Printable View
Hi Tinytoon,
I was considering topping my BD#3 tonight to get hands on experience with the technique. Should this be done close to flowering time, or can this be done at any time during the veg process? I plant to do LST for the next grow, but my current setup won't allow it for this grow.
Thanks!
DAY 11
I came home to some very happy ladies. BD #1, aka Mutant Plant, is exploding with foliage and so is her evil twin. BD#2 is making a swift recovery with foliage and stem growth. BD #3 is neck and neck with BD#1 in terms of height, which at 6:30pm measured 10 inches X_X. That means that the clones, which were about an inch to and inch and a half when my partner selected them, have grown 8 to 9 inches in 11 days! WOW! So far, I??m extremely impressed with DWC.
I??m keeping the pH at a constant rate in between 5.8 ?? 6.2. It??s slightly adjusted downwards about every 6 ?? 8 hours. I??ve also been easing these clones into the nutes, as I started with about ½ the nutrients on the first week, and this week we added 75% of the recommended nutes. I think the babies love the increased nutrients. We are going to add 100% nutrients for the next reservoir change.
I think it I saw in one of tinytoon??s grow logs that he used a tomato cage (that wire thins people use when growing tomatoes, LOL, help me out here) to use as a support structure for his plants. I??m building that into my next bucket design, but for this go around I??m thinking of just gluing some tall wooden pieces to act as a support. I can tie the babies to it as they grow.
I was giving some serious thought to topping my BD#3, but I decided to wait and hear some input from anyone who knows about the technique. I??m going to try my hand at LTS next grow, but I don??t have the setup this time around. Will topping produce two colas on top? Is it dangerous for the plant?
Here is the daily update (I included two high def pics of the roots that aren??t included in the links below)
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01380.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01381.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01382.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01383.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01384.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01385.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01386.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01387.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01388.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01389.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01390.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01391.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01392.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01393.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01394.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01395.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01396.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01397.jpg
Entire Crop
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01398.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01402.jpg
The attached images are of mutant BD#1 (long roots) and GDP #2 (spiny roots).
Topping is done in Veg only and the way we do it is we make sure there are a couple weeks left in veg to recover from shock before starting to flower. Then when we flower lights are shut down for min 36 straight hours before turn HPS on for 12/12. Somewhere I read that doing this dark period speeds up the process of converting from veg to flower by resetting the "internal clock" of the plants. There are some really good posts on how to fim and worst case can google it.
Tinytoon, thanks for that info on your dark cycle. I may just try that come flower time :rasta:
DAY 12
I topped BD#3 today, and I hope I did it correctly :yippee: I also switched the positions of BD#1 and GDP#3. GDP# 1 and 2 are growing fat while 3 is growing tall, as it??s the farthest from the light. I figured since BD#1 and 3 are doing so well, they could sit in the back while I moved my GDP??s to the front. BD#2 is getting healthier and healthier with no more funky leaves growing; only good green leaves.
The reservoir in my double plant bucket has dropped more than the others, and is barely touching the net pots now. However, the roots are still immersed in the water. As long as the ends of the roots are in the water, does the water level need to be raised high enough to engulf the bottom part of the net pot? I??m going to top it off tonight, but I??d like to know for next time.
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01407.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01408.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01409.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01414.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01415.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01416.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01410.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01411.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01412.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01413.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01417.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01418.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01419.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01420.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01421.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01422.jpg
Entire Crop
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01423.jpg
When I refill mine I try to get water up to bottom of net pot.
Tinytoon, I went ahead and topped off the reservoirs so that the bottom of the net pots are immersed in water. I was surprised that my two babies gulped down so much water in such a short period of time. Thirsty girls!
DAY 13
I came home tonight to find new little branch buds emerging from my topping of BD#3. That was QUICK! My BD#3 seems completely unfazed by its little operation last night, so I went ahead and did the same to BD#1 (the taller of the two coming out of the rock wool). I was hoping this would slow their growth upwards a little bit to give the GDP??s a chance to catch up, but if BD#3 is any indication of what will happen with BD#1, I don??t think that??s going to happen.
Other than that information, I adjusted the pH, which had only risen .2 - .3 during the day, to 5.8 in each reservoir. I also moved BD#2 around with GDP#2 for lighting reasons.
My BD#2 seems to have topped itself. I see two stems coming out of the main stem. I took some pics to get some feedback on that. Am I crazy?
