Anti's MicroStealth Cab 4000 (The PL-L adventure!)

[Anti]

Are you going to do perpetual harvest with plants at different stages in the flower chamber?

Yes. It's what I've been doing in my current cab. It makes lots of things easier. For one, there could be 82 plants in the chamber as designed so far.... harvesting 82 plants at once would be a pain in the ass. but 9.5weeks / 82 = 8.6 plants a week.

Much easier to harvest and dry 8 or 9 plants every week than to harvest and dry 82 plants at a time.

One of the benefits of doing it is the taller mature plants get access to more light by being above the canopy.

Indeed.

I have a couple of plants that have grown to the top of the cab. They just bend over and keep going. It is nice that I dont have to worry the main cola will grow into the light and get fried.

This happened to me on my very first run through the cab. After that, I learned to switch from veg sooner. I found the "sweet spot" (as dr bud refers to it) which is the precise height the plants will need to be started so that they will finish up without touching the top.

I had a weird idea of doing an upside down scrog kinda like those tomato planters along the top of my cab

If you do that, I SOOOO want to see it!

 

[Tilt]

Another consideration would be an automatic drip system to water. Would be nice to set and forget.

 

[twrex]

Another consideration would be an automatic drip system to water. Would be nice to set and forget.

If you were using larger pots you could even use blumats. Imagine harvesting one larger plant a week instead of 3 or 4 (don't remember your actual numbers offhand). You could even vscrog your plant to make it fit in your current cab setup. I think that might be really cool.

 

[Anti]

If you were using larger pots you could even use blumats. Imagine harvesting one larger plant a week instead of 3 or 4 (don't remember your actual numbers offhand). You could even vscrog your plant to make it fit in your current cab setup. I think that might be really cool.

I was gifted a commercially bought hydro setup and I remember being very frustrated that within less than a week of setting the drip system up that several of the hoses failed resulting in the death of the seedling that was being watered by it.

It has scared me away from this style of watering until I can be sure that someone has come up with something better and can show it to me.

I open my cab once every 3 days. (For example: Water wednesday.... open cab up and water saturday... open cab up and water tuesday... open cab up and water friday) In between, I don't mess with them.

When I first built my cab I liked to open it up every other hour and look inside and just think happy thought. Now I like to leave my plants alone to do their thing undisturbed.

Submersion watering (dunking entire plant+container into a nutrient bath and holding it underwater until the soil stops bubbling) was recommended by Dr. Bud and I have tried other methods and live by this technique.

He also suggests that in the event of a need to have an extended break from yuor cabinet that if you simply set your soil pots in sufficiently aerated water (multiple airstones, multiple pumps, high water agitation) you can leave them for extended periods of a week or longer, though he doesn't recommend this as a general practice just to avoid watering.

I have not done this myself, as I have not taken a vacation in a really long time.

 

[twrex]

While we're on the subject, what sort of nute schedule and media are you using these days?

 

[Anti]

While we're on the subject, what sort of nute schedule and media are you using these days?

Right after my first grow I went out and found some garden soil. NOT potting soil, but just outdoor soil and then I bought several bags of horticultural perlite. (A mix of the smaller and the big chunky kind.)

I mixed in Lime and Espoma Dry nutes (don't remember the name but the one with the microherd starters mixed in) at the ratios recommended on the bottles and watered the whole thing in a big plastic storage container. I've kept that soil in that container and watered it every time it dries out for more than 6 months. Every cycle I've dipped into it, stirred it all around and then used it to plant my latest batch of clones.

I'm a few cycles away from running out of this mix. I am planning to potentially switch to a mix of peat moss, coco and perlite. Others seem to be having nice results with this method.

As far as feeding, I am using a two step feeding process with Dyna Grow Liquid Grow (1/2 to 1 tsp per gallon) during veg and Dyna Grow Liquid Bloom (1/4 to 1/2 tsp per gallon) during bloom.

I also mix in 3-4 drops per gallon of superthrive at the very beginning.

I allow my water to bubble using a 30 gallon air pump and a circular 5" airstone in loosely covered 5 gallon buckets for 4-6 days prior to use. (I add all nutes right before watering.)

My watering process used to be somewhat complex, but I've yet to have any kind of disease or pest issues <knock, knock> so I've simply been dunking my containers in a five gallon bucket. I'll submerge six or more at once and wait until there are no more bubbles on the surface, then I remove them in the order that I put them in the bucket and place them in a rectangular storage container to drip dry. After 5 minutes or so of this, I drop them back into the cabinet, close it up and go about my day.

