This is how i do it do it

[Skunky Dunk]

Howdy to youun's here at IC.
I have lurked around here for a few years now and so have decided to add my own little tidbits of success to the vast amount of knowledge available here.
So,,,, I am 60 now. My cousin and I planted our first garden back in 1970, in a closet under T12's (remember those days) and in garden "dirt".
Our seeds came from authentic sun dried Acapulco Gold and we were so amazed at our 4 inch long "cola's" with about 20 flowers on each. There was a little resin visible and of course we smoked it before it was fully dry and so it begins.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

So now fast forward to around 1976
I discovered the all mighty 1000 Watt MH.
Of course within 4 days I managed to completely burn up my 4 week old seedlings.
Ventalation? Air movement?
Still definitely a new by!

 

[Skunky Dunk]

By the way, I guess I'll mention I was born and raised in California so of course I probably had more access to growing info / advice than most other locales during the 80's and 90's, I think that's when the T8's showed up.
Metal halides were still pretty much just the 1000 watters.
We did start getting some decent soiless mixes, but they weren't figured out yet.
Now for me, 2006 was a turning point in my growing adventures. This is where I started to see BIG results and learned many new things.
Enter the 400 Watt MH's and HPS's and T5's.

 

[Douglas.Curtis]

Welcome to ICMag!!


The world of cannabis cultivation is wild indeed. Hope you find what you're looking for and have fun sharing what you've learned.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

So after a couple years of unrewarding outdoor grows ( out of laziness ) in'04 and '05 , indoors I retreated again.
I had however been doing a little homework as I often do and concluded a new "way" is in order and with the internet and front door service a regular option it became soooo, sooo easy to start collecting stuff for my "new" era of medicinal growing.
I know this may not be interesting to younger folks because almost all of the work has been done for setting up a grow and is mostly plug and play, but this wasn't always so. And not so long ago.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

Welcome to ICMag!!


The world of cannabis cultivation is wild indeed. Hope you find what you're looking for and have fun sharing what you've learned.

Thanks for your welcome ,
This place surely is a wealth of information.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

Ok, time to start a real grow 2006!
I start with your basic 12'w x 14'l x 10'h room with hvac, well the 10 ft height isnt always available but hey, I had it
So I frame and insulate a 5'x12' flowering area and a 4'x8' vegging room.
I now have an isolated area that is climate controlled with it's own dedicated 60 amp service.
Now these are some of the items I purchased and or collected/built to get it going.
First,
and still my favorite item is the Light Rail 3.5 and trolley kit.
Next,
2, yes 2 Sun System Magnum XXXL 6 reflectors
1 complete high bay 400 Watt MH light assymbly
1 complete high bay 400 watt HPS light assymbly
(Remember, this is over 12 years ago)
A Fantech 6" inline fan
A 10"x 30" carbon filter
A 6 bulb T5 reflector with 2 warm bulbs and 4 cool bulbs for vegging.
A 55 gal. barrel for dechlorinating water
1 gal and 5 gal containers
Assortment of guano's , molasses
ProMix soiless mix
Sensi Seed Skunk#1genetics




Now electronic ballasts and such just weren't here yet so these industrial high bay lights were (and possibly still are) the most budget friendly way to get into HID lighting.
I just removed the reflector housings and remotely mounted the ballasts.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

So I mount up 8 ft of Light Rail track extrusion to ceiling joists.
Run 6" ducting outside of room and up to attic vent and install flange in ceiling for exhaust. At opposite end up high and against end wall mount charcoal filter.

Break


I put a bulb in each reflector ( this single step will be modded ) and hang one on the light rail drive and the second one on the trolley, end to end about 10" apart with insulated ducting between them. Then mount inline fan in front of filter before first reflector. Insulated ducting on the other end to ceiling flange.
All basic and simple steps.

Break

 

[Skunky Dunk]

Ok, now the ballasts are mounted on a high shelf outside in the main room.

For the veg room.
As this area has no "door" it is climate controlled easily, by just a oscillating fan.
Hang the T5 reflector, setup bench for seedlings.
That was easy.
Setup a spot for the 55 gal barrel and run water to a valve there ( I used poly line from my icemaker).
And setup a spot for the 6 gal compost tea Brewer.
I have an industrial timer with pigtails for the flower lighting.

