My grow room: 1800W Flowering...

[Equilibrium]

So I have a room of 10 ft x 10 ft. It will only be used for growing. That's how I would like to organize it:



The vertical space will be used later, when I'll have some more bucks.

The flowering space will have 3x600w HPS. I would like to have your advice about what type of reflector I should use. I'm not in a really hot zone. If I don't use cooled reflectors, I would pick up A-wings. Tell me what do you think about it.

I have a lot of things to ask, I will continue later, as I make up my mind.

Thanks

 

[Equilibrium]

Well, I forgot to draw the room itself hehehe

 

[Dr Dog]

well you should really have some sort of air cooled hood. 3 600`s will really heat up a room

 

[Equilibrium]

Ok Dr Dog, thanks for the input. I'll talk to my local growshop since the A-wing and the cooled hood costs the same... I'll get back with the name of the cooled hood (Sputnick I think). Didn't look that good to me, that's why I have my doubts.

Another question, how do you vent the cooled hood and use a carbon scrubber with the same fan?

 

[Dr Dog]

optimally you want the air cooled hoods to be a sealed unit

Meaning you draw air from outside your room( and hopefully somewhere cool, basement, crawlspace) to be sucked past your lights and then vent elsewhere.

so you really want to main fans, one for the light cooling and one for the room. The one you use to exhaust your room you connect the carbon scrubber to

 

[Equilibrium]

Understood. Thanks for the quick reply. I'm going to post some pics of my room so you can see some problems I have.

 

[EvilTwin]

Hi Equi...
I'm not going to comment on specifics yet. There's enough guys with opinions to do that. But I grow in a room very close to what you have. It's an 11x10 foot bedroom. And in the three years that I've grown there...it's been remodeled twice. One issue that's very easy to overlook is the space that you'll be needing to stand and walk through the rooms in order to tend the plants. Your veg area, for example looks to be only about 3x5. Is that going to be a tent inside the flower room? And where are the clone Mommas and cloning and seed starting going to take place? Plus if you're doing hydro, you have to have a place for the res.

With that long narrow area for flowering, I'd put some serious consideration to using a linear light mover. I use a 3.5 light rail.

So I'd suggest that you actually do a mock-up of how you'll like the room set up and spend some time visualizing how all the activities will take place.

I don't have my room perfect yet, but it's getting closer. Good luck to you and I'll be watching your progress.
Peace,
ET

 

[Equilibrium]

Hi EvilTwin! Thanks for the input, I found it very interesting.

I already thought about the space needed between the "rooms" and I cut some centimeters (inches) to help with that problem.

About the veg space... I thought about a home made tent with two floors, one for the mums and one for the clones... I'm going to draw something about it so people can see what I'm talking about.

I don't think I'm going hydro for the first run, mainly to stack some chips for later. 2nd or 3rd run will eventually be hydro (I like it). For now, I stick with some dirt (about that, I'll have a question later).

About the light mover, that's a great idea, I didn't think about it! For now I have 2 lights of 600W and one of 400W plus some CFL + neons for the veg space. I'm going to put those 1400W in there to see how the things run... I don't live in a too hot area and the winter is coming. If heat becomes a real issue, a light mover is definitely a very good idea. Do you think I'll lose some yield with only a 600W?


If my Veg space is too small, I think I'll take the space reserved for that little vertical project I have...



BTW, do you have some pics of your room?

I'm going to upload mines now.

 

[Equilibrium]

The room:









The old stuff:








The new stuff:







I have a question: what's the point in taking pictures of 8MP quality when I have to resize them?

 

[EvilTwin]

Hi Equi...
The easiest way to figure your light adequacy is to calculate out the watts per square foot. We're using the same light regimen. Two 600hps and a 400. My 400 is a MH since I like mixed spectrum. I also supplement UVB with reptile lights but that's a new thing with me and is quite experimental. I couldn't fit all three lights on the mover (too heavy) so I have a 600 and a 400 moving over a span of two feet. Just enough to allow me closer light placement and to illuminate the plants from different angles for better penetration.

