2 x 400w stacked multi-strain gimmick with blumats & sexy soil

[nameless]

i dunno what to tell you silver, that ND just keeps getting nicer and nicer, is that a 36 inch cola swelling up on it?

 

[silver hawaiian]

Thanks nameless It's not entirely rock solid from top-to-bottom, but it's a decent stretch o' nugs. She's swelling, making her final push, I reckon..

Yesterday was day 56 - I'd say another week or two..

 

[silver hawaiian]

Ha. Small catastrophe tonight, for which I should've recognized the potential about 4 days back.

Threw a whole skeeter dunk into the rez, .. Upon nameless' advice, I decided to throw it in a nylon stocking to keep any floaty pieces from making their way to the pump. (We can tackle the debate in re: "Can the BT bacteria make it through the pores of a nylon?" which is something I've been wondering m'damned self)..

And for whatever reason, I decided to throw the dunk in the feed rez - the one that drains back to the main rez.

All is well since Sunday - the dunk is just floating around the feed rez, tied up nicely in its sexy black stocking..

Come down today, water all over the wall, floor, shelf.. Take a peek into the feed rez, and ohhhhhhhh shit, the dunk & stocking got sucked into the drain & clogged it. Pump kept a'pumpin, water started a'spillin', I got to swearin'.

Some lessons apparently have to be learned the hard way.

Another day in the life of..

 

[silver hawaiian]

Hmm. Should I upgrade at least one bulb to a 600W?

I've had a few banquet beers and 600W ballasts exist for $120.

 

[bobblehead]

Hmm. Should I upgrade at least one bulb to a 600W?

I've had a few banquet beers and 600W ballasts exist for $120.

I swear you never listen to me... Lol a 4x3x6 space is too small for a 600w lamp. 2 400's is perfect... And honestly, you could grow your plants a lot bigger to really take advantage of all 800w of light. What type of ballasts do you have? If they're digital you can buy 430w lamps and put them on overdrive! . Even if they're magnetic I'd get the 430w lamps.

Remember dude, more light doesn't necessarily equal more bud. Dial dial dial your environment... You crack me up... You should be able to pull at least 1lb for each 400w lamp... And consuming 1g a day... Well lets just say you'll need to call me if you get your shit dialed.

If you're itching to spend some money, buy some orca or reflectix to replace that panda.

 

[silver hawaiian]

I swear you never listen to me... Lol a 4x3x6 space is too small for a 600w lamp. 2 400's is perfect... And honestly, you could grow your plants a lot bigger to really take advantage of all 800w of light. What type of ballasts do you have? If they're digital you can buy 430w lamps and put them on overdrive!

Remember dude, more light doesn't necessarily equal more bud. Dial dial dial your environment... You crack me up... You should be able to pull at least 1lb for each 400w lamp... And consuming 1g a day... Well lets just say you'll need to call me if you get your shit dialed.

Don't feel bad - you're in the same company as my wife!

The reason for the consideration is that I'm already able to see that the 400s don't really penetrate much past the first "layer" of buds. Anything that's not in the front-front of the plant gets weak, brokeass shadedish light.

I do agree with the bigger plants to take better advantage. If I had a room full of Nightmare Diesel #1s, I'd be doing much better. The Old Grandad doesn't stretch much, nor did the Raptures.. (About 33% - 18" tall on day one, 24" tall on day 35 or whatever we're at).

For the next run, I'm thinking about a sort of colosseum-but-not setup. I'm imagining two levels of plants, staggered/"offset," with the back row about a foot higher than the front row, with plants alternating front row/back row/front row/back row..

I'd even considered doing just two levels, with a shelf about 4' off the ground for the second-level gals.. Which would essentially be two 400 W vert grows..

I think I'm going to do away with the front "row" of plants - the ones that line the wall where the door opens. Makes it a real pain in the ass to get in there, .. But maybe I'll keep it and just work around it - dunno.

In short, the goal next time I think is to make more efficient use of the space. To be honest, when it comes to dialage, I'm not inclined to throw a bunch of money at the situation to shave off 4 degrees of my daytime temps, or to make sure my RH is in that oh-so-sweet-spot at all times, or anything at that level. If I were in this to make a few bucks, sure, but I have to draw the nerd-line at some point in my own hobby.

Also, next run I'll be rounding out the corners - durr. Makes all the sense in the world, .. Currently, one of the corners is rounded/not a full 90* corner, by necessity, and that shape seems to work the best for the plants. Otherwise, they start competing for that corner space, and someone's gonna lose.

But I think you're on to something bobble - I think my main sin this time around is the plant-size.. (And please don't start with me on the inefficiencies of NOT monocropping..) I get it, I get it, I get it..

