Set-Up & Light Question

[JizzleMac]

Hello everyone. So I apologize for the newby questions. As I'm sure all of you know, marijuana was just legalized for recreational use in Michigan on November 6th and will take effect in early December. I have been an avid smoker and marijuana enthusiast for nearly 17 years, however this will be my first time growing.

I am hoping to get some help on information for my first grow. I have done quite a bit of research on it, however the more research I do, the more I think I only complicate myself on the matter at hand. I'm thinking of starting out with a 4 plant grow, with a 4x4 indoor grow tent. I know that will need the tent itself, seeds obviously, soil, duct work, lighting for the plants, air flowing in and out of the tent, and in my case I filter for the smell as well as nutrients for the plants and what not.

So my question is this, I was originally planning to go with LED lights as the cost for electricity is cheaper over time, however with as small of a grow as I will have initially and the price of high quality LED full spectrum lights, I am considering opting in another direction. Being my first time growing I don't want to invest a ton of money into it initially and something go wrong as I am learning to grow and lose out on even more.

I am hoping that I could get some suggestions of a proven grow set up that is (relevantly) price efficient for a first grow, but will produce high yields, and more importantly, high quality if used correctly for 4 plants. I realize yields and quality have a lot to do with you as the grower, but I have heard more than a few times that the grow light(s) is your anchor point for growing, in which without a sufficient grow light, nothing you do beyond that will be yield good results.

If anyone is able to provide any recommendations on a full set up for that size grow I would really appreciate it. Brands or full set-ups or whatever would help immensely. I just want to make sure I have a light (probably the most confusing part to me) that is sufficient for 4 plants. Otherwise I feel I might be just setting myself up for failure from the very beginning.

I have looked into a few but not sure on what wattage is sufficient for that size grow, and I'm aware that if I don't go with a full spectrum high end LED that I will likely need multiple bulbs for different phases of the growing process. Just hoping someone out there may be able to simplify the process of deciding what to initially buy and what kind of price range I may be looking at for the initial investment for a set up that doesn't need to be "top of the line" but will produce good results none the less so I can get a handle on growing before investing more into it.

Thanks!

 

[pontiacman]

With a 4x4 tent setup, and depending on $$$, I'd recommend using a single 600 watt mh or if you want to pay less on your electricity, go cmh. I've been using cmh for 2 years and cut my electric bill in half. Right now, I'm running 3 630 lec (cmh).
I have 4 630s and 3 315s. Don't have to use them all because the footprint is perfect in my room for the 3 630s.

Raised my normal bill $100 per month.

 

[Bigworm1982]

Aircooled 600watt hps is how i would go.

 

[PurpleGunRack]

The first thing is to establish how much herb you use a month and build your setup based on that.

No need to start out settling on a 4x4 and then not have the funds to light it sufficiently, then you're better of with a smaller setup you can saturate with light.

What are the legal limitations for growing?
You have to put that in the equation as well.


Forget the term ''full spectrum'' it's a made up marketing buzz word that doesn't mean anything

Anyone can cut their electrical bill by using less power, but if light output has to be the same or it doesn't matter, there are many empty promises on the growlight market
Cannabis is a light hungry short day plant and you have to use 1000w HPS, or around 600w of high end Middle Power Diodes or COBs to fully saturate 1m2 of space to optimally flower cannabis.
Many lesser lit solutions will work just fine, so start out by thinking about how much ganja you need and how much you're willing to invest up front.

 

[JizzleMac]

I figure I can invest around $1,000 upfront (a little cheaper wouldn't be a bad thing either), but I don't think $1,000 is a stretch for a decent set up. The Michigan grow laws are quite liberal at the moment, meaning you can grow up to 12 plants for personal use. You are only supposed to have 8 oz. for personal use at any given time, which is kind of dumb when talking about 12 plants, but I have that part figured out anyway. I just hate to invest in a small tent then turn around and buy another bigger one 4 months later. However, maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing to then use one for flowering and one for veg, or what not.

Thank you guys for your input so far. It definitely helps.

I know that there are a lot of crap lights out there which is why I was hoping for some pointers toward good brands/lights. The only LED lights I have found that are probably of the quality needed if only using one of those are upwards for $1,000 + by themselves. On up to the $2k range.

 

[pontiacman]

I figure I can invest around $1,000 upfront (a little cheaper wouldn't be a bad thing either), but I don't think $1,000 is a stretch for a decent set up. The Michigan grow laws are quite liberal at the moment, meaning you can grow up to 12 plants for personal use. You are only supposed to have 8 oz. for personal use at any given time, which is kind of dumb when talking about 12 plants, but I have that part figured out anyway. I just hate to invest in a small tent then turn around and buy another bigger one 4 months later. However, maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing to then use one for flowering and one for veg, or what not.

Thank you guys for your input so far. It definitely helps.

I know that there are a lot of crap lights out there which is why I was hoping for some pointers toward good brands/lights. The only LED lights I have found that are probably of the quality needed if only using one of those are upwards for $1,000 + by themselves. On up to the $2k range.

