The All Important Environment

[Owderb]

Since the time I started here Ive had highlighted in my sig in red "your environment is as important as your seed". I just want to highlight especially to new growers how important that statement really is

As of late we are seeing more and more problems with growing cannabis especially with new fungus's that are now attacking our plant indoors but the main problem is environment. Keeping your environment as near to ideal as you possibly can is so important because this alone can eliminate a lot of those problems. Our climate is changing and humidity is rising and this alone will cause us more grief.

From what Ive seen one of the main problem with smaller grows is trying to use bulbs that are too big for the space(heatwise). I know that in a 1.2 tent a 600w is just about ideal but if you are struggling with temps then use a 400w as you will be able to control that bulb better. Its certainly what I do in summer. I can control temps in winter with a 1000w but use a 600w in summer. Of course if it gets red hot outside then most will suffer but there is little you can do about that. But I do react to that and raise my light up just to bring the canopy temps down a little. A simple thing like that may stop the tops from bleaching and a green leaf will always out perform a yellow necrotic one

If temps are too high or too cold then this has a big effect on nutrient uptake, just like poor air exchange does, and if your plant is struggling nutrient wise then it leaves the door open for all sorts of problems to attack the plant and this is what I believe is the case a lot of the time. Folk treat the problem which is right but seem to not bother trying to find out what caused it.

Do your best to keep an ambient room temp of 76-80 at lights on and no lower than 18 at lights off at floor level. Any lower than that and phosphorus will slow in the plant. Its all important not to let your root system get too cold

Ideally cannabis likes humidity around 70% all through its life so dont get hung up on humidity when in the grow period and the first few weeks of flowering. Its only when we get well into flowering that we need to make sure at lights out our humidity doesnt climb above around 50% because some strains will get budrot where others wont and be more resilient to it. Obviously if you can see its really damp after lights out then you must do something about it.

Choosing the correct fan or fans are also very important and that includes oscillators or similar to give good air movement in the grow room. Its good if you can get the air circulating right round above the canopy by the use of small fans in each corner.

A good tip when you first set your room up if its physically possible or at the end of your present grow is to sit in the room for a good 10 minutes to check for light leaks because this will hold plants back even if your feeding and environment are perfect.

Another tip is to take your temps at pot level in different areas of the space because you may be very surprised at the difference in some cases, even in really small spaces. This could just solve a problem if you have no idea why one or a couple of plants are struggling yet others are fine. A min/max hygrometer does the job fine and will tell you the highest/lowest its been at because temps obviously change with the weather and as we know it can be 80 degrees one day and then be 60 the next. At night changes are even more dramatic.

In a nutshell do your utmost to get the best environment you possibly can and where possible do not cut corners. It will save you a lot of grief in the future and you will get the best out of your plant and light

No good spending good money on seeds and expecting them to perform in poor conditions whether they are classed as quality genetics or not

Just a few things that may help

Owd

Edited September 16, 2012 by Owderb

[Mr Bond]

My AC reflector is my best ever buy regards environment, I was always fighting extreme temps and the plants always showed their disquiet, now my temps never move more than half a degree and the plants look a lot happier for it.

[hydro2]

Wise words Owd & very true. I agree, that if you are willing to spend the money to take up this hobby, then learn as much as you can before taking up the expense to save yourself as much hassle as you can. We all learn by our own mistakes but it starts to become very expensive if you keep making them.

H2

[Guest Jibbajabba]

Oh man, I'm showing this to a dum fuck i know that's been trying to grow canna for years, ive always said its his enviro.

Someone once told me to make it like a wind tunnel in there!

[jusliv]

I know what you mean jibbajabba. i have a friend that spends top wack for seeds when he doesnt have a thermometer or extraction of any kind There is just no telling him. But then he is happy with his two oz fom 250 watt of cfl and numerous led panels Each to their own, but im with Owderb :wink:

e2a: 2 oz wet

Edited September 5, 2012 by jusliv

[nasel]

OWDERB -

Could you list the factors that you consider important (vital ones first) along with ideal values

I.e.

Air Temp (shade) - 18-28 oC

Substrate temp (under surface) - XX-XXoC

etc

Where in this example, air temp is more important than substrate temp

This might be useful in using as a checklist for growers with issues.

Developing the idea futher, maybe we could use this info to grade our environments, a bit like the score that windows gives you based on the available info on hardware???

[dirtydon83]

OWDERB -

Could you list the factors that you consider important (vital ones first) along with ideal values

I.e.

Air Temp (shade) - 18-28 oC

Substrate temp (under surface) - XX-XXoC

etc

Where in this example, air temp is more important than substrate temp

This might be useful in using as a checklist for growers with issues.

Developing the idea futher, maybe we could use this info to grade our environments, a bit like the score that windows gives you based on the available info on hardware???

i would love this!!

[Atomic Haze]

Fantastic post,

It can be difficult getting everything dialed in, but the fun never stop's as you try to perfect the art of growing indoors.

One step at a time, and with such fantastic members here it shouldn't be too long before we are all growing herb as nice as owd's or any other of the fantastic growers on this site.

