I am not looking to accomplish anything crazy -1 small plant of potent bud will do me just fine (hopefully not reggie- don’t want to have to smoke a ton to get high but luckily I’m on a long tolerance break for the time being, and am thinking about growing to suffice my future needs- I won’t be smoking until the product is finished) . My biggest worry is the smell. Some people claim to get by with stealth grows but others say its impossible.
I’m planning on converting my closet space for my grow room needs- and am leaning towards building a wooden box (mylar/+ plastic interior lining) to house the plant/lights and whatnot. Also leaning towards Northern Lights because people seem to think its pretty easy/straightforward for new growers, smaller grow areas, and less intense odor(?). Its unfortunate the closet doesn’t have a window for extra ventilation so I’m also worried about airflow, but maybe it wont be a huge deal since I’m only dealing with 1 plant. The box would likely vent into the closet space(with carbon filter and accompanied air purifier/ona gel perhaps in the closet space itself) - because I had hopes to keep the closet door shut most of the time to keep in wandering smells (and heat as winter continues to roll in) . I also would really prefer it if my room didnt stink - I havent had issues with weed and other paraphernalia in the closet before - but largely because the weed (even if dank) doesn’t smell until I pull it out of its container and the smell of the bong doesnt travel far past the closet door(after being used- when using it I always snap small bowls from the bong right next to the window+a fan directing air outside).
Currently-
Strain - Northern Lights (feminized seed)
Lights - LED Grow Light Pro Series P600
ANY thoughts on the above ideas/stealth in general are welcome - I’m not an expert so any advice on making this grow actually successful (and not smelly uwu) would be great.
Further reasons for stealth: Living alone isn’t an option for me in the foreseeable future - and I don’t really have patience for peoples’ judgements on me just waiting for that to happen- I won’t get kicked out if I’m figured out or anything- and have gotten away with keeping ounces/my 13inch bong (and a variety of equipment, dab rigs, etc) because I keep it all relatively hidden and try to stay discreet with smell (I guess if it makes anyone feel better- I live with a parent who literally gifts/buys me weed occasionally but I really try to be extremely discreet and the number of times I’ve been smelt/‘caught’ over the past 7 years is only 1-3 times lol, smoking indoors regularly (honestly smoking in my college dorm helped for the practice- and my dorm (unlike my bedroom) didnt even have a window)). Basically the parent never comes up stairs (maybe once or twice a year lol) - and a cleaning crew comes once a month to vacuum and wipe down the bathroom (so they never enter my bedroom where said closet/grow area will be- which is also where I tend to keep the bongs/weed etc). Also - am well into my 20s , so , no worries about being underage or anything - more just chronically ill lol #backfracture probs.
Its hard to tell.
But it’s going to smell during flowering. So for 2 months or so depending on your grow, it will smell.
One small plant might not stink up the entire house but it will smell your room and Hallway up most likely
Either spend some money on a carbon filter if u can push the air out somewhere or take your chance and see what the outcome is.
When you say “build a wooden box,” how competent a carpenter are you, and do you already have the tools (and perhaps material)?
A tent inside a closet is a pretty good solution. And you can lock the closet door for security.
A carbon filter will hide the smell really effectively, even if it’s just recirculating the air in the tent. If you can’t exhaust the stale air into the attic above your closet, then you might actually have justification for CO2 supplementation. But if you can exhaust the stale air into the space above the closet (or through any wall, really) then the gap under the closet door should be enough for incoming air. If it’s tight, you can shave the door.
Cutting 1/2” off the bottom of a door, assembling a tent, and routing some duct work is easier than building a sealed box. Also way less expensive, because CO2 controllers are expensive. And you’ll need more elaborate environmental controls with a sealed box. Forget that I mentioned CO2 supplementation in a sealed box.
