Starting indoor closet grow w/ soil. Setup help wanted Please!

[slimshady]

Hey guys I have been looking around but just cant find a thread thats too simliar to my situation, so I have to ask a couple questions here. I am going to germinate some seeds this week and am going to buy today hopefully a 400 hps light. Now my first question is, I want to grow maybe two plants in my closet, its a small grow space so I think 400hps will be sufficient? And what is the deal with two diff types of bulbs, one for veg and one for flowering? what is a ballast exactly and why do i read some bulbs like sodium wont fit or something like that? if you could help me with that light problem itd be very helpful.

2nd) I want to grow in soil with perlite possibly mixed in for better oxygen and oxygen, how much of each should be in the pots? and what should i grow in, because im growing outside now but i dont know how different indoor would be.

Do i need to buy special ferts/ nutes for indoor plants that outdoor plants get naturally?

the temp will be at a constant 75 deg farenheight and humidity i dont think will be a problem because my closet is cool and dry.

Will i need fans/ ventilation systems, anything like that extra? Any guages, ph meters or what not?

I will be buying mylar probably to line the walls of the closet as well.

As of right now Im just thinking i need the soil, perlite, lights, and possibly nutes? anything more that is needed for my grow please let me know because i dont want to screw this up by not asking questions even if they are dumb. Thanks a lot guys, I tried to include every possible detail.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

If you haven't read this, do so. It will answer most of your lighting questions.

http://www.marijuanapassion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1968

You will need ventilation for this small closet. It will take some work to keep a small space at 75 with a 400 HPS. During vegging you want the humidity higher than during flowering.

You will need nutes, but I can't help you with what kind because I grow hydro.

Here is a link to the old OG grow faqs. Read it all, it has great info.

http://www.drugs-forum.com/growfaq/GrowFAQ Basic Topics.htm

 

[slimshady]

hey thanks again hemp! I just spent three hours reading everything! I learned so much thank you again. I think I have decided to just buy the 50 dollar water farm single plant hydro system and will grow in soil for a week or two until big enough to transplant into the hydro system, at the same time i will just keep one in soil and perlite and grow her (hopefully) in soil the whole way through. I think the 400 hps will be sufficient for a small two plant grow, one hydro, one soil in my closet, and nutrients i will go to my local hydro shop to get them and the soil and what not. Im doing it right this time hopefully. I will not cut any corners so let me know what you think!
Slim

 

[Brouli]

if u just starting dont go into hydro (its not that hard but a lot of things u can f* up) go with soil Fox Farm Ocean Forest its one of the best one out there , nuts as far as nuts endles posobilities , i would go with General Hydro
or FF (thats what i use).
Two diferent bulbs ahahha MH metal halide its for veg stage of growing (1st one)
than u got HPS high presure sodium which is for flowering.
it depend on what u growing if u growing autoflowering strain u can skip on MH and use Hps thru-out whole grow with out losing and weight. tell as more what u planing on growing ??

 

[kubefuism]

I'll try to touch on the subjects others have not... On bulbs, different bulbs run off of certain ballasts to efficently conduct a circuit and provide the most efficent output of lumens. Metal Halide and HP sodium bulbs are not interchangable. Say if you have a MH ballast and socket, you should not put a HPS bulb where the MH was running. It may works and light up, but it is very hazardly. You can research conversion bulb that are MH and run off of HPS socket and ballast and vice-versa. On the topic of choice for a bulb it was once really thought that MH are best for veg and HPS for flowering, but a definitive answer can not be proven. Also keep in mind that a 400w bulb can take care of a space that's 6x6 feet. Lower watts may be a better choice. I run two 100w HPs that run great. If you really want to know what makes up a ballast, you'll have to research it. It's to long for me to tell you about the coil and starter, american v. european boxes while i'm at work. Just try and find an electrical ballast and always look to your bulb for the model of ballast to use. Yes, you'll need to buy some nutes. Organic is always nice, remember to flush and re-add nutes every two weeks or so. Never take outdoor plants inside to finish. Try to run your lights (with fans to cool it and fans set-up to ventilate) before putting in plants to measure the extrems of the heat with lamps on and off. Your temp now will change with lights running. Ph meters will add in correcting medium problems. Reusable tester with stick are the cadilac of testers. snag a moisture meter too, this will tell you how dry the soil is you can't see. Good luck brother, keep growing.......MOJO :watchplant:

 

[gagjababy]

my soil mix is 1/3 perlite, 1/3 peatmoss ( both non miracle grow) 1/3 mushroom compost (any kind of composted manure is fine). To this mix I add 1 tablespoon of dolomite lime per gallon of soil. If you don't use the lime you will need to use cal/mag. Yes you will need nutrients I am using botanicare pro grow and bloom and I have no complaints. A 400 watt will be plenty sufficient, I have 2 plants in full flower and still have enough light to fit 3 more full flowering plants in there. I have a 3 by 3 and 4 ft tall space.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

I love to see side-by-side soil/hydro comparisons--keep us posted.

