Bloombox by Northern Lights

[MedMaster]

The latest from BC Northern lights is the bloombox royal with Cheese. You can get this wide assortment absent some pest and special chems delivered for around $5000 which includes driers, spare parts and a ton of stuff including the latest and greatest Advanced Nutrients products. If you actually want all this stuff the cost of the parts and supplies is upwards of $3300 and then there is delivery. This is very contained and stealthy and excellent for controlled grows (breeding and high end specials).

It is a short box so if you are looking for continous production, this is great to about 40" tall and the lights have been tuned over years as has the system. I used and are aligned with other set ups and this type of system is along the lines of the best you can buy. They sell to orgainc restaurants and hospitals and there is a reason. Be aware of the Ft2 of the trays and method sets the light draw and the ability to keep sealed from pests and other mean things very easy.

We can do this method with out all the rub and in a 6x6 room for better production but that is likely not needed for any legal grows you might do. Fo personal production the monthly yield off this is measured in pounds fully loaded up and with master methods and nutrients.

You do not haver to mess up very much to offset the cost of this (I say it is $2000 premium for what is given tops). If you are just growing a few stalks then this is way over kill. You need "brilliant white skunk" as a breeder this is the way to go with out much issue.

 

[Oldphart]

Hey Jay thanks for the interest in our kick ass products!
As far as pricing, I can email you a catalog, hit me up at [email protected] let me know if canada or usa.

All dimension are in the catalog too. There is plenty of space for 9 plants in the BBOX. The roots grow in the res, there is lotsa room for roots. Got some good root pics if interested. Light leakage is not a problem, 2 chambers are sealed.


Thanks

Matt

No, but there's another concern. I have recently acquired a bloombox, and there is some light that leaks out the back of the unit from the flowering chamber. This would normally not be of concern, but when I shifted the cycle of GrowSmart so that I could run the flowering box at night (i.e. during the coolest hours) I realized that the ambient light would get into the box the same way during the day, possibly upsetting the plants during their dark phase. Rather than running that risk, I decided on other temperature-lowering measures.

 

[fishenfool06]

No, but there's another concern. I have recently acquired a bloombox, and there is some light that leaks out the back of the unit from the flowering chamber. This would normally not be of concern, but when I shifted the cycle of GrowSmart so that I could run the flowering box at night (i.e. during the coolest hours) I realized that the ambient light would get into the box the same way during the day, possibly upsetting the plants during their dark phase. Rather than running that risk, I decided on other temperature-lowering measures.

if i may , u can connect a 4 inch vent tub to the back of the box and channel the inlet over away from the box. it also helps when trying to lower the inside temps, if u move the intake away from the back and give it fresh air it helps. i have one and i run about 10 ft on the intake and 5 ft on the exhaust. that helps alot. it keeps the hot expelled air out of the back. i still cant use it during summer temps so if u live in a hot climate summer temps are to hot for DWC without a chiller.unless u like to grow mold!

 

[Oldphart]

if i may , u can connect a 4 inch vent tub to the back of the box and channel the inlet over away from the box. it also helps when trying to lower the inside temps, if u move the intake away from the back and give it fresh air it helps. i have one and i run about 10 ft on the intake and 5 ft on the exhaust. that helps alot. it keeps the hot expelled air out of the back. i still cant use it during summer temps so if u live in a hot climate summer temps are to hot for DWC without a chiller.unless u like to grow mold!

That's exactly what I did! And it works fine.

 

[Oldphart]

There have been untimely deaths in my bloombox. The incident happened after I attached the carbon filter to the exhaust vent. This reduced the air flow through the flowering chamber which led to a rise in the internal temperature. As a result, 4 of my girls succumbed to heat prostration. However, they didn't die in vain. Their pregnancy was four weeks along, and I salvaged many sticky buds that smoke excellently.

I managed to save the other plants for now by leaving the flowering door ajar during the day, which is a pain in the ass because of the light. So I'm looking for a solution to the heat problem. I am desperately trying to avoid having to drill a hole through the external wall of my house, which is the only option where the bloombox is located. This is what I've done so far:

1. The room is air-conditioned, and the bloombox is in a corner with approximately 14" clearance in back, plenty of room for the carbon filter, CO2 tank, etc.

