A few questions

[asdf420]

Hi all, I am going to attempt my first grow and i have a few questions.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

My equipment
Home made grow box 120Hx100Wx70Lcm, lined with mylar sheeting,
Bulb: 300w dual spectrum cfl (Dual 300w 8u CFL Hydroponics Eco Grow Light Lamp: Amazon.co.uk: Lighting)
home made active coal filter
old 12cm fan as an extractor

Questions
Location?
I live in the uk and will be putting it in a shed in the garden which will get cold, will the cfl keep the box warm enough? I do have a load of spare loft insulation if that could help.

Which seeds should i get?
I was thinking about getting 6 seeds of lowryder 2, since i thought auto would be easier for the first time.

Where to get seeds?
I was going to get them from Gorilla seeds, does anyone know if they are reliable?


Is there anything i missed and will this yield worth while results?

Thanks

 

[jinn]

hey there! The CFLs will not produce enough heat to keep your girls warm during a cool winter. Temperatures below 0 Celsius (below 32F for us Americans) will have adverse effects, namely stunted growth and/or death.
A simple fix if you don't mind a little tinkering, is equip your shed roof with a solar water heater and run the heated water tubing into your plant bed. (Google radiant heating.) one can easily be made using black pond liner, vinyl tubing or a spare garden hose, and PVC glue.
Insulation is also very very helpful, because even if temperature wasnt a huge issue, the insulation helps reduce light leakage, and sound pollution.

 

[go4snypr]

temps are hard, not sure how cold it will get there in the next 3 months. any auto would probably do. I would shop Herbies for seeds. Yield is based on lots of factors, a big one being, how well you grow your plant. also get a ph meter, it will assist in growing the plant.

 

[asdf420]

thanks for your answers, i forgot to mention i do have a pH meter. I have looked online and the total average temperature is about 5 degrees for the winter and at night it will go below 0 at night in November/December.

I am not sure if i would be able to make my own radiant heater, since it probably wouldn't be any good if i made it and I can't have something on the roof since it is a stealth grow.

I have had a look online and would a greenhouse heater with a thermostat work? or would it be very expensive to heat that way?
i was looking at something like this 2ft Tubular Garage Shed Greenhouse Electric Heater 120W IP44 - C/w Cable, Plug & Clips : Amazon.co.uk: Garden

 

[jinn]

At this point, I figure the best thing for you, and Im sorry it took me two posts to think of it (ive been heavily medicated this week)
is to get a commercial heating pad, and slap that sucker either on or in the box. I would recommend also lifting your box off the floor, so you're not bleeding heat into the ground. Hit up amazon and check out hydroponic heating pads, or BriskHeat SRL12121. using one of these heating pads in conjunction with a controller (often shown with the bundle option on amazon) will keep your girls at their perfect temperatures!

 

[asdf420]

Thanks, ill try lifting it off the ground and covering as much as i can with insulation. Do you think a 100w green house tube heater will do the job? Since i can't seem to find many heating pads from any uk websites and the ones that I can find are a bit out of my budget.

 

[jinn]

It may do the job if you can squeeze it IN the growing area, but i've never used one. Another thing that can help in these regards, look around your local pet shops for heating pads or heating rocks that they use for animals. You can also find 20$ warming pads for cloning at a local nursery or hydroshop.

whatever you end up going with, test it in the grow area first and see how the temperatures get at 1,3,6 hours and maybe an average temp over 24hrs, before placing any plants in there. That way you have a MUCH better idea of what will be going on in your grow space, and what measures youll need to take to make sure everything is sound.