If that's the case, I'd go cmh. I'm not knocking LEDs, but I had bad luck with them.
You can pick up nanolux 315's for around $250 each. Bulbs are another $50 or so. They have a life cycle of 20,000 hours and when tested, they only diminished slightly. Id start with 2 lights in your 4x4. Alternatively, you could go with a 630 which runs about $420, no pun intended.

I've been running my cmh's for over 2 years now and no issues at all. Monster buds.

However, I just started running the nanolux brand and they seem to be doing very well.

If you want excellent results and a cheaper electric bill, cmh is the way to go.
One 315 runs me about $25-30 a month, a 630 is double that on 12/12.

If you can get a larger tent and have the space, do it. You will need to upgrade as you'll outgrow your space very quickly, at least that was my case.

Good luck and happy growing!

 

[Mars Hydro]

With Mars Hydro led grow lights, price won't above 700USD.

 

[PurpleGunRack]

All right, 12 is the most important number in your life now

Growing SoG is out of the question, and this is where the smaller tents excel, so the 4x4 is fine start.

I'd recommend you start out by growing 8-9 plants in 11L (3 gal) pots in a 4x4, and if that's plenty weed for you, just keep at it.
Filling out a 4x4 with only 4 plants takes a while.
However, in time you might want to swith to 4-6 plants and keep some mothers of your favorites to take clones from.

If you want more you can invest in another tent and have 6 plants in veg and 6 plants in flower at all times.

If you want even more, you can get a third tent and have 4 plants in veg and 8 plants in flower in two different stages at all times



Now to the lighting part.

LED can be very expensive, but when it is you primarily pay for marketing.

If you're able to screw in a few bolts and connect a couple of wires to a push connector (aka have working fingers), I highly recommend getting:
4x Atreum 288.2 board + heatsink combo, and 4x Mean Well HLG 120h-54A drivers + bits will cost you around $500, leaving you with $500 for tent, climate control etc.
This will give you 4 individual lamps with a comined max AC draw of around 550w, giving the same light output as 1000w HPS, but without the hotspot in the middle and dim ligthing at the edges


This is my 4x4 with 4x QB288 V1 (similar to Atreum 288.1) and a full DIY lamp.

DSC03790.JPG

• PurpleGunRack
• Nov 10, 2018

DSC03792.JPG

• PurpleGunRack
• Nov 10, 2018

DSC03789.JPG

• PurpleGunRack
• Oct 29, 2018

 

[JizzleMac]

Nice man. I didn't know you could fit that many plants in a 4x4 without them fighting for space honestly.

I think I have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to get for my set up now. I have talked to a few grow shops as well as you guys and have a pretty good idea of an affordable range of equipment to get for the first grow

I had a buddy tell me the other day that he has some kind of T5 grow light he would give me as well. Does anyone have any experience with these? I'm sure there are different brands of them and I'm really not sure what brand his is. But from what I hear, basically the more light the merrier, unless it becomes too much for the plants to synthesis and that becomes a problem. (I don't think that's going to be a problem lol)

 

[Preston9mm]

I'm with @PurpleGunRack on this one...

Growing in a smaller tent comes with some challenges. Heat being top on that list. HPS/MH are great, I use them, but I can foresee the heat in a tent being insanely difficult to control.
I'm in an 8X8 insulated tiny house with 2 600w HPS and I still have to monitor temps all day every day.

If you can piece a QB together, you'll be saving yourself the heartache later.


Just my 2 cents...

 

[PurpleGunRack]

Nice man. I didn't know you could fit that many plants in a 4x4 without them fighting for space honestly.

I think I have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to get for my set up now. I have talked to a few grow shops as well as you guys and have a pretty good idea of an affordable range of equipment to get for the first grow

I had a buddy tell me the other day that he has some kind of T5 grow light he would give me as well. Does anyone have any experience with these? I'm sure there are different brands of them and I'm really not sure what brand his is. But from what I hear, basically the more light the merrier, unless it becomes too much for the plants to synthesis and that becomes a problem. (I don't think that's going to be a problem lol)

If I grow SoG, I can fit 64 plants in my 4x4, it's all about pot size and veg time

It's all about filling out your space with flowers, the fewer plants the shorter veg time needed, and vice versa.

Fluorescent tubes are all right, but they have to be very close to the plants, best for clones and veg.

There's no such thing as too much light. but certainly a limit to how much light the plants can use, without CO2 controlled environment that is around 1500 micromoles.


Happy growing

 

[LEDXpert]

I'd do an LED DIY kit, good value, only a little more than a HPS setup, and will work well and progress to pro kit later

 

[Emilya Green]

I am experimenting with some of the new and exciting LED full spectrum grow lights coming out of China... the price point has dropped to under $100 for even the 2000w models. I invite you to my current grow journal to see how these lights stack up against the dual 600w HPS lights that I ran for so many years. I am out to prove once and for all that LED is superior to most of the other systems out there. When you look at overall startup cost of the new rock bottom prices of these arrays, compared to the cost of ballasts, hoods, cooling fans, ducting, the replace every couple of grow lamps... LED is now the way to go... if and only if they can grow quality pot, and the guys and gals who do it, say it can be done. Then there is the 15 year long life of these things to consider and the overall cost of operating them over time as compared to any other system... until plasma becomes feasible, I am going to throw my hat in on the LED side for a while and see how it goes.