2. I have attached a duct to the exhaust port of the bulb compartment. This leads the warm air about 8 feet away. It still goes into the room, though, but the room is large (a converted 2-car garage.)

3. Instead of placing the carbon filter straight on as designed by BCNL, I inserted a 90 degree bend on the flange on the flowering chamber's exhaust port and inserted an inline duct fan, at the end of which I installed the filter. The inline duct fan is independently powered and helps push the air through, at least in theory.

Nevertheless, I still leave the door ajar during the day to be on the safe side. Tomorrow I will buy two thermometers, one for inside the box and the other to measure the ambient temperature, and then I will post the temperature readings.

 

[fishenfool06]

There have been untimely deaths in my bloombox. The incident happened after I attached the carbon filter to the exhaust vent. This reduced the air flow through the flowering chamber which led to a rise in the internal temperature. As a result, 4 of my girls succumbed to heat prostration. However, they didn't die in vain. Their pregnancy was four weeks along, and I salvaged many sticky buds that smoke excellently.

I managed to save the other plants for now by leaving the flowering door ajar during the day, which is a pain in the ass because of the light. So I'm looking for a solution to the heat problem. I am desperately trying to avoid having to drill a hole through the external wall of my house, which is the only option where the bloombox is located. This is what I've done so far:

1. The room is air-conditioned, and the bloombox is in a corner with approximately 14" clearance in back, plenty of room for the carbon filter, CO2 tank, etc.

2. I have attached a duct to the exhaust port of the bulb compartment. This leads the warm air about 8 feet away. It still goes into the room, though, but the room is large (a converted 2-car garage.)

3. Instead of placing the carbon filter straight on as designed by BCNL, I inserted a 90 degree bend on the flange on the flowering chamber's exhaust port and inserted an inline duct fan, at the end of which I installed the filter. The inline duct fan is independently powered and helps push the air through, at least in theory.

Nevertheless, I still leave the door ajar during the day to be on the safe side. Tomorrow I will buy two thermometers, one for inside the box and the other to measure the ambient temperature, and then I will post the temperature readings.

ok here is what i found , and did . on the air flow , between the flower side and the veg side. on the wall that separates the two is a rubber strip. if u remove the strip it will allow more air to freely flow from one side over to the other. the only problem with that is light leaks if u are using bloth sides at the same time. i dont it's to hot. or if u want to use bolth sides , you can add a 4 inch on the bottom left side.

if thats not an option , then you can always add a water chiller. and it wont mater what the temp are inside the box. you really have two problems air flow and water temps. if u chill the water and keep the root zone cool u wont have root rot and pythia. atleest not in the root zone. you still can form powdery mold on the buds with out adequate ventilation. try a 4 inch vortex fan connected to the back , that should move some air.

im only using my box for clones. temps stay down using floros and it works good.
im using the stinkbud system and it's kicking ass. i wish i still had the five thousand dollars that i spent on the mold breeding box. but you know what thy say , "an education is expensive." i think this class cost about five thousand dollars. plus shipping!

 

[Oldphart]

Thanks for that, fishenfool06. What do you mean by "you can add a 4 inch on the bottom left side." A 4-inch what?

I was wondering how the flowering chamber got its air. I looked at the internal sides but couldn't find any place where the air passes from the veg chamber into the flowering. The veg chamber with the fluorescent light works great, the clones are thriving. But I am trying to get a continuous grow going, with clones vegging at the same time as the previous batch of clones is flowering. That may not be possible, I realize now. As you said, it is getting to be an expensive education.

Here is what I wrote to BCNL this morning, in response to their request for temperature data:

=================================================

It turns out that the temperature baseline says it all.

I bought two identical thermometers and attached one about 6 feet from the box for ambient reference. The other thermometer I attached to the inside back wall of the flowering chamber, approximately 5 inches from the top. I selected this distance because that's how tall my plants were when I first attached the carbon filter and they died from being overheated.

I took the first reading this morning at 8 am, after the flowering chamber had been off all night. The readings were:

Ambient: 78 F
Box: 78 F

Then I took another reading at 10:30 am, after the 400W lamp had been running for approx. 90 minutes. The results were:

Ambient: 80 F
Box: 98 F


And this is with the carbon filter removed, and the hot air from the bulb compartment exhaust ducted away 8 feet!

