woods brother
New Member
I have gotten several requests to do a step by step build for an attic grow room. These are not the cheapest builds, but can definitively eliminate many fears about home growing. You are usually limited to a small space so a huge electric bill isn't in your future. You will have to insulate very well so a heat signature is much harder to find. You will have easy access to air conditioned spaces from which to draw fresh appropriately tempered air. Probably the biggest down sides are building in a hot dusty attic and carrying 5 buckets of water up and down stairs once a week.
That being said I will begin adding pictures as I build out a space.
The first step is measuring and drawing. Get out your tape measurer and get in the attic. You need to find a space preferably not over a common room (noise from fans and ballast). I like to choose a space that is near a gable so that I can put in a gable fan to exhaust air and cool my ballast. Space found it is time to draw. I generally suggest 4x4 spaces in attics and keep it simple fist time around tweak it later.
Next lay down your floor. I always use 3/4" ply wood for a solid base. I dropped a plumb from the center of the roof at any given point then measured out 24" from that point and set nails this will give you a guide for your plywood to be centered in the gable. Don't worry about perfection as your roof's support structure is not as exact as the rest of your house. There is room for a little fudging later and remember this is a grow room you aren't going to be inviting all you friends over to show them. Make it functional and don't worry about aesthetics. IMO
Now get sober and grab a level, it's time to frame. Go to your graph paper and figure out how high your enclosure is going to be I like to go as tall as I can so that I have plenty of room for taller varieties if I want and plenty of room to move the light as needed.
That being said I will begin adding pictures as I build out a space.
The first step is measuring and drawing. Get out your tape measurer and get in the attic. You need to find a space preferably not over a common room (noise from fans and ballast). I like to choose a space that is near a gable so that I can put in a gable fan to exhaust air and cool my ballast. Space found it is time to draw. I generally suggest 4x4 spaces in attics and keep it simple fist time around tweak it later.
Next lay down your floor. I always use 3/4" ply wood for a solid base. I dropped a plumb from the center of the roof at any given point then measured out 24" from that point and set nails this will give you a guide for your plywood to be centered in the gable. Don't worry about perfection as your roof's support structure is not as exact as the rest of your house. There is room for a little fudging later and remember this is a grow room you aren't going to be inviting all you friends over to show them. Make it functional and don't worry about aesthetics. IMO
Now get sober and grab a level, it's time to frame. Go to your graph paper and figure out how high your enclosure is going to be I like to go as tall as I can so that I have plenty of room for taller varieties if I want and plenty of room to move the light as needed.
