My First Grow!!! LED/CFL/STEALTH HYDRO

[poptheglock69]

Hey Everyone! ive finally saved enough money to start my first grow project. Its all for my personal use (sick of the shady bullshit) and i have a huge interest in growing things. I would like to get some advice from some people who really know what there talking about on here ( really appreciated)

Here is what i have purchased so far

STEALTH HYDROPONICS/bubbleponics system
http://www.stealthhydroponics.com/pr...Prod=2&xSec=54

i chose the DUAL SPECTRUM 65 WATT
OUTPUT : 3,400 Lumens Each (x2) = 6,800 Lumens total

i also have purchased a LED light panel like this one but around 90W 660nnm red and and 450nnm blue...


so now i am stuck. i cant decide wether to purchase a grow tent or to just build my own. i kinda would like it to be a closet grow that is really hidden.. stealth, its called right?

is there a certain height it needs to be if i built it? any advice on good dimensions? or does that depend on the seeds which leads me to my next question...

what are some safe and reliable sites to get some good seeds from? i def want to grow pure indica to reduce my anxiety.

im a professional photog and im planning to take lots of HQ pix that i will be logging on here for everyone to see. high time quality pix!
Speedy Seedz

 

[bootlegbrewer]

I've done both closet grows and tent grows. For convenience sake, I would go with a tent if you can find one to fit your needs. In my opinion, it's just easier to mount everything, there won't be any light leak issues, and you'll have plenty of height for most strains.

As for seeds, check out the THC Bay on this site. Good Luck!

P.S. Not sure if it's just me, but I can't get your links to work.

 

[poptheglock69]

will a tent cause there to be more smell then an enclosure i wanna keep the smell down to a minimum.

does this one look good:


also do u think im going to need more lights?

 

[bootlegbrewer]

As long as you have a carbon filter, smell should not be an issue. For a 4x4 grow area, I would highly recommend getting more light. A 400W HPS at the minimum. I don't know what your budget is like, but a 600W with a vented hood, a fan and carbon filter to match airflow would be a better choice.

As for the tent, I haven't had any experience with this particular brand but the price seems too good to be true. Do a little research to make sure the materials are sturdy. On cheaper tents, the zippers often become an issue either leaking too much light or completely breaking. The tent I've got is a Dark Room DR120 and I love it.

 

[Malachi]

Knowing what I know now, if I was going to setup a personal setup for my first grow this is how I would do it. 4x4 Hydrohut Tent, 1000W HPS light, 240CFM Exhaust Fan w/ carbon filter, 4x4 Tray and (9) 3-gallon pots. IMHO I think that their isn't enough room in that stealth bubbleponics system to grow decent plants, and the led/cfls will not give you enough lumens to produce a sizeable harvest. I am not trying to take the wind out of your sails .... in fact my first grow was a soil grow over a 250W MH with 16 plants. I learned a lot, i think i only ended up with like 4 ozs or something. You can get good seeds from here VIA THCBay, but sometime the selection is limited. Dr.greenthumb seeds is very reliable and has some top notch genetics. I think he carries big purps which is an indica dominant strain that is fairly easy to grow.

 

[afatsoweezer]

as far as seeds, Mandalaseeds.com or BuyDutchseeds.com have proven reliable to me thus far.

A closet grow is always fun, especially if you like DIY projects and improvising. Fans make a difference, no matter what environment is chosen.

 

[poptheglock69]

thanks for the help i mainly chose the cfls cause i thought it wud take a lot less electricity but i dont think it wud be as much as an issue. they do ship to us? what are the conditions needed to sucessfully grow?

 

[Malachi]

Pop- Every grower has their opinions on specific conditions for a successful grow. Here are my personal recommendations.
1) Light Intensity - 50+ Lumens per square ft
2) Temperature - 70-75 day and 60-65 night you can run higher temperatures (80-85) as long as your humidity is 70-75%
3) Humidity - This is where a lot of growers differ. I run my humidity close to 70% through the entire grow. Many growers will tell you 60-65% during veg and 45-50% during flower. Which is fine.
4) Grow Medium - Whether growing soil or hydro you have to choose what works best for you. Being a new grower I would recommend starting with a soil less mix like black gold, sunshine mix, or pro-mix. 3-gallon pots would work fine.

This is just the basics, growing takes a lot of work. Most of the work comes from educating yourself. I have been growing for years and still learn things every grow. I would suggest getting a good book, or better yet just scroll through some of the forums and read, read, read! Knowledge is power, good luck, and I hope I have pointed you in the right direction. -Malachi

 

[Pandaman]

does this one look good:

I just got this exact one in the mail. Same size, same everything. I thought I was going to make it my flower tent because my other tent has windows and could get light leaks.

Is the price too good to be true? Yes, unfortunately it is. Sorry. It assembles just fine and has the stature of a good tent but with several disadvantages.

1. Corners aren't as stable as other Higher Quality tents (I.E.. Newer Darkroom, GrowLab, Secret Jardin). If you shake the tent, you will understand that it seems a bit too wobbly. It doesn't give me a sense of quality when I do this.

2. There are light leaks. I have (7) 85watt CFL's in that tent right now and the light leaks coming from it light up the room. Mind you, it's not that bad but it was enough to convince me that it was NOT going to be my flower tent.

3. The cross bars for the ceiling that would hold your lights, ducting, filter etc.. are made from 1/4" solid bars. They send several of them with the tent and most are purposely curved and/or angled to give you some added support for Fixed Placement for your equipment. Unfortunately, these bars bend too easily and most likely would not support my light canopy with the bulb and socket and all.

4. The inside has rectangle flaps for lower venting. These flaps do not have a way to seal shut. Due to this there is significant light that comes through.

5. The zippers are lower quality than what you would get in comparison to a GrowLab (the only other tent I've owned). Light leaks through all of the zippers. The placement of the flaps and zippers also leaves a lot of air movement. The tent is definitely NOT even close to air tight. If you were trying to get negative pressure built up in the tent, you would have to get a larger and/or more powerful fan to achieve this. I would also think that it would create a lot of whistling too.

6. (Minor) The tent needs to "Out-Gas". There is a strong smell from the material that gets to you after a few minutes. Kinda gave me a headache.

7. I haven't tried yet but the openings (6") that supposedly let you run ducting through don't seem large enough. Either that, or they are very tight.

Needless to say, it will become my vege tent as it doesn't meet my standards for a flower tent. I'm trying to find something good to say about the tent other than it's cheap. Ok, here we go; For the money, you get a tent that keeps pets and animals out of your grow area. It is sterile and clean looking. It blocks enough light so that if this was in your bedroom, you could fall asleep without being bothered by it. The color I got (despite the eBay picture) is Black with White Trim and it looks good.

Hope this helps :)

Peace