Don't be intimidated by hydro, but read everything you can find and have time to read. I was advised to start with soil grows when I was first starting out, but hydro intrigued me so much that I just went for it. I have never been sorry. I did try several more complicated systems before I settled on DWC. Because of the way I grow and the space I have, I find individual 5 gal buckets suit me best.

 

[GreenMan74]

I used to think hydro was very complex too, till I read a book - can't remember title it's the one with the stoner in overalls on the cover with his plant in a bucket up a tree ~ very lucid mind that author, gives rundowns on all types of systems from hydro in a 3-liter soda bottle to clear explanations of what aero is. Good book.

 

[smokybear]

Also keep in mind that a 400w bulb can take care of a space that's 6x6 feet.

A 400 watt bulb will only cover 3x3 at most..and that's stretching it a little thin. There's no way 400 watts is going to cover 36 square feet adequately. I would also start more than two plants. I would do at least 4 plants to ensure you get at least one lady. Just my thoughts. Take care and be safe.

 

[slimshady]

wow thanks so much! I have her in the closet since last night with the 400 hps hortilux. In buying a fan today to keep things cool. Is there any nutes I should buy now for flowering her or just worry about it next grow? The next grow with the hydro and soil should be very interesting. Wouldlove to have you guys watch, I will have pix every week once I start but I'm waiting for this one to flower first. How should this bulb hurt my electric bill, I'm real scared of those pigs.... I will post today with more details I'm on my phone now haha. Thanks!!

 

[slimshady]

oh and I'm thinking of cloning her if I'm sure she's femme, is this smart to do clones in the soil and hydro grow next? Let me know your opinions. Thanks
slim

 

[slimshady]

btw thanks for the mojo! And gadja I like the sound of that mix and nutes. I think Ill give it a shot definately! I can't wait. Hopefully my light doesn't fall off my closet rack in the meantime though haha. Thanks all.

 

[gagjababy]

You will not be dissapointed with the mix. Keep us posted!

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

If you want to take clones it is best to do it while the plant is in veg or at the very first of flowering. While it is possible to clone a plant that is well into flowering, it takes a lot longer and they are harder to clone. You can clone either in soil or water--I use a bubble cloner. Check out some DIY units.

 

[slimshady]

hey thanks again. I am planning on cloning today. Will put them in a small cup with about an inch of water. Keep em by the window sill with no direct light until they sprout roots, then I'll put em into some soil for a couple weeks to get bigger, will then transfer one to bigger pot and the other to my hydro system. Does that sound reasonable? Thanks guys gotta find the camera to show pix of my grow right now. Cnt wait to get home and check to see if my house has burned down!
slim

 

[GreenMan74]

hey thanks again. I am planning on cloning today. Will put them in a small cup with about an inch of water. Keep em by the window sill with no direct light until they sprout roots, then I'll put em into some soil for a couple weeks to get bigger, will then transfer one to bigger pot and the other to my hydro system. Does that sound reasonable? Thanks guys gotta find the camera to show pix of my grow right now. Cnt wait to get home and check to see if my house has burned down!
slim

That may work, though very slowly. I'm no expert. But I would use something like a coffee can, fill it nearly to the top, and put 4 or 5 cuttings in it. Then get an incandescent bulb and have it a few inches below the bottom of the can to warm up the water. Change the water daily, or better still, put a small airstone in and aerate with an aquarium pump. Place under a floro 24/7. Then you can transfer one to good soil and the others right into your hydro system. It seems the key is having the water a few degrees warmer than the air temp, and keeping the water aerated. Use side branches with several nodes on them, and preferably make the final cut through a node. Use a razor blade or exacto knife. Shave a bit off the tip of the cutting lengthwise so you see the white interior stalk, a 1/2" long strip or so. Make that final cut with the stem submerged to ensure no air bubble gets in the stem.
If all else fails, you can regenerate ~

 

[slimshady]

I will try my best. I have a 24 watt tube sunblaze light should I use that to warm up the water? And what about sunlight or artificial lighting? How much if any? And what is regenerate?

Anyone know how I could hook up a timer to my big 400hps? Not sure how that's done. Thanks!
slim

 

[gagjababy]

plug the ballast into the timer, nothing to it!

 

[kubefuism]

Just make sure the timer can handle the load, get real heavy duty one that's grounded.