DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
tinytoon,thanks for that valuable information. I will put it to good use :thumbsup: I'm going to keep a fwe in the crisper for staggered grows and/or potential replacements for failed experiments.
I mentioned earlier in my thread that I wanted to eventually drill a hole into the top of my 5 gallon reservoir lid which I would use to test the pH, top off, and drain/fill. That hole would be "corked" when not in use with rubber plugs I had found online. I bought a 1 inch drill bit and tested the design out on a sacrificial bucket lid. The 1 inch hole wasn't big enough to fit my pH tester into, and was just too small for practical use. Also,the rubber plugs wouldn't fit properly if not painfully careful and precise with the drill bit. Then it occurred to me: the foam pool toy that I used to create my cork/skirts for the bubble cloner. You can buy thee tings at the dollar store, they are the 8 foot pool noodles that you float on (or whack hornets with) in the pool. most commonly used to assault an unsuspecting sibling or "pool rival". Anyway, I can make a 1 1/2 inch hole or even 2 inch hole, then just cut out a slightly larger sized cork of this waterproof material. That should do the trick.
I wouldn't even have to drill a hole, I could simply cut cut a rectangle out of the lid using a knife, and then just cut a thick, slightly larger rectangular cork out of the pool noodle.
I thought I'd mention this to anyone who was interested in trying this design, especially on the cheap, and didn't want to buy corks or precision drill bits. As the corks I created for my 3/4 inch holes work just as described above, I see no reason why different shapes or sizes would be any different. This should save on some effort of testing pH (lifting those lids and shaking/shifting the plants sucks) and especially on draining/filling.
For those that still don't know what a pool noodle is, it's one of these things: http://www.islandrentalservices.net/...es/noodles.jpg
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
I see the noodle but where is the chicken soup??:D
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
A lot of crap has happened over the past two days: my pump broke, the new drill pump that I bought doesn??t work, and I yet again dropped my pH tester into the water and fried it. ARGH!!!!!! So, I??m back to chemically testing my pH as I wait for yet another pH tester to arrive. As for pumping water out of the 5 gal. buckets tomorrow, could I use a wet/dry shop vac? Something like: Walmart.com: Shop-Vac 5-Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum: Appliances
All I need for it to do is suck up most (if not all) of the water. Any ideas if this will work? If not, any suggestions on where I can purchase a pump that WILL work?
Other than those mishaps, the girls are freaking exploding. The BD??s are 26 ?? 27 inches now, and the GDP #2 is at 12 inches. I used some white twisty ties to help bunch some of the larger BD fan leaves (as you can see in some of the pics) so they wouldn??t prevent the light from hitting the smaller GDP??s. I was very gentle and the twisty tie acts as a very loose collar. Here are some pics:
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DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Boy when it rains it pours eh? Pumps and such you could check the pond/fountain pumps they have at Walmart, Lowes and home dePOT. Also you can check your smaller hardware stores, like Ace, to see what they have for a small sump type pump. I bashed my head for awhile before that idea hit me for emptying my 55 gal drum. Purchased a 660gph sump pump which empties that rez in about 5 mins. By theory that wet/dry vac should work just be carefull not to latch on to any roots with it. Might I suggest a WATERPROOF ph tester :D
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Cheapest pump for emergencies. One of those pumps for kerosene heater. They make them with batteries too.
What i used for years was a bildge pump from a boat shop. I still have it just in case. We use a Slowes pump now that is 120 power and hooks up a hose on both sides. Pumps out the rez and all buckets. Habour freight has one like it but for 12 volts. It worked real good till we got a hydroton ball sucked up in it. Make sure to have a pickup filter if that could happen.
Get a water proof ph pen or have a safety line like I do when I only have one left and low on funds. Safety line is a sting with a little stretch to it. When I go in the room the line is hooked above the door and is only long enough to barely get to the water. Mountain climber style. If you don't hold on good it pulls out of your hand. But don't use a rubber band cause it will cause more damage if it flies up and hits the ceiling. Really happen to a friend. I still can't stop laughing.
Oh there is a way to setup a ventura to pump it out. Maybe look at Aquaponicherbs stuff. I'm sure I saw it there.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
First off, I want to say T H A N K Y O U to Loc nar and TinyToon for both of your excellent posts on the types of pumps you use. I wound up picking up a 12 gallon wet/dry shop vac as it was the most afforadble (and easiest to obtain today), but my partner and I are updating our re-design plans to include some of your suggestions. Again, THANKS!