Well, soil, seeds and nutes and a fully functional garden.
Sort of.
This was my initial setup and was hands down better than any previous show over the years.
But also, far from great.
Don't get me wrong, with plastic buckets and 800 watts I'd finally accomplished nice plump and frosty buds.. They weren't solid but "nice".
I'd say 80% genetics, 20% by design but a big step in the right direction.


Many notes, observation's and opinions to follow

 

[Mengsk]

Well done Skunky Dunk your plan looks good.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

Well done Skunky Dunk your plan looks good.

Yes, it worked very well for a few more years but,,,,,. , I found a better way that has done me VERY well

 

[starke]

Subbed and looking forward to the next installment. Welcome to the mag.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

So, '06 was a good year. And not a lot changed untill 2010.
Bought a new house in a different state in '10 and built a new room.
This time a 5'wx14'lx10'h, somehow I keep getting these 10' ceiling's
Now these are the major items that changed this time around.
1st, I had always thought that the little 400 watt bulbs looked lost in my Magnum XXXL reflectors so I decided to mount a second socket to the opposite end of the reflector.
The original bulb is inline with the ducts so I mounted the second one perpendicular to the other one and 2 bulbs fit nicely in each reflector. Bought 2 more ballasts and extended the light rail to 12 feet.
Now instead of 800 watts I now have 1600!
2nd, I discovered the "new" cloth pots. I started with 3 gal. size,the ones I use now are called Smart Pots. More on those later.
3rd, I had finally settled on my fertilizer regime which consists of a full assortment of SunLeaves guano's, Earth Juice micro blast, black strap mollasses and sea kelp for my compost tea.

This absolutely blew my mind, I harvested 2lbs. 3ozs.of wonderful solid dense buds

But I'm not done yet, 2015 would prove to be my breakthrough moment.

 

[Skunky Dunk]

So I retire in 2015, we sell our home and move again to our final resident.
Of course this requires my last and final show.
This time around once again I have a room with a 10 foot ceiling
But I decide that a large room is too hard for this old fella to run so i downsized so to speak.
This new setup has yeilded a nearly consistant 30 oz. harvest in half the space, go figure. Skunk #1 is my friend

So this is where I am today, and I do not believe I'll be changing much more from here on out.

My room now is 4'wx7'lx10'h. I have a 40" light rail with a single Magnum XXXL 6 which now houses 2 600 watt HPS bulbs, both mounted in the perpendicular to the ducts along with a pair of digital ballasts.
As mentioned earlier, I had started using "smart pots" starting with the 3 gal size then to 5 gal size but now,,,,,,,, I discovered their "large" bags. I now use there 6'lx2'wx2'd, they have 2 internal dividers in it so it holds it's shape.
Let me tell you boys and girls, this large bag alone has revolutionized the entire grow show for me!
I built a atch badin for it to sit in and lined it with visquene.
I know, I know, wow that's a lot of soil.
Yeah I guess it is, I use 4 bags of Happy Frog and 2 bags of Ocean Forest for each show and really feel it's worth it as it also replenishes my veggy garden on a regular basis.


So to summarize,
I'm using a pair of 600 watt HPS' s in a single Magnum XXXL 6 reflector on a Light rail 3.5.
I use Smart Pots 6 foot long grow bag with a mix of 4bags Happy Frog and 2 bags Ocean Forest. I make my compost tea from a full assortment of SunLeaves guano's along with Earth Juice Micro Blast, black strap molasses and soluble sea kelp.
And that's it, I really mean that's "IT".
I'm so very happy with my show, it supplies all my medicinal needs, is completely organic and pestiside free and a joy to run.

I hope your success's are as great as mine have turned out. Never give up, you can do it too!

 

[Skunky Dunk]

So this is my setup.
It's a 28 sq. ft. room with 1200 watts of HPS goodness on a light rail with 30 in. of movement.
Each show costs me approximately $250.00 for consumables and electricity and lasts an average of 100 days total.
I did forget to mention that all my seedlings are started in Happy Frog in 1 gallon pots under a 6 bulb T5 reflector for 3 1/2 weeks then moved into flower room for 20 days before turning back photoperiod.

I wish I felt comfortable posting pictures but have a phobia of being found
Dunk