[Owderb]

Rootball temps dont want to be getting below 18 degrees and that is at floor level seeing as that is where its the coolest as below this phosphorous in the plant starts to slow and not above 25 degrees as this just encourages pathogens to breed

Ideally ambient temps want to be 76-78 degrees. I dont measure temps directly under the light

Cannabis loves around 70% humidity all the way through its life. Its only us that try to reduce it to lessen the chance of budrot late in flower especially. This is normally only a problem at lights out

Air should be exchanged at least 20 times per hour to replenish co2 and running 24/7

If using passive intakes you should aim for 5 x the size of extract if using the fan at full speed

If pushed for one to keep right it would be rootball temps.

Hope that helps

Owd

Edited September 5, 2012 by Owderb

[Green Nation Army]

Rootball temps dont want to be getting below 18 degrees and that is at floor level seeing as that is where its the coolest as below this phosphorous in the plant starts to slow and not above 25 degrees as this just encourages pathogens to breed

Ideally ambient temps want to be 76-78 degrees. I dont measure temps directly under the light

Cannabis loves around 70% humidity all the way through its life. Its only us that try to reduce it to lessen the chance of budrot late in flower especially. This is normally only a problem at lights out

Air should be exchanged at least 20 times per hour to replenish co2 and running 24/7

If using passive intakes you should aim for 5 x the size of extract if using the fan at full speed

If pushed for one to keep right it would be rootball temps.

Hope that helps

Owd

Really good post been telling mates for ages enviro' is VERY important ,as is enough fresh air exchanged see them plants go nuts with enough fresh air !!.

On the passive intake u mention : For example if ur using a 4" extractor you'd need a hole 5 x that size u mean ? i.e : 20" opening to allow enough air to flow in ?,kinda interested as i wanna keep things on a budget and small scale (its killing me as i'm used to praying mantis reflectors 3 x 600w and 10" extraction ffs !! ),but i'm changing to coco from compost also ,so i'm hoping to up my crop per watt ratio via the scrog route .

I normally use an oil filled rad £25 to keep temps up where they should be during lights off or an anti frost heater for a garage from a well known d.i.y chain on a concrete slab for my mum/veg room £10 both have thermal dials so make things easy as (i was doing loft thermal insulation built room's ) .

I'm now only doing a small space in the loft (using a 400W then upping to a 600W aircooled shade when monies allow !!),what size room would u recommend for the 600w room it will eventually have in there ? also what size fans would you use for the space passive intake and non-passive intake ?, i intend to do 4 - 6 plants max in 6.5 - 11 ltr square pots .

I have all the kingspan i need + 22 sheets of 1" black insulation foam to clad the outside in and also to create a square tube for all extraction flexi pipework to be run in with rockwall insulation to silence noise a bit and fans to be housed in also i reckon this will work a treat .

Any help would be appreciated to avoid cock ups ! ,i hate to see bud wasted .

GNA #1

Edited September 24, 2012 by Green Nation Army

[erbivore9]

You want about 5 times the volume which is about 64", a quick way of working it out is to multiply the size(4 in your case) by itself and then again by 4, you should use pi for an exact answer but the results are close enough not to matter.

[Green Nation Army]

You want about 5 times the volume which is about 64", a quick way of working it out is to multiply the size(4 in your case) by itself and then again by 4, you should use pi for an exact answer but the results are close enough not to matter.

Now i am baffled that seems an awfully big opening to have on the side of a room 32"x32" almost !!,whats the p.i for the exact amount ?.

Cheers gna#1

[erbivore9]

64 square inches, you can make it any shape or number of holes you want as long as they all add up to roughly 5x the volume of your extract duct, a slot 6"x11" would do or 2x 3"x11". Pi is the number needed for working out the area of circles( or duct openings in our case).

[Green Nation Army]

Ahh now i see what u mean !!,still thats some hole/s in a room .

I'm now thinking of using a non passive intake 4" wall extractor fan , i've just measured my available space and the floor space will be 113x171 cm with a sloping roof thats 172cms at the front and 1m at the back !!.

How do i work out the extraction needed for this space with a 600w open reflector to begin with ?,AND could i fit 2 x 400w closed 1's eventually u reckon ?.

How do i also work out the amount of air needed to be exchanged per hr ? ,then i no what filter ect i'll need to avoid smells.

Cheers for the help mate as i'm un-used to small rooms ffs so have to re-think my ways with temps control ect being very important now due to small space being used !!.

GNA #1

Edited September 25, 2012 by Green Nation Army

[Green Nation Army]

Sorry to hi jack this owderb but 1 last question !!.

What good extraction fan/filter package can i get on a budget to do 89m3/hr of air ? , are the bulldog 1's on a well known auction site any good ?,has any1 used em on here yet ?,they dont seem to ring any bells as they are quite a new company aren't they ?.

I could get a tt with heat or speed control i suppose ?? , and run the 4" bathroom fan constantly replenishing with outside fresh air ? my mate with a shop has said the tt's are noisy little buggers ,but i suppose the foam box i'm gonna put it in will silence it a bit and if needed i can make a ply box to house it in ? or should i get a cheap room stat controller jobbie now available as i cant stretch to a twin fan room controller i have used previously (and i aint coughing up the £100 required either !!).

I know its a lot of questions but i wanna get my room enviroment 110% without 6" fans whooshing away in my loft as my walls are paper thin and just 4" block seperate's my from nextdoor !! .

Thank's

GNA #1