Starting from scratch - first time

[Ayleids]

Hi guys. I am new to the forum and have not smoked weed in about 4 years. I would just like to give a bit of a background about myself and what I am hoping to achieve here:

 

4 years ago i was involved in an accident in which i fractured my T5 vertebrae and had to resign from my job permanently (carpet layer). I am still employed but in a much less physically demanding job. Ever since then over the last 4 years my back muscles around the old fracture over-compensate for the old injury and have cause chronic muscle tendonosis. It's like a permanent cramp along both sides of my spine. I physically cannot relax my back muscles anymore. I have been to a couple of doctors - including my long term family doctor - as well as my physiotherapist, massage therapist and have also had CT scans to try and determine why this is happening. I should note that I am still young and healthy in every other aspect of my life (25 y.o Male) I have been on a number of anti-inflammatory medications, heavy painkillers and steroidal prescriptions for the last 2 years to try and help manage the pain. My biggest problems are bending over, crouching for any period of time, getting in / out of bed, getting to sleep and being able to sit up / down or relax. When I sit down i find it hard to get comfortable or relax because of the tension and pain. It is also hard for me to sleep because i cannot roll over or become relaxed enough to get comfortable.

 

I have tried so many medications - all of which either do not work well, have poor side effects , or I can only take for short periods. I have spent the last couple of months considering marijuana as a supplement to help manage my pain and relaxation mainly for the following points:

 

• I am familliar with its effects
• Immediate results
• Safe to take in large quantities when I an having a difficult day of pain
• Fits many traits i am looking for: relaxing, pain relief, sleep-inducing, fast-acting, can take for a long time etc.
• Lots of support and information - unlike some drugs I have taken which made me feel terrible with no information about how to deal with it except to stop taking it!

I understand the legality, and I will also be bringing this up with my doctor who I believe will support my decision to choose a medicine he cannot prescribe. I am sure if he could - he would.

 

I do not do any other drugs, I do not smoke and I rarely drink. I have spoken to my partner and she said she is supportive of my idea if it helps manage my condition.

 

 

Now that you have some background I will get into the questions!

 

I have decided I want to grow my own plants for use. I would be uncomfortable purchasing it off other people and do not want to involve anyone else. We have a small spare bedroom and this is the setup I believe will work for me:

 

A quality Grow Tent appx. 2mx2m

A 1000W HPS light

Exhaust system & air circulation

 

This is as far as I have come. I cannot figure out the best watering system / medium to grow the plants in. I would say I am good at gardening - better than an average person but I do work full time and cannot be home for most of the day to maintain the plants. I am thinking an automated, low maintenance watering system would be good but I am unsure which way would be best for me. I have a small budget of a couple of grand to start this and so it is unlikely I will be able to afford any pre-made systems I see online. Something simple, DIY / Bunnings-capable would be most suited to my budget. I am hoping someone here can give me some direction or advice on how to go about automating my watering system on a budget with minimal maintenance?

 

TL;DR

I know I am not the first person to walk this road so I am asking this community for your help and knowledge. Any advice on setting up an automated, low maintenance watering system in a soil-free grow tent?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

[itchybromusic]

Damn you up early for NY's day 4:03am or just going to bed after a big night

 

I would of said soil growing but you want soilless, little extra cost involved with PH & EC meters 

there are plenty of community members who grow in coco here that can give you a better run down on setup cost

& some are using this as a automated watering system

https://blumatsystems.com/

 

Also " relaxing, pain relief, sleep-inducing, fast-acting, can take for a long time etc " that could be many different strains

You might need a day strain & night strain but all strains will involve getting stoned & building a tolerance, it will take time to work that out 

Edited December 31, 2014 by itchybromusic

[Ozzy420]

Welcome aboard.

 

Best advice i can at this point is to go and have a read of some of the grow diaries and get an idea of setups

 

Once u have taken in as much info as u can, sit back and think about what may suit you as a setup.

 

Then start hittin us up with the long list of Q's u will have and we will do out best to set up on rite path...

[Matanuska Thunder]

HI sounds like you have a good idea of what you want/need etc

 

I'm with Ozzy420 on this, have a read of a few of the diary's, find a few ideas you like and hit us with Q's

we're a nice bunch of cannabis users (well most of us are )

to get you started, my grows are linked at the bottom of this post, I grow in coco, inside a tent inside a spare room.

Though I do not do automated watering/feeding, you may get an idea or three...

 

Luck!

