I'm a New member I need help

Before I became a member I seemed to get a response right away now that I’m a member it’s been about 2 and 1/2 weeks and no response.

I’m going to be growing inside a 2 bedroom apartment most likely on the top floor one room for me to sleep one to grow in. I am planning on using a magnum XXXL double ended (bulb) 1000w hood with a lumatek ballast. I’m curious if anyone knows if I could fit two XXXL 1000w hoods in the spare bedroom without having to constantly switching the breaker due to using too much power. Or would 2 1000w hoods pull too much power? (Would it be smarter and about as much yield to buy a 1000w and a 600w instead?)
I would use the closet in the spare bedroom as a veg closet using 1-2 t5’s as well.

I’m also curious as to which would be the best way to ventilate the room would be or if it would be necessary (or if I could just open the door and window to let in fresh air every one in a while during the day)

There will be a washer and dryer in the unit but I’m not really trying to put holes in the wall of an apartment because I don’t want to pay for damages or even I repair the hole and have them to say something about it and charge me.

And lastly my first grow of I used 2 1000w in a 1 bedroom 1-veg 1-bloom but the breaker had to be switched every now and then.
I’m going to use tupurs coco mix the orange bag, does anyone have any suggestions on nutrients I should USE. ANY HELP IS MUCH APPRECIATED… HENCE WHY I JOINED SO I COULD GET RESPONSES NOT JUST PUT UP QUESTIONS WITH NO ANSWERS… MUCH THANKS

I grow in soil but I do use a lg. room with 3 tents right now I have 13 seedlings and 15 clones under two 400 watt hps and will switch to both 1000 watt hps durnning flower.
I will help you if I can …this is my 5th grow

Will

Thanks for the response will… I’ve been trying to research about it all day and havnt gotten much help… I’m trying to figure out if 1-2 t5’s in The closest and 2 1000w for bloom in the spare room would trip the breaker constantly or start a fire.

In the 1 bedroom apartment I had previously… the grow room in the water heater closet using 1000w AC hood and on the other side of the room in a closet used 1000w non AC unit for veg and I can’t remember how often the breaker switched, I just need some info if 2000w in one room and t5’s in the closet of the same room is too much power for a 2 bedroom apt. With a washer and dryer in it. Or if 2000w and a t5 is too much power could i use a 1000w DE non AC hood and a 600w hood without breaker problems.

And the best way to ventilate the room (I’m thinking of building a box out of plywood) as well as nutrients people use for highest yield.

In order to answer this question; We need to know the dimensions. I don’t believe I saw any… :slight_smile:

I am looking at two apartments one is 9x10x10 small bedroom total-915sq ft apartment and I don’t have the dimensions of the other one besides its 840sq ft apartment my guess is 9x8x8 or a 8.8x10.8x8 small bedroom… Both excluding the veg room (closet)

I found the paper they gave me one apartment small bedroom is 9x9x10 and is cheaper an the other apartments small bedroom is 10x9x8

Horticultural industry standard for HID lights is 50 watts per square foot.

Seedlings and clones require about 400-1000 lumens per square foot.

Vegetative growth requires about a minimum of 2,000 to 3,000 lumens per square foot.

Flowering requires about 5,000 to 10,000 lumens per square foot, ideally, and can take possibly much more.

Flowering can be done under 2,000 lumens but is not ideal and more likely to result in light “airy” buds.

I have no idea if the wiring in that unit will handle what you are trying to do. You will have to find out the details of how and when the unit was wired, and assuming it is all up to code, you should be able to find out what each outlet max wattage can handle. A little investigation in your area’s codes and requirements and a peek in the breaker box will be able to answer some of those questions. Don’t forget to include the wattage of the fans and other devices besides just the lights and ballasts.

I’m not sure you will find coco a lot easier than hydro.

