New Grower New low ryder grow help ?

[floatingaround]

Hi,

Have recently decided to get a new low ryder stealth grow underway and would like some advice. I've done a lot of reading around the subject for the last few days so will try and list all the info needed to get some help from you guys hopefully. This will be my first ever Grow

The focus of the grow is stealth, My flatmates can't be aware of this grow. Fortunately I'm in a small outhouse separate from the main house.

I've decided to grow the purple ryder due to the low door emitted by this strain and the fact it doesn't need too much space to grow. I don't want to grow anymore than 3 plants at any one time will be cycling them so i harvest one each month.

For the grow box I'd like to build a sealed box out of MDF which will be hidden/encorporated into a desk i'm also going to build. Dimensions of the box Will be - Height 1.0m Depth 0.7m Length 1.3m

these are the maximum possible dimensions for the box. Will this be suitable for 3 plants ? Can i get away with making the box smaller and still yielding the same?

I intend to line the box
For airflox I wish to use PC fans for my intake and outake due to the low level of noise they produce. How many PC fans do you think will be necessary for intake and outake ?? I'm also going to build a home made carbon filter to deal with any smells.

For lights I'm intending to use CFL as they are cheap to purchase and run. Will i be better off running one large 200-300 w CFL at the top of the box or multiple 30-50w CFLs in strategic positions inside ?


Soil and nutrients are the one thing I do not have too much knowledge on. If anyone has any suggestions on what the purple ryders prefer i would appreciate it. I don't want a hydroponic system.

Hope this covers most of the basics, any opinions/ help/ suggestions greatly appreciated.

I will be updating with pics of course once its all underway

Looking forward to hearing back

 

[Muddy]

Welcome to AFN. Stop by the Introductions forum and post up in there so we can all get to know you.

The size of your box is big enough for 3 plants, maybe even 4, depending on the size of the pots you intend to use. Height might be a bit of an issue. You may need to do some LST, Low Stress Training, where you tie the plants over so they grow more horizontally than vertically.

Regarding your ventilation, a box that size is about 30 cubic feet. You'll want to use fans that, based on their CFM (cubic feet per minute) rating, can change the air in the box at least once a minute. PC fans can do this but they may not move enough air to effectively pull it through a carbon filter. Any lights, including CFLs, generate heat so you need to have sufficient ventilation to remove it and maintain proper temps in the box.

The effective coverage area of the 200-300 watt CFLs is about 2.5' x 3', so not big enough to cover your 4' length. You could supplement one with some regular CFLs but given that you do have a bit over 4' in length you might consider using T5s instead. T5HOs are 54 watts per bulb. The general run of thumb is 50 watts per square foot. You've got about 7.5 sq. ft. so would need about 375 watts total, or a minimum of 6 bulbs. Something like this would do nicely: http://www.plantlightinghydroponics.com/badboy-t-5-fluorescent-grow-light-4ft-6-lamp-p-3352.html.

For nutrients there are a lot of good ones available. GH Flora, Fox Farms, Advanced, and others. All work well for growing autos so it's a matter of personal choice and what is available to you.

You will also need a pH meter for measuring and adjusting the pH of your nutrient feeds. My preference is the Hanna Combo, which besides testing pH, will also test TDS and PPM. Knowing the PPM of your base water and feed can be very helpful in correct feeding. It will also allow you to check the pH of your run off, the water that comes out the bottom of the pot when feeding. It's a good indicator that your soil pH is in the proper range for maximum growth.