Knockout's First Ever Grow

Knockout

Knockout

Well-Known Member
Hello awesome 420 community.
I have been lurking in the shadows for a while, reading, studying and getting inspired by a lot of grow journals around here. Today is the day that i start my own.
This is my 1st ever grow and it is going to have the following characteristics:

  • 3 northern lights automatic feminized seeds from Sensi
  • Soil as a medium, unnamed brand
  • veg & flower nutes, unnamed brand
  • 4 cfl lamps, 40w each. 2 x 6400k, 2 x 2700k
  • 1 intake pc fan
  • 1 exhaust pc fan ending in a carbon filter
  • I am growing in a very small cabinet (77cm x 77cm x 28cm) i made myself just for this purpose
  • Stealth is of the absolute importance. I live with 2 roomates and the cabinet is residing in my bedroom. I have literally known these 2 guys all my life and i could maybe trust them with that, but better be safe than sorry. I would rather them not knowing at all if possible and i am planning everything while keeping that in mind.
So today is the 1st day of the grow. Seeds went into ph'ed 6~6.5 water for germination.
I hope some of you guys subscribe to this thread as i am sure i will need some help in the future and this seems to be a very knowledgable and willing to share community.
 
full

here is my cabinet from the inside.
You can see the glass with the seeds on the bottom.

So here is the first thing i would like help with. Although i have managed to completely light-seal the cabinet and have added a carbon filter for odors (i hope it does its job) i cant for the life of me sound-proof the fans. When they are on they emit a low but clearly heard sound. Like the one computers do when they are powered on. I have added cushions on all the places they touch the backboard but this does not seem to cut it.
Any ideas on what might help muffle the sounds even more?
 
Knockout said:
full

here is my cabinet from the inside.
You can see the glass with the seeds on the bottom.

So here is the first thing i would like help with. Although i have managed to completely light-seal the cabinet and have added a carbon filter for odors (i hope it does its job) i cant for the life of me sound-proof the fans. When they are on they emit a low but clearly heard sound. Like the one computers do when they are powered on. I have added cushions on all the places they touch the backboard but this does not seem to cut it.
Any ideas on what might help muffle the sounds even more?
Click to expand...

The sound you hear could be the vibration of the air. You can put a duct around them that contains some open cell foam (spongy), and that should knock down the sound from the blades cutting the air. The duct would have to make a turn and contain both exhausts .The turn is to make the sound waves hit at least one wall with foam on it. Two turns may be required to totally eliminate the noise.

If you want to find out if the fans make air noise. Take one out and let it run in your hand (you must hold it, turn the other off, or put both in your hands). If it(they) still makes noise, that is air noise, not a vibration per se. If it(they) quits making noise, you are using too hard of cushions or compressing the cushions too much. Vibration can be a problem to eliminate. Also, the fan may not be perfectly balanced, which could take a whole book of explaining how to fix it. Fixing a balance problem with a fan is a long and tedious thing.
 
Thanks Bonsai for you input.
i have listened to your advise and unscrewed both fans from the backboard and just let them hanging from the cords.The sound almost completely went away. That means that it must be the screws that are doing me over. I will look into double sided foamy duct tape tomorrow to see if things improve.

I am not very clear were i could find the duct you are talking about though. Do you have a picture i can use as a reference maybe?

P.S. The fans are brand new and if i let them in my hand while they are working they make absolutely no sound at all.
 
Knockout said:
Thanks Bonsai for you input.
i have listened to your advise and unscrewed both fans from the backboard and just let them hanging from the cords.The sound almost completely went away. That means that it must be the screws that are doing me over. I will look into double sided foamy duct tape tomorrow to see if things improve.

I am not very clear were i could find the duct you are talking about though. Do you have a picture i can use as a reference maybe?

P.S. The fans are brand new and if i let them in my hand while they are working they make absolutely no sound at all.
Click to expand...

You would have to build the duct (wood & foam), but if you lose all noise when detached, it is a standard vibration problem. Can you put the fans on the top side with the sticky tape? That way gravity is helping them stay on.
 
Knockout said:
Thanks for the warm welcome BW :)

I will try modifing my setup today to improve sound levels.

Small update: After ~14 hours in the water the seeds are now fully submerged after giving them a small tap.
Click to expand...

Glad to have you here.

Are you going to a paper towel after 24 hours?

Just asked, because that has worked well for me in the past.
 
Subbed for the ride. I love following these small cfl grows lol. Best of luck to you.✌
 
Hello Ghost, glad to have you here. Thanks for your wishes :)

Bonsai, i was thinking about going to wet paper towels but i have read you must be careful to not have them dry on you because it will kill the seeds. I was somewhat worried i will screw up, being my 1st time and all.