I have made no modifications to the Bloombox, yet the temperature differential is 18 degrees F above ambient. Clearly, this is over 250% more than the 5 degrees above ambient that the box is advertised as maintaining. And the room that the box is in is large, a 2-car garage that has been converted into a living area. I attribute the rise of the 2 degrees of the ambient temperature to the warm bulb exhaust that has gone into the room. There was no significant rise in the external temperature today between 9 and 10:30 am.

There is no point in even measuring the temperature difference when the carbon filter is attached; obviously the difference will be even greater when the filter is attached and the airflow reduced. No wonder my poor plants died when the temperature inside the box soared to well over 100 degrees F!

So what do I do now? It is obvious that I won't be able to attach the carbon filter for odor control, it's even questionable if I can bring a set of plants to full flowering given the poor temperature handling of the Bloombox. I could possibly relieve the heat inside the box by buying a floor air-conditioning unit and ducting the cold air through the bulb compartment, but then I will have to cut a hole through the external wall in order to duct the heated bulb compartment air to the outside. I estimate that this will cost me $1000, in addition to the electricity costs of running an air-conditioning unit 12 hours a day, come rain or shine.

This does not look good. Do you have any ideas on how I can reduce the heat?

===========================================

I'll post their response when I get one.

 

[Ace21]

I just picked one of these bad boys up (Bloombox), and it is awesome. I would rate this unit 9 out of 10. BCNL rocks.

 

[fishenfool06]

i just picked one of these bad boys up (bloombox), and it is awesome. I would rate this unit 9 out of 10. Bcnl rocks.

WOW thats a lot of temps, mine was not even that bad. as for the 4 inch? that would be a 4 inch fan , just like the one inside . i wish i could scream from the top of the mountain, if u have a bloom box your room temps need to start about 68 -70 deg anything more wont work. the water temps need to stay under 70 - 72 deg to keep from getting pythia / mold and root rot. even if your plants did not dye when thy did , thy might not have finished. due to stress and heat. like you said the veg side works grate , but the flower side gets to hot . unless u live in alaska or the south or the north poles. im not using mine for flower any moor just a nursery. if u want a good system ck out the stink bud system, it may not be stealth but it blows away the bloom box.

and as for you ace21, if u think u can overcome all of the problems in this post . good luck!

 

[fishenfool06]

one more thing, i would buy a watter chiller for a DWC system before buying an a/c system for the room.

 

[Oldphart]

I think the problem might be where you are taking your temperature reading inside the box. Temperature is always taken in the shade because if u put it under direct light it will greatly scue the reading. We have over 5000 units in the field over the last 7 years with great results. If u can exhaust the heat from the top out of the room that the units are in your ambient to inside temp (take new reading in shade, inside the box) difference should be almost nothing.
What was the ambient room temp when your plants died?
I am not trying to be argumentative btw…..just want to get u some good yields.


===================================================

So I wrote back:


It's not nice to advertise 5 degrees above ambient and then say it should be measured in the shade. The entire point of the bloombox and its artificial sun is to expose the plants to the light. Granted, the shaded lower leaves are probably within 5 degrees of ambient, but that's no comfort to the upper section where flowering takes place. Surely I don't need to belabor this point further.

So, how to compensate for this. First, all reasonable temperature reduction measures should be taken, such as those that I did. Then, care must be exercised to prevent the plants from reaching within 6 inches of the glass - the exact distance will have to be determined. This means a scrog grow, being generally lower than free-standing plants. (Your box could benefit from wall supports for scrog screens, by the way, adjustable ones. You could also make more money by selling fitted screens as well.) I will figure all this out during my next grow and build my own scrog screen and supports. On further reflection, it seems that any number of horizontal grow techniques may work. It would not be difficult to modify the Hydro9 lid to accommodate horizontal cultivation, if needed.


Could you please obtain two technical facts for me:

1. The CFM rating (air flow) of the fan that exhausts from the flowering chamber.

2. The recommended CFM for the carbon filter that was enclosed with the bloombox.


==================================================




I still have to figure out the odor problem. The bloombox fan is too weak to effectively push the air through the filter. The filters I looked up on the web need approximately 200 CFM air flow so I need to select an inline fan that will take up the slack between the built-in fan and the filter specs. And I will check out the stink-bud system. Thanks for the hint.