Not gonna lie, I have very little carpentry skills - just the capacity to do math and research (I took thru calc 2, not that it speaks for much). I don’t have materials yet (still need to decide fully on whats being made) - but have a few hand saws (leftover equipment from installing some flooring and cutting kitchen tiles for a backsplash) - hammer, a clamp or two, drill, sander…- caulks, woodglues etc. I dont have the tool to cut a circle into any wood - so I’m contemplating what to do about vent holes- and what I should buy in terms of the ventilation system (duct tubing, filters etc) that is the most cost effective option.
I was leaning towards box over tent because a box to house things seemed more smell proof than a tent would be (also more conspicuous to get the pieces for the box than to order a tent online? I’ll keep checking craigslist and facebook market but the box seemed to be the cheaper and more smell proof option, but maybe I just got overly scared by the information I’ve seen about odor and tents not helping much with smell )
There aren’t any vents in the closet to begin with - and breaking through any drywall is a bit out of my comfort zone (I might be persuaded to do it if I’m confident enough ). also to be noted attic access is extremely limited with and is very small (ive never actually seen it- but its more of a crawl space than a stand up straight type of attic)- only a small portion of the ceiling of the closet accesses the attic - the rest of the ceiling is slanted so I’m assuming above it is just the roof (and the room in general is facing the street). The roof access hole doesnt even have a dropdown ladder or anything so its a pain to go up there (maybe thats better for me though). The roof access is, however, located in a lofted area so the door of the roof access is basically open to the rest of the living space (because the lofted area is open to the living room below)- so leaking odor worries me a tad. It is owned vs rented but its more of a condo/town house style than a house in its own designated yard type of deal.
I was thinking that air that gets let in from the bedroom whenever opening the closet door (albeit small) - and me talking to the plants might be sufficient CO2 for 1 plant- I was hoping to get away with not having to buy anything for CO2.
The closet itself is also around 4ft x 4.5ft x 8ft-ish (1.25m x 1.4m x 2.4m-ish for the metric folks) but the ceiling is slanted after a little under a foot - so rough estimate on overall closet size would be 125-130 cubic ft (3.6cubic meters). Was planning to make the ‘box’ something under 2ft x 2ftx 5ft in hope to help ease discretion (and to fit under the 1 shelf already within the closet). I also want to make sure I take into consideration how much space I’ll need for the harvesting (drying, curing) process because it will all likely happen within the closet
I got pvc and some plastic and built a tent. 3ftx3ftx6.5ft
Then got some diamond mylar and used that inside. Vivosun carbon filter. Some full spec leds 100w each using 5 and an 80w spider arm light. And a blackout sheet to cover it all. Works like a charm. No smell coming out. No light leaks. Its not hard to make and was cheap wanna say the tent alone was less than 40, carbon filter and fan was 60, lights where 40 ff ocean forest was 17 ff trio was 20. And free seeds lol
Here she is so far
I’ll draw something up tomorrow, but after reading that I would go with a 2’x2’x 6-7’ tent. Then I’d duct the tent intake to the bottom of the door and the exhaust to the top. Modifying the door would be possible; can you take a picture of the closed door and also fully open so I can see the interior and exterior sides? Full door, well-lit please.
Yeah i can definitely send pictures! I need to empty out the closet first - so I should be able to post pictures by the morning sometime (if not tonight) - some plans would be very useful as a guide! If a tent works then I dont mind going that route at all.
For lights I was thinking of getting - LED Grow Light Pro Series P600 , someone on another forum recommended it ($70 currently I think? idk what shipping will look like or if I can find it cheaper), but I’m open to suggestion - and something that wont be too obvious on the electric bill (that light I think would be less than $8 a month if it were running 24/7- and under $20-30 is my overall goal bill wise (I already keep a lot of things plugged up in my room so I’m planning to just be more energy conscious to compensate for a few dollars).
overall budget - for the time being staying under $300 (not including electric bill or anything, $300 for any materials/accessories, including seed(s)) would be amazing - I have a little wiggle room, but even $300 is pretty steep for me. I do have 1 fan I was planning on re-purposing to use for growing (not sure if its too strong, its not very big though and has a high and low setting at least- but doesn’t oscillate), but also realize I’ll likely have to by more for venting and whatnot. I also have an air purifier but I’m thinking that wont help much at all with smell, so probably not worth using in the closet/my room to deodorize.
