208 Watt CFL Rubbermaid Micro Grow

[IwannatokeNbone]

i would put your fan on the bottom and have it be and intake and not a exhaust, and then just cut a whole on the opposite side so the air can be blown right through, its really that simple, thats what i did for my rubbermaid grow and it works like a dream, constant fresh air.

 

[Braddah Smokes]

i would put your fan on the bottom and have it be and intake and not a exhaust, and then just cut a whole on the opposite side so the air can be blown right through, its really that simple, thats what i did for my rubbermaid grow and it works like a dream, constant fresh air.

Hmm, that goes against everything I've ever read lol...

 

[IwannatokeNbone]

you need a fan pushing air in, with that much wattage i can only imagine how hot n sterlie the air in there is, its cool for a rubbermaid grow u put in a quality exhaust its just not enough, spend 12 bucks n push some air into it, we want u to hit that 4.5 gram yeild mark.

 

[Braddah Smokes]

no passive intake? i think youve read the wrong things, u need a hole for air to be drawn into your box, common sense

one cheap 12 dollar fan on one side, one hole on the other=temps instantly cooled, fresh air instantly increased, i can only imagine how hot and sterile the air in your box is with all them cfls.

I have a passive intake. What goes against everything I've read is your suggestion of an active intake/passive exhaust.

 

[LifeLess]

Braddah Smokes the best advice i can give you is to not listen to anything IwannatokeNbone says. What bad advice. You right with that advice going against everything youve read. You want passive intakes. Your plants are NOT root bound and look great. The problem your gonna run into is height. Thats gonna be a tuffy. This is my rubbermaid thread and has alot of info from a collective of growers. Redgreenery has a thread around here some where thats full of good info also. I grew with cfls for close to 6 years. Its very challenging and will make you a great grower. http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=51381

 

[Chomp]

The best advice I can give you is listen to LifeLess...he's the man with rubbermaids. You don't want or need active intakes for cannabis cultivation especially if you plan on using any type of carbon filter...and

The exhaust should be up high where the heat source is for optimum cooling IMHO

The intakes should be low and on the opposite side of the exhaust so the air flows across the plants...

Chomp

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Thanks for the advice fellas!

Lifeless, yea height and heat are my two pressing issues at the moment. As for space, I've been watching some PC grows around here, so I'm going to steal some of their techniques. I figure my tub is about the same height or a little bit bigger than a full tower case. I think if I keep them trained I should be able to pull it off. And heat, I'm going to make a proper passive intake with PVC, also move the box into a room with a AC unit, and finally install energy saving window film to block heat and cut down on cooling costs. Summer sucks.

Chomp, great advice, I'm kind of stuck with the exhaust fan where it is now, but I will be placing the new intake at the lowest point possible. Hopefully it all turns out how I hope.

Thanks again!

 

[LifeLess]

Braddah Smokes from the looks of it chomp knows his stuff. The box your using right now is your prototype box. I think i went threw 5 or so designs before i was happy with what i had. Remember rubbermaids are inexpensive and easy to replace. If your plants will do better with a new design go for it. If you need anything feel free to pm. GL LL

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Yes he does, I've seen his work in action.

I believe my heat issues are out the window once I make the changes I mentioned earlier. If that isn't the case, then yes I will be purchasing another tub, hopefully I can find a tall 50 gal.

Lots of things still on the list for me... fix passive intake, paint the inside flat white, start using 5"x5"x5" square pots, build a carbon scrubber, install some sort of drainage catch, maybe DIY reflectors... tons more. Thanks for the help!

 

[Chomp]

Wow thanks LL and Brahhah!

LL is right about the rubbermaids...I went through 3 or 4 of them before I was satisfied with what I had...Much easier to "adjust" than wood...once you get started it's hard to stop adjusting...lol

Chomp

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Well I had a little setback yesterday, power went off for quite some time, I hope I didn't just screw the whole crop. Update coming tomorrow.

