Bedroom Grow

[CaliWizard]

I have a 10'x12' bedroom that I am trying to improve in order to grow without any problems that I encountered on my previous grow. Basically I threw my 1000w Hortilux with air cooled hood and glass lens cooled by a 6" inline can fan in the room without really any prep at all. :-(

The problems I encountered on my last grow forced me to throw away my entire crop due to powdery mildew and spider mites. This was my second grow ever, and first using the entire bedroom.

Here are some of the things that were wrong with my previous grow:
My walls were left uncovered and they are cedar style wall boards, which I heard recently that mites can live in the wood.
My ventilation system (or lack of) did not run if at all because my house was so cold, causing there to be high humidity in the room. The temperatures were probably far too low to be acceptable too.

Edit: So I think this pretty much covers it... My goal is to not have my plants compromised by contaminants....

 

[CaliWizard]

I realize the 2 pounds per harvest at my experience level might be optimistic. I guess I am trying to get an idea of what other people do to get to that point, and mostly I am really interested in not ruining my plants again. I also dont really want to buy another 1000w light as i know that is going to be the first recommendation. I just dont have the ability to change the electrical in my house at the moment so running more amps might not be a good idea on my stock breaker.

 

[Locked]

Why are you so interested in weight? Is this a legal grow? Refine your growing skills and let the weight fall where it will....lots of info here and great people willing to help out...I use a spare bedroom myself and hve 2 tents in it...one veg and one flower...I hve 4 ladies in the flower tent that will finish around the same time and will be very happy with 8-12 oz's...a pound wld make me ecstatic...there are strains that will pump up your yield for sure but having everything down helps more then the strain IMO...

 

[CaliWizard]

it is a legal 215 grow... i am not entirely concerned with weight, but it would be nice to look forward to not having to keep growing year round and instead only 2 or 3 times inside... again im not really looking for advice about getting to the 2 pounds per harvest, i more want advice on keeping my room from getting contaminated with mildew and mites.

...Tips that will minimize the risk of contamination... forget the weight.

 

[nouvellechef]

Here's a few things. Run some math on them and see if your ready to pull the trigger if you want to fill that room with sticky buds,

1: is the room gonna be split for flower an veg? This will give you the amount of lighting you need for each or just one big one. 5k lumens per sq ft.

2: measure out your cubic ft for each room. This will get you where you need for ventilation. Exchange air in your room once a minute.

3: nutrient line, do your homework, pick one and order

4: what method are you doing? Soil, hydro?

5: This is one you asked for. Pest regime. You want my opinion? Got to home depot and get a bottle of organicide. Go to hydro store and get 1oz bottle of Floramite.

That should get you started. Holla with questions. In a room like that, you can get more than 2lb's in 15 weeks or so.

 

[nouvellechef]

By a oversize dehumidifier and mount it on top of a Rez with pump. Take care of that mildew problem.

 

[nouvellechef]

Clean out your room with bleach water in a sprayer, air dry with fans or wipe down with towel. Let dry, paint flat white or use panda film. Let dry. Then spray down with a Floramite mix in a sprayer. Let dry. Room is ready to grow dis ank....

 

[CaliWizard]

thank you!!! i am thinking of splitting it into 2 rooms 1 for flower and 1 for veg. I also have a 400 watt hps light maybe to veg under? i am going to use soil ...

that last post was really what i wanted help with. you really helped me with this one. i will make sure and post all my questions as i have them.

 

[nouvellechef]

I don't think I saw your last results. I know your focusing on the pest regime, which is top priority. You have everything else dialed in for a
soil grow?

 

[CaliWizard]

As this WILL BE my third grow overall i am still learning every day. For soil and nutrients i am using Fox Farm. (and was)
I am thinking of going with 2 or 3 gallon pots (had 4 gallon) and a scrog with my one 1k light. I am planning on purchasing some tools like humidity and temperature controls for my fans and dehumidifier (that i will soon get), as well as a digital ph meter ect. For my walls I will use mylar or a similar reflective material after cleaning as you advised. I will put down a tarp or some plastic to cover my carpet and I am thinking of covering all of my exposed "wood" laminate walls. I am going to get another ventilation fan and set it up to vent the room through the window.

