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Hey all, I noticed by reading other topics that you seem to be extremely helpful.. So here's my question(s)..

I am planning on growing a plant or two in my closet, which is 72" wide and 29" deep, and about 7 feet tall, and has a shelf at approximately 65 inches. I have a set of shelves in the closet that takes up about 40 inches in width, leaving me with approximately 30 inches of width to grow in. So basically I have a 30" deep x 30" wide x 60" tall area to grow in, and I was wondering if any of you had advice as to what type of setup would be a good setup to use?

This will be my first grow, and I have read countless texts on the subject, including many linked to in this forum and the one on the homepage..

So yeah, that's it.. Any advice would be great. And for the record, I don't have a whole lot of money to spend on a setup, so the cheaper the better, as long as it's a decent setup that will still allow my plants to grow healthy.

Maaaan lol, theres so many different way you could grow in there with great success. Since you want to choose an affordable path, go soil, especially if its your first grow. Since you have limited height, try out some compact fluero's for your first 3 weeks of veg and switch to either a metal halide or high pressure sodium bulbs, 250 watt should be fine for your space. Look at aircooling the halide bulb, and youll need a space to keep your ballast. You need some sort of ventilation though, pointless to start without it, it will only discourage you. Ill finish this sometime when its not 4:30 in the morning, mmm bed...

gl

I've read that properventilation when growing in a closet can probably be obtained by opening and shutting the doors a few times a day. My room actually has no ventilation in it, as it's on the bottom portion of the house that is settled in the hill, so it's pretty much underground..

Now a question about soil.. In a lot of the texts I read, it said proper soil can be bought at gardening stores, and some grocery stores (those with floral departments).. So, is it safe to assume that common potting soil that can be bought at these places is what should be used for growing?

BTW, I see you're from BC.. I am getting some seeds being sent to me by a buddy in BC. The stuff here is horrible, which is why I'm going to grow my own

Thanks for the help, I appreciate it.

hope this will help
http://www.smarthome.com/3011.html
i have 3 fans venting in my closet 500cfm each make sure to put them on a thermostat and keep it in the 80's i keep it about 83 and its perfect
i have 3 shelves in a 11 foot space seperated in a 5,3, and 4 (heres a diagram)also 1 outlet which is connected to each shelf except the middle of the middle for the increase of heat to the propogation but i have it venting out in the sides (straight to the attic)

top shelf 5 feet ( 2 500W MH) (20-4) then (18-6) then (16-8) over a course of 7 weeks (clear acrylic into the middle space)

middle 3 feet (propogation with 70-90% humidity with light coming in from the top metal halides, 3 shoplights around the corners and about 10 compact fluros everywhere) i went crazy! (hooked it up to the top shelf timer) so i dont mess up the top growth 2 ... smart thinking huh

bottom 4 feet (no light from the top or middle coming in but it warms the bottom of the propagation shelf)(4 150W HPS on a 12/12 timer)

total plants are 25 in the veg and 20 in the flower and a bunch in propogation

total power =1600W not including the ballasts so round to 2,000W and no im not worried ... i have 3 ac powerplants 5,000W each that shut-off and turn on occasionly (not to mention i shut off all the lights now and use compact fluros if i run lights) power bill stayed the same ... amazing!

total cost was around 400 dollars but was well worth it

went hydro all the way (mist method on the propigation)
self contained 5 gal buckets with 2 airstones each for the big plants
i also have the mother cloners in glad storage bins and another in a huge trash can that i got at the dollar tree ... heh

my worries are smell im going to have to upgrade to a air purifier or air carbonizer also a de-humidifier ... you can smell it to the road

i really wish i could take a pic sorry guys (or girls )

Take out the shelves.

Id use a pair of 600 watt bulbs on a mover - ventilate the hell out of it as already said - one MH bulb one HPS. You can run them both at the same time and get great nodal length. Ebb and FLow systems are EASY to build yourself and cost almost nothing, a few busboy type containers stack them with pump in bottom (reservior) and holes in top to drain. Timer to turn water off and on. General Hydroponics nurients. Pea gravel as medium. Mylar coat the walls or at least paint them flat white.

OR

Cut room in half - have a two stage area - one for clones and starters and the other area for vegetation and budding. I like that better. Use a conversion bulb/ballast just a 400, and same ebb and flow hydroponic setup. Save a lot by not having to buy two ballasts with bulbs, and on the clone level use a flourscent shoplight, 20$ at the hardware store.

Goo