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01488.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01489.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01490.jpg
I??m loving the DWC method. I watch the pH, spray my babies with its special spray, move them around a bit, and give them some TLC and they are thriving, even in not-so-great heat conditions. And the reservoir water that I dump out is doing wonders for my lawn :P
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01472.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01473.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01474.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01475.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01479.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01480.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01476.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01477.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01478.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01481.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01482.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01483.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01484.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01485.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01486.jpg
ENTIRE CROP
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01487.jpg
I guess personally I wouldn't spend a lot of time trying to delay 2 of them for the other 3 to catch up. You have 2 dif strains running which can be a chore without same flowering times and such. You have had a few down falls but have come back real well. I would chock this up as a learning grow, let it finish and load her up and do it again.
TinyToon, I think that's what I'm going to have to do. I'm going to finish the veg stage at 4 weeks, so I have a little over 2 weeks left. I'll let the GDP's do their thing and flower when it's time, regardless of size. Then, for my next grow (which begins basically the same day I harvest lol), it's ALL BD's!
The ladies are doing fine. My topped plants aren??t even phased and are almost a foot tall. I turn my pots every 12 hours or so the side that??s getting the least shade then gets the most light. It??s worked out well so far.
My partner and I are changing out the reservoirs on Sunday. Just like last time, I??ll prepare a spare bucket with two water stones inside. I??ll ph it/cal bag it/nute it, and fill it to the bottom of the net pot. The lid will hold 2 pots, and I can do two plants at a time. For the last plant, I??ll just dump the spare reservoir into the cleaned bucket. My partner and I are also going to quickly get into the lighting system to clean out the sawdust. My carbon filter arrives either tomorrow or Monday.
The BD??s have already formed several new branch buds where I topped them. I don??t know if I did it correctly or not, but it seems to be doing what it??s supposed to do. I??m loving the comeback of BD#2. The GDP??s are now growing at a much faster rate now that their roots have exploded and are immersed in the nutrient bath. I??ll probably take some clones from BD#1 and #3 next week.
Here are my daily update pics
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01495.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01496.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01497.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01501.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01502.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01503.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01498.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01499.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01500.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01504.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01505.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01506.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01507.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01508.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01509.jpg
ENTIRE CROP:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01510.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01511.jpg
My BD#3 reached 12 inches (1 foot) this morning!!! I'll post pics tonight in my daily update, I just couldn't contain my excitement. If I follow the same growth pattern from the past 15 days, should BD#3 reach 2 feet in the NEXT 15 days (generally speaking of course)? If that's the case, that will be perfect, time wise, as my space could probably only allow those babies to reach 3 feet max (assuming they nearly double during flowering period in size). I have a 25 inch wide, 10 foot tall space. I have lot's of length as well (I haven't measured it but I'd guess it's 8 - 10 feet). It's basically a large rectangular space So I'm very excited that things appear to be right on target :rasta:
DAY 15
BD #1 and BD#3 are both at 1 foot in height and are getting quite bushy. The GDP??s continue their slow growth, with GDP#1 the slowest. She has the least root growth and has grown the slowest. The other GDP??s have some good root growth going for them and they are showing signs of growth bouth in width and height. BD#2 is showing massive root growth and a lot of foliage. I??m glad we decided to wait on pulling her as she??s made an amazing comeback. We??re doing another reservoir change tomorrow and putting the babies on full nutrient levels.
Daily Update
BD# 1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01525.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01526.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01529.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01530.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01527.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01528.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01531.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01532.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01533.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01534.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01535.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01536.jpg
ENTIRE CROP
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01537.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01538.jpg
Random Closeups:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01539.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01541.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01543.jpg
Day 16
Today was our reservoir switch out: 5 buckets at 5 gallons a bucket totaling 25 gallons. The roots have grown so long that the reservoir change-out is not aseasy as it was last time. Some of the roots have grown around the lines attached to the bubble stone so I had to gently separate them. I??m wondering as these babies grow, it??s going to be harder and harder to empty the reservoir. Has anyone just topped off the reservoir with nutrient treated water without changing it? I can??t think of a simple way to do this when the plants are larger and have colas. Any tips would be appreciated.
We used the full nutrient regiment this time, so 12 teaspoons of Foxfarms Grow Big per bucket. RO water, pHed to 5.8 ?? 5.9 nd calMaged. My partner and I decided to forego the cleaning of the cooltube around our light. We??re taking Tinytoons advice and chalking any delay or reductions in output from the sawdust light to a beginner??s grow, and will take it all apart and clean it when this one is finished. So many things could go wrong in taking apart what is already put together and working, it??s just not worth the hassle and potential problems this time around.
