Vegdrobe Project

[Mental Chops]

So, I am excited to say that I have decided to build a veg area from a wardrobe!!

After building my loft groom last year and spending alot of time and money, I want a simpler and cheaper project.

My current grow of 6x Green Poison in autopots are on day 24 of flower and really not much work at all. As I bought some Ugorg beans in their 420 offer, am keen to start my 3rd grow and my first regs! Will be popping 5 Noname and 5 Blues!!

I started my current grow in a 60x60x120 tent I was given. I didn't use any proper extraction, just a T5 and 4' fan and I lost a few of the seedlings. This time I am going to do things properly whilst keeping it simple and very cost effective. I thought it would be interesting if I could keep it under the cost of the last ounce I bought earlier this year - £180.

I already have a Maxibright 2ft-4-tube T5 and a few other things. After doing some research on this earlier in the year, have now bought:

• 100mm Ruck Fan (Low Power)
• Rhino Filter, Ducting and Jubilee Clips - £94.46
• Xpelair WAC1 Fan Controller - £26.81
• Digital Hydrometer - £15.26
• Silver Bubble Insulation - £8.00
• 100mm Ducting Wall Mount - £4.60
• Foil Insulation Tape - £3.50

Total £152.63

This leaves me £27.37 to buy a wardrobe. I know I could try freecycle but have seen a wardrobe in a local shop which would be perfect for its build and size. Approx 170 x 80 x 50cm. I think this would adequately keep 10 plants for 4 weeks from seed.

I plan to cut 100mm holes for intake/exhaust using the plastic wall mount for the extraction. Then I will line the inside with silver bubble insulation, sealing with foil tape. Although not ideal, this will insulate and reflect the lighting. I will also baton around the doors to support the vegdrobe, helping to avoid any light leaks and creating an airtight seal.

This time I plan to start the seeds in seedling compost instead of jiffy pellets or rockwool. This should feed them for the first 2 weeks and then I can take over. I will be starting another diary as soon as the build is complete.

This is what it looks like on paper so we'll see what happens in reality. Most things arrive next week and I hope to have a wardrobe by Monday so while Mrs Mental is away the Vegdrobe should be underway!!

Will update with pictures and progress!

Cheers, Mental

[Mental Chops]

So I got the wardrobe for £25, which brings me in under budget!

Its not pretty, but it is study and solid, so should do the job well.

The work starts tomorrow and hope to be done by the weekend!

[KanedAndUnable]

good luck man. i used to have an old chest of drawers i used as a basic veg room. i just removed all the stuff behind the drawer fronts so it was basically a false front panel. stuck a couple of flouros in there and used it for geminating and vegging up initially. wasnt big enough to veg fully in there but still saved me a few weeks of using my main closet.

started up again so using a tent now but fancy a little veg room and mother room.

[Mental Chops]

@@KanedAndUnable, thanks for dropping in! I hope to use the wardrobe for first few weeks of veg and keeping mums.

Today I started work on my vegdrobe!

I gave it a good clean, cut 2 x 4 inch holes for ventilation, reinforced the back and sealed the inside with silicon. Then I started to line it with insulation.

Using an electric staple gun, I lined the sides and back with insulation, sealing it with silver tape.

I lined the inside of the doors and added a second hanging bar, trying the fan and filter for size! I also added a piece of wood top and bottom of the doors to help with light leaks and tried my T5 for size too.

I still need to wire in a power extension, wire up the fan and fan controller, fit the ducting for fan and filter, line the floor and fix some bolts to secure the doors.

Hopefully it should only take another days work as I want to pop some beans before the weekend.

Cheers all, Mental.

e2a spelling

Edited July 22, 2015 by Mental Chops

[Joint hogger]

looking good @@Mental Chops

but if you dont mind me pointing something out ?

you'll need to do something with the spring hinges on the door & the gap between the two doors,

both are easy to fix, a small baton fitted to inside of one of the doors solves the middle door gap,

as for covering the spring hinges, i went down the route of using wood batons cut to size & used

some draught excluder to fill the gap, its mostly successful but theres an easier way to block the sides,

all you need is 2 strips of the silver lining & bent them into a W kinda shape & just staple it on to the

side panel & onto the door.

