Need Your Grow Questions Answered? Come On In!

[Grow Thread]

you pretty much have it...... although i have never done the temp drop thing....

 

my mother plants are in soil. normally i use a high ratio of perilite in my soil, i cut that out for mother plants. less air=slower growth.

 

i use cfl lamps...... and definitely on the light end of light nutes. usually 4-8 lucas. and water as little as possible.

 

i guess a lot of it has to do with you, your rooms, and your plans.

[Les]

Sorry, this has been discussed here before, but I can't find anything using the search feature. Maybe I'm just bad at it.

 

Anyway, what is the optimal temperature for the water in a bubble cloner??

 

Thanks.

[Jipo]

WWBGD (What Would Bubble Grower Do) Came home last night and inspected my Sour Cream as she's been kind of funky lately. Well I found banana's, I think. They're still young but they look like they're developing. I quarantined it and left it in the dark, its almost all milky trich wise, but no amber what so ever. I'm thinking let her sit in the dark and think about what she did for a few days try and stress her to get any more maturity out of her, her buds are beautiful though and I don't think I want the banana's to pop.

[Grow Thread]

Sorry, this has been discussed here before, but I can't find anything using the search feature. Maybe I'm just bad at it.

 

Anyway, what is the optimal temperature for the water in a bubble cloner??

 

Thanks.

i have found that 70° is min and 75° is max for best results. 72° =

dropping your ph down to the low 6's will speed things up a couple days normally as well.

 

WWBGD (What Would Bubble Grower Do) Came home last night and inspected my Sour Cream as she's been kind of funky lately. Well I found banana's, I think. They're still young but they look like they're developing. I quarantined it and left it in the dark, its almost all milky trich wise, but no amber what so ever. I'm thinking let her sit in the dark and think about what she did for a few days try and stress her to get any more maturity out of her, her buds are beautiful though and I don't think I want the banana's to pop.

 

yeah i'd go old school on her. strip the fan leaves, start the final flush, and throw her butt in a dark closet for a week

even if the sacs do mature and open during the week, it wont have enough time to produce squat for seed...... and keeping her in the hole and out of general population will make sure there isnt any pollen floating around.

[Jipo]

yeah i'd go old school on her. strip the fan leaves, start the final flush, and throw her butt in a dark closet for a week

even if the sacs do mature and open during the week, it wont have enough time to produce squat for seed...... and keeping her in the hole and out of general population will make sure there isnt any pollen floating around.

 

I knew you'd reassure me that was a good idea Its technically a bathroom, but we can call it a closet, gonna give her a real flush...

[tooldini]

I have a seeding dinafem roadrunner that is maybe 1.5" tall growing under CFL's. I just bought a 400w HPS and wondered if I should just keep the plant under cfl's till older then put under the new light. How far can I keep the plant from the HPS? Is it the same as CFL's till it feels too hot for my hand. Any help would be appreciated.

[Les]

i have found that 70° is min and 75° is max for best results. 72° =

dropping your ph down to the low 6's will speed things up a couple days normally as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks!

[BubbleBerryKush]

hey bubble grower, I am running your suggested 5 gallon bucket RDWC system, and I am having a problem with slow growth in veg...400 watt MH/HPS mix T5 about 2 feet from the plants, ecoAIR #5 air pump, 6.0 ph, sub 800 ppm, lucas formula, temps 68 low 73 high, humidity 45%...any suggestions???? I am thinking my nute ratio is off, or maybe I need to just flush and refill the system...

 

and what is that brown stuff building up on the inside upper walls of my buckets???? I figure its nothing, but should ask any ways...

Edited February 2, 2011 by BubbleBerryKush

[Grow Thread]

hey bubble grower, I am running your suggested 5 gallon bucket RDWC system, and I am having a problem with slow growth in veg...400 watt MH/HPS mix T5 about 2 feet from the plants, ecoAIR #5 air pump, 6.0 ph, sub 800 ppm, lucas formula, temps 68 low 73 high, humidity 45%...any suggestions???? I am thinking my nute ratio is off, or maybe I need to just flush and refill the system...

 

and what is that brown stuff building up on the inside upper walls of my buckets???? I figure its nothing, but should ask any ways...

 

the brown stuff can be from 2 things........ your water temps are too warm, or your hydroton wasn't sterile. well, there are many other possibilities, but these are the 2 most common for me.

 

a 400 watt mh/hps mix T5? huh? you should be at the 6500k range in T5 language for strongest veg.

 

if you are truly using T5 lights, you are probably way too far away. keep them as close as possible. i can keep my 200w 4 lamp 4 foot T5's just a couple inches off the plant tops with proper fans/air flow.

 

yes, if your plants have a couple good sets of leaves on them, they are ready to start sucking up some light..... that means they are ready to make food/plant growth and need the nutes to do so.

 

run it at 8-16 and you should be right at 1000ppm.

