First time grower confused with LEDs

[parrajara]

Hello,

I don't want to complicate things too much, but there is just so much conflicting information that I figured I may as well try to reach out.

I am looking to do my first grow ever in a space tote, like a space bucket. I'm looking to grow 2 plants at a time at least, unless I can get away with 3? Using two 44 gallon totes.

I am considering this 1000W Oneo. It consumes 135W actual wattage.

I looked through a bunch of models but I can't tell if it's wrong descriptions (common with Amazon), or if I am looking at it the wrong way. I just wanna get something cheap but that delivers what promised, I'm not looking for a long life expectancy as I plan to move oversea within 1-2 years.

An example of the conflicting information:

• this 300W VIPARSPECTRA has an actual wattage of 132 but is equivalent to 250W HPS
• this 600W Mars Hydro has an actual wattage of 100W that also is equivalent to 250W HPS
• And also this 1000W Mars Hydro with an actual wattage of 150W, also replaces a 250W HPS

I think amperage is what dictates the efficiency in which the light emits, so I understand that LEDs are more efficient. But all of these are LEDs lights, and they all seem to have more or less the same type of LEDs bulbs (except for the Viparspectra that has blurple bulbs). I really don't see how the gap in efficiency could be this much between these models. I also can't get a concrete answer on whether blurple infused quantum boards are better or not, but I think I'm going all white. Apparently the new "all white" lights are better?

I plan on designing my Space Tote so that the height where the lamp rests can be adjusted. I was wondering if there are any benefits from buying a dimmable light? I haven't found anything online indicating that there is a need for altering the brightness/intensity of the light throughout varying stages of the growing process.

Moving on....

I will also be using LED light strips for the harder to reach areas (bottom of the tote).

I am wondering if I should use 2x 120mm fans on the bottom as air intake, and 1 x 240mm fan on the top as an exhaust?

I am debating keeping the main light inside like in this design, but there a few things to consider.


If I build it with the lamp inside:

• if I pick the design with the lid on, I would need passive cooling lamp like the Oneo I linked earlier, since a light with a lamp & fan in 1 would need to exhaust out of the top lid.
• Better light insulation
• If I design a pulley system for the lamp, it would be easy to adjust the height of the lamp as the top lid is always on and light would not escape. I guess I would want to adjust it for different growth stages?

If I put the lamp on the outside like in this build:

• it allows more room for growth (few inches max)
• the light could probably be a pulley system and adjustable too, but much more complex to design.

I feel like the extra inch I may gain is not worth leaving the lamp outside.
In terms of design, that's the basics of it... Now I need to figure out the rest... how to grow!! hahaha.

I will be doing a grow with soil and I plan on growing sativa (against general recommendation).

Thank you all in advance.

 

[skirk]

Wait for it.Believe me it's coming.

 

[013]

Hey Parra,

Welcome to 420. You have written a very thorough work up. I’m going to drop some very non technical answers!

As a kid I put 8 catfish fingerlings in a 20 gallon aquarium. They never grew and slowly died off one by one. Why, even tho I had pump & filter etc? The fish died because the environment was too small. Heck 1 catfish could not really fit in a 20 gallon tank and live, and if it did live - it would never thrive. One catfish needs more than a large kiddie pool. As an adult I can look back and laugh at my stupidity but none of the catfish grew any larger than the fingerling stage.

White LED‘s have surpassed blurple, blurples can still grow bud. Dimmable may help because of space constraints and residual heat. Once plastic heats up - it doesn’t dissipate quickly. Yes put the light outside and/or put the LED driver (similar to ballast) on the outside to reduce heat.

The main reason people are reluctant to jump in and help is because we have never done this particular build configuration before and we want no part of burning down your home or apartment complex. Low budget is cool, cheap is not cool.... there is a huge difference!

Yes you will save a few coins initially by using totes versus a tent but what happens if you burn the place down? Did you save any money? The 2 totes together are not big enough for 1 plant, so 2 or 3 plants really complicates things. What happens when the light wattage is too great and ventilation can‘t remove the heat fast enough?

