First Time Grower. Going All In. (5x5/dwc/led Hlg-600)

  • Thread starter guabasa
  • Start date
  • Tagged users None
guabasa

guabasa

8
3
Hiya guys and gals,

First of all, I want to say that I’ll be posting this same thread in several forums in order to get more opinions, my intention is not to spam!

With that out of the way let’s get right into it:

I have some background and experience in organic agriculture and permaculture and have grown veggies and other edibles on and off for a number of years, always outdoors and in soil.

This is going to be my first time growing cannabis, at least seriously…A few years ago I had some Fruit Autos in soil on a windowsill that yielded some grams each, but that’s not much of a grow. This time I want to get a bit more serious about it and build an indoor setup since I have the time, space and some money I can invest right now.

I’ve been researching quite a bit for the past few months and have recently put together an equipment list which you can see here: https://goo.gl/14QKSn

I realize it may be a lot of stuff for a first time grower but I’m willing and able to shell out a bit more for the peace of mind, that being said I know that the experience is also important and have been researching on that as well. But I’m fairly confident I can have a good go at it.
smile.png


I already have my 5x5 tent which I purchased last week so I may adapt the setup recommendations you give me based on the size of the tent.

I’m planning to have 4 photo-period plants in my tent although I’m open to autos, and In terms of yield aspirations, I’m happy with whatever I get
smile.png
, that being said, of course I would like to maximize yields however possible and have been extensively looking into plant training methods.

I’ve decided to go with LED’s because of the lower power consumption needed for the tent size and also because of the heat HPS setups can give off since I live in a warm climate. And lastly because I really like the idea of growing with LED’s, it just seems fun!

FYI, power rates in my area are $0.08 kWh.

The DWC setup I have planned is two 10 gallon containers with two plants each. I’ve decided to go with hydroponics since I’ve always wanted to learn and experiment with hydroponic setups. I’m planning on going with a top-fed DWC. Is the cost of extra water and air pumps, and air stones worth the pros on having a top-fed system versus a normal DWC? I’ve read it only really matters when starting since the roots can’t reach the water yet.

Another thing I’m thinking of is heat problems within my DWC. The average yearly temps where I’m located are 20C - 32C (68F - 89F). Next week I will be begin testing and recording temperature in the room the tent will be located and later on in the tent with all equipment, all prior to starting the grow.

I would appreciate any advice you can share but here are some questions off the top of my head:
  • What is the best plant training combination for beginners? Topping+LST+ScrOG?
  • Is it really worth it going with 24/0 over 18/6?
  • What are some good visual indicators it’s time to flip to flower?
  • For people who know about quantum boards: I’ve seen the official HLG-600H DIY Kit has a Slate 5 Quad Predrilled 740mm Heat Sink, but I can’t seem to find it anywhere. I contacted HLG and they linked me to the Slate 6 Quad Heat Sink which seems to be 950mm in length. Is this going to be a problem in my 5x5 tent footprint-wise?
  • Next think I want to do in the spreadsheet is calculate my total kWh consumption of all my equipment. What’s the best way to calculate this?

I’ll be keeping detailed journals of my grows so feel free to tag along!

I’ll leave it at that! If any of you have the chance of going through the equipment list to get a whole picture of the setup that would be awesome!

Drop me a line or two with your recommendations and experiences.
And I always appreciate links to books, videos or any kind of info, and links to similar setup grow journals
smile.png


Happy growing!

-Guabasa
 
OldSmokie76

OldSmokie76

1,110
263
Definitely get a diary going once you iron out some details. As for sizing of the quantum boards to your tent, not much experience with them. I'm a soil guy, so I can't say much about the hydro questions. My only suggestion is work in soil for the first run or so to ensure the environment is spot on. Environment is key. Control of temps, humidity, and air exchange/circulation very important. Training properly will ensure maximum yield for your efforts. I've only used topping and lst to spread the canopy with great success. Training is entirely up to you and you'll find what works best for you. Patience is a virtue. Happy growing and I look forward to finding your diary.
 
MeanGreen420

MeanGreen420

628
93
You can do top feed but also filling a thin layer on bottom net pot with hydroton and then fill your water level until bubbling through hydroton, then set your plant on top that and fill in sides with hydroton also works, after roots start coming through net pot you can let your water level go down some. That trick is on heisenbubble YouTube videos.

Use hydroguard for your water and roots and you shouldn’t need a chiller.

