Getting a tent. Want Efficiency. Tired of mistakes.

[teddy d]

So I ordered a "hydrohut Silver Addition" 2' x 4' x6.5'
I want to stay small but pull large yields. I have many harvests under my belt, made mistakes every time, but learned from each one.

I have:

- switchable 600W light

- A 4" 190 cfm fan /w matching carbon filter


I want:

- A 6" cool tube to get maximum height out of my bulb.


I have done natural , cropped, LST'd, & SOG, but it seems like 1 or 2 SCROG plants would be best in this small space..

I have a clone in a 3 gallon dwc setup to try and learn hydro but its not looking good so it might be soil.

im open to any suggestions on tent setup, type of grow, DWC vs Soil, ect...

 

[pcduck]

I would just grow 2 plants, let them get about 4' or so all while in veg, then bend them over and tie the top of the plant to the tent frame at the very bottom. This will let all the branches to grow like a main cola.

Congrats on your tent
I just bought a Secret Jarden and really like it.

 

[bho_expertz]

Interesting you said that pc. A good friend of mine LST that way. The problem is that you will not be able to remove the plants from the tent. But his results are impressive. He got 380gr ( dried ) from a 400watters with 4 SuperSilverHazes in soil.
It is in my experiences list for sure :aok:

 

[pcduck]

Yes that is a problem, but that problem is also there with scrog.

I am just not into removing my plants so it is not a hassle for me

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

I believe that you are going to need a larger fan. I would recommend going to a 6" and something in the 450 cfm range. I just don't see the 4" 190 cfm fan being able to keep your space and light cool enough, especially with a filter hooked to it.

What kind of problems are you having with your DWC, maybe we can help. I did a nice little DWC scrog several years ago that turned out quite well--2 plants in a space about 2 x 2 with a dual 150W HPS--you might want to check that out, the link is in my sig.

 

[teddy d]

I got the tent, and everything else. I was going to hook up my 600w but the cord is fixed to the ballast, and the end going to the socket is cut and connected with wire nuts.

The cool tube came with a nice socket prewired with a 16awg cable. Instead of cutting that nice cord off i just decided to hook it up to my 1000w magnetic ballast since the plug fits. so... 1000w hps in a 2x4 it is :holysheep: (you cant talk me out of it now!) :ignore:

I believe that you are going to need a larger fan. I would recommend going to a 6" and something in the 450 cfm range. I just don't see the 4" 190 cfm fan being able to keep your space and light cool enough, especially with a filter hooked to it.

What kind of problems are you having with your DWC, maybe we can help. I did a nice little DWC scrog several years ago that turned out quite well--2 plants in a space about 2 x 2 with a dual 150W HPS--you might want to check that out, the link is in my sig.

yes you are probably right. i have the cool tube hooked up and running with 6inch to 4inch reducers and without the filter for now. venting out the window with a custom window exhaust plate. it actually seems to be doing the job. but in the summer it will be to hot im sure. even though it is doing the job, it could benifit from more air flow in the future.

I have a question: if i ran a huge fan would there still be radiant heat coming off the bulb? you know how when you drive in the sun with your AC on. you still feel the heat through the windshield...

there is a limit to reducing radiant heat, correct? I mean its running pretty cool. i can touch the glass but not hold on to it for long. the tent temps are anywhere between 85-90F

with a 2x4x6.5 tent and 190cfm it is exchanging the air in the tent 3.6 times a min.

As for the DWC it was starting to go great in a closet under flouros but now the temps in the tent are causing major wilting i would assume due to the water temp. i think hydro is a leap for me. i dont want to recirculate the water with a external rez to cool it.... idk what to do about that. and summer will be the same issue cuz the house/room where the tent is located will be hot (not paying to run AC all day while working) or in that room at all for that matter....

thoughts?

P.S. i have 2 tomtoes in there too :hubba:

im really excited!!

Quick tent & cooltube review

Sun Hut Silver addition LG 2 x 4:

4/5 stars.
1. when the room is dark the stitching leaks light a bit.
2. I wish it had more support bars at the top.
3. the zippers are heavy duty plastic but some times are sticky and hard to get started. and they seem like they may wear out at some point down the road from the constant opening of the front doors.

other than that all the vents are nice and light tight/ heavy construction, and im happy to have a nice controlled enviroment.


