Will I ever do this right?

[phattybudz]

This is pretty much just a rant, and I wasn't sure where to put it, so if it's in the wrong forum area sorry.

I'm really frustrated... *takes hit from hash pipe*

Like 6 months ago I bought a hydrohut and waterfarm buckets from a friend, and dropped about $1,500 total on a DWC setup (I've got a diary if you want to check it out/help Now, I'm sure that's not a lot of money to some people, but for me I had to borrow about $500 from a friend and was late paying him back. So I dropped all this cash and nothing is going right; I feel like I'm a smart guy but i'm failing at this so far...

1st Try: Hydrohut killed my plants. Great. (I could have saved them had I pulled them out of there in time...)

2nd Try: About a month and a half into veg, I'm not sure if it's bugs, me, or both that are killing my plants. Low oxygen (subsequently bought a chiller,) Fungus gnats, thrips (which I didn't even realize until 30 min. ago,) droopy leaves, light green new growth...stunted growth, tacoing leaves....

I'm about to go to the hydro store and probably get nematodes and something else... I'd like to bomb it but it's in my room so that's a no-go.

Anyways I feel like even if I get this pest problem under control now, this crop will pretty much be a failure for some other reason..

I'm trying to stay optimistic about this but... it's not working haha...

*Edit* If anyone has questions or advice for me on my system let me know, here is what it looks like...






DWC with modded waterfarm buckets, 210W floros for early/mid veg and 600whps for late veg/flower, 1/10 hp chiller, a 220gph and 185gph water pump for circulation, eco-8 and 6-inch airstones for each bucket, water level 1'' below netpot...vortex 6 pulling air and soon a carbon filter...

 

[scifreak69]

at least they cant yell at you like the wife does when you abuse her
oh take another hit

 

[Raistlin Majere]

ever grow in soil ?
perhaps hydro is not your nitch

never the less keep trying !!
good luck to you

:edit: i spend a good deal of time in the Infirmary
reading ALL the threads i can
helps me to catch something just as it starts to happen
although i still have much to learn :edit

 

[phattybudz]

Haha thanks scifreak...

I considered soil, I'm actually doing 4 soil babies in the tent now also, but I'm not sure how many are female yet and I'm already seeing top leaves taco-up and new growth is a little light green and I'm not sure what that's from. I also try to read a lot of the infirmary but...obviously I'm still not very knowledgeable or careful yet...

 

[Mr. Bongjangles]

Hey Phattybudz

Oh hell yes you'll do this right.. You're 99% of the way there already man, and as for the the remaining issues, you're in the right place to solve them with a quickness.

Also.. I feel your frustration completely! I had a perfectly successful closet thing going for a couple of years, and switched it all up to go with the Hydrohut.. My smooth operation that was supposed to get smoother turned into a 6 month nightmare. I've been left without good medicine, and because this came at a weird time for me financially, having to buy it has forced me to touch resources I hadn't intended to touch for a long time. Not trying to be a downer, but sometimes it is nice to know you're not the only person who got messed up over something.

Try not to let it get you down. You've got a killer setup there and once the issues are hammered out, you'll have lots of killer herb to enjoy!

Good luck!

 

[Haps]

Problems are just opportunities to learn to grow better by beating the borg and all the rest of the invaders. Write all of your issues down on paper, then write the things that will fix it, then make a plan, then after a bit, re=evaluate and make a new plan.
H

 

[phattybudz]

Thanks for the encouragement

I think the bugs are causing most of my problems now since my ppm and ph is pretty stable (ppm slowly down, ph slowly up.) I got nematodes, larvacide, and neem oil but I wish there was something I could do to take care of it sooner.. 1 week until I gotta flip em.

Thanks again, hopefully I'll get em to turn something out.

 

[Haps]

P - Don't flip them till you resolve your health issues and see positive new growth, time is a relative concept, health is not.
H

 

[Blunt_69]

What are you using for nutrient line up??? What is your PH/ppm?? Haps is right, dont flip them untill your girls are perfect looking.

