# my first indoor box



## bbr7515 (Jul 5, 2013)

this is my first attempt to build a grow box, i used an old filing cabinet.xbox 360 fan and a pc fan. and some light fixtures i had. the fans are 12volt. i use a pc power supply to run those. as for total cost. about 30.00 mostly in the cfl lights.will update the thread as i progress.


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## bbr7515 (Jul 5, 2013)

test run. works just fine


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## bbr7515 (Jul 6, 2013)

first full day with the box.love every second of it. temp holds at 84.


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## Havingfun (Jul 7, 2013)

Why are you wanting to run so warm?


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## bbr7515 (Jul 7, 2013)

Havingfun said:
			
		

> Why are you wanting to run so warm?


i am new at this. so i have no idea what an ideal temp would be. i have always grown outside. correct me if i am wrong. but if a plant is in a warm stable environment, will it not grow better than in a cooler environment? so what would a recommended temp be?






 the box dimensions are 27hx15wx18d


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## N.E.wguy (Jul 7, 2013)

maybe a mod could move your thread to the grow journal section you'd surely get info there or make a new thread. whats the humidity also u need to know with temp/humidity, exterior room temp, is it in a basement? if so humidity may be an issue as well as temps need more info from you

that size box keep the potting container small maybe 3/4 gal maybe just u a guess don't want to over grow the space


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## bbr7515 (Jul 7, 2013)

the humidity is 41% the exterior room temp is 71. its in an air condition bedroom. as for the potting containers. they are 3/4 gallon if not a bit less.


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## N.E.wguy (Jul 8, 2013)

ok u still need air circulation inside the box best is a very small osculating fan or a mini stationary one if u cant get a moving on in there.  temps should be fine @ 84/41 my boxes were running 90+ with insane humidity and my plants were growing like bonkers they had to go outside due to it eventually but from feb. till may. the cabinets were handling 12 plants plus clones at times with cfl, my thread is in the journal section "growing for dummies) might save a question or 2 is u read that as well as the canabanoid androing thread is very insight full

one thing i can think of is if you really need such a small space vented to the exterior of main room or not maybe some one can answer i assume yes the exhaust from the cabinet needs to be ducted out of your ac room as well as the cab. 

also cfl will become unpractical at flowering, i needed to run i think 10-12 100w equivalent bulbs to get the lumens needed. htg supply . com sell ballast cord & 150w hps/mh/mhc complete lights for like 70$ you may need a larger space and better ventilation for that but don't get your hopes up for much out of there  with the cfls speaking from experience cfls are good for baby plants and clones that's about it


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## The Hemp Goddess (Jul 8, 2013)

There really is a learning curve to this growing thing.  One of the things you need to do in order to get a plant to harvest is to learn what your indoor conditions need to be.  It is great to be able to put together something for $30, but only if it is going to meet the parameters that cannabis needs to grow.  

Ideally, temps should be kept between about 65 and 80.  You most likely need more light.  You want a minimum of 3000 lumens range per sq ft in the 6500K for vegging and 5000 lumens  per sq ft in the 2500K range for flowering.  I don't think there is enough head space to put a HID in there, but you may want to look into 2' T5s.  The T5s put out about 50% more light per watt than CFLs.  In addition, the CFLs are taking up too much headroom.  You want lights with the thinnest profile you can get.  

Regardless of the size of the grow or the heat issues, you need to exchange the air in your space.  You need a continual supply of fresh air for proper photosynthesis.  This is best accomplished with exhaust fans.  I am not sure if the PC fans can handle this.

Have you decided how you are going to keep them small enough to grow in something that is only 27" tall?


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## 4u2sm0ke (Jul 8, 2013)

try looking into Auto flowers in that small space..mojo for the grow

:48:


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## bbr7515 (Jul 8, 2013)

I do know the air blowing in is nice and cool at a mighty good rate. The exhaust fan has a heat sensor on it and speeds up with temperature rise.and i did add a small fan to stir the air.but still at 84. And i have no problem upgrading the lights to  t5. And looking into auto flower for the short plant. Big learning curve for me. :/


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## The Hemp Goddess (Jul 8, 2013)

You want your biggest best fan(s) exhaust the hot air, rather that pushing cool air in.  Your exhaust needs to run all the time the lights are on.  You need air exchange regardless of your temps.  And you want to try and keep the temps a little lower.

How many lights are in there and how many lumens are they?

You may want to think about running clones with a short veg cycle.  You can LST or SCROG them to keep them shorter or grow a bunch of shorter single cola plants with virtually no veg.

Read, read, read.  The more you know, the better your grow will be.


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## bbr7515 (Jul 8, 2013)

there was 4 cfl's but i am now adding the 2 t5 lights. it will put lumens to 10400. i will also add a bigger exhaust fan.
and i have did outside grow for more than 10 years.most of the time mother nature did all the work.but now. i want to in complete control of the plant.
and anything you all think i should read, please share


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## The Hemp Goddess (Jul 9, 2013)

Just make sure that you know what cannabis needs to grow inside--the amount of light it needs, the ventilation set-up, temps, RH--the correct environment.