 

[nouvellechef]

1: If you split that room, you are going to need more light either way. You can run scrog if you want, there your meds. I would not since you have a full bedroom. Most would give anything to have a full spot like that. Room to work, no height issues, easy ventilation access, etc. If you don't have the cash to set up a proper 10x12, than downsize it, no worries. You just won't be able to knock out on large harvest and shut it down for awhile. That's what I am doing. 10x12, one harvest fr 1-2 years for my entire family. I got about 7.2lb's outta the last one, about .65g per watt. That will last all of us till end of 2010 or so. Srry, rambling. Anyhow, just set it up right fr your space and maximize what you have to work with until your ready to blow it up. If I was only running one, 1k light. Since you are choosing soil, I would put them in 5gal buckets and have less plants(4), veg for 8-10 weeks, get them huge and go to flower cycle. If, I said if done right you might be able to pull a lb outta it. You can see to knock out 2-3 is gonna cost some bread bro. Let us know.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

Just so you are aware, spider mites do not live in wood. They live ON plants. Spider mites are generally brought into your grow by you or your pets on hair, clothing, shoes...

In addition to the above advise (which is great), I would do a bug bomb for mites like Dr. Doom.

 

[MrNorCal]

I have a room just like yours, I put 2 600 hps's in the middle over a 3' X 6' table for hydro. I use the closet with a t5 in it to keep 1-2 mothers and clones for the next flowering cycle. Around my table I have panda plastic hanging to keep the light from getting away. The rest of the room consists of one of those wardrobe kind of things that I use to dry, a 55 gallon drum to store RO water, and fans. Works out great so far.

 

[CaliWizard]

i didnt realize scrog is usually used for restricted conditions. i am going to give it some serious thought and take some pictures to post. this is the week for deciding...

thank you for the advice and corrections.

 

[DonJones]

Caliwizard,

I noticed you were talking about low temperatures. NOTHING you do will over come that problem except figure out how ot warm it up! That is the voice of experience. I was having 100% success with clones last summeer regardless of what method I used. Then after it cooled down in the fall I went to 100% failures regardless of what I tried until I realized my temps were down. Since I solved the temp problem, my success ration is back where it belongs.

While clones and seedlings are more sensitive than mature plants, the same principle applies there too.

On the mold and mildew thing, my Dad had the same problem in his house in Oregon and NOTHING he tried worked until he ran heat into the room like for the rest of the house and then the problem went away.

Get your temps up before you start using dehumidifiers and such.

What kind of cedar boards do you have in your room, red cedar, aromatic cedar or what? Cedar fumes are used in closets and chests to prevent insect and and to a lesser extent mold and mildew so I don't think they are your problem and like THG said, the mites live on live plants, NOT cedar boards or even in the soil.

Good luck and have a great grow. Incidentally, down sizing and running more frequent grows is almost always more feasible than trying to Micky Mouse our way through a couple of large grows per year without the proper equipment/grow room areas. Many of us have been there, done that and learned the same lesson the hard way.

Great smoking man.

 

[CaliWizard]

what should i do for my carpet in the room? put a tarp down? or just shampoo it and keep the plants off the carpet? im not sure if i should cover up the carpet...

btw i dont know what kind of cedar boards i have, or even if they are really cedar. they seem to be the same style "veneer" siding that i have seen in pictures on this site. its the most cheap basic common cedar style indoor siding.

 

[nouvellechef]

Carpet comes out for sure. Not sure what the best choice for flooring would be on top of the wood. Sure you have alot of choices. Someone will chime in on that. Keep the updates coming. I like big rooms.