Hey Dude, Scotty, Guru and the DGC.
So I’m currently in the process of moving and finding a new place but once I get there I want to move out of the tent and into a grow room. Right now I am trying to plan the costs so as soon as I move I can start getting things set up right away.
I want to do two 5×10 beds where I can source organic soil and amendments locally which had that covered. I also plan to set up a SIP system on the bed like Jeremy at Build a Soil. I can just top water in any teas and things like Recharge and Mammoth P.
Lighting. I want to do LED. I was thinking about an LED/CMH mix, but for now I’m thinking LED and maybe add the CMH later if I feel like mixing things up. I’m thinking Quantum Boards, probably HLG. Any input here is great because I’ve not dabbled in LEDs yet. I was thinking somewhere from 600-800W per 5×5 area. What’s most cost effective with good coverage? More boards and no heat sinks or some heat sinks with higher wattage on boards?
Walls and insulation. Any recomerecommend for what to put on the walls for best reflection and what’s good for added insulation? Worth painting the floor?
I want to add CO2 but doesn’t have to be right away. I don’t mind exhausting if it is cheaper to initially setup and later add the CO2. What’s the setup costs approx for sealing and CO2?
Now I understand I can run my rooms warmer with LEDs, so what kind of AC should I be looking at? I’m hoping to have approx 15×15 room so I got room for getting around and more space for heat dispersal. What kind of AC for a room this size? This is totally new to me as I just used tents and my house’s AC before.
Any particular brand of fans people like? Both exhaust and oscillating. I have a Vortex 6″ exhaust that I’m very impressed with. But never have had good oscillating ones. I also plan on putting some of those digital timers that you can set to random. It’s supposed to be a security thing so random lights come on in your house when you’re on vacation or something. I think it would be good for oscillating fans to send random gusts of wind through the room.
Any other advice on grow room setup is much appreciated! I know it’s a lot but this is just a step up for me and could use some help 🙂
Thanks ✌️
As tempting as it is to plan it all out now, Id try to resist getting too far into the planning process until you’ve found your location. (location specific stuff can end up changing the plan a lot)
I recently setup two 3×6 beds in my room and I’m really liking them so far. Grassroots fabric pots makes some nice fabric raised bed kits.
I’d consider doing blumats instead of the sip beds just because they’d likely be a lot easier to setup. Lots of handy blumat tips and kits for raised beds over at sustainablevillage.com
Led is totally the way to go for lighting. HLG, Spectrum King, etc…
Should probably plan on getting a mini split for a build that size. I have a fujitsu I really like. I hear lots of people like Toshiba and Mitsubishi minisplits. I wouldnt pick one out until you’ve found your space though.
Sounds like a really fun project, I had a blast planning and building my room. Might be worth checking out the article I did on my grow room build for some ideas.
Heres the original article, a more recent update, and a podcast episode I did with my buddy where we talked about the build process:
https://www.dudegrows.com/soups-new-flowering-room/
https://www.dudegrows.com/soupsbigfatupdate/
https://www.letssmokecannabis.com/blog/03-grow-room-improvements-rosin-press-s-shakespeare-smoked-weed.
For big 5 foot footprints it will be hard to find led that works. For a huge footprint like that either use a lot of hlg two panel lights or look into buying 12 of the new gromau5 lights over at chilledled.com. It’s hards to find another led with a 5 foot wide footprint. Hlg is only 4.5 maybe do 3 over each bed? But it won’t reach the sides.
Use White walls for sure. I would just paint them. I like my white floors I even have low leafs turn upside down all the time because they get more light from the floor!
Ait conditioning is gonna be the worst part! Definitely need a mini split with this big room or two portable 14000 btu. You’ll definitely need a huge dehumidifier with all the soil you’re trying to put in this little room.
Power is going to be you main problem! You have to be talking over 60 Amps for all this. How many plants are you planning on?
For exhaust fans I always use the hurricane fans. I’ve had mine for 5 years now no problem so I ahvent switched. As far as oscillating fans I buy the cheapest ones I can find so when I replace them it’s cheap lol
Thanks for the feedback guys.
I hear what you’re saying about the planning, but I’m just trying to start budgeting myself and have a rough plan in place and the gear I will probably need.
Do you use blumats? Have heard mixed reviews on them and the SIP just seems like a pretty simple setup that keeps everything nicely moist.
And I’m definitely going to check out those links, thanks again Soup! ✌️
N8, I’m going to do DIY lighting so I will be building my own footprint. Not going with the ready made units. I’m not too concerned about power as will be using LEDs and am going to try get the room wired to 240 so it’s lower amperage.
And you’re right about a big dehumidifier! Probably go with tried and true Quest. As for AC I’m hoping it won’t be too crazy being able to run the room warmer with LED but still want to have overkill. Better to have more than you need than not enough. Thanks for the input ✌️
For the walls -. I would use frp. Fiberglass Reinforced Panels. Or PVC panels. Both are already white and have one smooth and one textured side. They are resistant to mold,mildew, and rot, and have a higher fire resistant rating than dry wall (every second counts) As long as you seal the seams with non off gassing caulking, there will be no where for any mites to hide when you wipe down the walls between grows.
Hey bud,
Keith from Thrive here. Let me know if you when you have your place set and room size laid out. Our daisy-chaining makes it possible to cover any sized area with our fixtures, easily covering a 5′ by 10′ bed. Check out page 8 here http://www.thriveagritech.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/ThriveAgritech_LightingDesignGuide_Boost.pdf
I recommend 780 watts of LED to achieve same yields as 1000W DE HPS. I also suggest a full-spectrum, white-light LED, where all colors of the rainbow are represented, and the far reds reach north of 700nm. (20% of Thrive’s photon density sits between 700-800nm in the far reds.)
Also worth mentioning: 5 Year Warranty, 62,000 hour lifespan (14 years at 12 hours/day), IP66 Waterproof/shatterproof, & zero maintenance/no bulb swaps ever.
Visit us on IG: @thriveagritech_keith or @thriveagritech
Scotty and guru are correct on the mini split. Have a professional or someone you trust and has experience installing refrigeration lines. The electrical is very straight 220 with a disconnect at the condenser from there you run 110 from the condenser to the head unit along with 18/2 wire for your control wires. The refrigeration lines can be a bitch most of them you need to flare you’re lineset to seal to the condenser valves then I usually pressurize the line set with co2 or nitrogen for leak testing. Then you release the nitrogen or co2, you will need a vacuum pump and gauges it needs to be vacuumed down with a vacuum pump (this is critical as refrigerants or any liquid for that matter has a lower boiling point under vacuum). Once it’s vauumed down enough I let it sit for 30 minutes and let the txv equalize the pressure and make sure it holds steady then you should be good to release the refrigeration keep in mind most condensers are designed for line sets under 50’. If you go farther be prepared to add refrigerant. Also most refrigerant displaced oxygen and can be deadly in confined spaces ( you suffocate ) which makes leak testing absolutely crucial. Good luck and happy growing