First grow

[MrTooHigh]

Well nobody answered so i got what I thought was best for my budget

4 daylight CFLs 20w 70w eq. (I know that just means more light penetration than a regular 20w, but still) more of the same organic fertilizer, a timer, plant food(Npk 1:1:1), tho the soil comes with fert that last about 2 weeks, soil moisture measurer (the worms) and auto release plant water bulb, 3 pots that come with auto watering reservoir(that mimics outside soil aeration/growth) overall I'm happy with my purchase and think it'll be worth it in the end.

 

[Rosebud]

Ok, so all i can add is to take out the water bulbs... Cannabis needs a wet/ dry cycle.

 

[MrTooHigh]

Okay. I was planning on it once the soil was moist enough, or the bulb ran out of water. Whichever came first. I have to anyways or I'll drown my babies, should I still take them out now, or just wait until soil is moist

 

[Locked]

should I still take them out now, or just wait until soil is moist

I would remove them. A good wet dry cycle can really speed up your growth in veg. I am not a fan of those bulbs unless you need to be gone for an extended period and you can't be there to water.

You want to keep the lights as close as possible without burning them. If in doubt put the back of your hand at the same distance as the plants. If you feel discomfort or pain then they are too close.

 

[MrTooHigh]

Thing is I only have one light fixture and 3 plants.

 

[MrTooHigh]

I do have 2 2-way light socket splitters

 

[MrTooHigh]

Well 3 but 1 has to stay on the first light fixture

 

[Hackerman]

I think if I had $100 and I wanted to get started growing the very first thing I would buy is:

400w dimmable ballast
air cooled hood
HPS bulb

I see these brand new on eBay all day long for $100

I think I remembered you saying your room was small so I would definitely get the DIMMABLE type of ballast. It should help control the heat a little.

After I got that hung up and turned on, I would start with the problems that will crop up. Like too much heat. So, then, I might turn down the ballast a little and start looking for ways to ventilate.

Each time you take a step, a new step (and a new problem) will be presented. That's what makes it fun.

 

[MrTooHigh]

I'm doing CFLs my first go, then his bulbs MH for veg HPS for flwr, that'll be when I buy feminized seeds. For now i m learning how to maintain the plant, with the incentive of some smoke lol

 

[MrTooHigh]

No doubt at all that hids are superior to all others, but also not the cheapest up front

 

[000StankDank000]

Look for the stuff used Bro.
I got a air cooled hood and 400watt HPS hortilux bulb for $60 the ballast 1000watt dimable $100 . 6" filter fan $180 new 4x4 tent $125 one inch frame. Full up and running $600 that's after seeds soil etc.

This stuff can be re sold down the road CFL not so much

 

[MrTooHigh]

That's good, you paid 465 for all yours, I only had 100. That would get me your bulb. But I found d a cheaper one anyways(on by 30) like I said HID is most expensive up front

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Actually you got some very good answers...

"...I know that just means more light penetration than a regular 20w..." Just so you know, that is not what that means. It means that the human eye sees the equivalent of a 70W incandescent bulb. For growing purposes, it really doesn't mean anything. Three bulbs are 60W putting out somewhere around 3500 lumens.

Like the others have mentioned, get rid of the glass bulbs. I would even consider removing from the self-watering planters. YOU want to be in control of how much water and nutrients they receive. Your soil looks rather barky and dense. Just because it is organic soil does not mean that it is good soil or that it does not need to be amended. I believe that you are going to din problems with the amount of bark and the density. Dense soil keeps the roots waterlogged. They also did not need to be transplanted in pots that large yet. It is harder to give the correct amount of water when tiny plants are in a large container. I believe that you are going to need to add perlite to your soil. I would also look for a source of soil that less bark and more dark rich soil. If your soil has nutrients, you will not need to add nutrients for a while. However when you do, all purpose plant food does not work well. For vegging you need something higher in N and K and low in P. During flowering you need something low in N and higher in P. If you don't know if a certain fertilizer is right, go online and look at the N-P-K of commercial nutrients formulated for cannabis. Organics and chemical nutrients do not co-exist. You are either organic or you are not. Chemical can and do kill the beneficials in organic soil.