As for a nutrient to recommend, Marijuana Booster of course: Buy Marijuana Fertilizers - Bergman's Plant Food >> ILGM

I will be checking out the apartments in person here in April 1st 2015, and I can check the breaker box. I assume that they will be standard 15A not 20a. I mean if I used 2 1000w in a 1 bedroom with no washer or dryer then you would think 2 1000w in 1 bedroom (in a 2 bedroom apartment with a washer and dryer) would be able to supply enough power without switching the breaker. I just need a for sure answer (I will check the breaker). (Sorry it sounds repetitive)

I worked in a collective in Washington state, and I contacted one of my co-workers recently to find out the best medium and he suggested tupurs coco mix in the orange bag because it retains water better then soil.
Are there any other suggestions for mediums like fox farms ocean soil mix work better then tupurs orange bag? (Or is there another soil or coco better to use)… And is it okay to use a soil mix like fox farms(or any other medium) and move from the veg to bloom and use tupurs for bloom?

And nutrient wise in my old grow room i used general hydroponics, floral bloom floramicro and floragrow. Are there nutrients I should know about that work better or grow roots better like fox farms tiger bloom, big bloom and grow big? I heard that those were very strong and that I should also look for a root rapid start. As well as use fasilitor by aptus…or does cal mag ring a bell?

I don’t want to mix too many nutrients and kill my plants but I obviously want them to thrive…which nutrients work best for tupurs coco mix or another medium

MUCH THANKS!

I’m not familiar with tupurs orange bag coco coir. But coconut fiber coir as a soil-less growing medium is great for its moisture retention. If keeping an ebb and flow system or other form of hydro’s mechanized parts working was what was hard, then yes watering by hand similar to old fashioned soil may be easier for you and coco makes working with it like this relatively easy. But technically growing in pure coco coir is a form of hydro and all the other things that go with hydro need to be watched like keeping an good eye on the pH and EC/PPM and root zone temperatures.

All I can say is Marijuana Booster is specially formulated specifically for fine cannabis by Dutch masters that breed for the finest Cannabis coffee shops in Amsterdam. It has pretty much everything you could need and you shouldn’t need to add a ton of other stuff.

Just going on what you have said in your comments, 2 1000W lights will most likely pop breakers almost instantly. Quick example is: if your room is all wired to 1 breaker which is a 15A breaker and you have 2- 1000W lights going that will be an average of approx 19A just with the lights alone. Now factor in your T-5 and any fans/blowers etc you will have running, you will likely be pushing over 22A which will be too much draw for that breaker (being 15A or 20A)and will pop immediately. A good rule of thumb with breakers is- you want your breaker amperage to exceed your amp draw by 25%, meaning if you are going to be using approx 22 or so amps you will want to run a 30A breaker which will put you over the 25% and should be safe. Chances on there being 30A breakers are surely going to be slim unless it is a utility room for washer/dryer or for a kitchen with elec stove/refridgerator/microwave etc. Honestly nobody can give you any answers to your specific questions without knowing what amp breakers there are divided off per room or if the outlets are truly routed to the breaker that is marked in the panel. Your guess will be as good as mine. When it comes to electricity and fires…dont guess-know. AS FOR NUTRIENTS -If you have had other grows (which I will assume you have by your first post) use what worked best for you. I personally dont think any certain nutrient manufacturer is any greater than another, but lies more in the practice of the grower and their discretion on how they use the nutrients and if they can read their plants well enough to know what they need/want. Personally, I use FoxFarm and I run them about 3/4 strength than what the label reads. I also run hydroponics in a hydroton drip system and notice that FoxFarm builds salts quicker than any nute I have ever used… but it works and its cheap, just a bit more maintenance. Best of luck to you on your grow. -HR

Yup, well said HydroRed.

Thanks for the responses…So if that were the case 1 1000w and a 600w with 1-2 t5’s and a washer an dryer would still be too much correct? (I know I need to find out the exact amount if it’s 15A 20A ect.) i will know in April and a for sure response then would be appreciated…

And I’m looking for a coco mix/soil that I won’t have to worry about trying to find out whats wrong with the plants (like is building up salt a good thing?).
And I’m looking for a new nutrient to use because I never really got to see the finished product using general hydroponics nutrients due to it being hydro…

Idk when/why people use cal-mag but everyone seems to use it… Or molasses…

Is there another nutrient people prefer other then the general hydroponic brand? A specific 3-4 nutrients I should use including faciltor by aptus?

And to ventilate the room could i just open a door/ window for a bit to get some fresh air… Instead of buying a intake/exhaust fan?