 

i keep my vegging plants in a jungle....... except for water temps..... those stay at 68-70°........ but the air temp is closer to 80° and the humidity should definitely be higher that what you have going there...... 80% is good.

[BubbleBerryKush]

^^^^^I have a small humidifier in the veg room, but its 10ft/10ft so I dont think its big enough ... and i just double checked my veg light is a sun system 8-bulb T5 (54 watts per bulb) with half being 6500k and the other half look like HPS color..

 

so what can I do about the build up??? should I flush the hydro ton? or just whip it off? looks like I need to clean my hydroton a bit better next time....

[Grow Thread]

I have a seeding dinafem roadrunner that is maybe 1.5" tall growing under CFL's. I just bought a 400w HPS and wondered if I should just keep the plant under cfl's till older then put under the new light. How far can I keep the plant from the HPS? Is it the same as CFL's till it feels too hot for my hand. Any help would be appreciated.

thats really personal preference......... but if it was me, i would put it under the 400w HPS to veg and flower. you will have faster and more lush growth with the HID over a CFL.... even if it isnt 100% the most optimal color temp (metal halide)

 

just to be safe you may want to leave it under the cfl's for another few days and let it get a bit bigger.... then start her under the 400w. i would start far away.... 14"-18" if needed..... and then with proper air flow/fans, as the plant gets bigger and can stand more stress, you should be able to move the light to within 6-8" or even less.

 

if you can put your hand at the top of the plant and be comfortable for a minute or 2 then you are fine..... if your hand burns, your plants will too.

 

a small light burn isnt going to kill a plant, but it's not something to strive for either......... especially when the plant is very young. it needs all the leaves it can get right now to help turn light into plant growth.

 

^^^^^I have a small humidifier in the veg room, but its 10ft/10ft so I dont think its big enough ... and i just double checked my veg light is a sun system 8-bulb T5 (54 watts per bulb) with half being 6500k and the other half look like HPS color..

 

so what can I do about the build up??? should I flush the hydro ton? or just whip it off? looks like I need to clean my hydroton a bit better next time....

my theory is nothing under 60% humidity in veg........ thats just me..... but humidifiers are cheap, and the higher humidity really does make a huge difference in transpiration/veg time.

 

i use straight 6500k lamps in my T5's. some systems are sold as "one light from beginning to end" and contain a mixture of color temps. some people swear they get better results by mixing..... i have never found that to be true for myself. if you bought the light used, you may want to invest in a whole new set of bulbs to assure max growth and to have an idea on lamp-life as well.

 

normally if i get the "brown gunk" it is within the first couple weeks after planting. dumping everything and refilling with fresh stuff will normally take care of it. if you want to be 100% sure, you could remove the plant/netpot and hit it with the kitchen sink sprayer real good. all through the clay pebbles and even spray the roots down real good too. the chlorine in the tapwater will help kill off bad stuff.......... but make sure you have a clean bucket/tote of nutes/good water for the plant to go right into...... you dont want her sucking up too much of that chlorinated water

[BubbleBerryKush]

Does anyone know the ratio of water to h2o2 to clean a root system in a bubble system?????

[Grow Thread]

sorry, never used peroxide in my systems before. i use flora-kleen or this stuff: http://www.4hydroponics.com/hydroponics/items.asp?ItemNo=physan20

[Royal Smoke]

Does anyone know the ratio of water to h2o2 to clean a root system in a bubble system?????

 

I read that if you already have root rot and you're treating it.... it would be 10 ml per gallon.

 

For just a cautionary measure, I read add 5 ml per gallon.

[SpartanHort]

Greetings to all, Ive been lurking in the shadows for a month or 2 ... and now it time to step out into the sunshine(or HID) and give this a rip... I figured I would lay out the plan I've got so far and see what advice I might be able to get from the wise and noble growers that permiate the MMMA forums. So, the Plan: 4'x 8'x 6'h "cabinet",l2 plant pept. 2 plant bubbletotes besides>(I built a 4plant/26gal topfeed DWC b4 I found out about BG's bbltotes),for the 1st few cycles the cab. will be divided into 2 4x4 chambers. cfl's for veg. I'm thinking 400w hps to start(I'm hoping that the 400w hps from Farmtek/GrowersSupply arent cr@p($185 OTD +ship), as I'd eventually like to run 3 400's in the 4x8 box for flowering). 80 cfm in line fan. lucas, flat white paint,I think got I've a handle but would like some input and I'm afraid I'm starting to ramble.