Hydrofarm cool tube: I give it 5/5 stars. there is not one thing I can think to complain about... thats that. its perfect. buy one.

description:
The quality construction features European aluminum interior reflector, for directing light more precisely over a growing area. The securely mounted 5KV mogul socket is completely prewired inside a protective junction box. The multi-point hanging system allows the unit to be hung horizontally or vertically for different growing applications. Now included is the patented Lock and Seal 15' heavy duty lamp cord allowing you to conveniently plug into any Hydrofarm or Xtrasun ballast

 

[CaLiO]

Happy to hear that you have everything all setup. 85-90 is a little higher than I like to keep things but with a 1000w hps in that size space I'm very suprised the 4" fan is keeping things in that range. My tent is 2x4x5 w/ only a 400w switchable and my 4" fan with the help of a cracked window keeps things just between 77-80F. What are your outside temps like?

 

[teddy d]

its winter. but mild this year. so far we still dont have any snow which is real strange to not have snow for x-mas/newyears. so outside is anywhere from 40-50F on a nice day. and as low as 10F on some nights. the temp in the house outside the tent is a steady 68F. thats the (outside) temp that your talking about right? the house temp, "outside" the tent?

I had the fan pulling 68F air from the room through the light and out at first. but the radiant heat was building up in side the tent and not getting exhausted. now that im pulling air from the tent it self, through the light, and then out the tent stays at a consistant 80 something degrees to 90's. even though its high i find most of my grows end up warmer than i would like.

During veg they seem to stress a bit curling the edges of leaves ect.. but they actually seem to veg faster when its warm. i dont know why...

when i switch to bloom the plants seem to handle the heat without a problem even if the canopy is 100-105F which is high by most peoples standards. but every winter when i grow in the basement in dedicated room with 1k-2k of lighing and a heater, even if the room is 75F and 100 at the canopy they always have big problems from the cold drafts of the passive intake air being pulled into the room. something about a warm room with a warm light source with cold passive drafts(50-59F) show signs of the actual leaf temps being affected and completely stopping growth in its tracks.

ill take warm over cold any day. i know everyone here will say 50-59 intake drafts are not low enough to have an affect, but my experiments show different.

I tested 4 strains under those conditions, they curl, go lime green and stop growing even when the room temp says 80+ then i moved the plants to the living space (closet) at a constant 70F and in a week the plants were perfect again. put them back in the basement with the cold passive intake drafts even with heater and 2000 watts keeping the room at 80+ and within 24 hours they are all curled up and frozen in time again. i repeated this test over and over with the same results. it never felt cold in the basement room but i believe the intake of cool air had a dramatic affect on leaf temp.

when i get some extra cash i will switch to a 6" fan and ducting. before summer is the goal. i have a while

 

[CaLiO]

Sounds like you've got it all mapped out. Yea I was referring to the temps outside the tent, I try keep the temps outside my temp around the same range between about 65 and 70F. I have always read anything less than 61F can have an ill effect on your plants of course with different effects on different strains, so I don't doubt at all that the intake air being in the 50's is causing more harm than good. I have noticed that my diesel plant which is sitting in front of my intake fan seems to droop a bit every morning when I check in on them. I am assuming this is due to the cooler night time temps, because as the day warms up she picks right up.

 

[Ginagin]

Of course, even with a fan there will still be radiant heat. radiant heat will always be produced as infra red wavelengths. This is minor though, Hemp goddess is absolutely right in advocating a larger blower. I do however what to me is a larger problem. Your tent dimensions are wrong, your 600w would be more effecent and happier in a 4'x4'. This 4'x2' space may be better illuminated by a Tek-Light or any T-5 fixture, or perhaps 2 smaller HPS.

 

[teddy d]

So far everything seems to point to a larger fan, but i want to know radiant heat will be minimized to a good extent if I do that..

how is a t-5 more efficient then a 1000w in a 2x4? I mean if your talking lumen per watt, im not being rude but I dont care about that right now.
If cost is not an issue so why is 1000 watts a problem? its overkill isn't it?

Is the goal not to match the suns light output as close a possible?

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

No, the goal is not to match the sun's output as close as possible. The goal is to optimize the conditions in the growroom.

A T5 is not more efficient or have better lumen per watt than a HPS. However a 1000W in that space is overkill. You reach a point of diminishing returns. Plants can only utilize so much light. And without CO2 enhancement, I do not believe that your plants are using all the light from that 1000W--you are just throwing money out the window. I recommend getting the cord you need for the 600W or swapping the cords between the 1000W and the 600W. I am again going to recommend something like a 6" centrifuge type fan--Vortex, Can, Eclipse, etc. You need air flow and you need to get your temps down. I would also take the tomatoes out of there. Your tent is quite small and you can buy tomatoes at the market for around a buck a pound. I know they are not as good, but IMO, tomatoes are not good use of a 2 x 4 tent--load it up with plants that you cannot get at the market.