DR80 in action...400 watt CMH

[NaturalKaliMeds]

I recently upgraded my setup. Moved out of the closet and into a Secret Jardin DR80 tent. First run with proper ventilation!

So the set up is...

400 watt powerhouse ballast powering a 400 watt CMH philips mastercolor retro hps in a aircooled hydrofarm valubrite 1 hood.

air is pulled through a dutchbreeze DFS2 carbon filter, through the reflector hood, by a 4" fantech FX4XL (~150cfm), and pushed out of the tent where it passes through an elf carbon filter sitting on the top of the tent. The intakes at the bottom are fitted with 2 4" duct 90 deg elbows filtered by some filter material from home depot (cut your own size, filters dust mites, mold, etc...).

the tent is 2'8" X 2'8" X 5'3". I must say after reading about all the pinhole issues with tents, I was surprised to not find any on this tent. Overall, much more robust and quality than I was expecting.

I am flowering 6 girls in there right now.

They had been vegging for about 7 weeks under ~260 watts of mixed specturm cfls in 1 gallon pots.

The medium mix is 50% FFOF, 40% Canna Coco, 10% perlite. This is my first run using coco, and I am VERY impressed. So much that the next run is 100% Canna Coco.

In veg, the nutrients were FF Grow Big and Big bloom, with a little Rhizotonic and Hygrozyme occasionally. Since moving to flowering in the DR80, I have decided to give Rez's Recipe (mad props!) a solid try. So for the past two weeks I have been using GH flora micro and bloom every other watering.

The girls are in 2 gallon pots now watered every other day, fed every other watering. I use tap water with a ph of ~7.6. I use GH ph down to put me in the 6.3 range.

So far the improvement of environment, addition of coco, and the nutrient regime change have had terrific results! This has been the best grow for me so far and I am loving it!



Here are some pics of the set up at Day 12 of flowering...

6 plants - Chemdog D, Tangerine Kush, Pre 98 Bubba Kush, Arjans Haze #1, Burkel, and Sourhog. all legit med clones.

~NKM

 

[growMEDS]

I like your setup!
I'll be watchin

 

[WaywardBob]

nice clean setup nat. i have a DR60 and like it too. only thing i have to say is i think that carbon filter on the top of ur tent is overkill

 

[NaturalKaliMeds]

Thanks Growmeds, I will have more updates as things progress. so stay tuned

WaywardBob, you are probably right about the elf on the exhaust. The valuebrite hood is not quite an absolute 100% airtight and the elf is just a final stop security measure for any air leakage through the glass of the hood. Total odor control is not paramount. This is actually my first grow in 3 yrs with any odor control at all. Maybe I will take it off and see how much it will improve my airflow vs lessen odor control.

thanks for stopping in!

~NKM

 

[Vegan]

nice lookin set up ..hope they dont stretch too much

 

[grasper]

lookin great! very clean.
reminds me how much i want to do less DIY and just get a tent.........

 

[FunkBomb]

Nice DR80 you've got running there. I have one too and absolutely love it. Your plants look good

-Funk

 

[NaturalKaliMeds]

nice lookin set up ..hope they dont stretch too much

They should be almost done with their initial stretch. This is my second run with these strains. I have been pinching tops every few days to slow the stretch and help even out the canopy. I have at least 7 more inches to raise the reflector comfortably before things start getting really tight up top. But if I have to, I can always move the filter and fan on the outside of the tent. That would free up a decent amount of extra space. I'm not expecting the need to do that, but the option is always available.

~NKM

 

[Tripsick]

I really want to use the same setup.

You exhaust the tent air that is pulled through the Carbon filter then through the light and then to the outside the tent in the same room through another carbon filter?
so you end up recycling the heated air?

I would think it would be cooler if i exhaust to the outside. i really want to use a 400w but was thinking of a 250w for a tent that size because of heat.

When the tent is all Zipped up and the lights have been on for 3 hours or more what are your temps?

Do these tents have enough intakes?


Great Setup

 

[NaturalKaliMeds]

I really want to use the same setup.

