Best setup for best yields in a 78X78X78 grow tent w/HPS

[KashVIII]

I'm on the verge of embarking on my first grow. Unfortunately, I don't have the luxury of being able to start small...I need the biggest possible yields+potency. One thing I have working in my favor is that I've always been able to follow instructions to the letter. I believe that if I heed the proper tutelage, and follow and execute explicitly, I'm confident I can be successful right out the gate. Sorry for the long intro...lemme cut to the chase. I'm purchasing a 78X78X78 grow tent from Yield Labs. I have an idea of what I should do with it, but I would really appreciate some insight from people who have already successfully grown in similar dimensions. Primarily, I just wanna know the best light setup (I'm going with HPS (or MH/HPS combo)...I'm wondering if I should go with a 600w, a 1000w, 2X 600w, or maybe even 2X 1000w). Also, considering the space, I'm wondering what would be the ideal number of plants to go with...I'm thinking 6 to 8, but I'd love to hear some suggestions. Lastly, let me be honest...what I'm really looking for is someone to tell me the best setup/strain to yield over 1lb of potent bud 4 times a year in a 78X78X78 grow tent using autos and HID's.

[Starris]

On The GWE website, there's an article on hps/Mh suggestions for different sized tents. No suggestions for a tent your size, but we can use the general square foot ratios to guess. They suggest 600-1000 watts for a 4x4, 16 square feet You're dealing with a 6.5x6.5 tent, 42.5 Sq ft, so you'd want 2.65 times as much light. 1600-2650 watts, so two 600s would be pretty underpowered. Two 1000s would fulfill the wattage requirements, but wouldn't really fit your room. Having a large square like that means only having two bulbs would mean the have to cover a rectangular space, which isn't a great way to have an even spread. I would actually suggest getting 4 hoods and use them to split your room into smaller, more manageable squares. 4 400 watt ones would meet the requirements, and 4 600 watt ones would give you pretty much full saturation. If you're unable to afford 4 hoods right now, getting two to start will still allow you a good deal of effective growing space, just not the whole tent. You could buy two 1000 Watters to get the most out of those two hoods now, and then downscale them to 600 each when you're able to get more. Make sure to get dimmable ballasts so you can reuse them with lower wattage bulbs.
Here's a solid grower talking about how he sets up his room, which may be useful to you since he runs 4 hoods in a large space.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JmtM9f9Ns90

About your yields question, many people are able to pull a pound from 16 square feet, so if you're able to complete your grow without a hitch, you could pull quite a bit more than that. A fully saturated and healthy tent could definitely pull in 2-3 pounds with skill. It's great that you're looking to learn, and one thing I would suggest doing is try to keep reading gwe articles until there are no more related ones you haven't read yet, then do it again if you feel fuzzy on some topics still. There is a lot about growing that is following directions, bit it's not always as clear as putting x amount of nutrients in a reservoir and making sure lights are a certain distance. If your plants show signs of stress, then there usually is a simple solution, but you have to know what you're looking at to know what it is. Of course, if you're unable to tell what the problem is, that's what this site is for! There are a bunch of people here who could also look at what's wrong and perhaps know the answer. Growing cannabis can definitely be an art, but you don't need to be an artist to grow some serious dankness.

lastly, your plant count. The answer can vary depending on how much you decide to do in the way of training, but a reasonable range would be anywhere from 12-24 for your whole space. Here's an article nebula made showcasing an auto grow she did in a 2x4 with 3 plants and she pulled 6.7 oz!
http://www.growweedeasy.com/auto-flo...urnal-250w-hps

If you got through this wall of text, congrats! The articles on gwe are more interesting than me so you'll do fine ha. And remember, the important thing isn't to never make mistakes, it's to be active enough to be able to see those mistakes, learn from them, and adjust accordingly.

happy growing

[KashVIII]

Thanks! I really appreciate the info and encouraging words (the links are very helpful as well). Based on the light requirements for a tent that size, I may have to get a smaller tent...simply because I don't know if I could do more than 2X 1000w lights right now due to power restrictions. Not to mention the additional cooling/exhaust that would be needed.

[Starris]

How big is the space you're putting the tent in? If it can go 8 feet, a 4×8 is a great option, and could work perfectly with two 600 watt bulbs. It's 32 sqft, which is plenty to work with in terms of yield. It's also more straightforward in light dispersal, since it's really just two 4x4s stuck together. You can just have one duct in a line for cooling the lights.

[bobsakamoto]

Starris so well-said! esp the part about reading the GWE main site articles until you can't find anymore on what you're looking for...done that SOO many times myself

[Flockshot]

Some people can get a pound from a single 600w MH/HPS. Others like me have come up short of that goal.

The right set up is the set up that allows you to control the temperature and humidity precisely. This depends an a lot of things, not the least of which is where you live and where your tent is set up.

We all read the books, but good growers are the ones that can read the plants.

Best of luck to you.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

One thing to look into is the exhale bags the produce 500ppm of co2 per 4x4x4 space ideal co2 ppm is 1200-1500ppm normal air contains 300-400ppm in the higher range the photosysthise increases a lot for a 6.5foot tent. If ur looking at multiple harvests a year with only one tent u would need to go with autoflowers they yeild less but there not photosensitive, witch means u dnt have to switch the light for them to start to flower autos take roughly 4 months from seed to harzest were a normal photo plants can take a lot more time depending on how much yeild u want if you wanna maximize one or 2 plants it could take 9 months from seed to harvest but the plant would be a monster and yeild roughly a pound or more each. U can also get 2 or 3 tents and keep the growing cycle going instead of only haveing 1 stage at a time, or grow auto flowers and u can have all 3 stages of growth in 1 tent auto flowers consume more light tho 24/0 lights were photos use 18/6 for veg stage and 12/12 for flower, I pefer autos because I dnt have the room to grow one monster plant lol u have to firgure out if u want autos or photos 1 auto will take a space or roughly 1.5feet by 1.5feet some get bigger and smaller depending on strain. Depending on number of plants u want is depending on the number of lights u need, as for hps I couldn't tell u how many u need because I use led lights, good luck have fun

[KashVIII]

Yeah, I definitely plan on going strictly auto. Thanks.