Strongly suggest you spend the 50 to 75 bucks for a tent. Check out our >> sponsors << many offer discounts to 420 members. Save the box and you can ship it to yourself overseas. There may be a special forum here on 420 for the micro growers and IIRC a grower by the name of Carcass is doing a $150 low budget grow journal, might be great resource.

Please understand - I’m not trying to squash your dreams of a micro-grow, just pointing out the realities. Heres a link to the journal Carcass made to document his $150 budget grow >> Carcass <<
here’s another 420 forum to look at >> cabinet closet & grow room setup << and lastly the 420 DIY forum >> DIY <<. There you go and I didn’t see a microgrowers forum so IDK?

Best of luck to you!

 

[Stunned]

It all sounds so horribly complicated to me

 

[parrajara]

Hey Parra,

Welcome to 420. You have written a very thorough work up. I’m going to drop some very non technical answers!

As a kid I put 8 catfish fingerlings in a 20 gallon aquarium. They never grew and slowly died off one by one. Why, even tho I had pump & filter etc? The fish died because the environment was too small. Heck 1 catfish could not really fit in a 20 gallon tank and live, and if it did live - it would never thrive. One catfish needs more than a large kiddie pool. As an adult I can look back and laugh at my stupidity but none of the catfish grew any larger than the fingerling stage.

White LED‘s have surpassed blurple, blurples can still grow bud. Dimmable may help because of space constraints and residual heat. Once plastic heats up - it doesn’t dissipate quickly. Yes put the light outside and/or put the LED driver (similar to ballast) on the outside to reduce heat.

The main reason people are reluctant to jump in and help is because we have never done this particular build configuration before and we want no part of burning down your home or apartment complex. Low budget is cool, cheap is not cool.... there is a huge difference!

Yes you will save a few coins initially by using totes versus a tent but what happens if you burn the place down? Did you save any money? The 2 totes together are not big enough for 1 plant, so 2 or 3 plants really complicates things. What happens when the light wattage is too great and ventilation can‘t remove the heat fast enough?

Strongly suggest you spend the 50 to 75 bucks for a tent. Check out our >> sponsors << many offer discounts to 420 members. Save the box and you can ship it to yourself overseas. There may be a special forum here on 420 for the micro growers and IIRC a grower by the name of Carcass is doing a $150 low budget grow journal, might be great resource.

Please understand - I’m not trying to squash your dreams of a micro-grow, just pointing out the realities. Heres a link to the journal Carcass made to document his $150 budget grow >> Carcass <<
here’s another 420 forum to look at >> cabinet closet & grow room setup << and lastly the 420 DIY forum >> DIY <<. There you go and I didn’t see a microgrowers forum so IDK?

Best of luck to you!

Thank you so much for taking your time to respond and help me out! After much consideration, and a little of convincing the Mrs., we decided to go with a 2x2x4ft grow tent. I guess one plant is also the recommended capacity for this? I see some people growing tons in there, but I was thinking just 2... But I don't want both catfish dying hehe!

Initially we were going for the space tote build because of space constraint, not really the money aspect. We figured the totes would take just about the same space as the small grow tent, so we changed our minds.

I ditched the LED light strips since they're not necessary for this set up, and this is what i ended up ordering:
- 2x2x4 grow tent

- Exhaust and carbon filter; iPower GLFANXEXPSET4CHUMD 4 Inch 150 CFM Inline Carbon Filter with Fan Speed Controller and Temperature Humidity Monitor (copy and past on google and it will show you Amazon listing, link is prohibited)

- Mars Hydro TS 600W

I have no idea how to grow, so next up I am going to research the following:

• what size of pots I need for different stages of the growth cycle
• where to get seeds/seedlings that are good quality and reliable
• what soil and nutrients to get
• do i need something to measure ph levels? or how is this monitored
• what drain system to use with this tent
• what size of fan do I need inside the tent? one or two fans? Some people say mount it at the top facing down so that the wind current forces elasticity and makes the plant grow thicket, but others say at the bottom facing up so that the heat rises out the exhaust (rather than get pushed down)
• do i need a humidifier inside the tent? if so, what size?

