newbie hydrocfl experiment

this is something i started back in Feb. and i'm not exactly what you'd call 'organizized' so note taking has been sporadic at best.

in doing this (posting) i hope to get help with problems i encounter, and believe me, i've not only encountered several problems, i've gotten a LOT of useful advice. i also hope to help or inspire others of us still slogging up the learning curve. mostly though, i do this because i find that i enjoy growing immensely, i find it truely relaxing and there is no bud as sweet as the one you grew yourself!
i find also that i need someplace safe to talk about it, to confer, to opine, to ...

sorry, people tell me i'm long winded. here are some pics of the beginning

1) my cfl's with a view of my old MV security lights (man they sucked)
2) my bin (proto-type #1) with black duct tape, dowels, hot glued for support, and bag-seedlings in DIY net pots, aka dixie cups
3) note oscillating fan in back, air line in front and thermometer hung too high in the upper right
4) puttin' down roots
5) ahhh, my canopy to be

more pics please

1) the back of my closet
2) work begins on proto-type #2
3) pretty self-explanitory
4) ubiquitous duct tape
5) getting ready for movong day

what style hydro??
lol looks like you could use some zip ties for the mile of wires
looks cool man ......always wondered what to do under the stairs..

I guess some background would help so, first, Iâ??m 52 now and I started â??blazingâ?? my own trail in 1968, â??the good old daysâ??. Iâ??m also a disabled vet and a single parent with 3 teenagers convinced they know all the answers before theyâ??ve heard the questions, sadly, just like theyâ??re old man back in â??68, I vacillate between wanting to hug them and wanting to choke them, lol.

Anyway, thatâ??s another story, maybe â??The Trials and Tribulations of Trying To Teach Teenagers To Thinkâ?? would work.

Enough intro, as I said, Iâ??m new to growing, in fact, Iâ??m actually only recording hypothetical scenarios that exist within the nooks and crannies of my half-baked mind, Iâ??ve NEVER actually grown any illegal substances, nor would I. I'm actually just lost in thought.

Anyway, it was last year i decided to try growing my own bud and, although it didn't yield me what i'd hoped for, i got enough to be hooked. lol.
Anywho, that first attempt was in dirt, in DIY pots made from 2 liter Coke bottles and they worked great, not big enough for momma's but nice for clones, and 15 of them fit into one of those bins (before the hot glued dowels were installed of course).
This time i decided to go hydro and i know now, except for outdoors, i will never go back, my results have been MUCH better with the hydro and the cfl's too

Quote:

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Originally Posted by moneyshotpb

what style hydro??
lol looks like you could use some zip ties for the mile of wires
looks cool man ......always wondered what to do under the stairs..

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DWC my man, very few moving parts. also, i don't think i'd know how to act if i wasn't tripping over my own shit, lol, still a teenager myself inside here (my head), and thanks, still very much a work in progress.

some more pics of the transition to stage 2

1) half done moving
2) move complete (note different colored cups for different bag-seed strains
3) complications (i battle root-rot)
4) more roots, sick from oxy deprivation
5) a little healthier here

not the yellow tint to the water, i tried some stuff i got at the pet store sold to treat fish with fungal problems, i don't know if it helped or not but it didn't hurt them and most survived. the survival rate of my seedlings has been MUCH better with hydro.
anyway, here are some pics of vegetative growth during my battle with root-rot. note the short internodes brought about i'm sure because i used 4x30wtt 6500K CFL's and 1x40wtt 2700K CFL for lighting, the growth i've gotten off these CFL's has been amazing.
and i'm using cfl's rather than hid's because i can add 40wtts at a time for under ten bucks as opposed to having to buy an hid for 300.00. also, lol, before you suggest it, i plan on reversing my light spectrum for flowering

Root rot = Reservoir temp????

not res temp but oxy dep, i got lazy making the move and left the plantlets in the new proto-types without an oxygen line for a few days, not very smart i know, fortunately, most survived my neglect.
shit man, they grow like WEEDS lol

pics 1 and 2 are of the ones that i neglected, pics 3 and 4 are the ones that had uninterrupted oxygen and the last pic is another shot of the expanding canopy, note the empty cups left by the valiant dead.

Lookin good...I started out using a small storage container like that as well...from there to the Folgers coffee containers...aint stoppin now..:D..