While we worked to change out the reservoirs, I was able to take some pics of the root structure so far:
GDP#1:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01548.jpg
BD#2:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01550.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01553.jpg
GDP #3:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01557.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01560.jpg
Daily Update
BD #1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01566.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01567.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a.../DSC01570.jpgv
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01572.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01568.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01569.jpg
GDP #1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01574.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01575.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01576.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01577.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01578.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01579.jpg
ENTIRE CROP:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01580.jpg
Yes I'm sorry to say the change out gets harder as plants get bigger. I dont think the roots growing around stone or lines is to bad but when the dam thing is about 4' tall it gets to be a real PITA. Here is my trick, off we go to Lowes or home dePOT to purchase a drill pump. They cost around $7 and work on any drill, I recomend electric drill as it has good high rpm's and doesnt die halfway through. Couple pieces of spare garden hose and your in!! Try not to let the pump run dry as it will burn up since it uses the water it pumps for cooling. Filling can become easier by purchasing a funnel for filling auto transmission. Nice and long so you dont have to bend over as much, I suffer from chronic back pain.
Tinytoon, as always, thanks for the recommendation. I never even knew drill pumps existed! Although I wont get to clean the reservoir out, it will allow me to drain it and fill it without nearly as much effort as it has been taking. I'll look into this more and see if I can get my hands on a cheap pump.
DAY 17
My BD??s loved the reservoir change as they have exploded with new growth:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01597.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01598.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01596.jpg
All else, I bought a battery powered pump for my next reservoir change out. The babies may still be manageable enough to where I don??t need it, and I??d like to get in there and clean the buckets out for as long as I can. My next change-out is this Sunday or Monday. I??m going to be out of town so I am not sure. The next reservoir change is the last change out before I begin the flowering stage. I??ll also be adding nutes that I haven??t used yet.
I don??t think the GDP??s are going to do much compared to the BD??s over the next week, but I may be surprised. Still, very pleased with how things are going so far. Oddly enough, my previously runty BD#2 has forked off to form two main stems. I didn??t need to top it.
DAILY UPDATE
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01581.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01582.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01585.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01586.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01587.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01583.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01584.jpg
BD Group Shot: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01588.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01589.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01590.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01591.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01592.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01593.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01594.jpg
Entire Crop: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01595.jpg
and the quest goes on!! going good for just breaking into growing, keep it up.
It was very hot today. The good news is, the weather is slowly decreasing starting tomorrow into tolerable temperatures over the next week. My babies don??t appear phased, but still, I want better conditions.
I am thinking of adding a hole into the top of my bucket lids. I want it big enough to where I can stick a pH tester/Pump into, but small enough so I can stuff it with a small rubber plug (found at any local hardware store). Has anyone tried that before? I??m trying to figure out a way so I don??t have to lift the lid off of these babies for their daily checkups.
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01611.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01612.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01619.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01613.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01614.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01615.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01616.jpg
BD??s: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01617.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01620.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01621.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01622.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01623.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01624.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01625.jpg
All : http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01626.jpg
It was another hot one today, although not as hot as yesterday. My babies gulped up a lot of water, and they needed to be topped off. This gave me a chance to test out my battery operated ??gas pump? style pump. WOW, it was much easier than trying to pour from a gallon container. I also tested out transferring water out of my bucket reservoirs by slightly moving the lid over and then placing the pump inside the bucket. It??s perfect, and should save a lot of time and energy next changeout.
My light has an annoying habit of, occasionally, turning itself off for 5 seconds and then slowly turning itself back on. I??m using an older magnetic ballast and I??m wondering if it could be a heat issue. It doesn??t turn off constantly, just every so often it will do this and I don??t know why. The light goes out, but then begins to glow, and slowly come back on.
Here are some shots I took while the light was off:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01627.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01628.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01629.jpg
I also tried to get a good pic of the two main stems coming out of the rockwool/hydroton in BD#1:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01645.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01644.jpg
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01630.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01631.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01632.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01633.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01634.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01635.jpg
BD??s
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01643.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01636.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01637.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01638.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01639.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01640.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01641.jpg
Entire Grow:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01642.jpg
Sounds like ballast overheating. If it is sitting straight on floor try raising it up some so more air can get around it or put a small fan blowing on it.