And once all of that is answered, I will proceed to researching light cycles, watering, and feeding times.

I hope I'm going about this the right way. If I'm not, anyone please feel free to correct me.

 

[013]

nice gear, think you will be well served by that!

autos are tricky to grow, one slip up and it will stay tiny and yield 1 bud. Try photoperiods to start with they are much more forgiving. Most start in solo cup, then transplant into 1 gallon then later to either a 5, 8 or 10 gallon. Bigger is better in soil but 5 or 8 gallon should be good. Fabric pots are best. One well trained plant will fill your tent but as she’s flowering you start your next girl - perpetual grow. Get a mars or budget led maybe?

It helps to have a small place to start plants then use tent to flower them. Reason for this is that to run 2 sets of plants you keep one in veg and one in flower and run perpetual. The starting place doesn’t have to be a tent just a shelf where it’s warm and you can run a couple of cfls to start a seedling. does that make sense?

seeds - try our sponsors Seriously they keep this place running. I will link you a thread Seeds clones & strains forum. See what members are saying and doing. Clones are available in some states or jurisdictions. Soils and nutes - check our sponsors I hear a lot of success stories about mega crop nutes it’s a dry mix added to water by weight, pro mix is good soil, so is FF, coast of Maine.

Most tents have a liner pan made of tent material it’s not much tho. I have big trays from local grow shop in flower room and my 4X4 tent just has a small kiddie pool as a tray. Most are not hooked to a drain system, but if you’ve got one or an idea that works go for it. or use a tote to collect water from runoff.

I don’t have extraction fan or carbon filter (my house is isolated) I’m just using a 9 inch fan up top and a smaller oscillating one. Tent can not sit on concrete floor, needs to be raised up or insulated under, sheet foam is good.

part of that depends on where you are growing, house basement garage shed etc. keep temps between 70’s to 80’s degrees Fahrenheit, no humidifier or dehum needed generally speaking as long as you have decent indoor climate, need cheap hygrometer to monitor temps and rh.

 

[parrajara]

nice gear, think you will be well served by that!

autos are tricky to grow, one slip up and it will stay tiny and yield 1 bud. Try photoperiods to start with they are much more forgiving. Most start in solo cup, then transplant into 1 gallon then later to either a 5, 8 or 10 gallon. Bigger is better in soil but 5 or 8 gallon should be good. Fabric pots are best. One well trained plant will fill your tent but as she’s flowering you start your next girl - perpetual grow. Get a mars or budget led maybe?

It helps to have a small place to start plants then use tent to flower them. Reason for this is that to run 2 sets of plants you keep one in veg and one in flower and run perpetual. The starting place doesn’t have to be a tent just a shelf where it’s warm and you can run a couple of cfls to start a seedling. does that make sense?

seeds - try our sponsors Seriously they keep this place running. I will link you a thread Seeds clones & strains forum. See what members are saying and doing. Clones are available in some states or jurisdictions. Soils and nutes - check our sponsors I hear a lot of success stories about mega crop nutes it’s a dry mix added to water by weight, pro mix is good soil, so is FF, coast of Maine.

Most tents have a liner pan made of tent material it’s not much tho. I have big trays from local grow shop in flower room and my 4X4 tent just has a small kiddie pool as a tray. Most are not hooked to a drain system, but if you’ve got one or an idea that works go for it. or use a tote to collect water from runoff.

I don’t have extraction fan or carbon filter (my house is isolated) I’m just using a 9 inch fan up top and a smaller oscillating one. Tent can not sit on concrete floor, needs to be raised up or insulated under, sheet foam is good.

part of that depends on where you are growing, house basement garage shed etc. keep temps between 70’s to 80’s degrees Fahrenheit, no humidifier or dehum needed generally speaking as long as you have decent indoor climate, need cheap hygrometer to monitor temps and rh.