How big a space are you planning on growing in? You are going to need a whole whole lot more light. When you get enough CFLs to be adequately lit, you are going to be generatring some real heat, which is going to have to be dealt with. It would be wonderful if we could grow dank bud with just 3 or 4 20W CFLs, but we can't. I know this is a learn how to grow experience, but without adequate lighting and ventilation, it really be a rather fruitless endeavor. WEhen you start adding up how many CFLs and howe many sockets and reflectors and cords you are going to need, I think you will see the cost savings of a HPS. CFLs are simply not cheaper. It is just easier to be underlit as you have multiple lights. You have to have enough light, regardless of the source.

 

[MrTooHigh]

I read somewhere in these forums that the equivalent watts means more penetration, if not whoever posted it should edit it, they shouldn't post "facts" unless they've been proven.
OK now that I got that out of the way let's move on. I took the bulbs out , what about the reservoir? If if it does detach I have to put something under it so it cant leak. As for my soil, would sifting out the bark work? I can't buy new supplies for a while now, so what I bought will have to do until I can go buy more equipment. As for my pots someone else told me I need to put them in 5 gal pots, mines only like 1 or 2, and it's still too much? I posted the specs on my space earlier, if I have to I can take out the shelf above, but how do you ventilate a closet? I have to keep a comforter over the doors just to keep light in/out cuz of the style of my doors. I had a fan blowing on low(for the heat and I heard its supposed to help strengthen the stem) and one of my plants fell over, I got it standing up now, but idk if it'll be permanently damaged.
It may be hard to grow on a budget, but I'm determined to do it.

 

[Rosebud]

The fan needs to gently blow the plants ,not a gust.

 

[Hackerman]

It may be hard to grow on a budget, but I'm determined to do it.

Shoot, my first grow was with a couple $5 shop lights. I grew some awesome pot like that for years. The quantity was very minimal but the quality was very good.

HID lights simply make everything so much bigger. LOL

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Plants can stay in smaller pots for quite a while. I have babies that are 4-5" inches tall with 4 or 5 sets each. They are vegging happily in Solo cups (red kegger cups).

Fans that strengthen the stems and more the air around are different fans than you need for heat control. Heat actually has to be removed--you need an exhaust fan of some kind that will remove the heat and duct it to another place.

I understand wanting to grow on a budge, but you are going to have to be able to afford the basic minimums or it simply is not going to work. You are absolutely going to have to have more light, lots more light. You need an exhaust fan to deal with the heat and you need good soil and nutrients. It is possible to grow good pot under fluoros, but you still have to have enough of them to do the job.

Try to get creative. I build a dual 150W HPS for about $25 from 2 yard security lights I got at a garage sale and put it together with some other things I either bought or already had. I now had 300W of HPS for very cheap and because they were in glass tubes they were very easy to cool. There are bargains out there. You can sometimes find T5s like at places like Habitat for Humanity Restore.

You are going to have to have a space that you will be able to make 100% dark for flowering. You do have a while before you need this, but try to plan for it now. I built a grow space in one of my closets. I'll post up some pics when I can. It was easy to construct and I used materials from a packing crate I got free. There are a lot of bargains out there. Look for them and think creatively.

 

[MrTooHigh]

Do you think if I put cardboard over the door cracks that it'll keep the light out. Another problem I have is the exhaust fan, idk how I'd rig it up in my closet

 

[Hackerman]

I usually use weatherstripping. Cardboard and duct tape might ghetto the job done.

As far as venting.... what's above the ceiling in the closet?

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Cardboard over the door cracks will not work for flowering. It simply will not keep a space 100% dark and it would be quite hard to open and close the doors to tend the plants. Bi-fold doors and bi-pass doors cannot be made light tight. If it is a regular door into a walk-in type closet, weatherstripping can sometimes be used to make it light tight. Otherwise you are absolutely going to have to build a box in the closet (or elsewhere) or use a tent.


Do you own your home or rent? I guess the question is, can you drill holes in things? Let me know and we will talk about ventilating your closet.