[Mental Chops]

@@Joint hogger, thanks for coming in! I don't mind any suggestions at all!! As well as documenting my build, that is the point of this thread, to get a few tips on the way!

I have already dealt with the issues you raised, but there not visible on the pictures.

I have extended one of the doors inside by 2 inches, with some hardboard lined with silver tape, which fills the gap well as you suggest.

You raised a fair point about the hinges and tbh I think your suggestion is better, but we'll see how I get on with my method. I opted to line all the doors, including the hinges and another 8 inches into the wardrobe, creating an large overhang. The theory being, that if lined at its most extended position (door open) when folded in, the vegdrobe would be sealed and wouldn't be under any tension. This has worked, but I am questioning if this will be durable? It also means that when the doors close, they are slightly restricted, hence the need for bolts to keep the door shut. Your W shape idea would create more flexibility, so I now have a plan B if my method fails, thanks!

As soon as Mrs Mental is back from France, I will get her to shut me inside so I can see if there are any light leaks. Have already spotted some underneath which I will be sorting. I think there will be a few other tweaks coming up too.

You may remember you helped with my CMV2E Variac wiring back in December. For this project I am using a Wac1 controller. It seems pretty basic, but am I right in thinking that on the terminal the L and N are for the mains, with the earth connected to the outer box and the LF and NF are for the supply to the fan, which doesn't have an earth?

Cheers, Mental.

e2a grammar.

Edited July 23, 2015 by Mental Chops

[Mental Chops]

@@Joint hogger, just to clarify the fan does have an earth on it so i guess they both share the earth on the plastic casing? Otherwise have I got it right?

Cheers, Mental

[Joint hogger]

heres the wiring diagram for the Wac1

e2a - yes, just connect the fans earth cable to the Wac1's earth.

Edited July 23, 2015 by Joint hogger

[Mental Chops]

@@Joint hogger, thats brilliant! Thank you for the diagram!

Cheers, Mental.

[Mental Chops]

So the vegdrobe is now finished...well still a few tweaks needed with a couple of light leaks, but I have 10 beans in the prop with good temps and humidity.

Here is how I finished it off:

I added some 100mm piping to make it easier to seal and connect the ducting for the intake and exhaust.

I wired and installed a WAC1 fan controller into the top section of the wardrobe for stealth and convenience. I also wired in a four way extension through this section into the veg area.

I installed the fan, connected the ducting and added the carbon filter directly with duct tape. I thought this may cause vibrations but on testing is fine, even on full.

The lamp is on a plug n grow on a 4-way extension.

Here are open and closed pictures side by side:

One with everything up and running and the prop under the lamp. The other showing what it looks like in the room.

I fitted 2 bolts to secure the doors tightly and 1 on the inside too. I have hung the ducting down the side of the vegdrobe not visible from the door of the bedroom.

Both are close to the window which has blinds and curtains and the ducting is out of view from outside.

After two days use the environment is nice and easy to control. I have some whistling when the fan controller is on setting 4 and 5 and there are still some small light leaks, in the middle and on the sides. The noise level is pretty low on setting 3, which I am using, and the insulation has surprisingly worked really well.

Overall I am happy for the spare bedroom where nobody goes and it's cheaper and less obvious than a tent! Two days work and approx £200.

Cheers, Mental

[botanics]

Nice build @@Mental Chops and nicely detailed too cracking vegging cab and hope it works well for you

[sy100276]

Nice build mate. Very tidy.

[Subliminal Criminal]

impressive growdrobe mc!

[Blayz'd]

Love it but the locks make it less stealth.. needs must though man. If you need locks you need locks.. Sweet build though mate..

[Mental Chops]

Love it but the locks make it less stealth.. needs must though man. If you need locks you need locks.. Sweet build though mate..

Yeah Mrs Mental said them same thing when I built it, still nobody goes in their at all...come to think of it, at first it needed the locks to keep it closed properly, but the other day I realised that they were closing alot easier.

I will see if I can take them off, I have one inside so could add another on the top...maybe it will work. Will get onto that on Monday, thanks @@Blayz'd!