You exhaust the tent air that is pulled through the Carbon filter then through the light and then to the outside the tent in the same room through another carbon filter?
so you end up recycling the heated air?

I would think it would be cooler if i exhaust to the outside. i really want to use a 400w but was thinking of a 250w for a tent that size because of heat.

When the tent is all Zipped up and the lights have been on for 3 hours or more what are your temps?

Do these tents have enough intakes?


Great Setup

youve got the airflow path correct, and currently I am venting into the room. The room is big, over 20'X15", on a second story, with two windows the bring in fresh air.

I do have a plan to either exhaust outside or into attic space, but the room needs some work. It is basically a spare room used for storage ( I call it our garage). I need a free weekend or two to get the room set up to exhaust out of the room itself.

My current temp issue is not with the interior of the tent. It is with the ambient temps itself. It has been crazy hot for the past week. That is why I keep the tent flap open during lights on. 4-6 degrees above ambient is not cool when the ambient temp itself is in the upper eighties. The room has no AC an relies on the outside air to keep things cool which isn't a problem except during summer heat waves.

Right now my temps avg 80-84 with lows around 77 and peaks hitting 94. In the spring, fall, and winter my temps are much more agreeable with an avg of 76 and peaks hitting 86 max. That was in my closet with virtually no ventilation.

IMO this tent has plenty of intake ability. Once my ambient temps lower, I will be able to keep the tent zipped and be 4-6 degrees above ambient. That is with exhausting into the same room. The tent has two 4" intake ports and 3 additional intake screened flaps. The screened flaps are not light proof though. There is one single 4" exhaust port out of the roof of the tent.

Hopefully I will have more reliable temp info once this heat wave passes. It makes it tough to even think straight!

 

[NaturalKaliMeds]

lookin great! very clean.
reminds me how much i want to do less DIY and just get a tent.........

When i was younger, I wouldve been all over DIY. Nowadays, my time is too precious and limited. I would rather focus on growing than building, not to mention the ease of breaking the set up down in a pinch. Although, ironically, it was quicker to breakdown the old closet since there was just a ballast and basic open reflector, couple 6" airking clip on fans and plants.

 

[NaturalKaliMeds]

Nice DR80 you've got running there. I have one too and absolutely love it. Your plants look good

-Funk

thanks for stopping in! I saw some pics of yours in the grow tent thread and you had some great looking flowers blooming in there! It is growers like yourself that convinced me to go the tent route.

 

[NaturalKaliMeds]

Day 36

Day 36

5 weeks in...

temps are much better now ranging from 73-81 deg.

Girls are trucking along, except for the bubba kush. I must've stunted her with some overzealous pruning. She didn't like it much and got delayed. She looks about at least 2 weeks behind the rest at this point. The good news is that she has started blooming and appears to be back on track. I will keep her on the micro for another week or two. The rest are off micro and have been getting some kool bloom with their flora bloom here and there. They have also gotten a dose of FF open sesame (1x in week 3) and beastie bloom (1x in week 5). I will most likely give them a dose of chaching sometime in week 7 a little before the flush starts.

now for the fun part...

group shot

Arjan's Haze #1, the frostiest so far. The pistils on this girl are so thick compared to the others.

chemD

bubba K, recovering from some stress but back on track (phew!!!)

I had a few more pics, but I can't seem to upload them now. The page just keeps failing to load. Oh well, will have more when things get more drool worthy...hopefully.

 

[FunkBomb]

Your plants are looking good. Another month and you'll be rolling in buds

-Funk

 

[growMEDS]

Looking good bro!

 

[silent_lemon]

hey man, nice looking grow youve got here. I have a DR120 with a 400w as well, but the 400w doesnt fill the tent well enough, looking to go up to a 1000w or vertical..but it looks super strong in your tent, bravo!

Youre growing a haze too! and it's super frosty! sounds familiar, cant wait to see yours when youre done. ill be checkin this out

 

[Meepo]

Very nice work in little tent with "huge" light.

 

[richirich_99]

any updates? this was a nice looking grow.