 

[fishenfool06]

[F think the problem might be where you are taking your temperature reading inside the box. Temperature is always taken in the shade because if u put it under direct light it will greatly scue the reading. We have over 5000 units in the field over the last 7 years with great results. If u can exhaust the heat from the top out of the room that the units are in your ambient to inside temp (take new reading in shade, inside the box) difference should be almost nothing. [/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[F was the ambient room temp when your plants died?[/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]
[F am not trying to be argumentative btw…..just want to get u some good yields.[/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]


===================================================

So I wrote back:
[F

It's not nice to advertise 5 degrees above ambient and then say it should be measured in the shade. The entire point of the bloombox and its artificial sun is to expose the plants to the light. Granted, the shaded lower leaves are probably within 5 degrees of ambient, but that's no comfort to the upper section where flowering takes place. Surely I don't need to belabor this point further.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[F how to compensate for this. First, all reasonable temperature reduction measures should be taken, such as those that I did. Then, care must be exercised to prevent the plants from reaching within 6 inches of the glass - the exact distance will have to be determined. This means a scrog grow, being generally lower than free-standing plants. (Your box could benefit from wall supports for scrog screens, by the way, adjustable ones. You could also make more money by selling fitted screens as well.) I will figure all this out during my next grow and build my own scrog screen and supports. On further reflection, it seems that any number of horizontal grow techniques may work. It would not be difficult to modify the Hydro9 lid to accommodate horizontal cultivation, if needed.[/SIZE][/FONT]


[F you please obtain two technical facts for me:[/SIZE][/FONT]

[F The CFM rating (air flow) of the fan that exhausts from the flowering chamber.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[F The recommended CFM for the carbon filter that was enclosed with the bloombox.[/SIZE][/FONT]


==================================================




I still have to figure out the odor problem. The bloombox fan is too weak to effectively push the air through the filter. The filters I looked up on the web need approximately 200 CFM air flow so I need to select an inline fan that will take up the slack between the built-in fan and the filter specs. And I will check out the stink-bud system. Thanks for the hint.

thous small 4 inch fans are rated at 100cfm. i picked up a 6 inch vortex fan that pushes 475cfm for my room garden. im shure with a little mods you can adapt a fan like that to the back of the box.

that response you got was about the same i got. it was always , i'm doing something wrong. and we have many units out in the field and have been working grate. thy fail to mention the problems that customers have called in with. like me! it comes back to buyer beware.

 

[Oldphart]

fishnfool:

So here's the terse exchange I had with BCNL after all that:

BCNL: Our 4” fans are 120 cfm ea.


I sent back: And the carbon filter rating?


BCNL: 4x8 8 lbs 150 cfm 250m3/hr


And that was the end of the conversation. So their fan is too weak for the filter. I could have told them that. I think that's a pretty sloppy way to build something. Their manuals are full of inconsistencies too.

Anyway, I'm going to build a scrog screen in the flowering chamber. The Hydro9 tub doesn't allow for much clearance on the sides, so if I decide to anchor the screen at the bottom of the box I will have to use rigid strips of metal to support a screen made from 1/2 or 3/4 '' PVC pipe and 2'' chicken wire. On the other hand, I may anchor the screen on the Hydro9 lid itself - I haven't decided how the screen will interfere with the weekly water change. I am trying to visualize lifting the lid for inspection, etc, with the scrog screen sitting on top. I wonder how that will work.

Alternatively, I could anchor the screen to the wall but I'm not sure how much of a load the screen will have to bear so I prefer to support it vertically for at least the first grow.

Anyway, I'm going by an article I found on Grasscity.com,

http://forum.grasscity.com/advanced-growing-techniques/48363-scrog-method.html

I will have to depart somewhat from the method that is described there, which is to let the plants veg into the mesh and then switch to 12/12. Since there is a veg side to the bloombox, I'm thinking of letting the plants veg for there until they're 14 to 16 '' tall and then transplant them into the flowering side. Then I will lower the scrog screen to approximately 10 or 12 inches from the tub surface and thread the plants through the grid. Then I will switch to 12/12 and let them flower, dragging any new shoots under the wire and positioning them in the grid. If I install the scrog screen 12 inches above the Hydro9 lid, there will remain 20 inches to the glass. I don't really want the flowering tops to get closer than 6'' to the glass so that leaves 14'' for growth and flowering. It will be interesting to see how that works out.