Dyna Gro products were recommended to me as an easy all-in-one solution by the guy at the hydro store (and it's much less expensive than most of the other products this guy could've sold me). I occassionally add Grotek InstaGren (3-0-0) if I feel like they could use a little nitro-boost. I have also tried Alaska Fish Fertilizer and don't see much difference between the two. (Except for the horrible smell of processed fish poo.)

I'm open to trying other nute regimens and products, and I've heard good things about many products, but I've also heard that miracle gro soil will kill your plants and stunt them and whatever and that's what I used with no issues or complaints to get my FIRST harvest.

So I'm not going to jump all over the latest fad nutes just because I'm supposed to see some amazing gain. I'm not selling this stuff, and if I'm going to pay $50 compared to $10 for the nutes (and $10 lasted pretty much all year) I want to see 5x the growth, 5x the potency or 5x something!

Love to hear people's thoughts on this stuff. I've considered buying Fox Farms soil because I found a few places locally that stock it but I've also heard lots of people complaining about it. No idea who to believe and I haven't had any complaints that I think are directly attributable to my feeding. Please debase me if you think I'm off my nut.

 

[twrex]

Two questions, why do you bubble the mix before using it, and are you still using the soda containers like dr. bud? I've done most of my reading in the organic soil dept because I thought that something like lc's mix #1 (just add water) sounded ideal... but I've recently been thinking that it might be simpler to do something along the lines of what you're describing here. A soil (maybe soilless) amended with ewc, perlite, and dolomite, and then just using a simple nute solution like maxibloom (heard good things and it's pretty cheap too) with maybe the occasional ewc topdress to add nitrogen if necessary.

Mind you, I don't grow (... hopefully someday though), this is all just theoretical ideas I'm kicking around in my head. For now I'm just trying to absorb as much info as possible and help out when I can.

 

[Anti]

I'm thinking two more 50-55w 5000K or higher bulbs in the veg room just to keep the internodes short while they're vegging.

Thoughts? The size of the yellow circles in the pic reflects the choice of those 1.75" plastic tubes.

Keep in mind that I am way low-balling myself with the 4g per plant estimate. The LOWEST weight I have harvested thus far is 4.1g. That's under 252w of CFL sitting 16" or so from the soil. I would fully expect denser buds due to the vertical lighting (down to soil level) so the likely harvest per week will be that much larger

 

[Anti]

Two questions, why do you bubble the mix before using it, and are you still using the soda containers like dr. bud?

Answer #1: I am using my city's tapwater, so I let the plain tap water bubble for 4-6 days to hopefully stabilize its pH, remove chlorine, etc.

Answer #2: My first grow was in 32oz Half & Half containers. Since then i have switched to these:

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That TRAY6 fits perfectly in my current cab (its dimensions are 16.5x16.5 and my cab is 17x17) My plants are grown in the MT2510. (2.5" square and 10" deep) The MT38 (3" square and 8" deep) would be about the same size as my original half & half containers.

The MT2510s are roughly the same size as a 1 liter soda bottle, but they aren't clear and they are designed to be reused.

You can fit 25 MT38s or 36 MT2510 (my choice) in each TRAY6.

(But I've found that with current light penetration, you lower your gram per plant by filling it to max capacity.)

 

[twrex]

Ah, of course the chlorine, it just wasn't making sense because you added the nutes in first. I know that people do that to make organic teas, but I'd not heard of it with synthetics... it wasn't making sense. You said you only use superthrive 'at the very beginning' when do you cut it off and why?

Also, your latest drawing doesn't say, how tall is this new cab and what is your 'cover story' for it? I don't see any cd cases or any other functionality aside from being an oversized box.

 

[Garuda]

Wonderful pots you got there, I wish i could buy them here in Europe too
Your cabdesign looks perfect, can't wait to see it performing in the real world

 

[Tilt]

Answer #1: I am using my city's tapwater, so I let the plain tap water bubble for 4-6 days to hopefully stabilize its pH, remove chlorine, etc.

Answer #2: My first grow was in 32oz Half & Half containers. Since then i have switched to these:

That TRAY6 fits perfectly in my current cab (its dimensions are 16.5x16.5 and my cab is 17x17) My plants are grown in the MT2510. (2.5" square and 10" deep) The MT38 (3" square and 8" deep) would be about the same size as my original half & half containers.

The MT2510s are roughly the same size as a 1 liter soda bottle, but they aren't clear and they are designed to be reused.

You can fit 25 MT38s or 36 MT2510 (my choice) in each TRAY6.

(But I've found that with current light penetration, you lower your gram per plant by filling it to max capacity.)

Im planning on using the mt38. Are they stable standing up or do they need support of the tray?

