40ft insulated reefer grow

[Desert Hydro]

This is my first run in this setup and I definitely had some issues so far. Everything is being redesigned after this run. I ran my co2 way too long, wasn't giving enough runoff, and blasted them with way too much light. It caused funky, spaced out growth in the stuff that was too close to the lights. My LED are home made from bars I got on kingbrite on Alibaba. they are custom made to cover 3x4 area since I have long narrow rows and will have a minimal walkway. I learned very quickly that my AC's and portable dehumidifier are not enough to keep my RH in check. I guess I will have to upgrade soon.

right now the nutrients are jacks and can't with some sm90 thrown in there once in a while. that's about it. next round is a custom mix made from scratch that is tailor-made for coco and I am also testing out some nanoparticle silica from a research supply company. science is fun.

these have about two weeks left I think. i really hope the funky growth fills in. they look nice and full in the pictures, but I assure you they are not lol. the strain is GG4 from cut and they look nothing like the the donor plant so I know it was a combination of things that I did wrong. only time will tell if they will fill in properly.

 

[starke]

I fully understand the constantly evolving grow area as I'm always trying to improve mine also, but I have to say your initial setup is SWEEEEEET!

 

[Tp01]

You're new setup looks rad. It's tough getting new space diald sometimes. Maybe you need a PAR meter to get the lights dialed. I look forward to updates on the grows. I hope they fill in for you. Bunk runs help us learn, I just had some nl5xhaze hermi all over my smoke run mid bloom, then I found the light leak. Such is life. Thanks for sharing your work with us.

 

[big315smooth]

spent many of autumns in a reefer unit trimming. we always joked bout converting it to a grow in off season. cool setup!!!

 

[DARKSIDER]

This is my first run in this setup and I definitely had some issues so far. Everything is being redesigned after this run. I ran my co2 way too long, wasn't giving enough runoff, and blasted them with way too much light. It caused funky, spaced out growth in the stuff that was too close to the lights. My LED are home made from bars I got on kingbrite on Alibaba. they are custom made to cover 3x4 area since I have long narrow rows and will have a minimal walkway. I learned very quickly that my AC's and portable dehumidifier are not enough to keep my RH in check. I guess I will have to upgrade soon.

right now the nutrients are jacks and can't with some sm90 thrown in there once in a while. that's about it. next round is a custom mix made from scratch that is tailor-made for coco and I am also testing out some nanoparticle silica from a research supply company. science is fun.

these have about two weeks left I think. i really hope the funky growth fills in. they look nice and full in the pictures, but I assure you they are not lol. the strain is GG4 from cut and they look nothing like the the donor plant so I know it was a combination of things that I did wrong. only time will tell if they will fill in properly.

Another great set up best of luck

 

[DunHav`nFun]

You always bitchin bout your setups DH....lol.......but they always produce , just not as much as you look for and that`s part of the learnin curve you threw your ass into when you went DIY LED`s that looks damn good from where I`m sittin…...now.....Getting rid of excess humidity...…

Old left coast warehouse cropper`s inside tip......Since plants eat Co2 during lights on and suck juice , they shit out what excess CO2 they didn`t use along with excess water vapor during lights out that blasts CO2 and RH levels......so......since you got a sealed container I assume , then you pop holes in both ends and install dark room louvers to prevent light leaks , then hook carbon filters and appropriate sized cfm inline fans wired to humidistats to suck out as much wet and CO2 filled air as necessary to control environment , cuz when it`s all said and done , the plants do the majority of their work during lights off , and that environment was always of most concern with my rooms.....anyways.....

All things in time my buddy , so dig in and dial that bitch.....Proper return on investment is everything when you got a unit that needsta pump out as much as it can once dialed so....Hang in there DH.....You can do it...…

Peace.....DHF..... …...

 

[Junior Capsula]

DH I’m on my bucket watching! That is one nice setup, cant wait until it’s complete.
Good to see you around Freds as your advice bar none the best I’ve gotten especially when it comes to DTW/Blumats and Coco.
The importance of humidity is often overlooked. I live in the South and have been battling it but this year I picked up a Santa Fe 70 dehuey which should take care of it.

 

[madalasatori]

Good to see you back DH, am a fan of your work

 

[Desert Hydro]

Thanks everyone! I've been away for a while and I am glad to see some familiar faces here! It is very dry here most of the year so I should be able to mitigate the rh problem at night with some ventilation far cheaper and easier than buying an expensive dehumidifier. My guess is that i will still need both. it will soon be 110 here and i run my lights at night to save heat and energy so bringing in outside air wont be an option. The only problem I foresee is that my container is lined with stainless and it is a BITCH to cut or drill.