[Weed Pharma]

Growing is 30% science and 70% art-(IMO) while you may be able to follow directions- it's the art of growing that comes with experience.

I recommend you do NOT try and grow a full tent out of the gate, but get a few grows behind you you before you go "all in".
I have seen far to many people jump in head first- only to take the exits wasting time/money in the process.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

Light 50-60wats per square foot evenly spread out. Moisture RH seedling/clones 70-80 veg 40-70 flower 40-50 and final 2 or 3 weeks under 40 Relitive Humidity. Temps seedlings in the 70's veg 70-85 flower 65-80. Ph 6-7. Proper nutes/doseage. Growing style hydro/soil? Air co2 levels 1200-1500ppm. Roots need a lot of oxygen the more the better. these are perfect growing conditions to yeild the most from ur plants.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

Roughly 10,000 lumens per squar foot is ideal to the light of the sun

[bobsakamoto]

thanks, tyler_ hobbyist ! very helpful images you posted there

[OzBud]

You could get a pound off 4 good autos in a 4'x4' tent under a 600W HPS every 3 months with the right strains and coco or dwc

[KashVIII]

Read about your grow. Very detailed and informative. Basically, what I would like to do is get approx double the yield of that grow if possible. Stealth and space are really not an issue for me at all...odors getting outside the house would be my only concern. Hence, I'm definitely implementing carbon scrubbers into my setup. If you wanted to produce 2X the yield of your October grow, how would you go about it, if space/stealth wasn't a major concern (also consider that financial resources are not unlimited...maybe $1K budget for everything).

[OzBud]

Strain is up to you. Most seed bank pages will let you search for strains depending on what you're looking for. Size, potency, yield etc. Do you want high THC, do you want CBD for medical purposes, do you want high CBD, low THC, Or THC & CBD in a 1:1 ratio. That will all help determine what strain is best for you.
I think you're pretty safe with any GWE recommended seed banks, just have a look at them all. They'll all have different strains and prices. With Nirvana I'm pretty sure since they're a breeder they only stock strains they've created where as a site like seedsman carry strains from a number of reputable breeders.

Next two strains I'm growing I ordered from seedsman. High THC, High yield autos. Auto Afghan Kush Ryder and THC Bomb.

For me to get a better yield from my last grow using the same light I think I would have needed bigger pot sizes, larger growing area (I had a 600W in a 2x3 when it is good for a space up to 4x4) and possibly better genetics. I didn't do too badly though.

[OzBud]

You could always get a 4x8 tent and run 2 600W lights if you wanted as well if you're thinking a 4x4 with one light may not be enough. It could be tricky to pull off a pound with autos in a 4x4 to begin with especially if there's a problem and the plant/s can't recover in time.

If you had a 4x4 I would recommend 4 plants, and 8 in an 4x8. Something indica dominant or with kush in it should produce some pretty nice big, dense buds.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

Iv herd good things about nervana seeds ilgm seeds are good I'm growing there auto blueberry and it's a nice strai.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

What's ur time line for wanting a harvest autos are ready for harzest roughly 4months from seed were a photo u can veg from 3 weeks to 6months so it all depends on the time line. Are u growing soil of dwc? What's ur space like? If u have lots of space and lots of time phots will yeild a lot more but take longer when ever u switch to flower with a photo it can take from 60-120 days to finish flowering depending on the strain

[KashVIII]

I suppose I should be ready to begin in about 2 months. That'll give me enough time to secure the necessary finances...the good part is that should be an adequate amount of time for me to continue reading/researching and soaking up valuable information from awesome folks such as yourself. By the time I'm ready to get started, my confidence and knowledge should be at 100%...of course, I know that - even with a wealth of know-how - the proof is ultimately in the pudding. I'm sure there will be some hurdles to overcome once I actually begin, but the more I know, the better I should be prepared to correct any hiccups. I definitely will be doing autos only, and hopefully I can create an ideal environment that will enable me to harvest 4X/year. As of right now, I intend to grow in coco coir. I have an abundant amount of space and freedom to grow...the only thing restricting the size of my grows are financial/electrical/logistic constraints. Based on the info you and others have provided, I think I want to shoot for 2 pound yields using 2X 600w HPS. I just need to determine what will be the optimum setup to accomplish this.

[tyler_ hobbyist]

One idea to look into is led lights a cheap one that works really good for me is the bestva1000w it's rue wattage is 200w works awesome for all my autos at 15-18 inchs my lights are 24/0 1 light per 2 plants works perfect the light is about 110 dollars us on amazon. There's been a lot of reserch on led vs hps and some people like led but from what iv seen the leds make a lot more bud sites on autos than hps from what iv seen. The bestva 1000w does produce more heat than most led but still no were near a hps. Just things to look into

[tyler_ hobbyist]

There a guy on this fourm that did a side by side comparison of hps and led watt for watt with autoflowers. Just something to look into make sure to do ur reserch and make an educated decision.