Of course, an alternative would be to exchange the 400W HPS bulb with a 400W MH bulb and do the vegging in the flowering chamber, but I have a high enough electricity bill and want to keep costs down.

 

[fishenfool06]

fishnfool:

So here's the terse exchange I had with BCNL after all that:

[F BCNL: Our 4” fans are 120 cfm ea. [/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]


I sent back: [F the carbon filter rating?[/FONT][/SIZE][/FONT]


BCNL: 4x8 8 lbs 150 cfm 250m3/hr


And that was the end of the conversation. So their fan is too weak for the filter. I could have told them that. I think that's a pretty sloppy way to build something. Their manuals are full of inconsistencies too.

Anyway, I'm going to build a scrog screen in the flowering chamber. The Hydro9 tub doesn't allow for much clearance on the sides, so if I decide to anchor the screen at the bottom of the box I will have to use rigid strips of metal to support a screen made from 1/2 or 3/4 '' PVC pipe and 2'' chicken wire. On the other hand, I may anchor the screen on the Hydro9 lid itself - I haven't decided how the screen will interfere with the weekly water change. I am trying to visualize lifting the lid for inspection, etc, with the scrog screen sitting on top. I wonder how that will work.

Alternatively, I could anchor the screen to the wall but I'm not sure how much of a load the screen will have to bear so I prefer to support it vertically for at least the first grow.

Anyway, I'm going by an article I found on Grasscity.com,

http://forum.grasscity.com/advanced-growing-techniques/48363-scrog-method.html

I will have to depart somewhat from the method that is described there, which is to let the plants veg into the mesh and then switch to 12/12. Since there is a veg side to the bloombox, I'm thinking of letting the plants veg for there until they're 14 to 16 '' tall and then transplant them into the flowering side. Then I will lower the scrog screen to approximately 10 or 12 inches from the tub surface and thread the plants through the grid. Then I will switch to 12/12 and let them flower, dragging any new shoots under the wire and positioning them in the grid. If I install the scrog screen 12 inches above the Hydro9 lid, there will remain 20 inches to the glass. I don't really want the flowering tops to get closer than 6'' to the glass so that leaves 14'' for growth and flowering. It will be interesting to see how that works out.

Of course, an alternative would be to exchange the 400W HPS bulb with a 400W MH bulb and do the vegging in the flowering chamber, but I have a high enough electricity bill and want to keep costs down.

HI OLDFART,
i was also thinking about a sog screen when i was using my box. but i found that the plants will lean on each other to help stand. my first grow i veged my plants until 14 inch and thy over grew the box. it was a sativa strain , and it grew way to tall. if u want to veg until 14 - 16 inch you will defiantly want an indica strain that stays small. most plants will triple when put into flower. accept indica usually doubles. i always tryed to veg until 10 inch and then flower, it will be better if u lollypop all your plants. the side branches that grow when you dont lollypop become air dams and reduces your air flow. you really want air movement at the bottom of all your plants, without it you may develop powdery mold. i have a trellis on the top of my new system, the openings are 4 inch and its nylon. that is a little better than chicken wire, it kind of hard to harvest with chicken wire. and the last thing you really want to grow all the same strain per cycle in that box. it is really hard to harvest only one or two plants, once you start to remove the plants thy start falling on top of eachother.

 

[NoDrama]

Add another exhaust fan, you can drill a hole and then use a Dremel or something to cut the hole big enough for a 120V ac axial fan, Then just splice the wiring into the other fan wiring. You want the new fan to be placed high in the box. As far as using the carbon filter that is supplied, I have found it to be worthless. As you said it makes the box way too hot, even the Producer gets too hot and it runs much cooler than a BloomBox normally does. My producer currently has had 400W HPS x 2 + 150W Fluoro on for 6 hours now and the inside temperature at the very top of the box is 80F and Ambient is 69F. When it comes to placing the thermometer you need to make sure it is not seeing direct light, if it is it will always read too high, you can wrap it in tissue and try again. Its the carbon filter that causes the spike in temps IMO.