Also, just checked the seeds and they all have sprouted tiny tiny taproots already so i think i am ok. I will transplant them into their final homes sometime today.
I have 2x2galon pots plus 2x1.3galon pots. I was going to use the big ones and i was planning on only planting 2 seeds given how small my space is. I just germinated 3 seeds to be safe in case one turned out to be dead.
Now i am really sorry that i have to throw a good seed away. Do you guys think i can plant all 3 of them in 2 galon pots in my small space or would i be screwing with my yield? Maybe if i go into the smaller pots?
 
Ok small update guys.
The seeds still need to germinate more. I am hoping they will be ready for transplant by tonight when they complete 48hours in the water. Here is a picture for reference:
1514952-8bea6b146e94e1ed1c40c1c07b6ce4d2.jpg


I have been shadow running the box without anything in it to monitor the temps. While the lights are on the situation is pretty bad. I consistently get 29-30oC which seems quite high. Also the hydration levels are abysmal, my meter will not even show a reading. The fans are 12" running at full capacity (i undervolted them at 1st to bring the noise down but that brought temps even higher) and i am not sure what to do to bring the temps down. I am thingings of 1) either remove the warm lightbulbs while we are vegging and only keep the 2 cold ones. I have been reading Katins journal (which is awesome btw: Katins's First Bagseed Micro Grow - Soil & CFL's) and he seemed to do pretty well with half the wattage i am using now. His bulbs were 23w while mine are 40w. Option 2) is that i move the box around a bit because it is currently resting against a wall and i am afraid the hot air might be trapted on the backside. Both exhaust and intake are in the back.

I am also thinking about planting all 3 seeds, so i setted up the pots inside the box:
1514953-7c07f747efe548d7fd813589f2be2a58.jpg

They take up the whole length of the box that way and i am concerned that i will run out of space really fast. My thought process was this though: I would like to experiment since this is the 1st grow so i am using 2 of the big pots and 1 of the small ones. I would like to monitor the difference this will have in the end so i know which is the optimal pot size for me. I also plan to do mixed training so i can have as a reference. I was thinking:
  • small pot: LST
  • big pot #1: LST
  • big pot #2: LST & topping
That way i can compare big vs small and also topping vs no topping. Also i have a "spare" plant kinda in case 1 of them dies before it finishes. What do you guys think? is worth cramping them all 3 in there? Should i maybe use 3x the small pots?
 
I will be following, always enjoy seeing NL grow!

Definitely move the box away from the wall, it will help the fans intake/exhaust the air better. You may have to get a stronger exhaust fan to displace the air, but 30C isn't out of bounds temp-wise. A lot of folks have the intake on one side of the box and exhaust on the other to create a better cross-flow of air. Of course, your ambient room temp will affect your box temp as well.

I have no experience growing autos and no idea how much room you will end up needing, but my theory would be keep all three as long as the space allows. If it becomes unmanageable, then you can prune weaker branches or simply choose your best two and move on. But always better to wait until you absolutely have to before cutting down a viable plant. Maybe use photoperiod seeds next time, you get to choose when to flip to accommodate your space!

Either way, pomaika'i with your grow, looking forward to it!
 
Thanks Brah! (pun intended :p ) Glad to have you!
Modding the box is not really an option. Plus i wanted all the fans on the backside to be more stealthy. Roomates may roam into the room and i would like them to not see a fan on the side.
I will consider using photos some time in the future, especially if i ever have a bigger grow area, but right now i wanted the fastest results possible.
My thought process about keeping all 3 was the same, i hope it does not cause me any problems.
 
Here's an idea Instead of trying to stop the noise create something that draws the sound away. Like get a small fish tank so now you hear air bubbles and it fills that need to find the sound in other people's heads
 
Hey, Knockout, I can absolutely promise you won't be able to keep it a seecret from your roomies :) so either tell them now and hope for the best or... nah, better tell them and I think they'll understand, especially if you share some :)
Even if you miraculously manage to stay below their radar during the grow, come harvest, the crib shall reek of good stuff :) and then, the curing process and leaving jars open etc.
It is possible to keep fragrancies inside the room, but it sure is imposible to stay smell free if you're not exhausting it to the outside of the house.
 
Katins has a really great point I know I wanna show all my friends my bad ass stinky nugs lol. But I don't not that I don't trust my friends but who do they tell and so on the line of trust stops for me so to me the only people that know is my wife and 420 family
 
Thanks for your input guys.
I sure hope to keep it a secret as much as possible. One of the roomates is going to be leaving soon anyway so i will have to only share it with one of them. Thing is that i am worried who will they talk to and where will this line of trust will stop, like Ice said.
What i want to achieve for sure is no smell while the box is sealed and the vent/filter running. I understand smells will come out whenever i open the box to check on the plants etc.. but there is at least an hour a day that nobody is home so i can do that then. If i can make it to harvest undetected i am good to go.
Also they are going to share the end result for sure. I am a social smoker and the only reason i doing this is so i can share it in the end.
 

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