[max_headroom]

I am looking at getting an indoor setup myself (growing outdoors this season) and have found a reputable Hydroponics store that offers a complete kit...all you need are the seeds. It is described as having everything including nutes, meters, filters,lights, soil less medium and the list goes on. The cost of this setup is big enough for two plants and is $800. I think I can make this back in one grow with the money I save from having to buy weed at odd times during the year. At $250 an Oz it doesn't take long, I think one plant would just about do it.Another important thing is, I would say it is worth spending the money on decent seeds especially if your looking for certain effects. This is the first year I have bought seeds and am so far very pleased with my investment.

 

As the other have said have a look around at some other setups people her have on the go should give you info overload. Good luck

[Sir PsychoHashy]

Welcome to OS and good luck with your venture.

 

As above, have a look around other grows for ideas, but basic indoor setup is tent, lighting, exhaust fan, filter, ducting, and circulation fans.  After that comes the decision of grow medium, I like recirculating in perlite, but coco is the simplest set up, just mix in some perlite and fill some pots.

 

The Blumats as suggested by Itchy are great for setting up automated feeding/watering in coco, a little pricey but I reckon they pay for themselves in saved nutrient use.  Off the top of my head 2 growers on the site besides myself have posted diaries using the Blumats in coco, from stoner memory they are Judge Fudge, and Rose of darkness, but don't hold me to that.  They both got great results and have included technical info in their diaries.  I also did a couple recently in my current diary (link below), and have a few outdoors in the bush at the moment using them as well, and am yet to find anything but great things to say about them.  Setup is a little fiddly, but after that they are simple and low maintenance.

 

If you are looking for medicinal cannabis, best to import some seeds rather than hoping for the best with random bagseed.  Probably want to go Indica, or Indica dominant strains for the effects stated, but as said above, a bit of trial and error to find what works best. 

[Biggdogg]

Welcome Ayleids, youll find lots of great info and help from all the lovely people on here, they've been great to me so far, very similar situation to you, good luck!!

[Ayleids]

Thanks guys. I am new to this whole thing and didn't know about grow diaries or stuff like that.

 

I am looking at getting an indoor setup myself (growing outdoors this season) and have found a reputable Hydroponics store that offers a complete kit...all you need are the seeds. It is described as having everything including nutes, meters, filters,lights, soil less medium and the list goes on. The cost of this setup is big enough for two plants and is $800. I think I can make this back in one grow with the money I save from having to buy weed at odd times during the year. At $250 an Oz it doesn't take long, I think one plant would just about do it.Another important thing is, I would say it is worth spending the money on decent seeds especially if your looking for certain effects. This is the first year I have bought seeds and am so far very pleased with my investment.

 

As the other have said have a look around at some other setups people her have on the go should give you info overload. Good luck

Max; where did you find this setup? does the store have a website? What city are you in?

 

 

I will have a read through some diaries and get an idea of setups for automated feeding.

[merl1n]

Hey Ayleids,

 

Welcome to OS, there is lots of good people round these parts and some great information.

I too have to agree with Ozzy, get some ideas from what others are doing. So go have a good look around.

Every persons situation and setups are different, so it will be a case of establishing what works best for you.

I too grow for medicinal needs due to a nasty growing in my head and although I can get as much pharmaceutical crap as I want, it stuffs up my insides. So I alternate between the pharma crap and canna depending on my needs. I have had some negative experiences in disclosing my canna use to the medical profession, so my advice would is to be careful about who you disclose to. Many medicos will support high dose opiates but as Canna is illegal and some medicos have a VERY negative view.

 

I run an automated recirculated system on timers, in perlite/clayballs. In doing this I can manage my setup around my health needs and do not need to be in my growroom at a set time each day. This makes growroom management much easier IMO (In My Opinion). A couple of grand as a budget will get you started easily, but I recommend you start small, learn and develop, that way you can build your setup around your specific needs. I'm do a SCROG (SCreen Of Green) system so I can spread my plant out to fill the entire space rather than growing the plant like a xmas tree. This maximises my grow within my space. Here are some pics

https://cannabis.community.forums.ozstoners.com/gallery/image/17477-mud-map-of-room/

https://cannabis.community.forums.ozstoners.com/gallery/image/17475-heart-setup/

https://cannabis.community.forums.ozstoners.com/gallery/image/17476-rough-sketch-steel-table/

https://cannabis.community.forums.ozstoners.com/gallery/image/10063-7/

 

Good luck with your endeavours and PLEASE, if you have questions, then ask. Many members here will be more than willing to give advice

 

Merl1n

[max_headroom]

Here is the link to the page