Now, here's how my day went: First off, let me just say that the shopvac worked amazingly well.It sucked out 5 gallons of water in about 15 seconds!!!!! It took a little longer when I wrapped some cheesecloth around the end of it so i wouldn't damage any of the roots, but still.....light years faster than the little battery operated wand pump I had been using and, one of my favorites features, it's multi use. I can clean up my garage after I empty the reservoirs LOL.
the bad news is, I had no way of easily and cleanly pumping the new water solution into my 5 gal buckets. I t was a messy and wet procedure, and I may consider using a wand pump strictly for pumping water into the 5 gals in the future.
The UGLY news is that....ants have found the grow room. it's hot,so they are looking for water. They haven't started attacking the babies yet, but I see them crawling around in there.Im going to lightly spray around the building, and lay a salt barrier alongside the 4 walls (apparently, salt disrupts the antenna communication of the ants, so they don't cross it)
Finally, my babies are starting to tip over when their foliage is not supported by the other babies foillage. I'll have to add some supports to the main stems so as they get heavier they wont fall over.
THAT ALL SAID, I am extremely happy with the way things are going, and not at all perturbed by the bad and the ugly of things, because I'm having a blast just growing. I suppose I wouldn't be happy if I wasn't learning from the mistakes I've made, but every error or problem I run into is an opportunity to hone my skills and to do even better next time. None of this would be possible without the great posts by those kind enough to comment in this thread. Many thanks!!!!
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
UPDATE
I sprayed outside of my cab and lined the walls with salt. I also found the trail of ants coming in from the outside and zapped them good with pesticide. I think I killed all of the ants this way, and I haven't seen any for a few hours.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Friggin Ants!! :gunfighter2:
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DAY 29
pH tester and 7.01/4.01 calibration solution arrived today! It came factory calibrated and I didn??t even need to adjust it! Anyway, I quickly went back to micro managing my babies pH and everything is sitting at 5.9 ?? 6.0. I??m raising the pH just slightly during the flowering stage based upon tiny??s grow. This is day 2 of the flowering stage.
The ants are completely gone. Motherfuckers better not come back or I??ll kill them with FIRE?..or pesticide?.or perhaps both. My partner figured out why my drill pump wasn??t working?.it??s RPM??s were too weak. I need a more powerful drill. Since I already have the shop vac for QUICK draining, I figure a powerful drill?yet another multi use tool?.will be a good investment and serve as a good pump for the water going back into the buckets.
Daily Update
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DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Wait till they start drinking like a MoFo hehe
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DAY 32
I won't be able to update my pictures until Friday due to my work schedule and the light schedule for the babies. I have just enough time to get in there, adjust whatever needs to be adjusted, and then get out before the light turns off. So stay tuned for those new pics coming Friday.
Right now, my babies are starting to emit a faint skunk odor, which to me is a good sign. There are also dozens upon dozens of what I first thought were new leaf buds, but I think they are actually bud buds LOL. I'll snap some close ups on Friday and you can be the judge. Seems a little soon to be being only 5 days into my flowering cycle, but...what the heck do I know???
The babies are freaking growing taller by the second. I cant even get into the foliage to measure them anymore, but if I had to guess, I'd say the BD's are standing about 3 feet now. My partner and I expected to have killed all the babies within the first two weeks, so on top of our original low expectations, and despite scorching heat, the babies have persevered!
I haven't seen a single ant for two days now, so my "shock and awe....and kill them all with your weapons, fire, and whatever else you can think to kill those little fuckers" technique worked! GO TO HELL ANTS! YOU GO TO HELL AND YOU DIE!!!! Sorry...I just hate ants, or any critter, man, woman, or child that wants to molest my babies ;-P
Finally, the babies are drinking water at a semi average rate. They drank 3 gallons amongst themselves (mostly amongst the BD's) tonight, so that's three gallons since I changed out their reservoir on Friday. I probably wont top off again since I'll do another changeout on Saturday. Surprisingly, their pH has continued to remain remarkably consistent. As I mentioned in previous posts, every morning during the veg stage I'd have to
lower the pH on all the babies anywhere from 2 - 5 points.So one of the BD's would be at 6.3 in the morning, and I'd lower it to 5.8 Id also do this at the end of the day; lower it a few notches to the perfect range for the net 12 - 16 hours. Anyway, last night AND this morning I didn't have to adjust the pH AT ALL, and even after adding water, the pH hardly changed. Is this a good sign, bad sign, or normal sign? I'm wondering if the bad heat my region experienced the last few weeks may have been a contributor to the pH levels, and now that it's nice and cool weather (mid 70's to mid 80's depending on time of day, high 60's to low 70s at night) the pH is a little more balanced?