 

[phattybudz]

I'm doing lucas formula 0-8-16 (they're under the hps at 2 ft. now, it was at 16 inches or so but didn't feel hot,) and I just added in cal-mag because I thought the twisting and light green might have been from a mg def. I would post new pics but the feature is disabled... they're still growing, if very slowly. Also, I don't think I mentioned I just threw in 4 soil kiddies around 6-7 inches and they're also getting taco leaves.

I'm trying to keep the ph at 5.8, the ppm was at 1000 before I added cal-mag, I imagine it will be around 1100 after it settles. (*edit* ppm is at 1130, no crispyness or burnt tips.)

I would love to keep them vegging longer and get them healthy, but in this case time is of the essence, because I have to move out of my apartment...

 

[Aaronponic]

I'm doing lucas formula 0-8-16 (they're under the hps at 2 ft. now, it was at 16 inches or so but didn't feel hot,) and I just added in cal-mag because I thought the twisting and light green might have been from a mg def.

I would love to keep them vegging longer and get them healthy, but in this case time is of the essence, because I have to move out of my apartment...

If they are in veg right now, you should be giving them more nitrogen. In fact, I would be feeding them something that has more N than P for the first couple weeks of flower even. That could easily be causing the light green and slow growth.


If you have thrips, spinosid is a good product btw.

 

[phattybudz]

"If they are in veg right now, you should be giving them more nitrogen. In fact, I would be feeding them something that has more N than P for the first couple weeks of flower even. That could easily be causing the light green and slow growth."

But tons of people have used the lucas formula in that ratio and had healthy plants right? I've heard of spinosad, I might try that if the nematodes and einstein oil don't do the trick.

 

[Blunt_69]

They look overferted to me.... Id drop your ratio to 5 10 untill they are large enought to handle 8 16

 

[Blunted22]

dude drop another 300 on a ppm meter and a ph meter and besides bugs u should have no probs if u keep your track of your ppm's and your ph... as for bugs... Hot shot no pest strips works on alot of them only thing i found i cant get rid of are symphilids and if u get those i recommend just just pulling everythin and bombing the shit out your room... but 99% of people will never get anything like that plus they found in dirt ....

 

[phattybudz]

I have a hanna meter and I've been using it, I think I've got that part figured out now too. That pic at the top was when I was using 0-5-10 blunt, I am about to update my diary with fresh pics here

So check that out if you guys want to help me out some more

Thanks again for the advice and encouragement

 

[zero.kewl]

get a new air pump some preditor mites and reduce your heat. they should be fine

 

[phattybudz]

why a new air pump? The Eco-8 pushes enough I think, the bubbles are real frothy....the air temp is usually around 75 but gets up to 77-80 for maybe an hour a day sometimes (if I'm not there to open the door/window and gets to like 65-72 at night....shouldn't that be ok?

 

[Blunted22]

temps are alittle high 77-80 is acceptable not optimal though... with co2 them temps would be alittle better accepted but 70-75 is where u should try and keep it if u got mites buy a hot shots no pest strips... ive never had any luck with predator bugs... but that just may be me lol...

i got a product i hear that spinosad works wonders on thrips i bought it for them and relized i didnt have thrips but good luck man and check your water temps chillers are alot of money 70-73 degrees is what i try and keep mine at...

 

[phattybudz]

Thanks for the input blunted.. I've got a chiller, so my water is always 68.

The air temp is a little harder to control, because when I leave for work in the morning if I open the window too wide it gets cold in the morning (<65,) but if I leave it too closed it gets hot in the afternoon (it was 79 when I got home an hour ago, not sure how long it was that hot...) So I'm not sure how to improve that, at least at my current place.

 

[gride]

If you have thrips, spinosid is a good product btw.

i had to use that too
from a company called monterey (got it at armstrong nursery for not too much)
took care of the thrips in a day

good luck man..don't get too discouraged
you'll get it down and all this bad time will be ancient history =)