TInyToon, I'm picking up a fan today that I'll point directly at and into the ballast, which I hope helps to solve the problem. BTW, the BD's are at 15-16 inches now! They are getting so bushy, its like they are trying to escape from the grow cabinet :D
Temperatures were in the mid to high 90??s today, which is cooler than it has been but still wicked hot. It??s dipping into the mid 80??s over the next few days so I??m keeping my fingers crossed. I bought a fan and pointed it at my ballast, but the light went off again while I was working in the grow room, and this time I know I didn??t touch the light or cool tube. It could be the heat, the bulb, faulty wiring?who knows. The ballast itself never shuts off, but the light suddenly turns itself off, glowing orange and slowly fading. Then, the bulb slowly begins to turn yellow, all the way lengthwise, until it finally flashes on and grows brighter over a slow period. Very strange. The plants so no obvious signs of stress, but I??m going to have to keep an eye on this.
Before I post my daily update, here??s a pic of BD#2??s roots. Remember the little runt that I was going to pull? Here she is: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01662.jpg
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01646.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01647.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01648.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01649.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01650.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01651.jpg
BD??s: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01658.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01652.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01653.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01654.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01655.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01656.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01657.jpg
Entire Grow:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01659.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...ey/DSC0160.jpg
Well sorry to say I am not an electrician (my father is hehe) and I have never used a magnetic ballast before so I dont want to steer you wrong but I think I might be saving pennies for a new digital ballast. Nextgen has some really nice ones that are comparable to Lumitek but cost less :thumbsup:
Sounds like a thermal switch in the ballast. No way to tell without hands on to check with meter. When a HID bulb goes it goes so I don't think it's the bulb. I have dealt with magnetic ballast for years and rarely see one go bad. They just need replacing like the bulb that degrades over a year only they last much longer.
The high heat makes me want to say thermal switch.
Thanks Tinytoon and loc for your comments. I went ahead and ordered my own lighting system lat night with a digital ballast, so hopefully that will solve my problems :-)
My partner came over and we did our reservoir changeout. It was 100X easier with the pump, so thanks again for that tip Tinytoon. I slid the lid over a bit, inserted one end of the pump into the reservoir, and pumped at all out very easily compared to lifting each bucket out of the cab, let alone the trouble and possible damage to the babies from transporting them to their temporary bucket while I emptied their reservoir. So yeah, the pump was awesome! I got a peak at the roots with the lids slid over, and some of them were reaching the bottom of the bucket.
The bad news is, in the course if spending so much time in the grow cab today, the light turned itself off every 40 minutes or so even with a fan pointed right at the ballast. The ballast itself has outtake vents, but the force of the fan should still be enough to cool what??s inside I think. My new system should, hopefully, arrive next week. Again, the plants don??t show any obvious signs of stress yet, and the light is only off for less than a minute before it turns on again. I??m looking forward to a digital ballast, but I??m not looking forward to taking apart my light system, which is attached to my vent system, in the middle of the grow X_X.
Today we started the pre-flower nuts, adding some open sesame for the first time, and a dose of Big Bloom. One more week of veg, and then I turn my lights on to 12/12. It may work in my best interest, in waiting for my new system to arrive, to set my lights to 36 hours (I think that was the time) of darkness at the start of the flowering stage as tiny mentioned that??s how he starts his flowering stage. If my new system has not yet arrived by the end of next week, it wouldn??t hurt to just leave the malfunctioning light off for as long as possible so long as it won??t hurt the babies.
It??s getting harder to take pics of individual BD??s, their foliage is merging together!
DAILY UPDATE
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01667.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01668.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01669.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01670.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01671.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01672.jpg
BD??s: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01680.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01673.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01674.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01675.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01676.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01677.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01678.jpg
All: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01679.jpg
Dont flip till you get that light working right. Odds of creating a hermie are not very high in Veg but flower is a diff story. With the new ballast you are getting if it is the same wattage as what you are using now and if light cord fits into digital ballast then there is no need to tear it all apart and reinstall, if all the same just change ballast out :jointsmile:
If you don't already, get some flouro's of any kind untill your new light and ballast get here. Any good light so they won't freak out. Just a couple compact flouro's and it won't mean much when the big one blinks off. I used a couple 4 foot shop lights for the second week of flower once.
I was out of town all day and just got home. To my complete surprise, my lighting system was waiting for me on my front porch!!! The company I ordered from must have overnighted that baby. I ran to my grow room and sure enough, the light was OFF. I quickly switched out the ballast, and BAM, the light came on almost immediately. I think my lighting problem is solved as I??ve now replaced the faulty ballast. I??ll implement the new light and cool tube for my next grow but for now, I??m just using the new digital ballast. The ganja gods are being really kind to me this grow for some reason?.