For odor control that Carbon filter they provide is inadequate anyway. a 40 or 50 pound one with a dedicated 500CFM blower does the trick pretty well.

Another thing that might help. Check all the seams and make sure they are well sealed with silicone and aren't leaking, a light check with doors closed in a dark room will reveal poor seals, Some black silicone from the Hardware store can improve things. One can imagine that Home Grown product is enjoyed during employee breaks and that can sometimes show up in the product.

 

[Oldphart]

Add another exhaust fan, you can drill a hole and then use a Dremel or something to cut the hole big enough for a 120V ac axial fan, Then just splice the wiring into the other fan wiring. You want the new fan to be placed high in the box. As far as using the carbon filter that is supplied, I have found it to be worthless. As you said it makes the box way too hot, even the Producer gets too hot and it runs much cooler than a BloomBox normally does. My producer currently has had 400W HPS x 2 + 150W Fluoro on for 6 hours now and the inside temperature at the very top of the box is 80F and Ambient is 69F. When it comes to placing the thermometer you need to make sure it is not seeing direct light, if it is it will always read too high, you can wrap it in tissue and try again. Its the carbon filter that causes the spike in temps IMO.

For odor control that Carbon filter they provide is inadequate anyway. a 40 or 50 pound one with a dedicated 500CFM blower does the trick pretty well.

Another thing that might help. Check all the seams and make sure they are well sealed with silicone and aren't leaking, a light check with doors closed in a dark room will reveal poor seals, Some black silicone from the Hardware store can improve things. One can imagine that Home Grown product is enjoyed during employee breaks and that can sometimes show up in the product.

I am beginning to realize that I will have to customize the bloombox to get it working the way I want. The suggestion to drill another exhaust vent in the flowering chamber is useful.

What is the name of the 500 CFM blower that you're using? Is it a 4''? (With that capacity I would imagine it to be 6''.) In any case, after I drill a second exhaust vent in the flowering chamber I will have to duct it also, connecting the new duct to the one I mounted on the existing exhaust port. I can use a Y-connector, converting the size from 4'' to 6'' and then running the combined exhaust through the filter.

The bloombox has really rotten light control. The light from the flowering chamber escapes from (and gets back in through) the exhaust port. Then there is light escaping from the slots in the back of the box used to hold the vent deflectors. I posted about this earlier.

 

[Oldphart]

HI OLDFART,
i was also thinking about a sog screen when i was using my box. but i found that the plants will lean on each other to help stand. my first grow i veged my plants until 14 inch and thy over grew the box. it was a sativa strain , and it grew way to tall. if u want to veg until 14 - 16 inch you will defiantly want an indica strain that stays small. most plants will triple when put into flower. accept indica usually doubles. i always tryed to veg until 10 inch and then flower, it will be better if u lollypop all your plants. the side branches that grow when you dont lollypop become air dams and reduces your air flow. you really want air movement at the bottom of all your plants, without it you may develop powdery mold. i have a trellis on the top of my new system, the openings are 4 inch and its nylon. that is a little better than chicken wire, it kind of hard to harvest with chicken wire. and the last thing you really want to grow all the same strain per cycle in that box. it is really hard to harvest only one or two plants, once you start to remove the plants thy start falling on top of eachother.

Hi fishenfool:


At 10'', how many sets of leaves do you have on the stem? What's lollypopping? (I'm new to growing, but not to using the plants, not by faaaar ...) 10'' is not very big. And they manage to flower and develop fully? Cool.

In the meantime I'm going ahead with the plans for a scrog screen. Instead of supporting the screen on the bottom of the box, or the top of the Hydro9 lid, or even bracketed on the walls, I have decided to suspend it. There are perfect spots in the sheet metal that surrounds the glass plate in the bulb compartment where I will drill 3/8'' holes and insert hooks from inside the flowering chamber, one in each corner. I will make the scrog frame itself from 1/2'' PVC pipe and the chicken/nylon wire with a 2'' mesh. The frame will be suspended by chains at the four corners from the hooks I installed. Using a chain I can shorten or lengthen the screen as needed, a link at a time. (I'm using a very light chain, but even so it's rated to carry 19 kilos - I wish ...)