 

[Anti]

Im planning on using the mt38. Are they stable standing up or do they need support of the tray?

They are indeed stable without the tray. The tray fits in my cab and cost $2 so I bought it. (and painted it white) One thing the tray is good for is that if you have 25 plants in your chamber and your chamber is on wheels because the opening of your cab is the back panel.... you don't have to worry about hitting a bump and having your plants fall on each other like dominoes.

If you move things more carefully or not at all, that won't be an issue.

 

[Anti]

You said you only use superthrive 'at the very beginning' when do you cut it off and why?

Sorry, guess I wasn't being very clear.

Each and every time I water my plants, they get 3-4 drops of superthrive per gallon of water. I add the superthrive "at the very beginning" before adding the other nutes to the bucket of water.

Also, your latest drawing doesn't say, how tall is this new cab and what is your 'cover story' for it? I don't see any cd cases or any other functionality aside from being an oversized box.

Thus far, my goal has been to "perfect" the light print and interior dimensions. I haven't fully decided what my cover story will be for this new cab. I may simply build it to look like a regular cabinet and claim that it is full of odds and ends.

I may also go with the CD face again or something else. That's a detail I won't concern myself with until I have the functionality of the cab worked out. (Feeling pretty close at the moment.)

 

[AFP]

I am running a small sog right now using the same watering method as you, and it is so painstaking I am seriously considering alternatives for my new cabinet.
In late flowering, controlling odor is a little hard when you have a bunch of skunky ladies taking a bath in your bedroom for 30 min's a day- you know what i mean?

Considering your designing a cabinet of such a similar nature, you might be interested in space efficient hydro systems.

My hope is to use a system that will allow me to easily and quickly feed the girls all at once, while still promoting vigorous growth and effective use of the growing medium.

A passive, dwc, or aeroponic tub could be quite effective. The challenge is implementing these systems in a space efficient way.

 

[Tilt]

Thus far, my goal has been to "perfect" the light print and interior dimensions. I haven't fully decided what my cover story will be for this new cab. I may simply build it to look like a regular cabinet and claim that it is full of odds and ends.

I may also go with the CD face again or something else. That's a detail I won't concern myself with until I have the functionality of the cab worked out. (Feeling pretty close at the moment.)
__________________

Tell them it's a hope chest. {hope it gives you lots of weed}

I told my girl if anyone wants to see the inside of my cab. I will tell them thats where I keep all our s&m sex toys at

 

[twrex]

I told my girl if anyone wants to see the inside of my cab. I will tell them thats where I keep all our s&m sex toys at

Best cover story ever!

"why does it have a padlock on it?"
"to keep children out"

 

[Tilt]

a few questions on your dyna grow nutes.
1. are they mineral or organic
2. what is the npk on the grow
3. what is the npk on the bloom
4. do you flush or feed to the end

I went the organic route and still working on it. Some of the benefits to me are
1. I can reuse my soil and compost my waste. No pot trash even leaves my house.
2. I dont have to flush. Smoke is smooooooth. No coughing or burning in the throat even on the day it is dry with no cure.
3. plain bubbled water is what I usually use. Some times I give them molasses or some other additive.
4. PH with a properly buffered soil (dolomite lime) becomes a non issue
5. More interactive thought and less exact this mililiter or that ppm ph up ph down.
6. cheaper for me $30.00 in nutes so far and i have only used 20% of them

Some of drawbacks are
1. less exact
2. I haven't seen the harvest numbers I would like to see. I have more than enough though
3. I do see deficincies crop up Organics don't correct them as quick as mineral nutes
4. The small pots I use would probably react better to feeding regimen rather than an organic soil. ( can be corrected with teas )
5. organics take more time initially and less time weekly or daily.

 

[twrex]

This should be a very interesting conversation as this is exactly the question I've been pondering lately.

I was considering going with a light schedule of bottled nutes (probably mostly a flowering mix) and a soil enriched with ewc, perlite, and dolomite. This way I get the best of both worlds. The soil should buffer its own ph with the dolomite and I get the added benefit of being able to easily supplement the plant with the nutes it needs without the need to make aerated teas. That just seems like it would be a pain when trying to keep things small, stealthy, and cheap.

My questions for you tilt are: Where do you mix your soil? Where do you let it rest? Where do you make your teas? How do you keep this stealthy? How much did it cost?

I don't mean to threadjack, and maybe this is better suited for your thread or its own dedicated one. I'll leave that call up to anti whether he wants us to take this elsewhere.

 

[AFP]

Take a look at this thread for the "shallow water culture" hydro bucket
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=29593