All of this information is very helpful, and I really do appreciate you taking your spare time to help a stranger out.

The whole growing experience can seem overwhelming at first, but when you sit down and take your time to really break it down to understand it, it's not that bad. I feel pretty good about things now, thanks a lot to you and also from all the online resources out there. I am having a bit of a hard time understanding which nutrients to give my plant. I feel like there are so many different brands and options, and like every person uses a different mix. I would like to understand it, rather than just follow someone's instructions. For example, I'd like to know what specific nutrient the plant is lacking, more than just knowing that the ph level is low and I need to add something to increase it. Do you know where I can go to educate myself on this? been trying to find something, but no luck.

Also, my tent has 2 intake holes in the bottom, and I never realized it, but I feel like I haven't seen anyone using intake fans in their grow tents. If I recall correctly, everyone has clip on fans on the inside, but I don't recall seeing them in the intake vent holes. Am I right, or do people use intake fans and clip on fans in the interior? Also, I thought the fan should be clipped on the top facing down, but a person on youtube with the same size grow tent as mine suggested not to because it would push heat down and make it hot. Instead that person put it on the bottom facing up to circulate the heat radiating from the light upwards.

I will be growing in my "living room". I live in a studio haha! It is thick carpet, not like the office one, so that should be good for insulation? Just gotta be sure there is no leakages!

Thank you for all your help @013

 

[013]

Thanks! I’m in my first year here, there is a steep learning curve but you sound resourceful.

Yes you are correct! Majority are doing passive intake without fan and set it up so the carbon filter goes in top of the tent and air is drawn thru the carbon filter into the fan which pushes that air to outside of the building. Yes some growers push air down in the tent to offset the temp difference in a colder room. Besides an extraction fan most growers will use a clip on fan or two or oscillating to help with airflow and deter pests. Heat rises and cool air sinks, coldest point is the floor - warmest point is the ceiling. It may help to get tent off floor even in studio, depends on positioning, windows and what you keep your temps at.

Fungus gnats are common as well as mites and other critters. it helps to keep air moving across top of soil, but don’t windburn your plants. Most likely you will get pests in your tent at some point if you do outdoors activities or have pets!

Buy a $15 hygrometer most have remote sensor probe with 5 foot long cord, set up your tent and run the light and see what your temps are. Think you can get a nice mars or budget lite for 2X4 pretty cheap like $80 and much better than the ‘Zon no name Chinese made.

In menu bar click on grow, then find growers forums, another world opens up. I suggest you look around the organic thread too, also at the top of some threads are sticky notes - very useful and here’s another link How to grow

Yes some folks are pouring bottle nutrients on their soil, others are using living organic soil and/or no till methods. It’s all here, just takes some looking, there are threads for seeds, cloning and breeding. building soils, harvest, prep and curing, the list goes on.

A hydro grow can be faster than soil..... but soil grown weed has best taste and terp profile.

nutes are tricky.

There are hydro specific nutes that do not work in soil. most hydro nutes are 2 part A&B then you have to add cal mag. You follow a feeding chart based on what week of veg or what week of flower.

There are nutes made for soil that don’t work in hydro. Soil nutes are know for good bacteria or microbes - these typically will not live in hydro or they usually foul up hydro systems. Same here follow feeding chart based on which week of veg or flower.

The megacrop i was telling you about works in both soil or hydro type systems which is pretty amazing. You start by weight, I think it’s 2 grams per gallon and by watching the plants response you stay at that level or move up 1/2 gram the next week. It’s really slick nearly every other grower on here are mega crop plant whisperers’ ... Now for full disclosure - I’ve never tried it myself but it’s on the list. I‘ve promised myself that I would not purchase or order any more grow products until I get my seed order completed and have them in hand!!! Then I will jump on the mega bandwagon. Rumor has it they will do free sample if you pay shipping!

The problem is weed needs high N but lower PK for veg, but in flower you need very little N but higher PK and that still doesn’t begin to address the calcium or magnesium requirements. It will take time to get all this. Much reading is involved but you will get there.

Since you mentioned soil previously... I would say go with soil and mega crop - seriously you will save time, money & frustration by not having to buy 20 different bottles and 5 bags of dry amendments researching and sending posts trying to figure out what’s wrong. Once you get a few successful grows done then you can play about more. Once you start killing seedlings and the cost adds up you begin to pay attention, I know I did!

There’s great debate on ph and ppm. Good ph meters are $100, good ppm meters can be found for $20 to $30 price range. In a good grade commercially bagged soil - the ph has been set or balanced by adding lime. Since I’m in living organic soil I don’t check ph or ppm. But it’s still handy to have the ph and ppm tools to check inputs when needed or if a problem arises and of course you’ve got to have calibration & storage fluids for them too.

it’s not cheap to start growing but once your stuff is paid for then it’s nutes, power bill and more beans to grow with. But what’s the price on the street or at a dispensar. Plus now you will know exactly what has been done to your weed whereas before none of us ever knew what we were smoking.

For no leaks - get pair of small storage tubs plus a plant elevator or spacer to set fabric smart pot on - it keeps air flow under the fabric smart pot and the tote is to contain any water that may drain. Keep one tote clean at all times and swap them out as needed.

best of luck to you parrajarra!

 

[parrajara]

Thanks! I’m in my first year here, there is a steep learning curve but you sound resourceful.

Yes you are correct! Majority are doing passive intake without fan and set it up so the carbon filter goes in top of the tent and air is drawn thru the carbon filter into the fan which pushes that air to outside of the building. Yes some growers push air down in the tent to offset the temp difference in a colder room. Besides an extraction fan most growers will use a clip on fan or two or oscillating to help with airflow and deter pests. Heat rises and cool air sinks, coldest point is the floor - warmest point is the ceiling. It may help to get tent off floor even in studio, depends on positioning, windows and what you keep your temps at.

Fungus gnats are common as well as mites and other critters. it helps to keep air moving across top of soil, but don’t windburn your plants. Most likely you will get pests in your tent at some point if you do outdoors activities or have pets!

Buy a $15 hygrometer most have remote sensor probe with 5 foot long cord, set up your tent and run the light and see what your temps are. Think you can get a nice mars or budget lite for 2X4 pretty cheap like $80 and much better than the ‘Zon no name Chinese made.

In menu bar click on grow, then find growers forums, another world opens up. I suggest you look around the organic thread too, also at the top of some threads are sticky notes - very useful and here’s another link How to grow

Yes some folks are pouring bottle nutrients on their soil, others are using living organic soil and/or no till methods. It’s all here, just takes some looking, there are threads for seeds, cloning and breeding. building soils, harvest, prep and curing, the list goes on.

A hydro grow can be faster than soil..... but soil grown weed has best taste and terp profile.

nutes are tricky.

There are hydro specific nutes that do not work in soil. most hydro nutes are 2 part A&B then you have to add cal mag. You follow a feeding chart based on what week of veg or what week of flower.

There are nutes made for soil that don’t work in hydro. Soil nutes are know for good bacteria or microbes - these typically will not live in hydro or they usually foul up hydro systems. Same here follow feeding chart based on which week of veg or flower.

The megacrop i was telling you about works in both soil or hydro type systems which is pretty amazing. You start by weight, I think it’s 2 grams per gallon and by watching the plants response you stay at that level or move up 1/2 gram the next week. It’s really slick nearly every other grower on here are mega crop plant whisperers’ ... Now for full disclosure - I’ve never tried it myself but it’s on the list. I‘ve promised myself that I would not purchase or order any more grow products until I get my seed order completed and have them in hand!!! Then I will jump on the mega bandwagon. Rumor has it they will do free sample if you pay shipping!

The problem is weed needs high N but lower PK for veg, but in flower you need very little N but higher PK and that still doesn’t begin to address the calcium or magnesium requirements. It will take time to get all this. Much reading is involved but you will get there.

Since you mentioned soil previously... I would say go with soil and mega crop - seriously you will save time, money & frustration by not having to buy 20 different bottles and 5 bags of dry amendments researching and sending posts trying to figure out what’s wrong. Once you get a few successful grows done then you can play about more. Once you start killing seedlings and the cost adds up you begin to pay attention, I know I did!

There’s great debate on ph and ppm. Good ph meters are $100, good ppm meters can be found for $20 to $30 price range. In a good grade commercially bagged soil - the ph has been set or balanced by adding lime. Since I’m in living organic soil I don’t check ph or ppm. But it’s still handy to have the ph and ppm tools to check inputs when needed or if a problem arises and of course you’ve got to have calibration & storage fluids for them too.

it’s not cheap to start growing but once your stuff is paid for then it’s nutes, power bill and more beans to grow with. But what’s the price on the street or at a dispensar. Plus now you will know exactly what has been done to your weed whereas before none of us ever knew what we were smoking.

For no leaks - get pair of small storage tubs plus a plant elevator or spacer to set fabric smart pot on - it keeps air flow under the fabric smart pot and the tote is to contain any water that may drain. Keep one tote clean at all times and swap them out as needed.

best of luck to you parrajarra!

Hey friend,

All of the information that you are providing to me is so valuable to me. I actually have decided to upsize to a 2x4x6 tent. It was a matter of convincing my better half, and once she saw how subtle the small one looked, she agreed to upsize for a taller and slightly wider one that will allow me to grow the plants MUCH better. I think 2 plants should easily fit in this space? I have ordered another 600W (actual 100W) Phlizon dimmable light. I was between that or the same Mars Hydro one that I have, but I figured I will test them out and see if it makes any difference. My little science experiment. Anyway, 200 real watt for 2x4 seems to be the ideal amount. My exhaust fan is 150CFM with the carbon filter limiting about 1/3 of that, but I've read a lot of people saying it's fine. Obviously the life expectancy of the fan will decrease vs. using a 6" one with more power. Can't be bothered to return that as well, already returning the small grow tent.

I'm super excited for this, I have pretty much everything lined up. This is everything i have in my possession/on order:

• 2x4x6ft grow tent
• Mars Hydro actual 100W and Phlizon actual 100W LED
• 1 gallon fabric pots & 5 gallon fabric pots (should I get 7 gallon instead?)
• TDS, EC & Temprature meter (3 in 1)
• Ph Meter (for water)
• 4" exhaust fan with 150 CFM rating with speed control and 4" carbon filter (need to get air-duct)
• Temperature and humidity monitor (hygrometer?)
• 6x Photoperiod Feminized Green Crack Kush seeds

I still have to get the following, and hopefully I am not missing a lot:

• Soil (mega crop in my consideration, but still have to research it all)
• Nutrients (liquid vs. solid). Leaning towards solid...
• Fan (not sure if 1 or 2 needed, and still have to determine the size, and location/orientation for them)
• Essential gardening tools (spray bottle, watering can, twist ties, etc.)

Now I am wondering the following:

• on top of nutrients that help balance ph levels, I also should get the "Ph up and Ph down" liquid solutions for water? to ensure optimal ph levels every time I water?
• Drainage - is the bottom cover that comes with the grow tent enough? I remember you mentioned a liner pad, would you mind sharing what this looks like?

Anyway, that's my update for now. I think I will make a thread for my grow process, and where I can continue to bother more growers for their help and feedback

 

[Nunyabiz]

IMO.
2x4x6 is fine for 2 plants but barely.
2x4 space is 8 sq/ft usually the absolute minimum lighting is 35w per sq/ft which would be 280w and 50w per sq/ft being optimum which is 400w if using the older style LEDs.
If using LM301B diodes then less watts needed especially if in strip light form

I wouldn't use small fabric pots to germinate in, if you feel you must transplant then get some small round plastic pots maybe a little bigger than a solo cup.
The roots will grow into the fabric pot and makes it hard to transplant without destroying root tips.

