Want to do it right...

Hi ICMag members-

Please forgive my inexperience. "Every expert was once a beginner".

I am designing my new 10'L x 12'W x 7'H indoor grow room in our basement in our house in the Northeast. Framing is done. I am committed to doing this right and am willing to spend the dollars necessary to do so.


I would greatly appreciate some feedback on the following questions...

1. Rough electric...power for scrubber, extractor fan, A/C unit, humidifier, oscillating fans, and lights, all top half of room. Am I missing anything?
2. Committed to Mountain Air scrubber, what size? and what size extractor fan? 11'x10'x7'=770cfm
3. Lights...thinking Black Dog Platinum XL-U 750 Watt...seems to be the best?, but not sure about LED vs. HID issue.
4. Room design...should the room be split in half for separate vegetative and flowering areas, then down the road a separate drying area?

Answers to these questions will help me take the next steps. Thank you very, very much for your consideration....

Split the room for seperate veg and flower areas yes. As far as lighting, that's really on you, just stay away from led in flower as they have yet to prove themselves it terms of ease of use to max yield. 750 watt ge lucalox bulbs are what I run in magnum xxxl hoods and love them. 800 cfm fan through a 4 foot tall by 18 inch round scrubber.

Veg lighting can be led to save on cooling and electrical, but I'd always suggest flowering under hps until led technology steps a bit more forward.

Don't forget dehumidifier to avoid Powdery Mildew and Bud Rot [grey mold or Botritis]. Are you going to run sealed? I don't think its true anymore that LEDs don't work well in bloom. That is, if you use good ones like Black Dog. Black Dog has a really good spectrum. Good luck. -granger

I've personally never flowered with led so take what I say with a grain of salt...

I know a guy (how every great sentence begins....) that gave a shot to led in his flower room as the opportunity arose to mouth his kits on some led's and he was attempting to counter the summer heat. Again, this is a he said kind of situation, however he said beyond less than impressed with the led result. I know from first hand experience his room is dialed when his running hid so I can't imagine he slacked with the led lights in there, just said all of hus strains that typically produce dense solid nugs produces larfy mostly leaf buds. Covered in tricomes sure, but leaf and stick none the less..

Again, take that information with as much validity as you choose to give it... I want that disclaimer reiterated 10 ways to Sunday.

Go sealed with AC. It's nearly impossible to perfectly control the environment with an air-cooled room, given seasonal variations (too hot and dry in summer and too cold and humid in winter). Get a 24,000btu mini split (2 ton), a 70-pint dehumidifier (and another one for backup), and a co2 generator (or run tanks if you have a local supplier). I have run both air cooled rooms and sealed and the air cooled rooms can never be fully dialed in, and you always have to screw with it, dialing down your lights when it gets too hot and battling mildew in the winter when it's cold and damp.

grab 4 gavitas 600/750s .. instead of LED.. you will save money on electric not running 1000s. and still be able to cover that entire room and have a great harvest every time..

also.. remember.. even low humidity can cause PM.. too.. which is retarded.. make sure your air is always moving... if your leaves aren't moving.. your losing.

Is your basement climate controlled?..ie do you have A/C and Heat Ducts in your basement r/t central air and heat? If this is true and you have a good intake in the basement to your HVAC
it takes care of most of the dehumidification.

I have a bedroom in my basement so it is climate controlled.

Use passive air intake (http://www.ebay.com/itm/CPM-Delta-1...436?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item46367fbb6c

or something similar.. i.e assuming room is not going to be sealed ...if it is then follow above advice.. but I disagree that they are hard to dialed in IF the environment in your basement
is temperature controlled with your central unit..

I prefer passive intake and adjusting the temp within the room itself.

One less mechanical feature to worry about. I have the same basement window. I took out glass panes and lightproofed and ran
PVC pipe through one to mimic a clothes dryer exhaust. Of course exhaust air moved and filtered by models of your choice.

Just a preference. Love the XXL hood .. works great with my 1K..
I veg in a closet with CFL's. If this is your first grow lets KISS.
i.e I know you want to do it right. But theres no reason you cant
go back later after you get your green thumb and update. I know you have researched your lighting etc. But when I first started, I got the cheapest mag ballasts I could get, got a few grows and tweeked
the environment until I had it dialed in ( which took a couple of years due to moderate fluctuations in climate/seasons).. Stay away from CO2 FOR NOW... Keep the variables to a minimum and work
your way up. I grow in an old modified coal room. Never had to dehumidify but occasionally had to humidify in the winter when the
furnace is drying the place out. Our plant is very forgiving in most
environments. Most people take this for granted and try to be perfect on there 1st run out. Remember , its just for you ,
You are not trying to make a living out of a colorado dispensary..

Just trying to save you a few $ and headaches.. Im assuming your electrical situation has been worked up..if not.. thats another ball game. and yes .. keep the air moving at all times...
Not to conflict with Ganja but I think our climates are cold and dry in winter (not moist)
and hot and humid in summer.. (not dry) You should not have to dial down lights in summer
if your exhaust is appropriate... and not have to battle mildew in the winter when the house is being dried out by furnace or for that matter I think our winters have low humidity..

keep us updated...

Peace

Nukklehead

I think the best word of advice out of everything said above is keep it simple. I wish I would have taken that advice when I started, and started off slowly. But instead I was the guy that new better than everyone and blah blah and sure enough 3 years later I have my FIRST harvest worth writing home about. This hobby takes a large amount of attention to detail and willingness to be open minded and adapt. Starting simple and small ensures you can adapt small amounts in the appropriate direction as opposed to committing say 2500 buck to a bunch of equipment that now sits entirely in the attic untouched.... ask me how I know.

Thanks DD .. I believe we have to crawl before we can walk.. but then again I am old school...

DoomsDay said:

I think the best word of advice out of everything said above is keep it simple. I wish I would have taken that advice when I started, and started off slowly. But instead I was the guy that new better than everyone and blah blah and sure enough 3 years later I have my FIRST harvest worth writing home about. This hobby takes a large amount of attention to detail and willingness to be open minded and adapt. Starting simple and small ensures you can adapt small amounts in the appropriate direction as opposed to committing say 2500 buck to a bunch of equipment that now sits entirely in the attic untouched.... ask me how I know.

Click to expand...

well said

Save yourself the pain and disappointment, go with HID.