Lighting AFNs live LED help thread.

[TaNg]

Cheers Tang but if the soil in dry a couple of inches down then would 1 LTR of water be ok? At the moment they are getting about 1 LTR between all 5 of them and im starting to think that was ok at the start but now i should be giving them more as they prob have more roots looking for water now?

Cheers for your help!

if your plants are thirsty they will tell you by sagging. Without seeing the size of the plants I can't really tell how much they will need.

 

[wild1]

If you click on the link in my sig then you can see the pics i took yesterday if that's any good? Cheers again!

 

[wild1]

Ok well i im going to try 1 LTR of water+nutes per pot every 2 - 3 days (i'll check with the finger test) and see how they go unless you think that's wrong?

Cheers! :grat:

 

[AutoGoober]

i hope this isn't a ridiculous question or one that has already been answered in the past that i haven't been able to find. I used to do some growing a while back but have never worked with led's or auto's for that matter. Well I'm looking to get a little thing going in a closet that is about 6 ft x about 29inches with about 6 ft of head space, but could get more head room if needed. I'm looking to get a nice little led thing going but can't really spend the money on the nice american stuff. I have done some research on what to grow and i think that i have settled on think different. So my question is what is my most optimal setup in this space? I figured i'd use some 5g buckets and thought maybe 3 girls would fit that way. I have done some reading on the scrog method but have no experience there and am a little iffy with that method and an auto. Really i guess I'm just looking for all the info i can get. I really would appreciate the assistance. thank you in advance. also i'd like to keep the cost down and am really trying to spend less than a grand total if possible. would like it if i could keep it closer to 600 or so, if it's possible for optimal results.

 

[Hansbricks]

i hope this isn't a ridiculous question or one that has already been answered in the past that i haven't been able to find. I used to do some growing a while back but have never worked with led's or auto's for that matter. Well I'm looking to get a little thing going in a closet that is about 6 ft x about 29inches with about 6 ft of head space, but could get more head room if needed. I'm looking to get a nice little led thing going but can't really spend the money on the nice american stuff. I have done some research on what to grow and i think that i have settled on think different. So my question is what is my most optimal setup in this space? I figured i'd use some 5g buckets and thought maybe 3 girls would fit that way. I have done some reading on the scrog method but have no experience there and am a little iffy with that method and an auto. Really i guess I'm just looking for all the info i can get. I really would appreciate the assistance. thank you in advance. also i'd like to keep the cost down and am really trying to spend less than a grand total if possible. would like it if i could keep it closer to 600 or so, if it's possible for optimal results.

Hey AutoGoober, welcome to AFN. Don't worry there are no stupid questions here, you'll find the people here are very friendly and helpful (unlike most other MJ forums). I have a similar closet space and a 4x2x5' tent will fit nicely in there (see pic), you can get a tent like this for around $100. You'll also want an exhaust fan and carbon filter, which you can get a 4" combo for around $150. As for the LED, well you can spend countless hours researching these... but the best options for someone on a budget would be to look at Mars-Hydro, Cidly (Apollo series), Vipar, or Apollo Horticulture. Probably the best bang for your buck currently is the Mars II series. If you're growing 3 plants in this space I would recommend getting 2 LED lights for best coverage, and to allow you to have the lights at different heights if needed (two MarsII 400w's would work quite well). I think keeping in your $1000 or less budget is possible. If you have any other questions just ask.
:Sharing One:

 

[AutoGoober]

Hey AutoGoober, welcome to AFN. Don't worry there are no stupid questions here, you'll find the people here are very friendly and helpful (unlike most other MJ forums). I have a similar closet space and a 4x2x5' tent will fit nicely in there (see pic), you can get a tent like this for around $100. You'll also want an exhaust fan and carbon filter, which you can get a 4" combo for around $150. As for the LED, well you can spend countless hours researching these... but the best options for someone on a budget would be to look at Mars-Hydro, Cidly (Apollo series), Vipar, or Apollo Horticulture. Probably the best bang for your buck currently is the Mars II series. If you're growing 3 plants in this space I would recommend getting 2 LED lights for best coverage, and to allow you to have the lights at different heights if needed (two MarsII 400w's would work quite well). I think keeping in your $1000 or less budget is possible. If you have any other questions just ask.
:Sharing One:


View attachment 406783

thanks for the tips, i really do appreciate it and i actually joined here because everyone seems so friendly and helpful and after some lurking i felt like i might as well... i guess i should've been a little more clear though. I actually have spent some time researching already and i have a good amount of experience growing just not auto's and not in such a small space or on such a small scale. Plus it's kind of been a while for me, i think maybe 6+ years since i was in the game. I was really amazed at how much things had changed. Led's were just a gimmick and near useless back then.