My veg room is in the corner where yours is. The door into the room is also there. So I open the door and there's a 3x3 e&f tray for vegging. 400 mh. Then I have a 6 bulb T-5HO fixture for clones and seedlings though I do have a little work space with flouros just outside the room for rooting clones and seed starting.

It's hard to get pictures inside a room since everything is so tight. You can't get far enough away to get a panoramic shot. But I have a few. The light mover shot is my main flower area. 11x4. The shot with the carbon scrubber is the area where you are considering the vertical experiment. It's where I keep my res and I have a little work bench there as well as a 70watt hps for doing cloning for sex.

I don't have a shot of my veg room except a shot of my flouros. It's a tight little room.

I use two 240cfm fans. One intake and one exhaust.

That's about all I can think of at the moment.
ET

 

[EvilTwin]

E,
Just saw the pictures you posted. Shit man...that room is too nice to use as a grow room. don't you have a basement? And you better use something better then that thin plastic to cover those wood floors.
ET

 

[Dr Dog]

I have to agree here, those floors look good, you may want to lay down some of that foam slabs and then a heavy poly to protect the floor.

 

[Equilibrium]

Thanks both of you for the input about covering the floor. For now I just keep that one to avoid scratches... I will switch to something a lot more thicker when I'll be done with the construction!

ET, I will answer to your post later in the day as I have to go now. Thanks for answering!

 

[Equilibrium]

ET, thanks for the input on your room. I'm building the flowering chamber right now, I'll see if it can handle the weight of a light mover.

 

[EvilTwin]

ET, thanks for the input on your room. I'm building the flowering chamber right now, I'll see if it can handle the weight of a light mover.

Happy to help EL...
The light movers themselves don't weigh too much, but you have to have them mounted securely. Mine is screwed to the ceiling. So you'ld have to build some sort of frame. Might just be an unnecessary complication. I have lots of info having used them for almost 20 years, so if you need more details, just let me know. Hope the project is going smoothly. I didn't mean to freak out about your room...just that that's a nicer room then any in my house.
Peace,
ET

 

[Equilibrium]

Thanks a lot for the help ET! I'm going to think about the light mover,it's a great idea.

For now I need help on something that's worrying me: the Omhs power law.

Volts x Amperes = Watts


In my 600w magnetic ballast (Agrolite), I can read:

Input: 230V - 50Hz
Amp: 6.20



230 x 6.20 = 1426W ??? Per hour??




I red the growers bible by Jorce Cervantes. If you go to chapter nine called "Lights, lamps and electricity", it says I can wire two 1000W HIDs to a 15 amp circuit.

I have a 20 amp circuits right now.

I know the answer is somewhere on the chapter... Just can't find it. I'm sure I red it before though.

 

[EvilTwin]

Hi Equi,
There are lots if questions that need to be asked before a proper response can be made.

First off...are you going to be running the lights on 110V or 220v? That makes a world of difference on your calculations. And that 20amp circuit that you say you'll be using...is that just a 110V circuit?

You can run all 1800watts on a 20 amp circuit if everything is all of the same voltage.

So more details? And what exactly is your question?

By the way, your calculations on your post were wrong. You aren't going to be burning 1400watts with a 600watt light.

We'll get you squared away, just don't make any rash actions till you know what you're doing.
ET

 

[Equilibrium]

Ok ET, i live in Europe and I can't see anywhere 110V in my house.

I see inscriptions like 230V, 220V in my electric things.


My questions is do I have enough Amps to run three 600W + one 400W + fans ect... ??


The only thing I can see on my electrical panel is one switch separated from the rest saying 20A - 230V - 400V

 

[medmaker420]

You will odds are be in the 16-18 amp area then,

any electrical junkies want to come in and verify?

 

[Equilibrium]

BTW in my bill, it says I can have a max of 4400 KW per hour...