Anyway, its late and I??m, tired, so I only took two pics:
Daily Update
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3944.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3945.jpg
tinytoon and LOC NAR, thanks so much for the great suggestions. You were both right on of course, but I rally lucked out with my light arriving today so I hope this solves my problem.
Right on right on. We shall overcome.
Improvise, Adapt and Overcome!! Hoora!!
The babies are doing well. My BD??s are unidentifiable now as their foliage has merged. Even my GDP??s are looking beefier than usual. The new ballast is working like a charm and I haven??t noticed any outages.
I want to take some clones in a few days. I??m thinking of setting up a 5 gallon bucket and drilling 4 holes into the lid. I want to get 4 small netpots and place the rockwool clones into that. I??ll then cover the lid with a clear plastic container that keeps the humidity inside. Does this sound kosher? Will roots begin to form over a two week period? I??m going to use CFL??s for the clones.
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01829.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01830.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01833.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01834.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01831.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01832.jpg
BD;s: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01835.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01836.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01837.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01838.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01839.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01840.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01841.jpg
Crop: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3944.jpg
It might work but you have to make sure that the clones stems are getting wet to form roots. Also be careful using any type of dome when cloning with water like areo and such as this can keep things too wet and cause stem rot.
tinytoon, I gotcha. I am going to use a tupperware like plastic container (black) and use that instead of the 5 gallon bucket. But the same principle applies: cut the clones, soak them in pHed/calmag water, then place in rockwool or some other form of plug (that has also been soaked), then place them in the mini bubbler. I'll make sure the water level is low enough so the stems are not submerged, but high enough so the bubbles spray it with water.
Two questions:
1. Do the stems need to be poking through the bottom of the rockwool, or will the bottom part of the rockwool soak up enough water to feed the stem? I noticed some people don't use rockwool at all: they just place the stem through a piece of foam or something similar, and the water spray causes roots to grow. I prefer sticking them into rockwool or a similar medium just because it's easier to seat them when i move them to their homes after they have rooted.
2. I remember reading somewhere (it may have been one of your posts tinytoon) that you can take a cutting, place it in a ziplock bag, and store it in your fridge for weeks at a time with no ill effect towards that cutting. Is this accurate? If so, I may take two extra clippings and store them in the fridge just in case my clones die or I'm not successful on my first attempt.
Thanks for reading and taking the time to answer this newbies questions :-) I'm all about trial and error, but helpful tips never hurt anyone :rasta:
I found a thread that answered those questions : http://boards.cannabis.com/hydroponi...o-results.html :hippy:
DAY 24 (yes, I messed up the numbering, this is the 24th day)
It was triple digits today Even though the room my grow cab is in gets really hot, the cab itself has a constant flow of air, even if that air is warm. The bucket water is staying surprisingly cool, I??d estimate the low 80??s or even high 70??s. The plants show no signs of stress, other than gulping up the water. The BD??s now stand 22 ?? 24 inches tall.
Daily Update
BD#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01844.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01845.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01860.jpg
BD#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01846.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01847.jpg
BD#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01848.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01849.jpg
BD??s: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01850.jpg
GDP#1
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01851.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01852.jpg
GDP#2
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01853.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01854.jpg
GDP#3
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01855.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01856.jpg
All: http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/DSC01857.jpg
I see you found Bozo's cloner. Great job of DIY and really good instructions, easy to make :)
Yes I was just talking about putting clones in stasis in crisper drawer of fridge, yes it does work. I have kept clones for 7 weeks in the fridge and still rooted and grew.
Despite scorching hot weather, the ladies are still going strong. Between the 6 of them, they drank 4 gallons of top off today. The BD??s were the most drained. GDP #3 is almost a foot tall, and BD#1 isn??t doing terribly bad either. GDP#2 however is still short. The GDP??s could probably use another two weeks of veg but I??m planning to start the flower cycle on Friday.
As it??s impossible to get individual pics of the BD??s, and because I??m exhausted, I used my crap camera for some quick pictures of the grow:
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3946.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3947.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3948.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3949.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3950.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3951.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3952.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3953.jpg
http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/a...y/IMG_3954.jpg
EDIT: I took those pics BEFORE I raised my mylar wall coating to now reflect the light at the top of the babies, and I also moved things around so the big fan leaves weren't shading the smaller GDP#1. Sometimes I catch dead leaves, technical snafus, and other things that need to be changed by looking at the detailed digital pics, more so than when I'm actually in the grow cab :pimp: