Grow Newbie - Aeroponics Questions

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silentseraph

New Member
Born out of frustration when dealing with flakey dealers, I've decided to go ahead and start growing my own marijuana. This will end up being pretty much only for me and a good friend, so the operation will be small (I'm thinking 2-4 plants at a time).

After a ton of research, I decided to go the aeroponics route, mainly because of the low cost of getting started, as well as the faster grow times.

For reference I plan on building this: Aeroponic Unit V1.2

I plan on putting this in a small attic space in my house. The dimensions are:
5 feet tall
7.5 feet wide
9.5 feet long

My initial question is probably the newbiest question ever, but I was curious as to whether or not I would be able to actually grow a good plant with that amount of space?

Considering that I'll (possibly) need room to hang the light, and that the actual reservoir/container for the plants will take up somewhere around 6"-1' in height, that leaves me with a few of feet of growing room. Will this be enough space, or should I just acknowledge that it's not possible in my situation? Also, I've read about Growlux lights... I'm curious what your favorite suppliers of the lights are? Are there complete setups available that you know of?

The really great part about this space is that I've got a ventilation pipe leading straight out of the roof. This is about six inches in diameter. Are there any recommendations for a good fan that eliminates odor as well?

Finally, I'm wondering about the type of light I need for such a small gig. I've read up and it seems to be a general consensus that a spectrum corrected HPS light is ideal for the entire growing phase. I'm wondering, though, about the size of the light? Are there any simple products out there for my limited growing? Any recommendations and links would be fantastic.

Also, I've read that LED lights *could* be awesome, but just aren't there yet... are there any thoughts on this? Any good links with test results?

Finally, I was planning on getting "G.H. Flora Series, a 3-part system - Gro, Micro, and Bloom" for my nutrients. I've read that it seems to be fairly standard. Are there any concerns with these nutrients in an aeroponics setup? Should I use different nutrients? Recommendations here are also welcome

Thanks a lot everyone!
 
I have built 6 different variations of the BP setup. From 14 gallon rubbermaid tubs filled with 6 gallons, to 5 gallon buckets that grow/support bigger plants. The tubs work great to start plants and finish but if you finish in these tubs 3-4 plants is the most recommended. The buckets work great from start to finish as they support big plants. Stop on by The Deep Water Culture Home and see what everyone has done.
 
Wow! Thanks for the welcome and the links FrostyBuds!

I'll for sure be checking out the link for the DIY stuff, but the prebuilt stuff is definitely enticing.

Do you think the height of my space would be a problem?

Also, is there a good lighting setup you could recommend for this?

Thanks again for the links and help!
 
I'd recommend a HID light for flowering. I use a 600w Nextgen HPS/MH switchable ballast. I run an HPS bulb for flowering. Check out this for some CFL ideas CFL Light Tutorial

CFL is great to veg with. Today I put together a power strip with 6-23w sprial cfl's. Cost was under $30. Total output of light is 9600 lumens. Perfect for veggin 4-6 plants in a BP tub.
 
FrostyBuds, I can't thank you enough for the links!

I just got through reading Roseman's Deep Water Culture tutorial. Holy cow. That guy answered pretty much every question I had. This is fantastic!

I'm going to go ahead with a 3 plant bucket setup, with 2 85w CFLs (one 2700k, one 6500k), and use a Y joint thing with a clamp reflector, hanging from the rafters of my attic so I can raise and lower it as needed.

Also, I'm probably going to go ahead and get the nutes + Ph up/downers from stealth hydroponics, since Roseman seems to indicate that those are geared more for CFL setups.

The odor eliminating bucket contraption Roseman made is AMAZING if it works as well as he says it does.

Anywho, thanks a ton for the great start man. It really is truly appreciated. I'll be posting pics at some point in a grow journal. I'll be putting the rig together this week, and then starting the process this weekend ( got a friend who's held onto 200 or so seeds that he happily handed over :D ).

Can't say thanks enough!
 
Oh and, keep studying the different setups. Three plants will be pushing it in a bucket, unless the plan is three random seeds to get at least one female. Three will work but will be very crowded. Buckets tend to be one maybe two plant homes depending on the total veg cycle. About 8 inches and 12/12 it with 3 plants. Buckets rock with one plant!!

At that point with unknown sex in seeds I'd rec a 6 pot tub. That way 2-3 plants will be male leaving room for the females to grow. Roseman starts 6 seeds ends up with 3-4 females and gets good results.

As far as nutes go, I'd just go to the local hydro shop and get some 2 or 3 part formula and go with that. Most SH users here have moved onto non-SH nutes.
 
silentseraph said:
FrostyBuds, I can't thank you enough for the links!

I just got through reading Roseman's Deep Water Culture tutorial. Holy cow. That guy answered pretty much every question I had. This is fantastic!

I'm going to go ahead with a 3 plant bucket setup, with 2 85w CFLs (one 2700k, one 6500k), and use a Y joint thing with a clamp reflector, hanging from the rafters of my attic so I can raise and lower it as needed.

Also, I'm probably going to go ahead and get the nutes + Ph up/downers from stealth hydroponics, since Roseman seems to indicate that those are geared more for CFL setups.

The odor eliminating bucket contraption Roseman made is AMAZING if it works as well as he says it does.

Anywho, thanks a ton for the great start man. It really is truly appreciated. I'll be posting pics at some point in a grow journal. I'll be putting the rig together this week, and then starting the process this weekend ( got a friend who's held onto 200 or so seeds that he happily handed over :D ).

Can't say thanks enough!
Click to expand...

Welcome my friend!! Frosty has given you some great advice and I am glad to see that you read Roseman's tutorial. I agree with Frosty, get the GH nutes!! Yes Roseman's odor controller works fantastic. You can get those silver 5 gal. buckets at lowes for $5 and turn them into bubble buckets. Good luck with your grow and we are all here if you have any questions!
 
FrostyBuds said:
At that point with unknown sex in seeds I'd rec a 6 pot tub. That way 2-3 plants will be male leaving room for the females to grow. Roseman starts 6 seeds ends up with 3-4 females and gets good results.
Click to expand...

Ah, right on man. Yes, this will be random seeds, so I'll definitely take that advice and go with a 6 pot tub. Thanks man :)

FrostyBuds said:
As far as nutes go, I'd just go to the local hydro shop and get some 2 or 3 part formula and go with that. Most SH users here have moved onto non-SH nutes.
Click to expand...

Well shat :p Unfortunately, I don't have a local hydroponics shop, haha. I went ahead and grabbed these from SH last night, before I saw your post:

Stealth Grow, Bloom and Micro

General Hydroponics pH Up And pH Down Liquid

Sunleaves TDS Essential Digital Pen

As for lighting then, I think then I'll go ahead and go with the six spiral cfl bulb setup like you have (after reading about the lighting, seems like they're the most bang for your buck because of their efficiency). Do you have any clamp reflectors on those? Or did you just attach them straight into a power strip?

One last question, and then I think I will finally have every question answered so far :p When you're plants are in the vegetative stages, do you only use 6500k lights? And when they're in the bloom stage, do you only use 2700k lights? Or would you use a mixture?

Thanks again! And thanks for the welcome, Theanswerto1984is1776!
 
I used the V-splitter and the plug/light screw in, in post #7. My setup ended up looking like Roseman's in post seven except with V's and 6 bulbs. I spent $46 at Lowes, 2 power strips(6), 6 pack 23w 2700k CFL (10), 4 pack 23w 6500k (10), three V's (8), 3 screw/plugs (8). So to max it out you would need 3 more screw/plugs (8), 3 V's (8), and 2 more bulbs (10), so for $72 dollars you can have (12x1600) 19200 lumens and two spare bulbs. I used nylon zip ties to secure the bulbs to the power strip. It roughly cost $46 for one strip setup, more for the first one, and less for the second about $25.

For $20 more you could build a nice setup like FryinPanFlyer's CFL light with the white pvc, wire nuts, and screws and making a good frame, and not get the power strips.

I mix the bulbs so there is either 3 and 3 or 4 (6500) and 2 (2700). I like a balanced spectrum.

You did good getting SH nutes and other supplies. They will work just fine.
 
Frustratingly, the wife has vetoed me on this. My fault for jumping the gun, heh, but I can't respectably implicate her legally without her consent. Just wouldn't feel right.

Here's to hoping I can work on her and convince her the risk is minimal enough to make it happen. I think I'd have an easier time with it if pot actually did anything for her (I never met people who didn't feel the affects of pot until her; I watched her take huge hits, hold it in, breathe out tons of smoke, and no affect on her at all. Crazy!).

Anywho, thanks for the help guys :) Will post back here if the situation changes.
 

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