I want to go vert!! But should I?

[Kman1965]

Hello All,

I have been lurking around for a few weeks now. I had my first grow this summer and did well. It was outside on my deck. So I have never grown indoors. To make a long story short...Im hooked. I have an old utility room thats already run with 110 and 220. It's 4ft8in by 5ft by 7ft6in. My question is: Am I trying to walk before I crawl? Do I need to do a couple of regular grows first? I can get 2 400wt bulbs and ballasts almost cheaper than I can buy the 600 I have my eye on. I have a $750 to work with. Any thoughts or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Desert Hydro]

one of the biggest concerns will be temps and airflow. if you can manage those two you should do fine. i just finished a vert scrog grow with 600's and i did better than growing horizontal with reflectors but i still have a lot to master. you could do your 2 400's with vert scrogs and would probably do pretty good or buy a single 1k pretty cheap on ebay since you dont need a reflector. ive been buying a few cheaper ballasts and they havent given me any issues yet.

 

[Kman1965]

Im not to worried about temps as room is n far corner of house on 2 exterior walls with window in room. 3 inch ducting already exists for old dryer vent that I can easily cut to 4' 6 even 8 inches if need be. Was thinking of maybe some kind of stadium build in a U shape around room. 1000 watt a good idea. Thnks Hydro

 

[Mister_D]

I'd stack the two 400w bulbs vertically, and build a U shaped shelf 2.5-3ft off the ground. Put 6-8 plants on the ground and another 6-8 on the shelf, essentially giving you two vert donuts.

 

[Kman1965]

Thanks D,
I appreciate the help. I think thats exactly what im going to do. I've learned alot from your grows. Thanks for the inspiration.

 

[Alien_Dawg]

Sup,Kman...
Glad to see another beginning their journey and choosing Vert-Ville
as your playground just saved you lots of time,money and headaches.

Right of the bat... Solid...



Kiddie Pools PPKs cost under $100 to build...

Im just saying....



Hows your cloning skills ?
If your going stadium build...
Your going to want be able to clone...

2 cents and have fun with it...

Peace....

 

[Kman1965]

Hey Dawg,

Thanks for the input. My cloning skills suck. But, I'm learning. I really want to be good at it so it wont take long. I never grown in anything but soil. So at least the first run ill go with soil as its what Im comfortable with. But like I said in my original post I'm hooked!! She had me at the first white hairs..lol

 

[Ichabod Crane]

Vert will be cheaper than a flat set up. You will not need a hood for each bulb. If you do a doulble stack you just need a stand for the bottom light and a cord for the top bulb.

 

[divine moments]

I would go two 400's. You can always grow from there.

 

[Kman1965]

Thanks Ich n Divine. For a quick update: I just got the 2 400's on ebay. one was new with the cheapo wing hood that I can use to make hanging bulb and one is used that must have been previously used for vert no hood and some kind of adapted hanger on the cord set. This is the one ill bring up from floor. I saw the tripod thread. Trying to come up with something similar. have already started building my room and my shelving. I'll post a few pics this weekend.

 

[Ichabod Crane]

Here is a thread I did that shows another way to make the stand for the bottom light.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=242646

 

[willyweed]

sorry to but in ,but as a 600 watt light gives off double the light as a 400 ,would you not be better having a 600 on top and a 250 underneath getting better value for the watts ?
ps i am only asking because i do not know .regards willyweed

 

[Kman1965]

Thanks again Ich, thats do much easier than what i was coming up with....BTW, I finished that thread. That is a really nice set up. I love the way you built the screens. That was an awesone run!!

 

[Stonefree69]

Your room comes out to 23.33 sq ft. Times 50 watts per sq ft - if your utilizing wall to wall comes out to 1,167 watts of light you could use. Nowadays more people are using PAR light to go by but 50 watts/sq ft is about the sweet spot with HPS.

So going wall to wall 2 600 watts should fit like a glove. Also 600 watts HID lights (as well as 1,000 watts HID) are more efficient than 400 watts. 400 watts are nice for now - important thing is you got started!

Basically Mister_D also nailed it with answering your questions. Your basically also gaining a good 2-3 feet in ceiling height not using horizontal reflectors (1 foot for reflector + 1-2 feet for height above canopy tops).

 

[Kman1965]

Thanks Stone,

I really like the setup Im gonna have. Plus I got the 2 400's really cheap. I came in under budget on my lighting. I would love to have 2 600's and I think you are right. Would be perfect. I just realize I have alot to learn and can get off to a good start pretty cheap. Plus I used the money I saved to spend a little more on seeds!! I should be mostly set up by the weekend. Thanks for taking the time.

 

[Mister_D]

sorry to but in ,but as a 600 watt light gives off double the light as a 400 ,would you not be better having a 600 on top and a 250 underneath getting better value for the watts ?
ps i am only asking because i do not know .regards willyweed

600's are the most efficient watt for watt, but there is a lot to be said for overlapping light. See an HID is a point source light, meaning light emits from a relatively small area (the arc tube). As the inverse square law teaches us, light loses intensity very quickly the farther it gets from the source. For this reason it is actually more efficient to light a space with multiple smaller lights than a single larger one. As with multiple lights more of your plant canopy is in the "sweet spot", as well as the overall light levels being more even on a given area. As far as using a 600 on top and 250 on bottom, this is a bad idea because the upper plants will receive way more light than the bottom. This will cause the grower to have to use different veg times for each section of the grow, as the 600 is capable of handling much larger plants than the 250w.

 

[divine moments]

I dont think you can go wrong just starting out on 400's. Sure 600's are nice but I can grow more with a 400 than a lot of buddies I know with 600s. It's all about the environment. Two 400's can grow A LOT of flowers.

Cant wait to see you get your setup going.

 

[Ichabod Crane]

I agree with mister D. Two bulbs are way better than 1. I have run a 1000 on top and a 600 on bottom. I did this because of heat issues. But I wat only running one plant from top to bottom and had thinned out the bottom to remove suckers. While i had thinned the bottom I left more of the branches at the top.

 

[Buddler]

I agree stacked 4 s are perfect for the space cheaper to run and easier to cool . vertical buds from floor to ceiling.B

 

[frankenstein2]

Had a room the same size, almost exactly. Had a 600 over a 400. It worked awesome. Just my two cents.