 

[DHF]

The hard lessons learned are the one`s remembered most and not made twice......and this is a good thing....but....

All setups take time and repetition to dial , so hang in there SH and yields will increase as strains traits and needs are learned and met.......then....

You`ll know how long ta veg each 1 for the size yas want em ta end up at by end of stretch so as many can be put in said space ta max out your canopy ftw......but....

You know Bobbles is right now dontchas.....

Peace....DHF........

 

[silver hawaiian]

The hard lessons learned are the one`s remembered most and not made twice......and this is a good thing....but....

All setups take time and repetition to dial , so hang in there SH and yields will increase as strains traits and needs are learned and met.......then....

You`ll know how long ta veg each 1 for the size yas want em ta end up at by end of stretch so as many can be put in said space ta max out your canopy ftw......but....

You know Bobbles is right now dontchas.....

Peace....DHF........

This is where I willingly concede a few gpw. Intellectually, I absolutely understand the concept of a) a room full of the same variety/pheno/plant and b) working with a plant over multiple (multiple) runs to learn it and love it and hug it and squeeze it and name it george.

BUT, I'm a total ADHD/variety nut, .. So the idea of a cabinet full of one particular variety kind of bums me out, in a sort of twisted way. I will be keeping the ND #1 around for the next run - it's growth profile is exactly what I'm looking for in this setup.

I've got a handful of beans to choose from for the next go'round, and today (someone, write this down and take note of the date and time), the plan is to sift through those varieties (another problem is choosing how damned many), find keepers and commit to 'em in a longer-term sense. Heh.

Anyway. Point is I do realize I'm sacrificing some efficiency there, but it's a price I'm willing to pay. That's one of the liberating things about the hobby-only situation, is that I'm not under any real pressure (aside from machismo and general highon-ness) to produce exponential yields. Honestly, I mostly like the positive feedback I get from folks more knowledgable'n myself.

The other half of the fun, to y'alls point, is learning this new room/setup. I think I'm on to something here with the stacked/staggered rows. I threw a couple lone Old Grandad clones into the oven a few weeks ago, in the "inside" of the donut. They're not really suffering any adverse effects from being s'damned close to the light, though they were beginning to cast some decent shadows on the big plants behind 'em. For the two big plants in the corners that were being shaded, I just tossed a small bucket underneath 'em and raised 'em up. Actually works quite well.



PROPS to the folks like bobble and FHC and D and all the other who deserve to be mentioned for their meticulous attention to and investment in environment, variety selection/commitment, and general balls-out production. If I can share a smidgen of that success and commitment, ..

 

[Diesel dreams]

You saw my lil plants with a 600.... you know they are both right about the dial I don't have the knowledge that you guys are forgetting but with you on the "colosseum-but-not setup" plant count contributes to yield

 

[bobblehead]

My mind = blown...

If you were to buy a cheap humidifier, and hook it up to a $20 controller... You could dramatically increase your yields.. and the reward comes from unloading your overrages so other people can have good medicine... But what do i know... i'm just that geek...

For real though... You were just considering spending $120 for a ballast that needs a $25 lamp cord + $60 lamp, and then you were gonna set the 400 aside to do nothing... And pay for another 200w a month in a space that isn't even close to dialed.... Remember my last sour amnesia grow where i had 1290w of light avaiable, but i only used 860w and still had a pitiful yield? It would have hurt worse if i was paying for the extra light.

Anyway dude... Reconsider the bells and whistles... You bought blumats! The most expensive feed system I know of.... Anyway, take that money i just saved you by not upgrading the light, and upgrade your environment!

 

[silver hawaiian]

My mind = blown...

If you were to buy a cheap humidifier, and hook it up to a $20 controller... You could dramatically increase your yields.. and the reward comes from unloading your overrages so other people can have good medicine... But what do i know... i'm just that geek...

For real though... You were just considering spending $120 for a ballast that needs a $25 lamp cord + $60 lamp, and then you were gonna set the 400 aside to do nothing... And pay for another 200w a month in a space that isn't even close to dialed.... Remember my last sour amnesia grow where i had 1290w of light avaiable, but i only used 860w and still had a pitiful yield? It would have hurt worse if i was paying for the extra light.

Anyway dude... Reconsider the bells and whistles... You bought blumats! The most expensive feed system I know of.... Anyway, take that money i just saved you by not upgrading the light, and upgrade your environment!

This is a bit therapeutic for me, I'm finding. Good point about "If you're OK to get drunk and buy a damned light you've not even outgrown, why not invest the money elsewhere, with a higher likelihood of the increased yields you're looking for.."

The more I think about it, I think I probably just don't want to be bothered with a) learning more about environmental controls and b) setting the shit up. A lamp, hell, that's plug-n-play!

