Modular Containerized Vertical NFT, take II... Stinky kinda likes the Darkside

[stinkyattic]

The following is the last post from this thread:
http://boards.cannabis.com/grow-log/131118-stinky-s-crash-course-noob-hydro-welcome-darkside.html
This log is a continuation of that learning experience... so here we go!

What has Stinky learned from her crash course?

-Minimize plumbing= excessive on the small scale
The idea of the manifold-style plumbing might be important to equalize pressure in a larger-scale system, but in a little one like this, it was WAY overkill and ended up tangling, there were more spots to leak, and yes, the operator could easily shift it by mistake and end up with a spill.
I have resolved this by building a more streamlined emitter out of flexi.
The easy way to make flexi uncurl when it has been sold in rolled-up bundles is to put a few cups of water in the bottom of a wok set on low heat with a wire rack across it, and steam it until it softens. Take a bulldog clip and hang it by one end from the ceiling. I know you guys all have ceiling hooks, lol!!!
The new emitter is a single piece of 1/2" flexi with a half-dozen small holes cut in it with an X-Acto, and 1/4" T- fittings punched into it, and folded over at one end to seal. The thing took me 10 minutes to make... so much for plumbing being too hard for a n00b... :wtf:
The individual courses to the plants are 1/4" flexi where one side is longer than the other so I can secure the main line OVER one trough and even if the connections suck and it drips, it's dripping into the plants, not on the floor.

-Pre-treat your hydroton before adding live plants to the system if you care about them remaining live plants. Running the system empty for a week allows time to troubleshoot plumbing, inpsect for clogs, and monitor the res pH until it stabilizes.

-Cornucopia is not as forgiving as a n00b without an EC meter needs and I am now going to stick with Canna Aqua (yay, it's buffered!) since as someone above pointed out I'm completely full of shit and don't know a thing about hydro. I'll return to it at a later date when I have proper meters... lol

-More frequent res changes might be in order, and a more stable temperature is an absolute necessity!

On the PLUS side...

-The aeration from the action of the waterfall was fabulous
-The bud development was actually superior to my soil-grown plants coming out of the same room during that same time period
-It was as compact as hoped for
-It was dirt-ass cheap to build
-That $15 'ECO' pump is a champ; the res ran dry innumerable times and it is still working magnificently
-It fits beautifully under $16 worth of Home DePOT shop lights for those of you who would be vegging in it for a little while
-I saw no evidence that any plants were rootbound to the point of unhappiness at harvest time even though the roots were DEFINITELY a big clump of rootiness
-Despite gross operator negligence, the freakin' thing WORKED

Pics coming in a couple hours... :jointsmile:

[Weedhound]

Got a lot of good lessons and good old common sense right there! Good work Stinkster. :thumbsup: (especially like the yield comment...;))

[rhizome]

Iff'n yer going single pipe, ya might wanna punch holes in the lips of yer cells and just cable tie the feed pipe down- easy enough to cut em out if ya wanna move some thing, and eliminates shift.

[stinkyattic]

Iff'n yer going single pipe, ya might wanna punch holes in the lips of yer cells and just cable tie the feed pipe down.
That's certainly a possibility; the cells come with plant-label slots in them already, and I've got a lifetime supply of small cable ties... :D
I do intend to maintain enough flexibility to shift the plants around and maintain a stadium-style canopy, since I'm PROBABLY not going to be able to run single-strain on this round. We shall see, though... you know, I've got a hefty Power Plant kickin' around somewheres... hmmm....

[Weedhound]

Careful with that power plant....I hear they explode your house down......:D

[melodious fellow]

awesome... I loved your noob crash course in hydro..

tis stormy out, so I curled up with the baby bong and read the entire thing just now as a prereq for this log..

Good luck, can't wait!

peace

[stinkyattic]

What's in the bag, you ask? A very collapsible hydro system!
Seriously the ENTIRE THING is contained in one backpack, one 5-gallon pail, and a snowboard bag. I wish I could find my snowboard bag to demonstrate but I think I left it in Alaska.

Shown is the system collapsed- all tubing, pump, emitters, and pots fit in the backpack. The hydroton exactly fills the 5 gallon pail. All you need is something to put it on and a light source and off ya go...

[Weedhound]

Did that dog come out of that bag too? :eek:

[stinkyattic]

Next we see the old water emitter manifold, and the new one beside it. WHAT AN IMPROVEMENT!!!

Pic 2 is the res and return tubes, and pic 3 is the whole thing assembled atop a tub I had laying around with a bit of scrap lumber holding the back end up to drain.
The main tube is secured over the right-hand tray by means of a couple plant tags stuck in the plant tag slots of the pots. The thing is running currently with pH'd tap water flushing through to condition the hydroton and system. If I find when I next check it that the pH is stable, then I will empty and re-fill the res with a mild nute solution, run that for a day, check the stability of the pH, and if that, too, is acceptable... time for plants!

The last pics I thought you'd get a kick out of... you might be a grower if your toolbox looks like this! Haha note the spare timer clips and roll of heavy-duty duct tape...

Edit: the dog doesn't fit in the bag unless you take the pots out. :D

[Shovelhandle]

Sorry, I've been away a lot and have not yet read your noob hydro thread. But, wth is NFT?

Thanks, I'm trying to learn.

Shov

[stinkyattic]

Oh sorry should have mentioned that:
Nutrient Flow Technique, in this case, a constant-flow waterfall style. Water flows over roots and the turbulence adds oxygenation. It's a simple system with only one moving part, the water pump.

[smok3y]

Stinky whats the green pill lookin things in that bag next to your tool box? I hope it aint some party treats;) lol..

[stinkyattic]

I don't touch any of that disgusting shit. Those are the ends of cable ties. Very useful in a grow room.

[McDanger]

So, how is this 2nd grow going? what are the differences from the 1st?

[stinkyattic]

I had to break down and bail. Everything is on hold. Between pests, heat, cold, floods (that's right! more than one!) and then the kicker was that my neighbor decided to throw a fireworks party, even while she herself was using my lights and rooms for her own plants... I closed up shop entirely and ended my lease. Too many variables out of my control, and security was just getting too thin for my taste.

[daihashi]

Too many variables out of my control, and security was just getting too thin for my taste.

This is probably the first and most valuable lesson I learned when I first joined these forums. And yep.. I learned it from stinky.

Take heed everyone. We can't grow if we don't learn when to protect ourselves. What's that old song?.. kenny rogers the gambler?

Gotta know when to hold'em..
know when to fold'em
know when to walk away.
know when to run
you never count your money
when you're sitting at the table
there'll be time for countin
when the dealin's done.



Oddly enough, metaphorically.. this holds true for growing as well as poker (I love both but am only good at one right now. Working on the growing part, lol :thumbsup:)

[stinkyattic]

Funny how well-worded that chorus is for that song... I have it on vinyl somewhere and internalized that lesson many many moons ago.

Always have a backup plan!
Know how you will bail out before you hang your first light. Know the numbers for van rental shops (I don't like box trucks because of the risk of running into a weigh station or DOT inspection). Have a storage unit in another county. Dispose of waste regularly, so there isn't a ton of it- literally- sitting around that you will have to deal with when you bail. Have a safe place to store your product, like a trusted friend who will house a suitcase full of mason jars for a few days if you get that funny feeling.

And rule #1: Trust your gut. If you gut says "BAIL!", do it. 2kw worth of weed is still less than the attorney fees on a grow arrest.

[McDanger]

good advice, and a point well taken