Anyway, stay tuned for Friday.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Quick question: should I still be spraying the foliage with my foliage spray now that the flowering stage has begun? I usually spray them twice a day.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
From all the things I have read and can remember real quick, NO spray during Flower. Also you have done great at keeping PH down but now in flower let it float up just a tad like 6.0-6.2. Allows better uptake by plant of things needed more in Flower.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Tinytoon, thanks for that information! I'll stop spraying them today (I already sprayed them this morning).
I've been keeping the babies at a range of 6.0 - 6.1 so it's good to know I can let them get even slightly higher if I want.
I love the smell coming out of the room, and I LOVE seeing these little bud sites and whispy little strands start to appear. Even my GDP's are starting to "bud"!
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
It's a beautiful site watching the "kids" grow up :thumbsup:
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
tinytoon, it really is :) I had a chance to measure the babies this morning, and they are standing at OVER 40 inches!
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Big enough to work!! Now show them the door so they can go make a paycheck!!!
Oops I guess we were talking about plants huh?
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Tinytoon, LOL. Yeah, I caught some of those BD's trying to brEak into my car last night so they could escape into Mexico. I had to lock them back up in the cab ;-) NO LOVELY LADY ESCAPES THE M0NKEYS PIPE, NOT ONE! Is it sadistic that sometimes I medicate in the same room as the cab? Almost like eating a pork chop in front of your pet pig?lol.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DAY 35 (Day 6 of flowering)
Not much to report, other than the babies measured over 40 inches and are still growing. I??ll soon run out of space height wise, so I may have to start bending the main branches. I still have about 10 or 15 inches, so I??ll have to play it by ear. The pH continues to remain extremely consistent, and I haven??t had to adjust it for two days now. It??s hovering between 6.0 and 6.2.
Tomorrow do another changeout. This changeout is unique because I now start really adding the flowering nutes. I??ve added very little having to do with flowering, even though UI started the flowering stage last week, but tomorrow put in the most nutes (that is, different types) since this grow began, so I??m really excited and hope to see flowers appear in the near future. My partner will be here helping me out so hopeful this time it won??t be as wet/messy.
The skunky smell continues to grow slightly stronger every day, so even though I??m not seeing anything dramatic in terms of bud formation, I??m starting to see whispy hair like strands appear as I hope you an see in the pics. I grew ONE clone in soil many years ago so I know what the flowering buds look like and I??m not quite there yet, but still?.skunky smell = good in my opinion.
The new digital ballast is working like a dream. It stays (relatively) cool and turns that light on real quick, unlike the old magnetic one which takes a few minutes to turn on. I??ve also taped all of the seams in my cab where the plywood connects to the walls to eliminate any light seepage. SO?everything is going as it should. The babies are gulping down the water, about 5 gallons a week between them all.
Enjoy the pics, I??ll definitely take some nice ones once some buds really start to appear. It??s hard to capture the scope of how large these things have grown. I didn??t intend to grow any Christmas trees but it??s turning out that way. I would have been ecstatic to get a single ounce out of this grow, but if things continue as they have, I may be lucky to get a little more than that OH?and my carbon filter works like a dream. My cab sits in a separated, individual room, almost like a detached guest room. It does slightly smell once you enter that room, but not outside. And standing right outside the vent exhaust with my nose right up to it, I can??t smell a thing. If anyone cares, I bought mine from Foothill filters on ebay.
DAILY UPDATE
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DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DAY 37 (DAY 8 OF FLOWERING)
My partner came out yesterday and we did another changeout. It went very smoothly, considering. BD#1 fell through the lid; that is, the netpot fell through. The lesson learned here is don??t make the holes perfectly fit the lid of the pot?.make sure the lip of the netpot is about 1/3rd of an inch above the lid of the bucket so it has better support. I tied some string for support and that??s no longer an issue.