I am building custom drip tables for the next round right now. I have enough strains to where I can pick and choose and I have a crazy amount of seeds that I just popped as well. i will get pictures of the tables up later today. there will be 2 rows of 3'x30'. the frames are made out of 1" EMT conduit tubing with canopy fittings for the connections and corners. this allows me to make them modular, and they go together and come down without any tools. the tops are going to be lined with OSB sheet and then a section of corrugated greenhouse panel will act as the water collection system. there will be a three inch drop from one end to the other where the water will be collected and sent back to the reservoir. can't waste water in the desert. I have to haul it in since my well water is terrible. That's all for now. I just hope my stuff fills in proper and i will be a happy camper. it feels like running the co2 this high for too long turned a 9 week strain into an eleven week strain. the end of the month is about the sixty day mark but they dont have a single orange hair to speak of so my guess is they'll go 75 ish days. the next round of GG and purple punch should be dialed. shits about to go down!

 

[DunHav`nFun]

I saw how shiny those walls and ceiling was and said to myself that shit`s stainless and gonna be a bitch ta punch holes in......LOL.... and yeah.....no reason ta bring in fresh air when it`s hotter than yas can utilize , but.....in actuality all that `s needed is a couple passive intakes with darkroom louvers , and then enough ventilation by pushin all the room`s air to 1 end so the biggest inline fan and scrubber combo could pull out excess CO2 and humidity once hooked to a humidistat , kick on and shut immediately once proper RH parameters are reached....and....

That is over 2500 cubic ft of dank air to get rid of , but you never said what percentage rates the RH was spiking up to during lights out so it might not take as long as you think to equalize environment since you will haveta pull in a certain amount of outside air for the exhaust to properly get rid of the excess water vapor till the humidistat turns the fan/s off......now.....

1 last thing.....running enough smaller or 1 large enough dehuey to do the job lights off will most assuredly jack up the heatgain in your sealed container since dehueys do nothing BUT emit heat while they`re up and running so again , yas might consider punchin a few holes in your container but that`s totally your call Bro....believe me I know what it takes to work with stainless.....before I stopped building and remodeling houses , my welder used a plasma cutter hooked up to his truck unit and it would eat that shit like meltin cheese , but they`re expensive....

Maybe a local equipment rental store has 1 and will rent it for 1/2 a day , cuz it might take at most a couple hrs to punch holes needed then back to the store.....all that`s needed is a template for the holes , mark em with a sharpie , and cut them bitches.....welder`s helmet and pull the trigger then follow the black line.....out comes the steel with perfect hole almost instantly....anyways.....just tryin ta help my buddy.....

I know it ain`t easy ta grow in Hell....you`re just in a different Hell......I did it in the Dirty Dirty South with RH in the 70-90 percentile the 20 yrs I worked inside , and the only solution that worked for me was air exchange twice per minute with no CO2 supplements , using lungrooms in full basements underground to control summer 100 degree + heat.....aight.....

Hope yas get it figured out DH.....KIller setup that I`m sure will pay the bills once dialed , but youre talkin bout swappin over to flood tables with drippers ?.......regardless....Good luck and take care.....

Peace.....DHF..... …...

 

[Desert Hydro]

I saw how shiny those walls and ceiling was and said to myself that shit`s stainless and gonna be a bitch ta punch holes in......LOL.... and yeah.....no reason ta bring in fresh air when it`s hotter than yas can utilize , but.....in actuality all that `s needed is a couple passive intakes with darkroom louvers , and then enough ventilation by pushin all the room`s air to 1 end so the biggest inline fan and scrubber combo could pull out excess CO2 and humidity once hooked to a humidistat , kick on and shut immediately once proper RH parameters are reached....and....

That is over 2500 cubic ft of dank air to get rid of , but you never said what percentage rates the RH was spiking up to during lights out so it might not take as long as you think to equalize environment since you will haveta pull in a certain amount of outside air for the exhaust to properly get rid of the excess water vapor till the humidistat turns the fan/s off......now.....

1 last thing.....running enough smaller or 1 large enough dehuey to do the job lights off will most assuredly jack up the heatgain in your sealed container since dehueys do nothing BUT emit heat while they`re up and running so again , yas might consider punchin a few holes in your container but that`s totally your call Bro....believe me I know what it takes to work with stainless.....before I stopped building and remodeling houses , my welder used a plasma cutter hooked up to his truck unit and it would eat that shit like meltin cheese , but they`re expensive....

Maybe a local equipment rental store has 1 and will rent it for 1/2 a day , cuz it might take at most a couple hrs to punch holes needed then back to the store.....all that`s needed is a template for the holes , mark em with a sharpie , and cut them bitches.....welder`s helmet and pull the trigger then follow the black line.....out comes the steel with perfect hole almost instantly....anyways.....just tryin ta help my buddy.....

I know it ain`t easy ta grow in Hell....you`re just in a different Hell......I did it in the Dirty Dirty South with RH in the 70-90 percentile the 20 yrs I worked inside , and the only solution that worked for me was air exchange twice per minute with no CO2 supplements , using lungrooms in full basements underground to control summer 100 degree + heat.....aight.....

