Help With New Tent Setup

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

kobold

7
3
Wondering if you folks wouldn't mind offering some thoughts on a small tent setup? I have a little outdoor experience and zero indoor experience, but I really like geeking out on various aspect of stuff, so I'm not afraid to jump in and fail, learn, rinse and repeat. I'm basically looking to build a nice and tidy 16oz producing kit. I know, strain has lots to do with it and I have no hard expectations, just trying to set a goal with an average producing strain.

I was first leaning towards a 60"x60"x80" tent with an HPS 1k, running 9 plants in 3x3 on 18"-20" centers with coco medium, some sort of timer water/feed to waste and a 6" fan on temp/hum control. For nutrients, I thought I might try to Go Box the first time around.

First question is what your thoughts are on the above?

Second question is that I'm intrigued by LED lighting, mostly for heat reduction, and what might the above kit look like with LED lighting? I wanted to go with 60"x60" to give a little room for fans and maybe slow the heat rise time a little, but can I achieve the same goal with a 48"x48" tent running a couple 600w LED's? Also, not sure how we discuss LED's, do we reference their claimed equivalent, or actual draw? By two 600w I really mean something like two Viparspectra 600w, which are 276w actual, or 552w total.

As for budget, I'm generally thrifty/bargainy. You'll notice I left out CHM/LEC, mostly because I've watched the calicropdoc series a couple times and think the disparity in growth has more to do with the lack of complete coverage on the HPS side, rather than the technology itself. Not totally opposed to them, just not sold on the extra expense yet. I'd probably buy iPower before Gorilla, etc.

Thanks!
 
CannaNovice

CannaNovice

29
3
kobold said:
Wondering if you folks wouldn't mind offering some thoughts on a small tent setup? I have a little outdoor experience and zero indoor experience, but I really like geeking out on various aspect of stuff, so I'm not afraid to jump in and fail, learn, rinse and repeat. I'm basically looking to build a nice and tidy 16oz producing kit. I know, strain has lots to do with it and I have no hard expectations, just trying to set a goal with an average producing strain.

I was first leaning towards a 60"x60"x80" tent with an HPS 1k, running 9 plants in 3x3 on 18"-20" centers with coco medium, some sort of timer water/feed to waste and a 6" fan on temp/hum control. For nutrients, I thought I might try to Go Box the first time around.

First question is what your thoughts are on the above?

Second question is that I'm intrigued by LED lighting, mostly for heat reduction, and what might the above kit look like with LED lighting? I wanted to go with 60"x60" to give a little room for fans and maybe slow the heat rise time a little, but can I achieve the same goal with a 48"x48" tent running a couple 600w LED's? Also, not sure how we discuss LED's, do we reference their claimed equivalent, or actual draw? By two 600w I really mean something like two Viparspectra 600w, which are 276w actual, or 552w total.

As for budget, I'm generally thrifty/bargainy. You'll notice I left out CHM/LEC, mostly because I've watched the calicropdoc series a couple times and think the disparity in growth has more to do with the lack of complete coverage on the HPS side, rather than the technology itself. Not totally opposed to them, just not sold on the extra expense yet. I'd probably buy iPower before Gorilla, etc.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
For nutrients look into the lucas schedule. I been feeding just maxibloom from GH and Protekt silica since day 1 all the way to harvest. Its way cheaper then buying all the seperate nutes. Another thing is the go box are small bottles. Almost better off buying 1 gallon each of bloom and grow and maybe a quart of call mag or bio bud But First look into lucas schedule or modified lucas schedule with just maxibloom. You literally just put 1-2 teaspoons in every gallon of water, thats it.

I would recommend LEDs over HPS in a tent grow. Only because of the HPS take up a lot more room and gives off a ton more heat then led. Also when you take in to account the ducting and glass tubes and clamps and fans you are going to need to cool the hps, the price is almost a wash. My LEDs are rated for 50,000 hours. thats 7 years I think 24 hours a day.
 
mancdank

mancdank

8,108
313
kobold said:
Wondering if you folks wouldn't mind offering some thoughts on a small tent setup? I have a little outdoor experience and zero indoor experience, but I really like geeking out on various aspect of stuff, so I'm not afraid to jump in and fail, learn, rinse and repeat. I'm basically looking to build a nice and tidy 16oz producing kit. I know, strain has lots to do with it and I have no hard expectations, just trying to set a goal with an average producing strain.