I apologize for not getting into this conversation earlier on. Great info in this thread. I use a room about that size. Have you considered build 3 seperate grow areas in that space? A propagation room. (small with a T5-2’) A veg area 4x4’ (If you want to have a nice space), and use the rest for flowering, and nutrient, implement, etc, storage?

I was going to use the spare bedroom as 2 separt grow rooms. The closet in the (flowering room/spare bedroom) as the veg room with 1-2 t5’s and tape it up so no light leaks out into the spare bedroom during flowering.

I was talking to a guy at my temp job who use to be a carpenter about how to ventilate an apartment and if a 15A apartment could run 2 1000w. (I am moving so i am not worried about him knowing about the grow) he pretty much guessed it as soon as I asked the question.

He said instead of buying a exhaust fan that typically cools hoods, I should just buy a circle fan, tape some cardboard around the Outter edges to enduce some pressure… Get a cardboard box and make it go down to a “V” formation to create more pressure… Fill the box up with dryer sheets or charcoal and at the end of the “V” cut a hole so it can exhaust out the window.

Does anyone think this is realistically possible/ work more efficiently and cheaper then buying a HVAC and a carbon filter?

And he said I could run 2 1000w and the t5’s but 1 1000w would need a THICK extension cord plugged into the washer and dryer wall to prevent the breaker from popping from the overload… This sounds like it could work but I’m not an electrician… WOULD I STILL BE ABLE TO LIVE COMFORTABLY USING LIGHTS AROUND THE HOUSE AFTER WORK… AND WOULD I CONSTANTLY HAVE TO UNPLUG AND PLUG IN THE WASHER IN DRYER WHEN I NEED TO USE IT? or just make the 12/12 lighting schedule around my work schedule so I have a hour or so to check on the girls before it’s lights out?

Much thanks

Dont know if this will help or not. When i was deployed overseas and had to overcome amp ratings with A/c units we’d use battery back up units, or UPS’s from the computer guys. When we plugged the A/C units into the UPS’s, even on the same circuit, it kept them from throwing the breakers. Dunno why, the computer guy tried to explain it to me but… Something about the cycling i think, anyway, i put all my balasts on their own giant UPS, they beep like hell when the power goes out but for 15 min flashes and flickers during bad weather, they keep the lights running smoothly, just, like i said, they beep like hell. Big battery surge protectors and temporary power supplies… Thats all they are,maybe that would work?

Hmm that sounds helpful. I’ll be In an apartment so is the bleeping obnoxious? And it only bleeps when the power goes out? Because I don’t think their will be power outages much in the apartment I’ll be in… And do you have to buy them from a computer guy or is there a store?
And lastly would 1 UPS supply enought power to keep the 1000w running as well as the other 1000w plugged into the wall in the grow room?

I looked up the UPS but it seems as though it only helps supply power for about 6 minutes when the power goes off. I need to know if 15A would supply enough power in the spare bedroom for 1000w and the washer and dryer room supply enough power for another 1000w light for the grow room as well as enough power to run the washer and dryer or oven without flipping the breaker or having enough light in bedrooms to live normally. Not choosing between 2 1000w lights or using normal lights or the washer and dryer. (Does that make sence?)

From what i understand, the ups has snough power to buffer spikes in electricity that trips breakers that have enough capacity during normal opperating ranges. It doesnt power anything, just has a bit of extra juice to compensate for spikes that trip the breaker every now and then. If you plug everything in, fire it up, and the breakernpops immediately a ups wont help. Ask he apartment if you can put in a ceiling fan. If thdy say yes, and even better wire it for you… If theres a fan there already… And so on.

So again I’m thinking of using 1 1000w double ended magnum XXXL hood but they do not come in AC form. That will not fry my plants in a 8’9’ high ceiling correct? And I’m trying to decide between royal gold turpurs coco mix in the orange bag or fox farms soil mix… Does anyone have any suggestions on which one would work better for a somewhat beginner. And if I should look for a 1000w AC hood instead even though a AC hood only reduces hood heat by 25%?

DO NOT PUT IN A 30 amp BREAKER UNLESS YOUR WIRE SIZE IS LARAGE ENOUGH TO HANDLE IT. I’m sure your wire is way to small, most likely it’s 14 /12 gage you need 10 gage or bigger. Please be safe, and don’t burn up your house.