Speaking of tying string, the babies keep growing up, up, and away, that in order to try to salvage what little space I have left, I??m bending some of the top branches just a little bit. The funny thing is, within hours of slightly bending atop branch towards the right, the branch had already twisted upwards towards the light?.BD is a VERY resilient baby. That said, the gentle bending seems to be a good option for saving some space right now. BD#1 drank about half of a gallon in one day, so I??m assuming that??s also a good sign.
Also, countless little hairy buds are starting to slowly present themselves. I tried to snap pics of them all but it??s hard to convey with pics what??s going on at this stage.
Daily Update
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DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Whoops, it's supposed to be DAY 36/7 OF FLOWERING
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
No need to gently bend it, bend it till it snaps over. Thats super cropping. The plant will form a big fat knuckle where you bent it over.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
My smallest GDP is dead. I finally ??bushwacked? my way to the back of the grow cab and saw her sad, pathetic little corpse just all shriveled and dried up. It??s odd, because a few days ago I was considering pulling her anyway since that??s 5 gallons of water I could be saving on and she wasn??t growing. Well, she decided for me LOL. So I placed the two GDP??s into the double bucket and removed the old bucket, which gives me more space to work. I couldn??t care less if ALL of the GDP??s died for at this point the BD??s have my full attention. Those whores are treating me right, not those prudish GDP??s :D
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Quote:
Originally Posted by supchaka
No need to gently bend it, bend it till it snaps over. Thats super cropping. The plant will form a big fat knuckle where you bent it over.
The only problem with that is you can cut off the supply route to the top of plant if "snap" goes to far. Had 3-4 plants that the tops fell over do to colas weight and 2 of them the tops started dieing because the internals of the stem were completely cut off but still intact on the outside. Not saying it is right or wrong just throwing in personal experience.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Yeah, I'm not brave enough to bend my main stem until it "snaps". I personally haven't read anything about that particular technique. At first glance, I would assume the branch would die if I were to snap it, but maybe there's more too it than that. All I'm doing is gently tilting the top of the branch a few degrees to the left or right so they don't hit the light. It also exposes the flowers lower on the branch to more light which is an added bonus.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Being a first time grower, experiencing extreme heat for many weeks, ants, sawdust, and a sloppy changeout system for the first 4 weeks, I am very happy with the results I've gotten so far. I'm loving this BD strain!!!!! She's well over 6 1/2 feet to 7 feet tall a some of the bent stocks go for several feet at an almost 90 degree angle.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Thanks tinytoon! It's taking all my self control not to run into my cab and give each and every one of those buds a little hug. They are so hypnotizing to watch, and I just want to touch them and squeeze them LOL.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
I dont add anything to the water for final week but then again I dont use RO water either. Wish I could give you some insight but I dont know the answer to this one.
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
I'm not as experienced as some others here...that being said after reading up on Lucas and using Latewoods formula with good results you should not need to flush for 2 weeks especially if you are running hydro. 5-7 days with florakleen is all you need. You should try and add a high PK boost (if you want) two weeks before harvest and then flush. My Buds taste great and develop more resin in the last weeks doing it this way. :thumbsup:
DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
DAY 57
It was in the triple digits today, but my babies are still doing fine. I gave them 3 gallons more water in between them, and I yanked out my second to last GDP. Lesson learned: don't do two plants per bucket, they fight for nutes and kill each other. Now I know. The big, and only remaining GDP is producing some small buds.
Now if I understand this correctly, the orange hairs aren't necessarily an indicator that its ready, more so the white trichomes (not clear). Is this correct? I only ask because, as you'll see in one of the pics, one of the buds has a hairy orange top, but does look ready to be plucked yet, plus there's still a few weeks left. I just want to confirm if I am correct on that.
I took my pics right after the lights went out. Enjoy:
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DWC GDP/Blue Dream grow log.
Hairs dont tell you when its done. The top you are talking about looks burnt to me. Did a bulb fall on it?
You must check the trichs for harvest time. Those buds need a few more weeks. The hardest part is waiting for them to ripen...trust me.
