Theoneandonly Z
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Is a 4'x4'x12" bed really worth the space and medium? can i save space and medium and still get the same results with a 3'x3'x10" bed? Im talking sq footage in beds, not canopy space.
Ive been running 4x4 beds personally for over a year and have found it easy and very convenient. Im in the planning stages of a new grow and have been thinking about going with smaller beds. In my 4x4 bed i have been able to hit gpw consistently. My light footprint for each bed is about 5'x4.5' Now ive been able to hit my gpw (or close to) for years and I was mainly using fabric 5 gal pots. I found that nine 5gal pots under the same footprint can give me consistant yields (4-5 week veg on those) The 4x4 has been great, low maintanince, watering once every other day with very little run off. but I am using about 3 times the amount of medium to fill my bed!! I started looking into cubic feet of medium used and with my 9 5gal pots i use roughly 4.5 cubic feet of medium. In my 4x4x12" bed, it takes 16 cubic feet to fill. I only use about 10" in depth of medium so in my case it takes me 13-14 cubic feet of medium.
So what im trying to say is that I successfully and consistently hit my gpw using 4.5 cubic feet of medium (in 5 gal pots). Now in my 4x4 bed i still hit gpw+ but i have increased my medium usage by 3x...
Taking that into consideration while i plan this new grow, ive been thinking about using 3x3 beds with a depth of 8" of medium = 6 cubic feet. This is still more medium used compared to my individual 5 gal pots but there are plenty of trade-offs going on there. I plan on using a 4'x5' light spread but want to utilize every single sq foot of canopy space with virtually no loss of light. So by using 3x3 beds, i can utilize more work space down below in between beds and use less medium to fill them.
Just curious to anyones thoughts on downgrading in size of beds. In logic it only makes sense to me.
I would also like to thank fellow farmers @obsoul33t @true grit @RIVAL79 @JACKMAYOFFER @midwestdensies @delae632 @GR33NL3AF @Confuten1 and everyone else that has contributed their experiences w/ indoor bed growing. I know im forgetting some peeps out there! these guys are just a few that come to mind. Z
Ive been running 4x4 beds personally for over a year and have found it easy and very convenient. Im in the planning stages of a new grow and have been thinking about going with smaller beds. In my 4x4 bed i have been able to hit gpw consistently. My light footprint for each bed is about 5'x4.5' Now ive been able to hit my gpw (or close to) for years and I was mainly using fabric 5 gal pots. I found that nine 5gal pots under the same footprint can give me consistant yields (4-5 week veg on those) The 4x4 has been great, low maintanince, watering once every other day with very little run off. but I am using about 3 times the amount of medium to fill my bed!! I started looking into cubic feet of medium used and with my 9 5gal pots i use roughly 4.5 cubic feet of medium. In my 4x4x12" bed, it takes 16 cubic feet to fill. I only use about 10" in depth of medium so in my case it takes me 13-14 cubic feet of medium.
So what im trying to say is that I successfully and consistently hit my gpw using 4.5 cubic feet of medium (in 5 gal pots). Now in my 4x4 bed i still hit gpw+ but i have increased my medium usage by 3x...
Taking that into consideration while i plan this new grow, ive been thinking about using 3x3 beds with a depth of 8" of medium = 6 cubic feet. This is still more medium used compared to my individual 5 gal pots but there are plenty of trade-offs going on there. I plan on using a 4'x5' light spread but want to utilize every single sq foot of canopy space with virtually no loss of light. So by using 3x3 beds, i can utilize more work space down below in between beds and use less medium to fill them.
Just curious to anyones thoughts on downgrading in size of beds. In logic it only makes sense to me.
I would also like to thank fellow farmers @obsoul33t @true grit @RIVAL79 @JACKMAYOFFER @midwestdensies @delae632 @GR33NL3AF @Confuten1 and everyone else that has contributed their experiences w/ indoor bed growing. I know im forgetting some peeps out there! these guys are just a few that come to mind. Z