3x3 tent - Coco plans - Advice appreciated

[justsomedude]

Hi all and thanks in advance for reading!

I plan on starting my first indoor grow within the next few months. I am a MMJ patient in CA growing for the fun of it and for personal use. My goal is a successful first grow with the ability to add more later while minimizing replacement/repurchasing in the future.

I am going to list my plans along with the specific equipment I plan to procure and would appreciate your comments on any aspect. I do have a few specific questions related to certain aspects.

Plants: 4 total plants, non-auto, clones from the local dispensary. Probably 2 of one indica strain and 2 of one sativa. [Should I do more plants? Less? Should I start more and plan on picking the 4 best to finish?]

Tent: 3x3x7 SecretJardin darkroom II [Is a gorilla tent worth twice as much?]

Light: Mars II 900w (~400w actual draw) full spectrum [I think this is a nice middle-ground between having enough for now while being able to add more later, probably more of the same or bloom spectrum supplements]

Ventilation: 4" inline exhaust with carbon filter up top [Is this necessary for such a small grow or should I wait to see?]
12'" oscillating desk fan on floor

Pots: ProCal Premium Nursury pot with saucer 5-gallon (actual fluid volume is 3.7Gallon). Two questions here, is it normal to list pot size this way, when people usually say 5-gallon pot do they mean something like this, or actual 5 gallon liquid volume? And, is 3.7 enough, too much?

Medium: 80/20 cocotek coco from brick and chunky perlite

Nutrients: GH floranova bloom for veg+bloom, GH silica armor, Mad Farmer MOAB, calimagic, phupdown

Meters: I was going to get the cheap ~$12 ph and ppm meters unless someone can recommend a significantly better alternative, or justify the cost of the bluelabs

I also plan on using tap water but will try to get it tested first and can easily switch to buying R/O or distilled from the grocer if necessary.

I know that's a lot and don't expect anyone to have the time to answer all my questions, but I would really appreciate any comments or advice you can share with me!

 

[Henry998]

Hi dude and welcome. Ill try to answer as much as i can.
4 is a good place start i believe, if you are going to use clones you will need a propagator. (I've never started with clones so can't help you much there).
I presume the measurements you've given for the tent is in feet? so thats roughly 1m square 2m in height. I have a similar grow space without as much headroom and 4 plants will be fine in that space. I have a cheap £40 tent and i can't really complain about it (i also hear secret garden are good).
I have no experience with LEDs but everybody who has 1 of those mars lights says how good they are and I've seen some really great plants using those, so thats another tick.
Your air extraction and movement also sounds fine. As LEDs don't create heat like a HPS the only thing you really need to ensure is that you are changing total air volume of space once or twice/minute (might wanna double check I've got this bit right, can never remember). Your air extraction needs may differ if your climate is somewhat warmer.
The size of your pots depends on what size plants you want to grow/ how long they will be in veg. Again thats around 20 litres i use 11 litres i think and it suits my space perfectly.
Ive only grown in soil so can't help you there.
I have a £10 pH meter from the well known auction site and it seems to work just fine, may not be completely accurate however.
I use tap water, just let it sit for 24hrs prior to use and ensure you check the pH.
The journals are a great way to learn from experienced growers actually growing so you could have a look through there.
Hope this helps if you need more help don't hesitate to ask.