My first Hawaiian Snow..from Green House Seeds..

Peace,
Treetops :thumbsup:

who knew Folgers could be so sweet, LOL

i'm not using those bins anymore either, i found some new ones for prototype #3, almost the same footprint but they hold 27 quarts.
actually 5 gallons fits comfortably with some room to spare, plus they're made of black plastic so no light leaks, plus, they're available at Lowes, which is a store like Home Depot so they're really easy to find. another plus is they come in several sizes and depths, i'm using one of the smaller ones for a bubble cloner
i'll put pics up when i get there, i don't want to get ahead of myself here

in looking back over the thread i realised how light on details it was so let me fill in.

i started this grow back in mid February with bagseed, 20 in all. i germinated them in pre-soaked rockwool starter cubes inside a dome and they all popped but 2, not bad at all. then, i started 10 more from the bag i had just finished, being better than average middies, of those 10, 9 popped.
so, the first and second set of pics are from mid March when i began work on prototype #2. by the first of April i was ready to begin work on prototype #3 (i think this is it).
i'm using Technaflora's BC Boost, Grow and Bloom with ThriveAlive B1 red and green as my basic nutrient mix and i follow the directions to the letter except a little on the light side.
my plan, my hope, my dream is to have a perpetual Sea Of Green in my closet. not as a commercial enterprise but just to feed my head. ultimately, once i iron out the kinks, i want to have 3 mommas from 3 different premium strains that i can take 4 cuttings from, every third week.
i don't plan on any vegging at all other than the 3 - 4 weeks it will take to get a solid root mass established, then directly to flower.
i'm using DWC throughout, with identical bins in the flower op and for the mommas, i even built a bubble cloner that is identical except half as tall. in the flower room each 5 gallon bin has 8 stations for a total of 32 stations, made to fit diy pots made from 9 oz cups, 2 colors, 2 strains. i plan on putting 4 clones a week until i get to that beautiful day when i have to take 4 out to put 4 in. also, if i can manage even 6 grams per i will be as happy as a clam cuz i don't smoke 24 grams a week now and all i get now is middies.
anyway, here's some pics of the expanding canopy from the first week of April

btw, i'm an attention junkie so all comments are appreciated

Great stuff justanotherbozo
You got a closet full of beautiful plants there. Im glad they made it through the root rot without any major problems. I too started growing from my closet only to expand to my nana cab finally, but I miss having my bedroom stink of fresh herb.

Ill be lurking around so If for any reason you need a bit of help, Ill be around. I diy all my stuff, since I like to think of myself as handy. Plus I dont have money to throw around so I have to use it wisely.

grow hard and grow smart


stay irie

Hi justanotherbozo,
I have been lurking on your Hydro experiment and thought it was time to chime in.
Its looking good' your babes look strong i recon you are doing something right.:thumbsup:

Wow they're so healthy and beautiful! I'm thinking that next time I get to start another DWC I'll probably end up making my own netpots like yours. But before I can gather the supplies I need I'll probably try (and fail) at a small dirt grow.

Keep up the good work, you'll have a jungle there in no time!

thanks for looking man, the truth is those pictures are from early April, they have grown so much since then it is amazing, especially since i'm only using CFLs. my last grow, which was my first, was in dirt and, although i got some smokeable bud, the yield was meager.
i didn't know diddley when i started and i live on a very tight budget so i had to find lighting i could afford. what i did was buy a 175wattt Mercury Vapor security light for $25.00 at walmart, it even came with the bulb. then, about 6 wks later i bought another. i won't go into all the problems i had but i shitcanned the MV lights and now i'm using CFLs and it's just amazing, the difference.
i'll be putting more pics up today so i can try to get up-to-date with it.
anyway, thanks for the feedback

bozo,
peace, love, dope

here are some pics of the new bins, i think these are my finalists.
anyway, the pics

1) 2 of the new bins, they have almost an identical footprint as the others except, they hold more than double the nutes.
2) covers, as you can see, almost the same size
3) another angle with the covers and a coke bottle for perspective
4) 1 done, 3 more to go
5) my neighbors kid pissing on the fence

hit the wrong button, heres the pics

Thanks for the advice.....after you are done you should post the plans for the hydro setup....it looks great and so does ure garden....keep up the good work ill be following to watch ure progress....:thumbsup:

LOL, there aren't any plans, just in my head and good luck finding anything in there!
really though, the pics tell 99% of the story and the rest will be detailed as i go. i kinda feel though that the detail depth will be dependent on questions and comments i get. some of the stuff i've done seems so simple to me now that it wouldn't need to be mentioned, except that when i started i didn't know jack, i've done sooo much reading my eye-balls are permanently fuzzy feeling i think.
anyway, like i said in the thread heading, this is an experiment. i truely hope it will succeed, i think it will, but if it doesn't then i will have learned one more way not to do it! LOL wish me luck

Hey, nice. Looks like your plants came along nicely. I like the spirit of invention. I can only recommend one thing at this point, but it's a biggie. At least in your new experimenting, you should consider buying a big air pump and adding as many air stones as the thing can power. You've touched on this a little already, but it's the best thing you could do for your grow. You want to try and supply as much air to your roots as possible. They should stay as dry as they can without stressing the plants. Adding more air stones will most likely eliminate any problem with root rot, and your plants will grow much healthier and bigger to boot. Also consider an innoculant and microorganism booster like Subculture by General Hydro.

I used this stuff when i did a NFT grow, worked great on the roots.:)
CANNAZYM is a high-quality enzyme product. It consists of more than 12 different kinds of enzymes to which vitamins and extracts of desert plants are added. CANNAZYM speeds up the process of breaking down dead root material and activates the micro-organisms. In addition to this, CANNAZYM facilitates the improved absorption of nutrients and increases the resistance against pathogenic organisms.

thanks guys, hadn't thought about the enzymes and Opie, i was kinda droolin' over this big pump i saw in my local grow shop, just like the one Weedhound uses. gonna go get one on the first of the month.

Your doing pretty good....no real catastrophe. I concur with Opie. I use DWC and I have four 14 inch air stones in a reservoir the size of yours.
I use Hygrozyme once a week or sometimes every other week.
I bought a pondmaster ap40 pump which is a deep water pump and can really put out some air.
It pours out the bubbles in five different air stones with power to spare.
If you keep the temps down in your water as much as you can and kick up the aeration you might get by without the Hygrozme.
I put frozen water bottles without the lid off in my res, as the water melts it bleeds into the res and replenishes the res with fresh water.
Good luck and keeps us posted.

yeah, i know i need to up the air, and i'll definately be looking into some enzyme products. at this point though, i'm only looking for multiple rooted clones from all the plants, once i have those, i'm gonna cut the plants down so i can seperate the clones, 2 held back waiting to either become mommas or to die. 2 others from each plant will be flowered to determine sex and once i weed out the males, i can raise up one of the held back fems (i actually want a fem from each of the bagseed strains i'm working with) to become mommas that will produce 4 cuttings each, every other week. that's when i begin my SOG.
and i wonder, could you fill those bottles up with nutes instead of water?

Well I got way lost with all the different plans/ideas/jerryrigs etc in this thread but the plants sure looked healthy and happy in that last photo of them.

the plan has always been the same, SOG is my plan, 3 mommas and a steady sea of weed to feed my head. i was trying to show the progression toward success so far. by no means do i claim to be anything but a beginner but i thought my fumblings would at least amuse, if not enlighten.
anyway, wish me luck, i don't plan on giving up any time soon

bozo,
peace, love, dope

As long as you are happy with it...who cares? I'm just saying I got lost in one thread about cloning, holding back other plants, sexing, then growing the held back plants..........and then I was REALLY lost so I just looked at the photos.

Good luck with your grow.

like i said in the beginning, i'm not exactly organizized.
that's why i added the pics, to make up for my helter\skelter style of note takeing. lol
anyway, thanks for taking the time to look and comment, i can't talk about growing here (at home) so this (online) is it, so again, thanks

bozo,
peace, love, dope

Yeah I know the feeling....I can talk about it at home but not much else....it really does help to have these forums....:thumbsup:

It's funny how growing the stuff will take on a life of its own.....it already has for you I see...lol!

It's all about enjoying the experience. Good luck. :)

i think i find the growing of weed more relaxing and fulfilling than the smoking of weed if that makes any sense.
it's just sooo cool to start out with this little tiny seed and to raise it up into a plant that rocks your boat. i'm a disabled vet so i have plenty of time and i like to think i'm handy so i've done lots of reading and now i'm trying to apply what i've read. i've had some failures, or rather, learning experiences, but they don't discourage me. now all i need is a Dr. here in RI so i can get legal.

Being legal DOES help imo.....just one less stress to worry about....although the feds always loom.....

I agree...growing does have it's own rewards.....great weed aside at the end. Strangely...I've tried growing other things (roses, fruit...) and it just doesn't strike the same cord......hmmm.....go figure...!!

:D

here's some pics of the cloner i just finished
same exact footprint as my other bins, just half as tall.

and thanks again Weedhound for the feedback, it's nice to know i'm not invisible, lol

1) assembled and ready to go, room for 18 cuttings
2) the guts
3) and 4) first day in operation

i'll let you know how long it takes (i hope just a few days), theres 2 gallons inside with 12 ml's of ThriveAlive B1 Red and 2 drops of Superthrive

Cool cloner. Almost looks like my new one. Sorry to sound like a broken record, but you might get better results if you had about twice as many bubbles. Of course though, it's the results that count. If it does good, no worries. At first I thought you were using neoprene inserts to hold the clones, but with a closer look it looks like something else. What is it? A rolled up insulation strip, or moldy piece of sushi?

Check this out: http://boards.cannabis.com/hydroponi...ml#post1855279

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Opie Yutts

Cool cloner. Almost looks like my new one. Sorry to sound like a broken record, but you might get better results if you had about twice as many bubbles. Of course though, it's the results that count. If it does good, no worries. At first I thought you were using neoprene inserts to hold the clones, but with a closer look it looks like something else. What is it? A rolled up insulation strip, or moldy piece of sushi?

Check this out: http://boards.cannabis.com/hydroponi...ml#post1855279

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lol, really though, i made the holes a little bigger than i had intended but it still worked, i used pipe insulation, i bought a 4 foot length of pipe wrap and just cut it into 1 inch pieces, those wrap around the stem of a cutting nicely, holding it suspended and secure.
also, thanks for the tip about the air, actually, i plan on getting a new pump from the local hydro store next month, i'm on a very tight budget and this month i bought the makings for a scrubber.

Makes you wonder how Opie knows what moldy piece of sushi looks like.....:wtf:

nuff said

Nice cloner dude. How often will you be changing the water in it? I've read in a few threads that they prefer to change out the water in their bubble cloners about once a day, but I'd guess it would be ok to let it go a bit longer as long as it stays SUPER clean and very aerated.

Oh, and what light cycle do you keep the clones at? This thread in the FAQ was pretty interesting which concerns the photoperiods with rooting clones: http://boards.cannabis.com/grow-faqs...ut-lights.html

I used to think there wasn't too much difference between the full 24 and 18/6 during cloning and veg. until I read about it just the other day.

I LOVE learning new stuff all the time! I just wish I could put it to good use already... until then I'll just stick to being a common carrier of half-assed knowledge

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GreenDestiny

Nice cloner dude. How often will you be changing the water in it? I've read in a few threads that they prefer to change out the water in their bubble cloners about once a day, but I'd guess it would be ok to let it go a bit longer as long as it stays SUPER clean and very aerated.

Oh, and what light cycle do you keep the clones at? This thread in the FAQ was pretty interesting which concerns the photoperiods with rooting clones: http://boards.cannabis.com/grow-faqs...ut-lights.html

I used to think there wasn't too much difference between the full 24 and 18/6 during cloning and veg. until I read about it just the other day.

I LOVE learning new stuff all the time! I just wish I could put it to good use already... until then I'll just stick to being a common carrier of half-assed knowledge

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thanks man, i hope it works as good as it looks, LOL. as far as changing the res water, i hadn't really thought about it, probably, i'll stick a batch of clones in there, then, when rooted (hopefully within 7 - 10 days), i'll transplant them, dump the res and start over.
and thanks for the link, i hadn't thought about THAT either, LOL.
right now the cloner is in the doorway of my closet getting indirect light 24\0, i guess i'll have to figure a way to put it in the dark while i sleep. lol, and thanks for bein' a carrier.

bozo,
peace, love, dope