I was first leaning towards a 60"x60"x80" tent with an HPS 1k, running 9 plants in 3x3 on 18"-20" centers with coco medium, some sort of timer water/feed to waste and a 6" fan on temp/hum control. For nutrients, I thought I might try to Go Box the first time around.

First question is what your thoughts are on the above?

Second question is that I'm intrigued by LED lighting, mostly for heat reduction, and what might the above kit look like with LED lighting? I wanted to go with 60"x60" to give a little room for fans and maybe slow the heat rise time a little, but can I achieve the same goal with a 48"x48" tent running a couple 600w LED's? Also, not sure how we discuss LED's, do we reference their claimed equivalent, or actual draw? By two 600w I really mean something like two Viparspectra 600w, which are 276w actual, or 552w total.

As for budget, I'm generally thrifty/bargainy. You'll notice I left out CHM/LEC, mostly because I've watched the calicropdoc series a couple times and think the disparity in growth has more to do with the lack of complete coverage on the HPS side, rather than the technology itself. Not totally opposed to them, just not sold on the extra expense yet. I'd probably buy iPower before Gorilla, etc.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
If money is no object I would look into dimlux 630 cmh and get all the gadgets with it it will give u the 1.5sqm or 5Sq ft spread your looking for imo led are ok but won't give the penetration needed most people I know that are using led are moving towards the cmh
 
jipp

jipp

9,640
313
9 plants would be to many for a 3x3?
i can barely get 4 in my 2x4.

chris.
 
jipp

jipp

9,640
313
CannaNovice said:
You think 6 would fit in a 4X3
Click to expand...
i guess it depends how big you grow them. do not grow bushs like i did. laughs. and maybe..

here is my tent with 3 plants in 5 gallon pots. and couple 2gallon to determine sex.
IMG 2548 Copy

chris
 
gwheels

gwheels

1,594
263
I think the biggest error i made in my 4 x 4 was putting in too many plants. I had 4 that vegged for about a month. 2 would have filled it just as well I think. But you could flip the switch after 2 or 3 weeks and fit in more plants. More plants = more watering. That one starts to get irritating too. :) Just my 2 cents. Also try to stick to similar height strains.
 
kobold

kobold

7
3
CannaNovice said:
For nutrients look into the lucas schedule. I been feeding just maxibloom from GH and Protekt silica since day 1 all the way to harvest. Its way cheaper then buying all the seperate nutes. Another thing is the go box are small bottles. Almost better off buying 1 gallon each of bloom and grow and maybe a quart of call mag or bio bud But First look into lucas schedule or modified lucas schedule with just maxibloom. You literally just put 1-2 teaspoons in every gallon of water, thats it.

I would recommend LEDs over HPS in a tent grow. Only because of the HPS take up a lot more room and gives off a ton more heat then led. Also when you take in to account the ducting and glass tubes and clamps and fans you are going to need to cool the hps, the price is almost a wash. My LEDs are rated for 50,000 hours. thats 7 years I think 24 hours a day.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the thoughts on the nutes. I know the Go Box isn't the cost effective way to go, I was justing thinking it might be a good hand-holding way to go with the first effort. I'll check out Maxibloom and Protekt and look into nutes more when I get most of the hardware sorted out. I'm having fun reading up right now, but it's a little overwhelming trying to sort out the full kit in my head.

As for the tent and light, I posted this too soon as I'm changing my thoughts on them. At this point I'm thinking of the Gorilla 5'x5' because it seems to be the only one that has the ability to extend the height and I think that 7' 11" height will be really helpful for keeping heat away from the plants. Possibly using a Nanolux DE 4x4. After reading further, I'm not sold totally sold on LED for flower just yet. I'll be setting up a little veg room and will probably try out an LED in there first.

mancdank said:
If money is no object I would look into dimlux 630 cmh and get all the gadgets with it it will give u the 1.5sqm or 5Sq ft spread your looking for imo led are ok but won't give the penetration needed most people I know that are using led are moving towards the cmh
Click to expand...

Hadn't seen the Dimlux yet, thanks for that. My only concern is that it looks like it's 240VAC only and I was planning on using this in a room that only has 120VAC available. That brings me to another issue, which is that if I have to A/C this kit, that's going to push me over my 15a breaker, or at least take it so close that I'd want to consider another route, like possibly getting a little outside 10'x10' shed and pimping it out. There's 30a 240VAC available outside, so power wouldn't be an issue, just seemed like maybe too big of a step at first, but something like an outdoor shed is the eventual goal.

