DIY Grow Cabinet

Joined
Jun 27, 2023
Messages
14
Reaction score
5
Location
Vancouver
Country
Canada
Hello, names dean.

New to growing, never done it before, but I am a passionate and adventurous person. My interest in growing began when I bought a bonsai. My bonsai makes me very happy.

I’m kinda trying to make it a business. I like the idea of growing trees. I’ve bought these seeds:

  • Juniper chinensis
  • English yew
  • Japanese cedar
  • Black pine
  • Maple rubrum
  • Giant sequoia

All are tolerant of the weather I live in except the giant sequoia which needs more sun than we get here. I’m planning to buy an aero garden for that or do something similar as a DIY project.

This is the diagram I’ve came up with for the project so far:


Yellow = light
Top blue square = exhaust fan
Middle blue circle = circulation fan
Bottom blue square = intake fan
Green = trees

The dimensions of my cabinet are: 39.5” H x 32.5” L x 19” W

This is not including the drawers which are at the bottom which I don’t have a use for yet.

=39.5”
-5” gap between light and ceiling =34.5”
-2” light thickness=32.5”
-14” minimum clearance of plants=18.5”

This leaves me with 18.5” of room for my plants to grow.

I bought these lights with recommendations from a user here.

MARS HYDRO 2023 Upgrade TS 1000 LED Grow Light 3x3ft Coverage

I am aiming for 463 umol with 18 hours of light and a DLI of 30 at the center. The height I still have to figure out.

I have bought a PAR meter to help me find the right height as well as I want to hook it up to my lights and be able to dim them automatically.

This is the PAR meter I bought:

VBR-200 PAR Meter

Among that I have also bought these things:

TEXALAN 6 Mil Mylar Film Roll (4X25FT) https://a.co/d/66hKYHU

SwitchBot WiFi Thermometer Hygrometer 3 Pack with Hub Mini
https://a.co/d/1XeHcwB

(Thinking about returning and buying a smart power strip) Meross Smart Plug Mini https://a.co/d/ehOHikM

Intake: AC Infinity AXIAL 9225, Muffin Fan, 115V 120V AC 92mm by 92mm by 25mm High Speed https://a.co/d/9D9fZ4h

Exhaust: AC Infinity AXIAL 9238, Muffin Fan, 115V 120V AC 92mm x 38mm High Speed https://a.co/d/5NgaWAq

And finally! Here is the progress on my cabinet so far.


I’m hoping to be finished sanding today. I got the cabinet for $60 in an ugly blue colour. I’m gonna stain it and varnish it.

Expenses so far:
Cabinet: $60
Light: $170
Mylar 100ft : $50
Wifi hygrometer 3 pack: $90
Smart wall plug 2 pack: $40
PAR meter: $300
Fans x2: $50

Misc expenses:
Renting sander: $60
Sanding paper: $40

Total spent so far: $860
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2023
Messages
14
Reaction score
5
Location
Vancouver
Country
Canada
Returned the two fans I had and bought these instead.

AC Infinity AXIAL S1238D, Dual 120mm Muffin Fan with Speed Controller

Figure these are better long term, I definitely don’t need that much CFM but that’s what the speed controller is for
 
Joined
Mar 6, 2022
Messages
13
Reaction score
10
Location
Saskatchewan
Country
Canada
How many of the Bonsai are you putting into the cabinet? I think the light will create quite a bit of heat. Having a couple P1000's that use "off brand" drivers, they put out more heat then a meanwell driver that are on my xs1500's. You may need to have more air flow coming in and out but can see how the axials work.

I like the custom cabinet build, and wanted to do similar. I just decided that with some extra space, I went with a large tent so I can walk right in.

How come you need the lights to dim automatically? There will be quite a bit involved with that. So I hope you're familiar with electronics and possibly some automation programming, that sort of thing. Check out Home Assistant, it's what I use to run my tent.

There are tutorials to follow for dimming, depending on manufacturer of light.

Looking forward to seeing your progress!
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
27,782
Messages
263,984
Members
14,509
Latest member
BBChoor

Latest Threads

Top