So here's what I'm workin' with thus far on the environmental side, off the top of my head. Temps range between 65-78ish, RH generally held at about 35-40% right now, 24/7. Only "control" in place is the dehuey placed outside the closet, which essentially runs 24/7.

Let's pretend I'm ready to get drunk again and spend $150-200. Where ought that drunken-sailor-spending go?

EDIT: Therapy = repressed memories come out! (Much like alcohol)

I just remembered that the beginning of the flowering for this batch, I broke out an old ultrasonic humidifier - just like you'd use when you've got the flu or whatever. It ended up being toast, and then I just kind of gave up on the idea. "Meh, fuck it."

I think at this point, there's no need for the higher RH - I think I wanna be right around 40% at this point, right?

What do I wanna be shooting for in early flower next round, in terms of RH? Daytime? Nighttime?

 

[bobblehead]

Lmao... You crack me up... You should get 2 humidity controllers, one for the dehumidifier and 1 for a humidifier. If the dehuey has it built in, then just 1 controller. For the humidity controller, you can get a household dehumidifier controller, which is like $10-20, and wire it in reverse. The bigger the humidifier the better, but get w/e is in your budget. A whole house model costs around $100, so a smaller model for your size grow should be relatively cheap. Keep your humidity up to 70% during veg and stretch, and watch how much faster the plants grow. It's huge. You'll also save money by not running the dehuey 24/7. It's gonna burn out eventually and you'll need to buy a new one. Adding humidity might even help keeps temps more stable if the water released is cooler than the air in the room... This is a relatively simple upgrade bro. That, and buy some orca or reflectix. That panda doesn't reflect nearly as much light as said products.

The rest is getting to know your girls...

 

[AOD2012]

Looking good silver. Been there with the water spills. Can't tell you how many times I left the water hose running in my rez and started doing stuff.

Only took me 3 or 4 times to realize I shouldn't leave that alone haha.


Keep it green homey.


aod

 

[Mister_D]

Bobble's all over the advice bro. Take heed to what he is saying bro. We're not talking about a couple gram difference in yield here. If you better dial your enviroment, it will make oz's of difference in the end. You can get a 25ft roll of orca for 40 bucks plus shipping, take 10 mins to staple it up and presto you yield will increase. Upping the humidity at the approprate times will do even more for your end yield as well as increasing veg speed. I understand you point of view on this being a hobby, but clearly you are looking for more. So spend a dime to make a dollar. More defoilation will help the 400's penetrate better also

 

[nameless]

bobble, silver is sooooo lucky for you to have taken so much interest in him. hes a crazy sob though isnt he lol.

silver - i assumed you would tie the bag off to the top of the barrel you dork.... also, a pump filter bag is what i will use from now on to drop stuff in my res, they are way more durable than pantyhose, and the ten dollar bag will last a long time, unless you leave it in an old tea sitting for about 4 days then youll just have to throw it out.

also, DO NOT get another light. jeez. you and your high gravity beers.

i dunno what all this is about your humidity situation, i didnt realize you were having some issues with that, but i tell you what, if you dont have at least a DH that has a controller built in to it youll need one. i tried to hook my DH up to my environmental controller (CCHC-1) and it didnt really work so i just set it for 5% lower than what i want the tents at and let it run in the same bedroom, that way it pulls the moisture out of the air that is being cycled in/out of the tents.

anyway, just do whatever bobble tells you to do.

i love this thread

 

[silver hawaiian]

Lmao... You crack me up... You should get 2 humidity controllers, one for the dehumidifier and 1 for a humidifier. If the dehuey has it built in, then just 1 controller. For the humidity controller, you can get a household dehumidifier controller, which is like $10-20, and wire it in reverse. The bigger the humidifier the better, but get w/e is in your budget. A whole house model costs around $100, so a smaller model for your size grow should be relatively cheap. Keep your humidity up to 70% during veg and stretch, and watch how much faster the plants grow. It's huge. You'll also save money by not running the dehuey 24/7. It's gonna burn out eventually and you'll need to buy a new one. Adding humidity might even help keeps temps more stable if the water released is cooler than the air in the room... This is a relatively simple upgrade bro. That, and buy some orca or reflectix. That panda doesn't reflect nearly as much light as said products.

The rest is getting to know your girls...

Duly noted! Now that I"m thinking about the humidifier itself, I suppose what I'm really interested in is something with a bigass rez, so's I don't have to be down there every day to refill it.

The dehuey is on 24/7. It has a built-in humidistat, but I've honestly never been down there while the dehuey is OFF.

Looking good silver. Been there with the water spills. Can't tell you how many times I left the water hose running in my rez and started doing stuff.

Only took me 3 or 4 times to realize I shouldn't leave that alone haha.