Indoors you usually flip to flower when your at half the height of your maximum grow height. Example: say your light is as high as it will go in your tent, then you’d measure from top of your net pot, to the top of the light. However far that is cut it in half and that’s the amount of height you wanna get before flipping to flower. That’s with photoperiod idk about autos.

I’ve used 24/0 to root clones only, other than that I’d do 18/6 for veg, then 12/12 for flower, on a photoperiod plant idk about auto.

Look up heisenbubble he’s got cool videos on dwc on YouTube!
 
Dirtbag

Dirtbag

Supporter
9,158
313
What is the best plant training combination for beginners? Topping+LST+ScrOG?

--In my opinion, topping and lst.

Is it really worth it going with 24/0 over 18/6?

--No. Use 18/6, the plant expels byproducts and feeds soil microbes in the dark period. Plus that's also when most root growth happens.

What are some good visual indicators it’s time to flip to flower?

--Photoperiod plants will show preflowers at the nodes, That says it's ready. But you can put cuttings straight into flower too, depends how big you want them

For people who know about quantum boards: I’ve seen the official HLG-600H DIY Kit has a Slate 5 Quad Predrilled 740mm Heat Sink, but I can’t seem to find it anywhere. I contacted HLG and they linked me to the Slate 6 Quad Heat Sink which seems to be 950mm in length. Is this going to be a problem in my 5x5 tent footprint-wise?

--Cant help you there..

Next think I want to do in the spreadsheet is calculate my total kWh consumption of all my equipment. What’s the best way to calculate this?

--Add up the number of hours every piece of equipment will be running accounting for veg and flower cycles, and multiply the total hours by the number of watts for each piece of equipment, that will give you the kwh used for each piece. Then add it all up and multiply that by your utilities rate.
 
guabasa

guabasa

8
3
Definitely get a diary going once you iron out some details. As for sizing of the quantum boards to your tent, not much experience with them. I'm a soil guy, so I can't say much about the hydro questions. My only suggestion is work in soil for the first run or so to ensure the environment is spot on. Environment is key. Control of temps, humidity, and air exchange/circulation very important. Training properly will ensure maximum yield for your efforts. I've only used topping and lst to spread the canopy with great success. Training is entirely up to you and you'll find what works best for you. Patience is a virtue. Happy growing and I look forward to finding your diary.
Thanks for the tips and the welcome! Will definitely keep a journal :)
 
guabasa

guabasa

8
3
You can do top feed but also filling a thin layer on bottom net pot with hydroton and then fill your water level until bubbling through hydroton, then set your plant on top that and fill in sides with hydroton also works, after roots start coming through net pot you can let your water level go down some. That trick is on heisenbubble YouTube videos.

Use hydroguard for your water and roots and you shouldn’t need a chiller.

Indoors you usually flip to flower when your at half the height of your maximum grow height. Example: say your light is as high as it will go in your tent, then you’d measure from top of your net pot, to the top of the light. However far that is cut it in half and that’s the amount of height you wanna get before flipping to flower. That’s with photoperiod idk about autos.

I’ve used 24/0 to root clones only, other than that I’d do 18/6 for veg, then 12/12 for flower, on a photoperiod plant idk about auto.

Look up heisenbubble he’s got cool videos on dwc on YouTube!
Thanks for the reply and the tips! Much appreciated!
 
guabasa

guabasa

8
3
What is the best plant training combination for beginners? Topping+LST+ScrOG?

--In my opinion, topping and lst.

Is it really worth it going with 24/0 over 18/6?

--No. Use 18/6, the plant expels byproducts and feeds soil microbes in the dark period. Plus that's also when most root growth happens.

What are some good visual indicators it’s time to flip to flower?

--Photoperiod plants will show preflowers at the nodes, That says it's ready. But you can put cuttings straight into flower too, depends how big you want them

For people who know about quantum boards: I’ve seen the official HLG-600H DIY Kit has a Slate 5 Quad Predrilled 740mm Heat Sink, but I can’t seem to find it anywhere. I contacted HLG and they linked me to the Slate 6 Quad Heat Sink which seems to be 950mm in length. Is this going to be a problem in my 5x5 tent footprint-wise?

--Cant help you there..

Next think I want to do in the spreadsheet is calculate my total kWh consumption of all my equipment. What’s the best way to calculate this?

--Add up the number of hours every piece of equipment will be running accounting for veg and flower cycles, and multiply the total hours by the number of watts for each piece of equipment, that will give you the kwh used for each piece. Then add it all up and multiply that by your utilities rate.
Thanks for the reply! Nice tips!
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom