CharmingMan's micro cabinet (NGB like)

[CharmingMan]

Greetings,
I'm new here as a poster, but I have been reading the forum for a couple of months now, and been getting good ideas from many many topics.
This forum is also where I've got the idea of building a micro stealth cabinet - the NGB cab really inspired me. So after of a couple of months of preparations, I've finally managed to finish it. Here it goes:

The design is like the NGB one, one mother room, above it the utility room, and besides it a grow/flower room. For the mothers I will be using two CFL (i think) bulbs, and for the grow/flower room there will be one 150 W HPS light.
The ventilation is powered by an unknown centrifugal ventilator (I think it is the kind, that is used in the car), but it is quite powerfull, yet not all that silent.

Because this cabinet is a secret from the other people I live with, it has some automatic security - a motion sensor (I used one that is used for turning on lights outdoors and modified it a bit). When the sensor is sensing motion in the room, it turns off the main ventilator, for a couple of minutes, and it does so everytime it is triggered. So in theory, while a person is in the room, the ventilator should be off.

It is time for some pictures:


The cab, without the walls installed.


The bottom of the cab. The hole in the flower room is there, because that way I gain something like 4-5 inches in height. The pots will be sitting trapped in a board with holes cut just tight right, with their bottoms to the floor. The gravity should do the sealing part (for air and for light).


This is the wall between the flower room and the utility/mother rooms, face to the flower room. On it you can see the two electric plugs, one filled with the timer for the flowering lamp, the other one free for maybe future use or something else. The orange thing is the thermostat, which cuts off the lights if the temepratures go higher than any desired rate (currently set at 45°C).


The other side of the same wall.


This is the mother/utility wall board, with the view from the utility room. On it there is mounted pretty much all the electricity that keeps the cabinet going, with the ballast for the HPS light,some extra plugs, for further use and a fuse.


The other side - the view from the mother room.


The carbon filter, wich is mounted inside the utility room. Yes, it is tight in there.


View of the mother room running. (the furthest bulb is there just to see how it looks like)


The ventilation tubes in the mother room - from the left, the air comes in, to the right, where it goes to the flower room.


A shot of the main attraction - the flowering light system.


And the view as a whole from the front.

The cab's inside dimensions are approximately 35 inches in length, 30 inches in height and 17 inches in depth. The flower room is about 13 inches in length, and the mother's room is about 19 inches in height.

I will be having two plants in soil in the flower room per growing cycle in SCROG technique. But because I'm a first time indoor grower, for this first time I've ordered Disel Ryder seeds and I will have probably 5 of them at the same time in the flower room (without the SCROG screen, of course).
Hopefully, when I master the growing, I will be getting about about 3 ounces in about two good months, at least that is my goal

So, this is about it. If you want any details feel free to ask.

 

[bigd21]

lets see some pics brother......

 

[Connoisseur300]

Welcome to the community.

Please give us the pics asap. So have you thought about a perpetual harvest?? I'm sure you'll hit 3 zips using the method.

 

[hippie hill]

yeah perpetual harvest are wonderfull i cant wait till mine r dun a oz a week will be nice

 

[CharmingMan]

Thanks for the replays guys!
About the pics:
When I try to post em, using the

method, I get this error: Your Post contains one or more URLs, please remove them before submitting your message again.
I don't get it. First I have uploaded them to imageshack, the forum gave me that. Than I've uploaded them to my personal gallery here, on ICMag's forum, I get the same error, even if I click on the pic down, in My Gallery (a script than puts the links here, where I'm writing). Dunno whats wrong

@Connoisseur300 and hippie hill:
Never heard of that method, I'll check it out. You think by trying it, I will get the most out of my cab? Thanks guys!

Hope I fix the pics soon.

 

[CharmingMan]

Oh, I've found the solution to my error - I have to have more posts
So I hope no one will hold a grudge on me, if I'm writing this in a new post:

I have a couple of questions:

The cab is now test running, everything installed in, just a few more holes that need to be fixed, and without the plants.
The temperature inside is something like 10 deegrees Celsius higher than the outside. Is increasing the speed of the fan the only way to decrease the temperature differences? I have something like three 2 inch in diameter tubes for the intakes, three same tubes for mother to flower room intakes, and the cooltube mounted on a single 3 inch tube to the carbon filter in the utility room, where the air gets sucked out? Could maybe a fan on the cool tube (blowing towards the carbon filter of course) help?
Another thing is the humidity; now it is about 30%, when the lights are on and about 45% when they are off. Is that good for the plants? Probably with the plants in, the humidity should rise a little.