I always suggest the largest fabric pots you can manage for the final pot.

 

[parrajara]

IMO.
2x4x6 is fine for 2 plants but barely.
2x4 space is 8 sq/ft usually the absolute minimum lighting is 35w per sq/ft which would be 280w and 50w per sq/ft being optimum which is 400w if using the older style LEDs.
If using LM301B diodes then less watts needed especially if in strip light form

I wouldn't use small fabric pots to germinate in, if you feel you must transplant then get some small round plastic pots maybe a little bigger than a solo cup.
The roots will grow into the fabric pot and makes it hard to transplant without destroying root tips.

I always suggest the largest fabric pots you can manage for the final pot.

Thank you, I will skip the 1 gallon and go straight from a seedling pot to the 5 gallon, which I hope to use for the full grow. I now have LEDs with 400 actual watt.

I know that people have lights with veg and bloom switches, or that are dimmable. My lights have none of these features, there is no way to change spectrum or intensity.

Will this still be fine for my germination and seedling stage? What tips do you have for these stages? I was wondering if sticking to my manufacturer's suggested distance (24-30" for germination and 24" for seedling) is good enough?

 

[Nunyabiz]

Thank you, I will skip the 1 gallon and go straight from a seedling pot to the 5 gallon, which I hope to use for the full grow. I now have LEDs with 400 actual watt.

I know that people have lights with veg and bloom switches, or that are dimmable. My lights have none of these features, there is no way to change spectrum or intensity.

Will this still be fine for my germination and seedling stage? What tips do you have for these stages? I was wondering if sticking to my manufacturer's suggested distance (24-30" for germination and 24" for seedling) is good enough?

The only option you have if you can't dim is to raise the lights.
In seedling stage that's perfectly doable.
But when you only have a 6 foot ceiling you may have problems in flower unless you LST and SCROG very well to keep the plants no taller than about 2 feet or so.

You got 6 feet to play with, the pot takes a foot or more, the lights hanging down another foot plus then you need 18"+ distance from light so a minimum of 3.5 feet is already gone, that leaves a 2 foot plant.
So do everything you can to grow them spread out and low.
If you just let them grow you'll create a blivet.

 

[parrajara]

The only option you have if you can't dim is to raise the lights.
In seedling stage that's perfectly doable.
But when you only have a 6 foot ceiling you may have problems in flower unless you LST and SCROG very well to keep the plants no taller than about 2 feet or so.

You got 6 feet to play with, the pot takes a foot or more, the lights hanging down another foot plus then you need 18"+ distance from light so a minimum of 3.5 feet is already gone, that leaves a 2 foot plant.
So do everything you can to grow them spread out and low.
If you just let them grow you'll create a blivet.

Yes thank you so much for taking your time to reply. I noticed that your signature links to an organic living soil grow you did. I am actually looking to go this route, more or less. I am in the middle of building a very detailed thread to finalize gathering everything I need for my grow, mainly the soil and amendments. Do you mind if I contact you to check it out once it's posted? I would love to have feedback from someone that has done what I am planning to do.

cheers

 

[Hijacked007]

If you’re a more visual learner to; I recommend Mr.Canucks Grow on YouTube pretty straight and to the point on topics with nice finished plant clips to keep you motivated for the end game .

Happy Growing .

 

[Nunyabiz]

Yes thank you so much for taking your time to reply. I noticed that your signature links to an organic living soil grow you did. I am actually looking to go this route, more or less. I am in the middle of building a very detailed thread to finalize gathering everything I need for my grow, mainly the soil and amendments. Do you mind if I contact you to check it out once it's posted? I would love to have feedback from someone that has done what I am planning to do.

cheers

Sure no problem, glad to help if I can.
I have about 6 grows in that link I think, its just one continuous journal, I didn't see any reason to start multiple journals.