Keep it green homey.


aod

Thanks for staying tuned AOD! You came just in time to watch me get my ass kicked by these guys for resisting the environmental crap.. Which is honestly just a manifestation of my laziness.

Bobble's all over the advice bro. Take heed to what he is saying bro. We're not talking about a couple gram difference in yield here. If you better dial your enviroment, it will make oz's of difference in the end. You can get a 25ft roll of orca for 40 bucks plus shipping, take 10 mins to staple it up and presto you yield will increase. Upping the humidity at the approprate times will do even more for your end yield as well as increasing veg speed. I understand you point of view on this being a hobby, but clearly you are looking for more. So spend a dime to make a dollar. More defoilation will help the 400's penetrate better also

OkayokayokayokayokayoKAY! So that's the deal - will get this tackled before next round, .. There should be some decent downtime in the flower cab, since next round will be mostly a seed run.

Thanks for the asskicking-into-action guys. I'll check into the Orca also - I was just on Amazon, and the cheapest I found it was $65, shipped.

Question - mylar has always sketched me out, for two reasons - One, I was never sure if it was truly more effective than the alternatives, or if it was just a shiny gimmick, and two, it seems s'damned fragile.

Does the Orca beat out mylar in terms of reflectivity too?

 

[nameless]

also, about the light penetration thing, you should focus on making a canopy more suited to the lights you have instead of spending more money to create more heat ect ect blah blah

 

[silver hawaiian]

bobble, silver is sooooo lucky for you to have taken so much interest in him. hes a crazy sob though isnt he lol.

No joke - I'm still riding the coattails of the Headband currency

silver - i assumed you would tie the bag off to the top of the barrel you dork.... also, a pump filter bag is what i will use from now on to drop stuff in my res, they are way more durable than pantyhose, and the ten dollar bag will last a long time, unless you leave it in an old tea sitting for about 4 days then youll just have to throw it out.

That would've been a great idea - what I REALLY wanted to do was find my damned paint strainer bags, and just wrap up the pump in that, .. (Which I have since done - found 'em while cleaning up the spill. The universe works in incredible ways..)

also, DO NOT get another light. jeez. you and your high gravity beers.

Nothin' HG about last night brotherman - Coors Originals, tall cans BAYBEE. It's the fuckin' BANQUET BEER! What's not to love?

i dunno what all this is about your humidity situation, i didnt realize you were having some issues with that, but i tell you what, if you dont have at least a DH that has a controller built in to it youll need one. i tried to hook my DH up to my environmental controller (CCHC-1) and it didnt really work so i just set it for 5% lower than what i want the tents at and let it run in the same bedroom, that way it pulls the moisture out of the air that is being cycled in/out of the tents.

Humidity is all good, at this point, .. bobble's urging me to crank it up during veg & stretch, which is a damned good point. At this point, I need to dial the natural/existing RH down. So no need to humidify at this point. But come next round's veg & stretch, I'll be adding a humidifier.

anyway, just do whatever bobble tells you to do.

duh

i love this thread

 

[heady blunts]

whoa tons of good advice in here today! your thread has turned into the cool kid's table at the cafeteria.

I really need to get some orca/reflectix up in my cab ASAP. the flat white paint does not match up.

one note about training for your 400s, you can be way more drastic with the prune during veg. all those branches that didn't get tied up should be pruned off. review marlo's room when he was running the 400s. it's basically a single layer of plant.

also I was thinking if you installed a small shelf on the bottom edge of your door, you could place a pot there and train a plant up some netting on the door. then when you open it, the plant is out of the way.

 

[silver hawaiian]

whoa tons of good advice in here today! your thread has turned into the cool kid's table qt the cafeteria.

I really need to get some orca/reflectix up in my cab ASAP. the flat whit paint does not match up.

one note about training for your 400s, you can be way more drastic with the prune during veg. all those branches that didn't get tied up should be pruned off. review marlo's room when he was running the 400s. it's basically a single layer of plant.

also I was thinking if you installed a small shelf on the bottom edge of your door, you could place a pot there and train a plant up some netting on the door. then when you open it, the plant is out of the way.

I was thinking about this a while back - a more complicated version of what you've mentioned, but same effect. The challenge is that my door is just a piece of OSB.

Good call on the flattening-out-of-the-plant. That was my original plan, but as they started growing, I decided to tie back what was near the fence, and the ones that were leaning outward toward the light, I just tied up so they wouldn't go further into the light - but I let 'em reach away from the wall..

I think I also overestimated the productivity of the lower branches this 'round, which means I wasn't terribly aggressive with them on the front-end of the flowering..

Lessons learned, lessons learned! Hell, I'll go to school all day if I get fresh stinky reefer at the end.