Hope yas get it figured out DH.....KIller setup that I`m sure will pay the bills once dialed , but youre talkin bout swappin over to flood tables with drippers ?.......regardless....Good luck and take care.....

Peace.....DHF..... …...

thanks for all the help DHF. you've been helping me for years and years now. im not building flood tables, just runoff tables to divert all the runoff to one end so i can get rif of it before it raises my humidity. plus it will get rid of my daily need for saucer vacuuming which is a major pain in the ass.

i will wait until the plants are out in a week or two before i cut holes and blow dust all over. i am also gonna spray some foggers to help prevent any bugs or PM while there is nothing in there.

i will get this dialed in no time. the runoff tables, new dehumidifier and all the hard lessons learned will make sure of that.

here are a few shots from this morning.

 

[Desert Hydro]

oh and during lights off and the dehumidifier on constantly i am in the mid to high 60% range during lights off.

 

[ReikoX]

 

[f-e]

How much light do you have? (per meter/foot whatever)

 

[DunHav`nFun]

oh and during lights off and the dehumidifier on constantly i am in the mid to high 60% range during lights off.

Ok Bro.....Good news......For bigger plants to swell and fill in the last couple weeks , the humidity NEEDS to be in the range you`re at right now.....so if they`re gonna do anything , now`s the time....with dwindling ppm`s so they can cannibalize themselves and fade out....also.....Go look at the VPD/Vapor Pressure Deficit chart and see that optimum conditions stay in the 60-75 percentile with proper temps all the way thru Harvey IF you can control airflow and temps to prevent condensation and air-born nasties from forming....BUT.....

Only if you can control environment with constant airflow "underneath as well as directly above" the plants to prevent excess transpiration with fans blowin directly on the plants that I`ve never been able to convince folks of because it causes excess sweating WHILE pulling nutrients from the medium , and without increased metabolism enough to handle it , lockouts and imbalances ensue.....guaranteed.....but.....

I digress.....Get some floor fans blowin under those plants and worry not about the RH @ 60-ish as long as you can move air enough to prevent moist air stagnation till Harvey.....Cooler temps cause condensation after lights out so that`s whatchas gotta watch for.....anyways.....Good luck and.....

Handle it.....

Peace....DHF.... …..

 

[Drop That Sound]

Cool! I had always thought about converting a standard 45ft dry van.

For runoff, I was thinking that corrugated polycarbonate roof panels would work the best, to make good train tables. Both sides, with an isle way down the middle.

It wouldn't take too many sheets to span whatever length of the trailer, overlapping the end of the panels a few inches, then catch the runoff all the way down on one end.




I actually am going to go for the build eventually, but going to use it to mostly grow microgreens instead so I'll just have a ton of 5-6 tier racks packed in there. Also, a ladder and hatch to reach up to an 8 ft wide greenhouse tunnel on the roof.

 

[Love&Peace]

Just stumbled onto this grow....what a clean setup! Looking forward to seeing this going forward. Are those Floraflex lines I saw?

 

[Desert Hydro]

How much light do you have? (per meter/foot whatever)

I'm running about 40w per sqft of high efficiency LED. On full blast I can get over 1000ppf from edge to edge. Higher still in the center.

 

[Desert Hydro]

Love and peace, yeah they are floraflex lines. They are the only ones I'll use from now on. I hate those stiff drip lines that hold the shape of the roll. These are great. I'm just about to set up a nightmare of a drip system tomorrow. Plus I have to take back up clones for the next round because mine aren't looking so hot after a cloner mishap. Most will be fine but they are ugly and stunted. Not off to a good start lol.

DHF I've got lots of air movement in there. That's the one thing I did right this round. I will be installing more for the next go. I am also running some fancy air cleaner machine that's supposed to create a protective layer on the leaf since and prevent mold, mildew, viruses etc. Seems to be working from what I can tell. Something to do with oxidized plasma or ionized plasma......idk what the hell it is but it's on loan to me and they are 3k new so I'm putting it to use.

They are most definitely starting to fill in. I don't know if I just mixed up my dates or one of the old vitamin/hormone fertilizers I had laying around did something funky to them and caused them to go longer. Who knows at this point but I'm not gonna worry at this point. The ones that don't fill in will get blasted or pressed and put to use one way or another.

 

[f-e]

Thanks. I have similar capacity. Twice now I have seen my plants stop eating, and look to be stretching not filling when around 50w a foot (LM301). Just coming down to about 45w seems to fix it. Power at the wall that is. I'm not getting 1000umol though. I have peaks of 1400 but 800 on average. 600 minimum. About the most atmospheric co2 can support.

My measurements might not be accurate, but both lux to umol and watts to umol align when looking at manufacturer data.

Perhaps your run-off might hold similar clues to the plants shutting down. Though my findings are very much unproven at this time. I'm working on it though