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indoor First Grow Tent Setup: Lights and Ventilation for 2x4

It has indeed arrived. I opened it and had a quick look but didnt set it up yet. My initial impression is it looks decent enough. The only things you have to do is connect the driver to the wago connectors and connect the screws and hanger. The potentiometer doesnt really excite me but it looks serviceable. Also it seems the driver will just sit atop the heat sink which is again fine but seemed odd. Ill probably get it setup by Friday. Busy week so there wont be a lot of time for hobbies until then.
 
Setting it up probably took 30 mins of dedicated time. It looks great and it’s bright has heck. I mean it is meant for cash crops so I’m a bit concerned about the intensity. I’m thinking of getting light meter to make sure I don’t Over expose my peppers.
 
Sergeant Pepper said:
Setting it up probably took 30 mins of dedicated time. It looks great and it’s bright has heck. I mean it is meant for cash crops so I’m a bit concerned about the intensity. I’m thinking of getting light meter to make sure I don’t Over expose my peppers.
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LOL, I remember the fist time igniting a 1000w MH in the house...we were all like, WHOA!
 
Looking forward to reading your experiences with it!
 
Finally updating in this thread for those interested. Here are a couple pictures of my current setup after a couple months of trial and error now. I noticed that depth of field is a little hard to tell in this picture. I have a 2x4 table in the back of the tent. Above it is a 4' agrobrite light with 4 tubes. I will be starting all my pepper plants on this very soon. In the front 2 feet I have my spider farmer light for some hydroponic lettuce and my overwintered pepper plants. Up top is a fan for air circulation and mold prevention. I am using a 16 hour light cycle currently. I still am not really sure what I am doing per say, but its super fun!! 
tent1.jpg

tent2.jpg
 
Sergeant Pepper said:
Hello
 
I wanted to start my first grow tent setup so I can bring my pepper indoors over the winter.  I live in NJ so I think I have to do this pretty soon before I lose them.  
 
I wanted to get a 2x4x5(or 6) grow tent.  I probably got a little carried away trying to look at grow tents and understanding what lights etc I need.  In fact, after reading around the pepper forums, I perused the weed forums to check out what those are doing because they take this extremely seriously.  I'm pretty sure their setups are at minimum mid to high hundreds of dollars but that's for cash crop.
 
So now I'm back to earth looking at what I'll actually be growing... peppers (yum).  But I did take away lots of interesting stuff about lights and ventilation from those guys and I was looking to validate it with you folks.  I was thinking about going with these lights:
https://growerslights.com/collections/horticulture-lighting-group-quantum-board-led-kits/products/horticulture-lighting-group-135-watt-quantum-board-led-kit?variant=28609484030004
 
I've owned some other grow lights in the past to grow peppers but I never got them to actually fruit indoor.  Flower yes... fruit no.  So this time around I didn't want to go ultra cheap then wind up with garage laying around the house.  Are these a good bang for the buck set of lights for growing peppers?  
 
Also those guys have ventilation system blah blah blah.  Is that necessary or desirable for peppers?
 
Is there anything else I need to get started?  I would love to do this in the garage so my wife doesn't scream but our garage is not climate controlled so it can get pretty cold in there over the winter but I'm not sure if the lights and/or a heating mat would be enough to make that happen.
 
Thanks!
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Not sure if you have already purchased a light or not, but I purchased the HLG 100 v.2 as my first grow light. The difference between the HLG and what I was using previously (desk lamp with LED bulb) was night and day. Almost overnight my tiny pepper plants began to grow at exponential rates. I do not use a grow tent or controlled environment other than the light set to a timer using Alexa. I have had a variety of peppers started from seed to fruiting with no issues to the light or peppers. Hope this helps. 
 
Cheers! 
 
RedHotChiliPeppers said:
Not sure if you have already purchased a light or not, but I purchased the HLG 100 v.2 as my first grow light. The difference between the HLG and what I was using previously (desk lamp with LED bulb) was night and day. Almost overnight my tiny pepper plants began to grow at exponential rates. I do not use a grow tent or controlled environment other than the light set to a timer using Alexa. I have had a variety of peppers started from seed to fruiting with no issues to the light or peppers. Hope this helps. 
 
Cheers! 
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I went with a Chinese knockoff.  It seems to work quite well.  I'm not sure it's as good as the HLGs, from what I read it's not.  But it's supposed to be a decent setup for the price and ease of assembly.  I'm not growing cash crops so I didn't feel like the extra dollars and effort were worthwhile to me.  However, the light I did purchase was from researching the marijuana growing forums.  If you want to learn about indoor growing those guys know a thing or two about it.  If you scale down their setups and remove the carbon filters and precautions they take to eliminate scent, you can get yourself a decent tent and light etc from searching on there.  My biggest issue at this point with my setup isn't lights so much as humidity control.  Our basement is very dry in the winter (RH ~35%) so keeping all the plants from drying up etc is a bit of a pain.  I'm considering adding a humidifier to my setup but I'm trying to avoid it for the time being.
 