Read up on different training methods to keep your plants short.  I would discourage autos because you really can't train them.  Any thing you do to stress them is going to affect harvest.  I believe that you are going to have a hard time keeping them as small as they are going to need to be.  Is there a reason that you did not build a little larger box?  You are starting at a disadvantage with such a small grow box.


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## bbr7515 (Jul 11, 2013)

after much thought. i have decided to build another box. i am going to start kinda simple on the light.400 watt hps to start.the box i built i will use for just herbs and some flowers. to get a feel for it.even tho it was a crued box. i have learned from it. can anyone tell me dimensions that would be ideal for a 400 watt hps? i am already in planning of ventilation and what not.and after its built, i will start a thread in grow journal


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## N.E.wguy (Jul 12, 2013)

you can look at my tread I had (2) 2'x2'x4'h cabs i made. total waste of time imo unless you intend to run autos which will stay short and bud fast.

otherwise with boxes i find they are typically going to be to small, If I was to do it over i'd buy a tent(which i did), but to build I would go 4'x'4'x6' or some thing like that. time and material is gonna be where a tent is more sensible. you need a cabinet high enough for your light at max growth of plants. 4'h is just not enough for a regular plant in any thing over a 1 gallon pot unless you built the box then ran your light from on top of it but again more work then it's worth buy a tent, join the Tent Growers Club even pop in with questions on your box ides i'm sure we'd all be willing to help you

e/ and ventilation i am still addressing this you sure going to want a real fan! to extract your air at a good rate, fan plus controller 100$ or so just as important as the light. you could even build a tent for maybe less then a box and possibly easier and faster not sure if there is a diy on it but again TGC has lots of good growers with good ideas (http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=51857)


keep your first box as it's great for starting plants and clones etc also coudl be used as a nice drying cab your work is not for nothing I assure you, but light and ventilation are where to spend any $ u can as it will return you r$ as yielded product. 


hope some of this may help you! good luck ans hope to see you around and answer any questions I can


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## The Hemp Goddess (Jul 12, 2013)

bbr7515 said:
			
		

> after much thought. i have decided to build another box. i am going to start kinda simple on the light.400 watt hps to start.the box i built i will use for just herbs and some flowers. to get a feel for it.even tho it was a crued box. i have learned from it. can anyone tell me dimensions that would be ideal for a 400 watt hps? i am already in planning of ventilation and what not.and after its built, i will start a thread in grow journal



A 400W is good for 9-10 sq ft.  So a box around 3 x 3 would be good.  You might want to look into a grow tent.  I would really really recommend an air coolable hood or a cool tube.  I think that Amazon has some good buys on a 400W with a cool tube.  You will need a centrifuge type fan.  Do not make the mistake of getting in line duct booster fans--these are inadequate for a grow room.  You will probably also want a fan speed controller, a rheostat for fans.  You may need a carbon filter when you start flowering, but I wouldn't worry about it until then.  

I would encourage you to NOT make a trial run with herbs or flowers.  Let's just get your space set up and get you growing the good kind of herb.  Your bud is going to take a minimum of 3-4 months from seed to harvest, so no reason to waste time.

I would recommend running your building plans and your planned purchases by the peeps here before you build or buy.  We can sometimes save you some money or steer you away from products/ideas that don't work well (like duct booster fans).

A 2 x 2 x 4 doesn't have to restrict you to autos.  I ran a decent scrog in that amount of space with 2 Satori and still had some headroom.  I have a 32" x 32" x 60" tent that I ran 4 plants in this past winter with no problems whatsoever.  You just have to be a bit more creative if you are in a smaller space.


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## bbr7515 (Jul 12, 2013)

i like the idea of a tent. and i have no problem sharing my building plans when i figure it out. got some good minds here. my grow will be better because of you all.  now off to look at ventilation stuff.tent idea and what not.and N.E.wguy. thanks for the ideas for a use of the box i have


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## N.E.wguy (Jul 13, 2013)

no problem, everyone here wants the best for all the new members you can learn alot here fast and save alot of rework and head scratching especially in the grow journal forum


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## bbr7515 (Jul 14, 2013)

i appreciate the help. and as for the box. right now it has flowers in it. thanks to the girlfriend. they are about 10 days old.from seed. getting all light from the box. not doing to bad i must say.


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## The Hemp Goddess (Jul 14, 2013)

Why aren't you starting marijuana seeds?


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## bbr7515 (Jul 14, 2013)

cause i dont have a good quality seed yet.just seeds i collected over the years from my outside growing. looking for something different


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## DrFever (Jul 14, 2013)

Only thing i can suggest is is get rid of the tin foil on your walls   go buy some white spray paint  but keeping tin foil in there will only give you hot spots where  plants will suffer


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## lindseyj (Feb 23, 2014)

As medicinal and recreational use of cannabis becomes more widely accepted, many cannabis users are choosing to grow their own. If you want to grow indoor, building a grow cabinet can be tricky one. You can assemble various items and make it possible easily. Online videos and information are available in plenty.


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