 

[Chomp]

If it's just power or lights out I wouldn't worry about it too much...My current grow the power went out for 24 hours and the temps got down in the 40's...I lost a couple of unrooted cuttings, but everything else just kept going...Good luck Braddah

Chomp

 

[ItGrows]

I have lost power for more than 48hrs in my current grow. Shit happens. most likely your plants will have stretched more than you wanted them too. If it causes nanners pick them off. You will still grow big sticky buds.

Just filter tokenbone out of your thread. I havent seen a useful comment from that guy in any thread.

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Chomp, thanks for the words of encouragement! I'm not worried about the temps as much because I live in a hot climate, but I was more worried about the screwed photo-period causing hermies. Only time will tell I suppose.

ItGrows, cool never thought of just picking off the nanners, thanks for the advice! And as for the trolls, I don't let them bother me. Just smile and wave.

Thanks again guys, stay tuned for an update tomorrow!

 

[LifeLess]

Braddah Smokes ive had my lights go out for a day or so mid bloom and havent had any set backs or hermies. No worries. Im actually thinking of restarting up one of my rubbermaids. My rubbermaids are just the right size for some 24-inch t5 bulbs. Keep us posted Braddah Smokes. Peace LL

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Thanks for the support lifeless! Patiently awaiting your new tub grow...

Update time... I'm a little frustrated, some plants are showing some sort of deficiencies or stress. Could be from a number of things, but there's too many variables to narrow it down. Lack of proper soil and nutes, roots not getting enough oxygen due to crap soil, heat stress... ah who knows but I'm going to fix these issues as soon as I can. Maybe a more experienced grower can pinpoint the deficiency/whatever, but it's probably due to a number of issues... On to the pics...

Group shot

Random shot, can see a yellowing leaf on the bigger one

The worst affected plant, sorry can't get a better shot

Well that's all I took cause I was really disappointed at the time... On a lighter note I have moved them into a room with an AC unit, and the temps have dropped dramatically, and they seem to be loving it. Thanks for looking, I will keep you informed of any new developments.

 

[Moots]

I'm on my first and found this page has a decent visual diagnosis section. I won't make a diagnosis as I am a newb, but this helped me solve my under watering problem. Nice smooth set up, you'll get that browning under control no doubt.

http://www.growery.org/2991/Diagnosis

Also, I've seen you mention that you are worried about head room in there, I run a very similar dimension cab size, CFLS aswell. I use 40 watt bulbs myself but I can keep my tops almost touching the bulb until I see a little tip browning, and thats usually on younger leaves, so I try to keep em just a centimeter or two away. So if your running 23's which give less heat, you should be able to get em real close.

Also, you can pick up a few more inches if you grow around your bulbs, those Y splitters are awesome. Because they split like a Y they will throw light horizontally, as the sides are exposed. So you just position a couple tops in between the Y and they get the cross stream of light.

I have a sweet, actually terrible paint drawing in my thread(You;ve been kind enough to say some nice things there) showing how I was trying to max out my CFL output using these Y splitters (a couple shorter tops under the bulbs, and a few more in front of the Y. If height gets too tight, you can criss cross to stems and tie em together to form an X. Gives you a few inches.

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Thanks for the kind words, Moots, also thanks for the link, that may come in handy! Yea I saw your nifty paint illustration, good idea bro that should pretty much max out the effectiveness of these lights. I will keep on top of the training to keep these bitches in line. Thanks for the help and advice!

 

[Braddah Smokes]

One is starting to show sex, it's indistinguishable at the moment, but looking more male to me. That's ok, I would like to selectively pollinate a branch. I'll update when I know for sure...

 

[Braddah Smokes]

Well I'm feeling a bit better, things starting to look up for the ladies. I previously moved the box into a room with an AC unit, and today I installed a proper sized intake. The lights on temp is now steady around 78F. Just a few more tweaks to go. Today I positively identified two males and one female, so the pace seems to be picking up now that the temps are in check. Stay tuned for some pics this weekend.