 

[parrajara]

If you’re a more visual learner to; I recommend Mr.Canucks Grow on YouTube pretty straight and to the point on topics with nice finished plant clips to keep you motivated for the end game .

Happy Growing .

Thank you! I was actually about to start doing Mr. Canucks Grow but after more research found out that his growing style has some gaps that I've yet to fill, and time is a constraint for me since my seeds are in water right now. I wanted to follow his simple method of using the 4-4-4 Gaia and 2-8-4, but people have had a lot of problems with it, because there is more to it than that. I believe the main issue comes from people thinking that the original soil and amendments mix, and the top feeding, was enough. I believe people did not realize that he uses the compost teas to help with fungi and pests, and to help with having a healthier plant. I got that far, and then thing's started getting a little more complex when I understood he uses tea.

Getting into growing I thought there would be some sort of formula/common consensus for successfully growing bud, but I have learned that is far from the truth. There are a million ways to do it, and everyone will tell you a different way... So all I can do is try to put the pieces together and experiment myself!

 

[Growdad420]

Ill throw my hat into the fray. The Ipower 4 inch fan was not enough for my tent. I actually stopped using it because I couldnt control the heat. I went up to a name brand 6 inch and seems to do the trick much better than the 4. My tent is very similar to yours and as very small plants you can get all four but as they grow you will quickly run out of space. I personally think that size tent is good for one plant. I ended up getting rid of the tent all together.

I use FF ocean soil w/30% perlite, and FF trio nutes. I am keeping it simple. I use 3 ga smart pots, more of a preference. I have blurple and Quad board lights in my current grow. I didnt mean for 4 but its ride or die time. I am relatively new but currently keeping it simple and having some success. Good luck!

 

[parrajara]

Ill throw my hat into the fray. The Ipower 4 inch fan was not enough for my tent. I actually stopped using it because I couldnt control the heat. I went up to a name brand 6 inch and seems to do the trick much better than the 4. My tent is very similar to yours and as very small plants you can get all four but as they grow you will quickly run out of space. I personally think that size tent is good for one plant. I ended up getting rid of the tent all together.

I use FF ocean soil w/30% perlite, and FF trio nutes. I am keeping it simple. I use 3 ga smart pots, more of a preference. I have blurple and Quad board lights in my current grow. I didnt mean for 4 but its ride or die time. I am relatively new but currently keeping it simple and having some success. Good luck!

Thank you for your input Growdad! Always appreciate hearing what other are doing!

My ladies are coming out of the paper towel tonight and going into a nice light soil. I will also be using FFOF with about 30% perlite, but I want to feed it without liquids - so I am still working on narrowing down which nutes to give it when the FFOF nutrients run out. I'm leaning towards some Gaia Green powdered nutrients

 

[Growdad420]

Thank you for your input Growdad! Always appreciate hearing what other are doing!

My ladies are coming out of the paper towel tonight and going into a nice light soil. I will also be using FFOF with about 30% perlite, but I want to feed it without liquids - so I am still working on narrowing down which nutes to give it when the FFOF nutrients run out. I'm leaning towards some Gaia Green powdered nutrients

I never used or thought about powder. Its been 15 years since my last grow and FFOF and the Trio blend make it really easy. I am high a lot, so I need it simple.... My girls are all FF and they are lovely.

 

[parrajara]

I never used or thought about powder. Its been 15 years since my last grow and FFOF and the Trio blend make it really easy. I am high a lot, so I need it simple.... My girls are all FF and they are lovely.

Yes, I've read a lot of great things about FF! Glad it's working for you

I am actually planning on making a supersoil for my next grow, so that is mainly why I don't want to get bottles... I wouldn't need them after this grow and that's a waste! At least I can use the powders to make teas or amend my soil.

What have I gotten myself into..... hehe