Its very reassuring to know you dont have any smell issues with that setup! Where is the carbon filter attached/set up in your tent build? And how is your tent opening configured to be leak proof? hmm. I guess I might find some answers if I search diy tent builds as well.
All responses are very appreciated! I really just dont wanna get caught mid process with a smelly setup and weeks/months remaining to live with it
I don’t live in a legal state- I used to get by selling and smoking off my leftovers - so I was making money vs spending it. Moved, and stopped selling, slowly worked through the few ounces I had from Spring, some residue wax scratched from old wax paper lol. Hoping my tolerance will come down some,- but for discretion I care more about the potency than the amount. I would be more than happy with an ounce or two - some people say to expect under an ounce- others say a single plant can produce over a pound… I’m a bit worried on space during the drying/harvesting/curing time and how ill set those steps with minimal space. Don’t have a stable income so I’m not buying any right now (haven’t since spring) and also live in a new area so don’t have my same old connects.
On my first real indoor grow as well. Where I live I have to be stealth too but not quite as bad as you it seems. Don’t know if this will help at all but. I’m running a 3x3x6 tent with a mars hydro tsw2000, ac infinity 4" controlled exhaust fan piped to my crawl space under the house through a g-hydro carbon filter, two 6" oscillating fans. 20pint dehumidifier in the room with the tent not in it due to the heat. From what I’ve learned so far is that you have to move the air in your space, if you can’t effectively move air you will most likely struggle with heat and humidity issues. The timing and amount of water was my biggest issue at first. Killed my first batch. This first one has definitely been a roller coaster of trials and tribulations. Just flipped to flower over the weekend and the smells are showing up in the tent but still no smells in the house. I will know more soon, they should really start to smell soon. I’ll be the first to tell you I don’t know much of nothing yet but I will be glad to help all I can. Good luck and may your flowers prosper.
Back in the day we used “carbon pigs”. Activated carbon in nylon stockings. I am going to try them again for my new grow closet. First grow since the 80’s.
i wouldn’t suggest wood. you are at higher risk for mold to develop on the wood if its too humid. wood can retain moisture.
if you plan to build one, use PVC pipe for the frame and polyester or nylon for the fabric.
I dont see any hvac supply or return vents in your space, so humidity and stagnant air may be a problem. invest in a dehumidifier.
-the photo formatting is a bit strange (clips it when view from mobile but from desktop version doesnt have the same issue) , but this should include the top and bottom from the outside and 2 photos of the top/bottom from inside(hard to get it all in one picture due to space of the closet) .There is a small gap at the base of the closet, maybe a little over a centimeter / enough to slide my fingers beneath it to around the second knuckle.
Ah sucks to hear your first run thru didnt make it! I do plan on having some fans going + using LED lights (so a tad less heat) + it’ll be winter for most of it so I’ll have that to my benefit. I’ll be interested to hear how the smell works out + your overall grow! Hopefully better luck this time. What strain are you growing?
I feel like $300 is too small of a budget. A micro-grow (call it less than 1sqft) in a cardboard box with CFL or similar solution for lighting can happen inside a budget like that. You’ll want to search journals here to see how people approached that.
Do the math though. Post your purchase list here. It adds up really quickly.
@calsFarm The second run of girls is doing way way better now that I think I have this watering thing figured out. With so much fear in overwatering I underwatered the last batch. I will let you know as I know for sure on the smells. Again from one noob to another, feel free to reach out to me. I personally have just gone through most of my trails and vividly remember them right now. Good luck homie, keep us posted.
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