As for the Led's I'm a little in between something like a vipar or the mars? and I'm not sure about the 5w vs the 3w? or even the 8w if available? although once i saw the cob lights i got a little overwhelmed and now i really don't know what's what. i was even thinking about getting some side cheap led's for the flowering cycle. I've never used a tent before but i've helped friends who have so i'm not unfamiliar with them. but i just wonder if it's really needed when the closet is closed off anyways and i think i might just be able to throw down some panda tarp and a bunch of mylar and get a little more space to use. I'm really trying not to drill holes in the walls though so I might have to be a little careful with the exhaust fan. I thought if i ran it in the closet and maybe opened the door during the day i might be able to get away with that. I just am a bit worried about getting fresh air as well. do you think it would be a good idea to get a fourth plant in there? originally i figured 4 would be good but i also figured with the scrog method 3 might do the trick. I'm really trying to maximize my yield of course.

do you all know much about think different? i read some where that some people let them go 105 days, even though they are supposed to be done in 70 or so. I also have noticed a lot of people using these funny looking pots with what look like spikes in them. could some one explain the benefits of these? I was planning on soil originally but i also thought that a little hydro setup of some sort might not be a bad idea to maximize. I'm hoping to pull at least 8 zips but of course want to do better if possible. i'm really shooting for over 12 tbh. In the past with a 600 on a single flood table with 9 plants i've gotten well over 3 zips a piece so i don't think i'm that far in left field. mind you this was growing AK and not an auto either. any more tips advice or anything of the sort would be really appreciated. again thanks so much for your time.

 

[Hansbricks]

Good to hear you've got some growing experience, you'll probably find the transition to autos pretty seamless then. If you're between the Vipar and Mars LED I would go for the Mars, I've owned both... Mars has 3yr warranty too vs 1yr on the Vipar. I would also still recommend going with the tent, especially if you don't want to be drilling holes in your wall, as you can hang all the lighting and equipment (fans, filter, etc) inside the tent. Also much better for controlling the smell, since you could then just leave the closet door open most of the time and only the filtered air would be blowing out.

As for the Think Different, I haven't grown one myself (it's next in line tho) but I've seen plenty of grows on them and they can get quite big so I would stick with 3 in that space. Also I don't have experience doing a scrog but I think you might want to just look into doing some LST instead, seems to be the most popular method for training autos.

Also those funny looking pots are called airpots, explained here. They have become quite popular, the top soil growers on here use them and regularly get 100-200+g/plant so yeah the yield you're aiming for is easily achievable without going the hydro route.

 

[cowboy]

Hey all,

I Have a mars II 1200 in a 5x5 (feet) dr150 tent. I would really like some help on a starting point with regards to height of the lamp? Its roofed to the ceiling right now. About 1 kilometer away from my plants. With my 900 im about 1.5-2 feet. . .

Anyone!?

 

[AutoGoober]

Thanks again for all the info. Lol i guess the tent is probably the way to go, but I hate to lose the extra 2 ft of space since no one makes a tent that fits more snug for the space i have. only way to go would be a 2x4x5 i guess.... so i can't have the girls getting too tall either. basically that's my biggest hang up. but as for hanging things i actually have some shelves in the closet that are not completely solid so i could just hang things from there without any holes or drilling

Back in my day i pretty much just did a lot of super cropping and topped my girls as well... as for the LST method i guess you just kind of pull it to the side and tie it down gently? I found a grow of think different on youtube i think it was and they actually pulled off a scrog with think different, i assume because it grows so well. But you might be right about the LST plus it might be better to use the KISS(keep it simple stupid) method since it's been a while since i did my thing.

thanks for the info on the airpots. i did a little research and they sound really impressive. I guess the main benefit is the air that the roots are able to get from having holes in the spikes? when i saw the pots before i didn't notice that they had holes in them along the sides. is there anything different i would need to do with the soil or the watering with an air pot? and i guess my best bet would be to get something like the 21liter pots? i didn't see a 19liter one which i think converts to around 5g. I'm glad to hear i could get the numbers I'm looking for without the hydro route. I've never grown hydro and honestly i like the taste and smell of soil more.

does everyone still use the fox farms ocean mix i think is what it was called? i used to mix that with pro mix when i had a bunch of girls since using all fox farms wouldn't have been practical. but for something small like this i think it would work out alright. if i could pull off a full elbow out of 3 girls, i'd be incredibly happy.

do you recommend any other autos? for yield and of course a solid quality. I'm also a little nervous about growing again since it might take me a little to get my groove back since it's been so long. but I'm really excited about getting going since i love the feel of having some girls around. where do you recommend i order form? seeds and equipment?

lol sorry to be such a pest with so many questions, i just want to get everything as close to right as possible and i don't mind playing the noob for a while till i get back up to speed. again thanks a million for all the help, you're really a nice guy to be so generous with all of your knowledge. I've always felt that's how this thing should work, not just the internet but growing in general.

and before i forget what do you all recommend as far as the 5w bulbs vs 3w? and cob and all? and do you feel as though i'd need to add co2? i used to have a big tank i would get filled through a friends company, now that's not an option though so I'm not really sure how to handle it. any tips or idea's?

 

[Toastman]

hey i need some help with LED´s i want to switch my 600w HPS+Cooltube to 2 300w LED`s i found this babys on


http://www.ebay.com/itm/300W-LED-Gr...5758573?pt=US_Hydroponics&hash=item2a445fd8ed

buyable or crap?