That's all for now, thanks guys!

 

[Thundurkel]

Nice cab brother,I can't wait till I get the extra cash to make mine more neat and organized... Welcome to IC my friend where you will find everything you could ever need to learn to grow your own stash!!!! I started a few months back as well and I now know more about growing then my buddy that got me into it !!!! Yea I too would go with a perpetual harvest and the best way to learn that method in a small space is to check out DrBud's old cabin grow that he had in 2 square feet pulling 3/4oz - 2 1/4oz a week!!!! Heres the link bro I think any micro grower starting out should read this thread ...

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=69713

I followed what DrBud does and have had great results my first grow came out way better than I thought it would






Come on over to the Darkside.....

 

[CharmingMan]

@Thundurkel:
Hey there bro, thanks for the compliments Yeah I really have put lots of mind, sweat and money into this project, hope everything works out But with such a resource as this forum is, I should have no problems
I've checked your current grow....damn that is some tight shit! As I read, you are reveging the plants so they can become mothers. How many plants do you consider having in your place, wher you are ready to go?

Been checkin out the thread you've posted me, and damn....it gave me something to think about 27 plants in such a small space...I am only concerned about what strain to choose, so that it gives good results in such conditions. Or will any indoor strain do?
Than there is the problem with watering...I'm not sure I can pull off an every other day watering, and with such small pots that is probably a great concern.

I am really a beggining grower, so I don't have much of a feeling for anything.

Thanks again for the comments, really apperciate that guys.

 

[Haggis123]

Great cab and a credit to your DIY skills and of course the infamous NGB cab.

Just one thing though, you said in your first post that you were using a thermostat to switch your lights off, if the temps go too high. You don't want that....you want your lights on' un-disturbed for 12 hrs in your flower section and 18 hrs or so in your veg section.

 

[CharmingMan]

@Haggis123:
Thanks mate, I've put some hard work in there
About the thermostat; it is set to go off is the temperature reaches abnormal values, like 50°C or more. It's more like a precaution for the cab not to set on fire, than a way to regulate temeprature for the plants.

Quick update:
Yesterday I've recieved my Diesel Ryders. They went straight away to germinate, hope they pop out soon. I will post some pics, when they are put into the cab.

 

[Thundurkel]

As far as strains go I would look for something with NL#5 in it since DrBud says that is a good one under Micro SOG conditions, I would go for hybrids get some seeds from DNA Genetics or wait for me to start my Micro Growers Seed Bank breeding strains that thrive in micro conditions with heavy yields.... But take a look at what DrBud has in his "Chesaw" or go a search for strains that are good for SOG it all comes down to the sweet spot really you just need to find what height to flower them at to get that nice budsicle cola

 

[CharmingMan]

@Thundurkel:
Tnx for the advice! I really don't have any hurry, since now I'm settled with the Disel Ryder for a couple of months, so I'll still have time to dig informations out.

Time for an update guys. The pics first:



Here are the Disel Ryders in the flower chamber. They have been in there for about a week now and I'm impressed with their growth. Except for the top left one, which hasn't come out yet...we'll see about that one.


This are some unknown strains in the mother room. I've germinated them more for experimenting purpouses than yield.




But there is a problem; pretty much all the plants are rounding up their leaf edges up and I don't know what the problem might be. Photos:










Could it be overwatering? Or is it really a magnesium problem? I'll appreciate any opinion on the topic!
The soil is made of two thirds of bought "universal" soil, and one third of sand from a pile nearby. I haven't used any fertilizer on them until today, only water from pipe.

Will post the progress of growth every week or so. Until then, live it up guys!

 

[hoosierdaddy]

Very nice cab, CharmingMan!
These things are addicting.

OK, if you don't mind I want to give you some advise. I think you will be overly happy with the results when you add some ventilation. You do not have enough air opening to be efficient.

It looks like you have ~4" ducting leaving the light. Is that the size of the duct until it exhausts? I mean, it isn't choked down smaller than 4" is it?

