Hi All,

After mucho reading of this site i reckon im ready to start thinking seriously about my drobe build. this is what im going to be working with.







the dimensions are 2.1" x 1.9" x 4.8"

all the shelving will be removed, unless i can work out a way of creating two compartments (space allowing) for either seeding or storing plugs, switches, timers etc. etc.

ideally i would prefer to have an extra foot or so in the height department but the best part of 5 feet should be enough?

my budget for this is going to be £500 (hopefully i'll get that damn scratchcard win finally) for all materials, equipment, seeds, nutrients, misc stuff; pots, rockwall, perlite etc.etc.

i would really like to be able to use a 400w HPS but from reading a lot of posts it seems the jury is out on whether this space is too small for a lamp of that wattage. so any advice would be greatly appreciated obviously im going to be using a 100mm RVK for extraction coupled to a CF. is venting directly into the loft particularly dangerous? as the only other alternative i have is out the side of the drobe on the left (i would also have to build something to cover this as the room is used occasionally for visitors) im not sure about what type of intake fan i should use, would a decent pc case fan be enough or should i have something a bit beefier? also what the noise output like? im sure ive read it somewhere but ive read so much im suffering a bit from knowledge fatigue

i intend to paint the interior white unless there is a cheap sheeting method. metal foil im told is simply not an option. i would also like to have a seeding compartment but again i dont know if the dimensions will run to this.

im sure theres lots of stuff i haven't i've left out but i only really decided to start planning tonight. hopefully im looking at 5 - 6 months turn around from seed to dried mana, if everything goes reasonably smoothly what sort of yield do you think is possible? if i can get 6 oz from a six month cycle then im completely self sufficient, any more would be a total bonus.

i've been reading a lot about scrog and sog these last few days and it definitely seems like the way to go, would scrog be a bit ambitious on a first grow? due to the lack of height i think its probably going to be a neccessity.

so, am i being unrealistic? is the space worth doing something with? are there any major concerns you can think of that i haven't or possible problems with the space?

thanks from a very keen total beginner

EDIT: oops! i should mention i will be using pots and compost plus nutrients as my grow medium.

Yeah I reckon you could do a real good job with that fella... and with £500 you could come up with something great I reckon.

I think I'd be looking at using a 250w HPS setup if I were you though... it'll still yield well and it won't make so much heat which is a real problem, especially if the plants end up getting bigger than you expected. I would also choose a bigger fan, and would probably have all the ballast, fan and carbon filter stuff in the loft. As for the intake - where's that going to be? If it's passive and everything else is in the loft then it'll be loads more stealthy, but an active fan can get cold air from a window or vent (I've got loads of hippy style hangings dotted around the ceiling hiding the ducting)... also considering a cooltube is probably a good idea too, that way your light's heat will get sucked out more effectively and ambient temps will drop giving you more height and lumens to work with.

I'd just look at other people's setups and try to emulate them... I copied church's pretty much but I'd advise trying to make it better from the word go, as with mine I found myself modifying things as I went along - notably the single 125mm RVK I chose just wasn't enough to keep temps down so I had to add another active intake of the same size. For the small extra cost I kind of wish I had 2 150mm RVK's though, because then I'd have the extra head room in case I need it - I run my 125's at 100% 24/7.

Loudness wise, you wouldn't want to sleep in the same room I doubt - not if your a light sleeper certainly but its not that bad and fans in the loft would remove a fair amount of noise. With my door shut, I don't hear the fans elsewhere in the house.

Thanks for your input Theory!! all good stuf. im gonna start looking at prices tomorrow, the fact that a 250w should sufficient is very good news though as extraction should cost me a lot less you really think i'll need 2 RVK's?

brillianty simple idea about putting some of the extra equipment in the loft, i honestly dont know why i didnt think of that already, as it'll gain me at least an extra foot in growing height!

Nah, probably not - I just think overkill is fine when it comes to extraction... the plants love fresh air basically. I'd probably go with 1 150mm RVK then, but sorting a passive intake can be a bit tricky and not entirely stealthy...

Here take a look at these diaries, COH - they have some passive intakes that are quite handy to know about http://www.uk420.com/boards/index.php?showtopic=69722 & http://www.uk420.com/boards/index.php?showtopic=69787 just bear in mind some of the design happened as we went along. The cooker hood filter really does work though, once you've folded it up a few times and that helps with the negative pressure too, meaning no smell escapes

Oh btw, make sure and get smoke detectors near the ballast and extraction so if anything were to go wrong you'd hear it!

edit - this is handy to know too: http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a290/123...tance-Chart.jpg

Yep, 250 watt HPS.

It's still a bit tight at 4 foot 8 high due to losing 6 inches-plus for the carbon filter ... at least you could mount the fan in the loft ....

What I did in my previous cupboard was cut the ceiling out completely and extend a chipboard "tube" up into the loft.

That way you would have the full height available for growing. 4 foot is the tallest I allow plants to get in my grows ... and those are at the sativa end of the spectrum.

A 250 watt HPS should net you 4 ounces in 4 months - 6 weeks' vegging, 8 to 10 weeks' flowering.

Thanks for all the info guys, it looks like this is definitely a go-er!! rather baked right now so will get on the case again tomorrow!

fair play this place rocks! friendliest and most on the ball board ive ever been on in my life, i kid you not!

right, i've done a bit more research and so far my list looks like this.

250w HPS Full System £69.99
150mm RVK £80
Odor Sok 150mm CF £56
Diamond Sheeting x 4 £14
Fan Speed Controller £35
Biobiz BioHeaven 1L £45
Ripen 1L £6.50
Tomato Compost £10

Misc Stuff

Pots, Ducting, Pebbles, thermometer, magnifying glass etc. etc.

total cost minus misc £316.49

im considering not buying a CF as im toying with the idea of venting the fan directly into my chimney stack in the loft, the advantages of this are that in any choppers are flying overhead all they'll see is some warm air coming out the chimney. i feel much safer with this method as my loft has no insulation whatsoever and im slightly paranoid that the roof would end up getting too warm and the choppers being able to detect it.

im looking at feminised orange bud for my first crop as it looks to be a good all rounder for indoors, any reasons why this would not be a good strain to try for a first grow? what im looking for, due to not having quite as much vertical space as i'd like is a short node length plant that grows quickly ie approx 4 months and have a good 'couchlock' sort of high. if anyoen can suggest a better strain im all ears!! i've looked through the strain database but reading up on every strain is just going to take forever.

this leaves me with some spare cash left over for any unforseen circumstances along the way.

to add to list

Light Hanger £10
Timer £13

spur shelving - believe me - it's the bee's nobbly bits

thank for the info compo had to look up what they were, but yes they seem like a excellent soluton

Sounds like you have a plan then make sure and put up some threads explaining how you've done it and what you would have done differently for the next newbies won't you?

I might suggest that you stick with a CF though, just because even at the height of a chimney it can get very smelly and of the wind changes it might be possible to tell where the smell is coming from... passers by, at some point, will smell it I'm sure (unless your really high up anyway) so even if its just a cure for your own paranoia it might be a good move. Not sure how you can route the exhaust up the chimney with it attached though? I'm sure you'll work it out

All the best m8ee