Newbie CFL Grow..Could use advice and criticism

[killa12345]

First id like to thank a lot of people on this website to inspired me to try this horticulture thing again. (especially bordom children of and stinkyattic) Thanks for the great ideas

So i decided to build a rubbermaid unit like bordom childeren of rubbermaid box design with just a few changes. (for veg and flowering)

right now it has 6 cfl at 26w a piece and they are all 6500k
(box stay at about 76-80 degrees f with Humity around 40-55%) but it is already 95f outside and humidity is at 70%

I got busted building it by my roommate and cannot use it until i move out in a month

So i build a cardboard box dimensions 12"x20"X20" with a pc fan and 2 cfl @ 26w both 6500k good box temp between 74-79 F with humidity at 40-55%....I plan on redesigning this box to fit 4 cfl's but that has to wait till monday.

I currently started 15 seeds from some bagweed i had which id like to practice and get my skills before i buy some exotic seeds. all 15 seeds germinated within 2 days and i planted them all in jiffy pellets and placed the pellets in 2 inch jiggy pots until 2 days later i noticed the roots like 4 inches below the jiffy pellet in 2 days. So i replanted the jiffy pellets in 9 oz syrofoam cups so i wouldnt have to transplant the plants again for like 2 more weeks.

Sorry for the long post but i just wanted to tell the whole story in case someone wants to follow this grow log like ive followed most of yours.

At the time the only problem i can say is the second set of leaves are very small at this time which is only 3 days after they sprouted and some of the stems are purple ( which i think is common.)

I will upload pics later when my roommate is sleeping. My roommate smokes but really doesnt like the idea of growing..i know i should respect him but if they got to be 1 month old and i showed my progress he would definitly want the grow to continue. thank in advance for all the comments and criticism

Killa12345

killa12345 Reviewed by killa12345 on 05-04-2008. Newbie CFL Grow..Could use advice and criticism First id like to thank a lot of people on this website to inspired me to try this horticulture thing again. (especially bordom children of and stinkyattic) Thanks for the great ideas So i decided to build a rubbermaid unit like bordom childeren of rubbermaid box design with just a few changes. (for veg and flowering) right now it has 6 cfl at 26w a piece and they are all 6500k (box stay at about 76-80 degrees f with Humity around 40-55%) but it is already 95f outside and humidity is at Rating: 5

[justanotherbozo]

i think most people will give you some crap about not respecting your roommate. that being said, i can understand your zeal. keep in mind that the plants need both ends of the light spectrum throughout thier life. they need some red during vegging and some blue during flowering. so i would suggest 5 to 1 blue during vegging and 4 to 2 red during flowering, assuming wattages are equal. let me say also that i'm no expert, most of what i say i got from the lips of others (well, not thier lips exactly, the typed word, but same diff)

anyway, i'm using cfl's myself, come on by and check it out

[bombdiggity]

Be careful with that roomate situation... sounds like bad news to me.

why not just wait till you move out, then you wont have to sneak around and such.

[killa12345]

Thanks for the advice....the roommate is not really that much of a prob. We tried this before with a 1000w hps and it became a multi room project which then had to be taken down because our landlord came by.( hes mad because of the lost of investment) Since it is my house and i let him stay with me and i invested all the money in the project it shouldnt be a problem.

And if it is..... id be glad to rip it down....its just bag seed that im trying to get my technique down before i move...so when the time comes i got all the supplies and my system down.

Heres some pics this is Day 5 from germination and the 1st or 2nd day since the plants have gotten their second sets of leaves. .

[killa12345]

so i got the new box built last night temps are a little hot at the moment but trying to get them down right now the range is about 77-82 F which isnt to bad...

2 questions out there for our seasoned growers.

1. My humidity is 37-50 in the new box i add cups of water to try to get it higher only time will tell, but if the humidity stays in this range will the plants still grow and flower well?

2. I have my plants about and inch or some might even be closer to the light. I dont see any spots or heat problems as of now. My question is what should i look for to know the lights might be damaging my babies?

And how do u guys get the smaller pics on the log.....sorry for the big pics i will try to fix for my future pics.

i will post more pics soon of the height when the camera is done charging.

Thanks in advance
Killa12345

[killa12345]

heres some pics please tell me if they r to close to the lights please?

[justanotherbozo]

your pics are too big, try saving them to a folder on your computer. open them indivdually, then right click on them and look for a way to resize them, then just save them at 800x600 into a seperate folder or with a different name. then post the 800x600 pics.
or you should actually be able to just upload them with the button 'Manage Attachments' a little lower down on this page (the page that comes up when your posting a message). when upload from there, we should see thumbnails of all the pics which we can click on individually to enlarge.
hope this helps

bozo,
peace, love, dope

[should]

Distance wise the lights look fine, just make sure the lights never touch the plant and keep them about 1 to 2 inches away from the tips of the plants. good luck:thumbsup:

Edit: i cant tell by the picture but it looks like there isn't a reflector above those lights, this means your plants wont be getting all the light your providing and it looks like its causing them to bend more towards the light then usual (somebody please correct me if I'm wrong). to fix this get either a metal reflector or just paint the box with a flat white paint.

[SimonMakus]

Hey Bozo, looking good so far!

Should is right, the CFLs are fine where they're at. Not much penetration with flouros so the closer the better. The way to tell if the light is too close is by looking at the burnt leaves after you move the light up Seriously though, 1 inch away is perfectly fine and will show no adverse effects until it's literally touching the plant.

If the box is reflective on the inside you should be fine without any reflectors. In fact, and someone correct me if I'm wrong, CFLs focus most of their light out the end, not the side.

edit: I see that it's not mylar'd or painted, get that done asap. Should is right again, you're losing light to the brownness

On another note, I don't know about using a cardboard box as cab/tent/grow space. It just seems like a potential fire hazard that should be avoided, especially since it's YOUR house

Also, what type of soil/mix have ya got there?

[SimonMakus]

Ugh, I forgot, I have more to say! And apologies to Killer, as this is his grow, not Bozo's as I mistyped before.

Instead of your highly flammable paper box, maybe try setting up a small PVC frame of the dimensions you require, then wrap it in mylar emergency blankets. It isn't light-proof, and neither is your current, but it works well and looks neat when all closed up. You see a dimmed version of your garden that you don't have to squint at!

When 12/12 comes around you'll need to think of something a bit more complicated. Probably start scheming now, if I were you.

edit: One last thing, maybe get rid of a few of those just to keep things on a smaller scale? Personally I would do 5 or 6 and hope for half females. After that's established, mom it up and clone your ass off