Megalith1 said:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01HYUO9VY/ref=cm_cr_arp_mb_bdcrb_top?ie=UTF8

This led has really good reviews and you can check them out on YouTube, I'm ordering 1 for my next go round
I'm using a mars 300w at the moment but wishing I spotted this first lol
Click to expand...

Something like this is was I was first thinking about for LED, but maybe 3-4 of them. Think I'll try something like this for veg.

jipp said:
9 plants would be to many for a 3x3?
i can barely get 4 in my 2x4.

chris.
Click to expand...

My mistake, I shouldn't have said 3x3, that was misleading. I meant as in the plant layout, but I suppose that doesn't even need to be said because how else would it be haha. Think I'll ignore plant count for now and will wait until things are further along.

Thanks everyone for chiming in. :)
 
Perception

Perception

453
93
Definitely check out the CMH lights. I run an LEC315 in a 4x4 tent. I did the same thing as you: 3x3 would have worked great, but got the 4x4 for extra space. Was the right choice.

If I was you, I'd do the 5x5, then go for the 1k equivalent in CMH. You could run a SunSystem LEC630 which is roughly equivalent to 1000w.

With my LEC315, the bulb is open air, and I can control tent temps easily. I HIGHLY recommend the HyperFan. I oversized my fan (bought an 8", ~730cfm), and I dial it down with speed controller to maybe 300cfm. Sooooooo quiet. So for you, maybe buy the 10" hyper fan. Ive found that with plants in tent, my temp is easily controllable. I live in a very dry climate though, so evaporation from my soil helps cool. I see a 4deg temperature difference from air outside tent to air inside. Very nice.

Only downside of the LEC's is price. They aren't cheap. But I've been running mine for over a year almost non-stop with no issues.

(I know you are staying away from CMH/LEC, but wanted to tell you what I've seen. I'm relatively new at growing, so can't speak to yields vs other lights, but I will say that my plants are HAPPY under the LEC)
 
Last edited:
kobold

kobold

7
3
Okay, I've read enough to be interested in CMH and have found some pretty affordable models, most notably the Nanolux CMH 315 & 630.

I like what you're saying about the fan, buy big and keep it low, but have the ability to vacuum like crazy if needed. I always like to idea of buying bigger and running lower, as opposed to buying exactly what you need and having zero headroom.

What I'd really like to know now is; can the Nanolux CHM 630 with dual 315 bulbs be run as a 315 on just one bulb, or will it only run with both bulbs?
 
CannaNovice

CannaNovice

29
3
DrMcSkunkins said:
9 plants in a SoG tote flowered immediately would fit and probably yield around 9oz...
Or 9 autos same method
Click to expand...
I think this is what ima do. by flower imediate you mean as soon as the clones/seedlings are rooted? IE no veg time? (I aint using autos)
 
N

NoFr1ends

72
18
I have a few nano 630s that I'm going to give a try. I'm doing 6 plants per 4x4 in 3G smartpots. I'm also new to growing ha.
 
kobold

kobold

7
3
I'm a mess trying to figure this out, but I think I've settled on a 4x8 tent with a couple 315's. It can be a veg room if nothing else.

Sent a message to HydroBuilder and they said the Nanolux 630 won't run on just one bulb, nor is it dimmable.

For a flower room, thinking about building a little 10x10 shed. Then I can use the 240 circuit and power shouldn't be as much of an issue.

Anywho, getting closer to sorting it out...
 
N

NoFr1ends

72
18
kobold said:
I'm a mess trying to figure this out, but I think I've settled on a 4x8 tent with a couple 315's. It can be a veg room if nothing else.

Sent a message to HydroBuilder and they said the Nanolux 630 won't run on just one bulb, nor is it dimmable.

For a flower room, thinking about building a little 10x10 shed. Then I can use the 240 circuit and power shouldn't be as much of an issue.

Anywho, getting closer to sorting it out...
Click to expand...


That sounds like a good idea. I was all over the place too. I have a few 315s I need to get rid of. I'm going to keep one for veg. I have a sub panel in my room, it's nice to not worry about amps. I do believe the 630 is dimeable if you buy the nanolux controller. How many plants are you going to do?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Top Bottom