Fatalii_Llama said:
that looks awesome!!! So do you use coco and perlite for all your growing in there? Then soak or water with hydro solutions? Im kicking around the idea of splitting my tent in half by making a shelf and separating it top and bottom since I bought 2 grow lights. This would essentially double my area, but not sure it would work as I hope. My thought is for pepper starts, lettuces, cooking herbs, and some overwinters. Thoughts on feasibility? I dont see images on the internet of people doing this really which makes me wonder if there is a reason not to....... My tent showed up today! Lights are still 2 days away though thanks to UPS :(  
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What model Vivosun tent is that? Is it this one from Amazon? How do you like it?
https://www.amazon.com/VIVOSUN-Hydroponic-Observation-Window-Growing/dp/B01731MNJE/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=growing+tents&qid=1582816852&s=lawn-garden&sr=1-8
 
Also, has anyone had any experience with these?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TVD1Y3K/ref=psdc_14252941_t1_B07TXFR69M
 
gorillamotors said:
What model Vivosun tent is that? Is it this one from Amazon? How do you like it?
https://www.amazon.com/VIVOSUN-Hydroponic-Observation-Window-Growing/dp/B01731MNJE/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=growing+tents&qid=1582816852&s=lawn-garden&sr=1-8
 
Also, has anyone had any experience with these?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TVD1Y3K/ref=psdc_14252941_t1_B07TXFR69M
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For the same price, it's probably a good one but I would still buy this HLG lamp, eye closed!
As for the tent, I also have a Vivosun (32 x 32 x 62) and I like it a lot; very well made with sturdy zippers. A good bang for the buck!
 
Hey Gorilla, 
The link below is indeed the exact grow tent that I purchased. I love it and highly recommend it! Very well built for the price, it is extremely durable and much better quality than I expected it to be! 
 
The other link the the spider farmer light. I have the spider farmer SF 1000. (smaller version of the one you linked to). Its an extremely nice light. My only complaint is that is is very expensive. As others have said, I think if I could do it again or if I add on in the future I will be going ALG instead of another spider farmer. Again, the spider farm lights are very well made and nice though. I do like mine, but it was salty for the size of it. I also have one of these in that tent https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TVD1Y3K/ref=psdc_14252941_t1_B07TXFR69M (4 foot, 4 tube)
gorillamotors said:
What model Vivosun tent is that? Is it this one from Amazon? How do you like it?
https://www.amazon.com/VIVOSUN-Hydroponic-Observation-Window-Growing/dp/B01731MNJE/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=growing+tents&qid=1582816852&s=lawn-garden&sr=1-8
 
Also, has anyone had any experience with these?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TVD1Y3K/ref=psdc_14252941_t1_B07TXFR69M
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one more thing:    you might want to look into https://www.thehiddenharvestcompany.com/shop   he is supposed to be coming out with some larger lights very very soon. I for one and interested to see the prices when he releases them. Final testing phases currently. I think he is doing something around a 130w light and I want to say it was a massive 400w system, but I might be way off. Take with a grain of salt. 
 
gorillamotors said:
I took your advice guys and bought an HLG. It is the HLG 550 V2 RSpec QB. I bought it directly from HLG. Normal price is $850 but they gave me a 20% military discount and cost me now $675 with a 3 year warranty.
 
Do you guys feel the need for a air/filtration system?
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Both that light and air/filtration is more a cash crop thing. No issues if youre growing your own grass but for peppers and tomatoes thats unnecessary. Just a cheap fan to circulate air will do.
 
agreed
Sergeant Pepper said:
Both that light and air/filtration is more a cash crop thing. No issues if youre growing your own grass but for peppers and tomatoes thats unnecessary. Just a cheap fan to circulate air will do.
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I am retired pilot from the USAF/USAFR (30 years) and American Airlines Captain (31 years), and have also sold my business of manufacturing rocket motors. I am trying to get my sister who is a retired MD to apply for a medical marijuana license here. They need her as an MD to apply for it and since I have a PhD in Bio-Chemistry I would do the research. I am probably one of the few oddballs who has NEVER tried marijuana. I think medical marijuana should be legal everywhere in the world but regulated and not like California. ie I have a hangnail so I need 50# of pot tonight. I also think recreational marijuana should be legal but with limitations for those who want to use it.
 
I bought the Vivosun 4x4 and it should be arriving tomorrow and my HLG lights on Tuesday.
 
gorillamotors said:
I am retired pilot from the USAF/USAFR (30 years) and American Airlines Captain (31 years), and have also sold my business of manufacturing rocket motors. I am trying to get my sister who is a retired MD to apply for a medical marijuana license here. They need her as an MD to apply for it and since I have a PhD in Bio-Chemistry I would do the research. I am probably one of the few oddballs who has NEVER tried marijuana. I think medical marijuana should be legal everywhere in the world but regulated and not like California. ie I have a hangnail so I need 50# of pot tonight. I also think recreational marijuana should be legal but with limitations for those who want to use it.
 
I bought the Vivosun 4x4 and it should be arriving tomorrow and my HLG lights on Tuesday.
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First thank you for your service.

I have no issues with marijuana or growing it. I’m just trying to point out that for peppers you don’t need to go crazy with lights and you certainly don’t need filtration. If you have aspirations to grow grass in the future then those things will serve you well. I learned how to setup my grow tent etc mostly from the weed forums because those guys know a thing or two about indoor growing but then I downsized everything a bit to handle peppers and tomatoes.
 
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