If not, then 4" is the benchmark to work with. You need to have at the very least 10% more opening for intake than you have for exhaust opening. A good rule of thumb is to allow for 100% extra area (intake double the size of the exhaust), but with good flow and proper fans, you can get by with less.
Like I said though, just 10% over-sized is adequate with an efficient system.

4" exhaust is 12.56 sq inches area
2" intake is 3.14 sq inches area, so it would take 4- 2" holes just to equal the exhaust size, then add 10-100%. Add one more 2" hole to get more than 10%, or add 4 more for the full 100% over.
Follow?

 

[CharmingMan]

@hoosierdaddy:
Thanks for the compliments!
Bout the air circulation:
The ducting leaving the cool tube is around 2" thick.
I follow the math, don't worry, but what would that change in my cab? The only thing I can think of is that it would increase the air pressure in the cab. The amount of air flow is determined by the fan, and not by the ducting's "weakest link". Or am I wrong?

 

[hoosierdaddy]

The fan is only going to provide the CFM that it provides as a rating IF the ducting is of the same size or larger than the connection of the fan itself.

When you restrict the air flow, the fan tries to work harder to accomplish it's task, but it reaches a wall that it can't overcome.

Only one way you can eliminate the problem of the fan not being able to reach it's rated potential...add the proper intake and exhaust.
Your plants, which are showing heat stress, will thank you for allowing the proper amount of air into the cab.
If you ever get a more powerful light, you will find out straight away what I am telling you is straight up fact. I'm simply trying to help with what I know...not what I am speculating.

 

[CharmingMan]

Sorry mate, wasn't trying to be rude, just I wanted to know why
I was kinda thinking also in that way (bout the fan), but wasn't sure about it.
Thanks for the advice!
Will try to improve this in a near future, if I will really wish to increase my yeald. But for now I'm still learning and experimenting

 

[Quazi]

Hello CharmingMan.

Bit of help on the curling leaves:

From some reading, it appears that one of the first things to investigate is heat. It may be that your lights are too close or that your cab is too hot. Some have indicated that improper ph levels in the soil can be to blame too. However, this is just after some light reading on the "leaf curling" subject.

You can post your pictures in the infirmary forums to get a better response.

Also, you might want to get acquainted with "Advanced Search." Click the Search menu up top then click "Advanced Search." In the drop-down below the search box, select "Search Titles Only." Then search for "leaves curling." You should find a bunch of threads to help you out.

Cabinet looks great though man, keep it up!

-Q

 

[CharmingMan]

It's about the end of the second week of my Diesel Ryder grow now, so time for an pic update:


An overview of all the plants.


A close up on the biggest one. It was the first one who poped out of the soil and is growing in the biggest pot.


A picture of the probably overfeed plant.


A group picture of the other three plants

So my questions here are:
1.) What's the matter with the yellow spots on the leaves? Is it too much nitrogen in the plant food?

2.) Still haven't found why some of the leaves are curling the edges up. Will post a new thread in the "infirmary" with both problems.

3.) Is it normal that the plants are so small and "bushy"? Shouldn't they grow taller than this?

The temps in the cab are around 32°C to 36°C with light on, and the humidity is around 60% when the lights are off, and around 40% when they are off. Are those conditions ok?

 

[Jahkaya]

it looks like you have major heat stress. But the plants are doing okay. I would have your max temps at more like 30. 32-36 is freaking hot. Maybe if you had some sativas, they might like it that warm, but with the ruderalis genes I think that anything about 30 has got to be slowing their growth or curling their leaves.

As for the nutes, the AF's don't quite take as much as the others that I have found. I don't feed for the first 3 week letting the soil provide them with what they need. Then around the 3rd to 4th week when they really start to take of I feed with a half dose of 2-4-1 solution every watering, excecpt the last two weeks before harvest.

otherwise..you're looking good.

 

[Quazi]

The temps in the cab are around 32°C to 36°C with light on, and the humidity is around 60% when the lights are off, and around 40% when they are off. Are those conditions ok?

Those temperatures are definitely beyond the ideal conditions. Ideal temps for growing are in the 70s or early 80s (around 22 - 28°C). Knowing how hot it gets in your cab: it is likely that you are seeing the leaf curling because of the heat.

I would fix the heat issue first. Then you can, more accurately, look towards possible nutrient/soil/water problems.

-Q