Actually, I am trying to figure out a way to make a replaceable mesh screen inside the frame. Come harvest time I could just cut my way through the mesh, freeing the plants as I go. I can imagine it being a real pain to disentangle the plants from the wire mesh while keeping it intact. I have bought all the fasteners and the chain, etc, but I still need to get the PVC frame and the mesh. My local Home Depot didn't carry 2'' mesh so tomorrow I'll call other stores for wire/nylon 2'' mesh.

 

[fishenfool06]

Hi fishenfool:


At 10'', how many sets of leaves do you have on the stem? What's lollypopping? (I'm new to growing, but not to using the plants, not by faaaar ...) 10'' is not very big. And they manage to flower and develop fully? Cool.

well i dont know haw many sets are on them at ten inch. but i can tell you tomorrow , i have a set that have been veging for two weeks and should be about 10 inch. i know the general rule of thumb is 3 weeks veg and 8 weeks flower. when i veged for 3 weeks , the plants got so big they were crowded thy were so tight that light did not penetrate past the first couple inch. the plant got so big that thy lay on each other and cover out the light. it was so tight there was no way to access any of the plants in the back until u are reedy for harvest .

if the plants are 10 inch tall and u put it into flower and it grows 3x. it will be 40 inch. thats about all that box can handel, if u use only indica u will be able to veg 3 weeks . indica usually will grow 2x . veg until 10 inch and then flower and u can expect about 30 inch total. that will leave the tops about 10inch from the top.

if u lollypop your plant , you are removing all lower branches and growing one big bud at the top. if you dont have any side branches you will have moor air flow around your plants. and you wont have to worry about needing light down at the bottom of the plants.

i also was thinking about adding a biger fan to the system, but i have my bloom box in my bedroom and i could hardly handle all the noise as it was. if i really wanted to make it work i would put the fan and a filter in the attic and leave it on . bring the vent threw the roof and connect it to the back. i bet you could hook it up to bolth upper and lower vents and exhaust it all into the attic. that will cool you room down , you wont have the heat from the lamps. when i was thinking about getting one , thy told me that it was totaly quiet. that was BS!

my 475cfm fan cools my 600w lamp and 6 inch extra sun hood really good. the metal on the hood or the glass never gets warm.

 

[NoDrama]

I am beginning to realize that I will have to customize the bloombox to get it working the way I want. The suggestion to drill another exhaust vent in the flowering chamber is useful.

What is the name of the 500 CFM blower that you're using? Is it a 4''? (With that capacity I would imagine it to be 6''.) In any case, after I drill a second exhaust vent in the flowering chamber I will have to duct it also, connecting the new duct to the one I mounted on the existing exhaust port. I can use a Y-connector, converting the size from 4'' to 6'' and then running the combined exhaust through the filter.

The bloombox has really rotten light control. The light from the flowering chamber escapes from (and gets back in through) the exhaust port. Then there is light escaping from the slots in the back of the box used to hold the vent deflectors. I posted about this earlier.

I have always heard that the bloombox ran hot, my producers don't. I completely agree with you on the light leakage. Seems those slots they put in for the baffles which in turn deflect the light and only serve to make the fans work harder exhausting the hot air into those baffles. I threw mine away and took a bunch of 4" dryer flex hose and ran the exhaust up to my big Carbon Filter ( its a 50 pounder with a 6" flange http://www.stealthhydroponics.com/product.php?xProd=206&xSec=87 with a 440CFM inline fan http://www.nationalgardenwholesale.com/ngw/gardening_supplies.aspx?request=ECO_PLUS_INLINE_FANS&title=Fans / Blowers / Ducting&type=product ) so it gets sucked right into it. The intakes I vented to the floor cuz the air is coolest there. I sealed my box with black silicone, including the baffle slots. I think they should do away with the baffles, instead concentrate on a more effective solution. Perhaps a venting kit that makes the whole install seamless. i dunno what the best solution would be.

 

[Oldphart]

I think they should do away with the baffles, instead concentrate on a more effective solution. Perhaps a venting kit that makes the whole install seamless. i dunno what the best solution would be.

They should at least change the shape of the baffles. As they are now they distribute the warm exhaust equally to both sides, which means also toward the intake port of the bulb compartment. It would help if the baffle directed the air stream away from the intake port.