reason, is I really like the kids running it and hope they do well.


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## Hushpuppy (Feb 2, 2012)

I recommend that you start by getting insulation and very solidly insulate the building. Then I would subdivide the interior space into 2-3 flowering rooms, 1 veg and clone room, and one work room. I can't stress enough the importance of maintaining a climate controlled environment in which you can go and work comfortably, and keep the temps and humidity where the plants are happy. I highly suggest getting a nice air conditioner and put it in the work room and devise a way to draw it into the flower rooms as needed.

At the same time go to access discounts.com, HTGsupply.com or Ebay and get some T5HO fixtures for the veg room, and some nice HIDs for the flower rooms. I would figure the veg room to be 1/4th the size of one of the flower rooms. then you can use the veg room to constantly keep the flower rooms going. For the lighting, remember that you need 3000 lumens per sqft in veg and 5000 lumens per sqft in flower.

Having 2 flower rooms(if you have the space for it) is somewhat of an insurance policy in the event you have some kind of failure or disease.

As far as a hydro system goes, I have settled on a top feed variation of a DWC type of setup. If you look at my GJ you will see the way I have my plants in containers that have holes drilled in them for good drainage, and they sit in holes cut in the lids of 10gal rubbermade totes. I started with individual units self feeding by having the pump within the tote so that the water and nutes are brought to the top of the containers, but then found it difficult to keep the nute solution in individual totes from getting dirty and out of ballance too quick, so I decided to go to a single 40liter resevoir and have the smaller totes maintain a shallow rez within them to keep the roots from drying between watering cycles. If you have any questions about it I will be happy to elaborate


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## Roddy (Feb 2, 2012)

*I recommend that you start by getting insulation and very solidly insulate the building.* 

I don't think one could over-stress this point, heating/cooling the building will be a big part of the future costs of growing.


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## NorCalHal (Feb 4, 2012)

Rosebud said:
			
		

> i agree, but I understands both sides to the argument. I like to give my business to local folks before anyone else. They too will match the internet price. Besides, the real reason, is if my ballast blew up or something  besides a light bulb, I could get  replacement while they fixed my broken whatever. Another reason, is I really like the kids running it and hope they do well.


 
Here Here! Shop Local...or at least in a town near you. I no of noone that has been popped by shopping at a local store, but I really havn't tried to find out if folks do, so correct me if I'm wrong.
If the store is cool, then yes, replacement bulbs/ballest/fans are very easy to exchange.

Awesome Rosebud!


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## its419ugottamin (Feb 4, 2012)

Hey guys. Thx for the responses. I have decided to get a 10x10 building. This will still keep me at the 4k to spend on odor control, venting, lights, etc.

Have been under weather and no where close to finalizing plans. Want to be clear headed and think things thru. What kinds of setup would you do with a 10x10 room and 4k to have a recurring harvest all year?

BTW electrical will be upgraded with new service for just material cost and permit.


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## Roddy (Feb 5, 2012)

Split the room to make a veg area and at least one bud area, two might be better (I'm having fair success with a single bud room and rotating in/out plants as they progress). Keep in mind the size of room will dictate the amount of light needed for each area (I believe veg requires at least 3000 lumens /', bud is 5000 lumens/'...someone please correct if wrong, I'm just back from a sb party)! Also keep in mind the amount of ventilation needed as well as heating/cooling which will factor heavily into the cost of a grow!


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## The Hemp Goddess (Feb 6, 2012)

I would also recommend sectioning off a space for vegging.  Your vegging space can be about 1/2 the size of the flowering room.  So maybe something like a 60-70 sq ft flowering space, a 30 sq ft vegging and cloning space.  A 70 sq ft flowering space is going to require a minimum of 350,000 lumens.  And if you have the money, get your lumens over that, more light is better.


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## its419ugottamin (Feb 12, 2012)

Hey Blades and Bladies,

Been down and out for about a week. Sinus infection turned into pneumonia 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





.

Tried working on a setup with a 10x10 building and this is what I have  so far. Let me elaborate more on the pic. The Flower room, I made into a  6x6 room with four recirculating buckets. Forgot to add the res which  looks like it will be in small room as you walk in due to space. Plan on  two 1000w HPS lights in there as well. The Veg room is making more  trouble for me or maybe I'm overdoing it? In there is a cloner bucket on  top of the table with an E&F below that. A res for E&F is below  that tray and under the cloner bucket is a res for the four bucket  recirculating bubble buckets as well.  For lighting plan on using a T5  over the E&F and buckets.






What I am trying to achieve is the following:

Put clone into cloner bucket until enough root has formed.
Transfer from cloner bucket to E&F until girls reach 8" to 10".
Finish Vegging in bubble buckets.
Transfer to Flower room to until maturity.
With this concept in mind does this setup look doable?

Can I get away with a 5x5 Flower room to have more walking room in Veg  Room because as it looks there is just over 11" space between tables and  wall to work with?

Thank you blades for reading, patience and response.


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## The Hemp Goddess (Feb 13, 2012)

Could you please post your pics here?  There are inherent dangers with posting grow pics on places like Photobucket (like some of these places work with LEOs) and most of us will not click on an external link (since you never really know where it is going to take you).

How are you going to transfer the plants from the E & F to the bubble buckets?  I do not see this happening without a lot of root damage.  I would recommend going from the cloner to bubble buckets if that is how you plan on vegging and flowering them.

How large are you planning on making your veg room?


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## PuffinNugs (Feb 13, 2012)

The Hemp Goddess said:
			
		

> Could you please post your pics here?  There are inherent dangers with posting grow pics on places like Photobucket (like some of these places work with LEOs) and most of us will not click on an external link (since you never really know where it is going to take you)?


 
i see where thats coming from this site but photobucket is fine to use outside this site.

looks at DNA genetics, Attitude and many other MJ related companies/people. they use photobucket and show constant breeding, outdoor grows and many many other mj related pictures, with thier many followers using the same service. it mostly cause of photobuckets new partnership with twitter.

"Twitter announced in June 2011 that Photobucket will become the default photo sharing platform for Twitter. According to a report by Sysomos, 2.25M images are shared on Twitter daily, which accounts for 1.25% of all Tweets posted"

when that many photos are going through on one site poeple use, imagine the amount going through on other forums, the main site, and other places like ebay and facebook, really not much to worry about imo. also mj pictures are allowed. it would take way to much resourses to figure it all out. most what will happen is your photo will be deleted, but if you have a private album that wont ever happen, from people reporting "abuse or offensive"

i have a private album on there for 7 years now. had a account before "Fox" bought it, still in beta.

--
but yes when posted to this site all above what THG said is true, most are not goign to take the time to look when posted like this. use the on site photo uploading


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