 

Happy to be part of the community,

Bill

 

BTW, What I've already learned from BG,Royal,Hempche.........everybody is immeasureable and much appreciated

[Grow Thread]

Greetings to all, Ive been lurking in the shadows for a month or 2 ... and now it time to step out into the sunshine(or HID) and give this a rip... I figured I would lay out the plan I've got so far and see what advice I might be able to get from the wise and noble growers that permiate the MMMA forums. So, the Plan: 4'x 8'x 6'h "cabinet",l2 plant pept. 2 plant bubbletotes besides>(I built a 4plant/26gal topfeed DWC b4 I found out about BG's bbltotes),for the 1st few cycles the cab. will be divided into 2 4x4 chambers. cfl's for veg. I'm thinking 400w hps to start(I'm hoping that the 400w hps from Farmtek/GrowersSupply arent cr@p($185 OTD +ship), as I'd eventually like to run 3 400's in the 4x8 box for flowering). 80 cfm in line fan. lucas, flat white paint,I think got I've a handle but would like some input and I'm afraid I'm starting to ramble.

 

Happy to be part of the community,

Bill

 

BTW, What I've already learned from BG,Royal,Hempche.........everybody is immeasureable and much appreciated

 

welcome to the boards!!

 

sounds like you have a plan there. i fear the inline fan may be too small though. im sure i will have a better idea of your setup once you get her going and take some pics though

[ToadInCan]

Does anyone know the ratio of water to h2o2 to clean a root system in a bubble system?????

 

 

This seems like a good resource about H2O2 for root rot.

 

http://www.quickgrow.com/gardening_articles/hydrogen_peroxide_horticulture.html

[ToadInCan]

Good afternoon growers! I have a question about Bush Master. I'm at about 3 1/2 weeks in veg, with plants 15" to 21" tall. My plan is to put them into flush in two days, and then into bloom a few days after that. I'm in bubble totes, using the Lucas' nutes. Should I be using Bush Master as well? What will it do for me?

Any tips are greatly appreciated.

 

Toad

[Grow Thread]

Good afternoon growers! I have a question about Bush Master. I'm at about 3 1/2 weeks in veg, with plants 15" to 21" tall. My plan is to put them into flush in two days, and then into bloom a few days after that. I'm in bubble totes, using the Lucas' nutes. Should I be using Bush Master as well? What will it do for me?

Any tips are greatly appreciated.

 

Toad

 

i have been playing with the bushmaster for quite awhile now. probably ran it 5 different ways through 10 different strains..... all with the lucas.

 

this is what i have found works best as a jumping off point.

 

run them from veg straight into flower without flushing first. on day 6 of flower dump your buckets and run clean water for a day. on day seven, dump that and refill with fresh water and 2ml per gallon of bushmaster. no nutes.

 

i have found that for me, it works best if you just run it by itself.

 

i run it from days 7-10 or 7-12 of flower..... depending on strain..... sativa dominates i run for 5 days. after the 3 day or 5 day treatment, dump, and refill with regular nutes/water.

 

bushmaster is a vertical growth stopper. i have seen plants literally be messed up and stunted right then and there and not grow another inch.

 

the stuff is wicked. for real.

 

use sparingly until you have run it once and see the results.

 

ultimately the point is to decrease the stretch, creating shorter plants....... which means more light to lower branches.

[ToadInCan]

i have been playing with the bushmaster for quite awhile now. probably ran it 5 different ways through 10 different strains..... all with the lucas.

 

this is what i have found works best as a jumping off point.

 

run them from veg straight into flower without flushing first. on day 6 of flower dump your buckets and run clean water for a day. on day seven, dump that and refill with fresh water and 2ml per gallon of bushmaster. no nutes.

 

i have found that for me, it works best if you just run it by itself.

 

i run it from days 7-10 or 7-12 of flower..... depending on strain..... sativa dominates i run for 5 days. after the 3 day or 5 day treatment, dump, and refill with regular nutes/water.

 

bushmaster is a vertical growth stopper. i have seen plants literally be messed up and stunted right then and there and not grow another inch.

 

the stuff is wicked. for real.

 

use sparingly until you have run it once and see the results.

 

ultimately the point is to decrease the stretch, creating shorter plants....... which means more light to lower branches.

 

Thanks again, BG! I think I understand... let em stretch for a week, then put the stop to em. They are growing more than an inch per day right now. My plan was to veg up to two feet, then flip the lights on them. Some of them are almost there now, and not even four weeks in veg. The agressive growth in the bubble totes amazes me. I'll never be able to thank you enough for sharing this grow method.

 

I'll let you know how it works out.

[The Mayor]

Howdy BG,

 

 

I have recently started using your 10 gallon bubble tote (eventually totes), and I am going to try the 2 plant, 18 day perpetual cycle. I also am trying the Lucas formula, only with tap water (bubbled accordingly 24 + hours prior to use) because I don't have the funds for now to get an RO system.

 

My first two clones have now grown roots and are hanging nicely into the water. I started the cycle on Feb 1 with clones that were just starting to root from my cloner because I hadn't decided definitely to go this route until the last minute.

 

These are currently under a small 18" fluorescent light, and will be under my T5 in less than a week. My room temp averages in the mid to high 70's, and my humidity I have been able to keep between 45-50% with a warm mist humidifier (otherwise it is pretty dry outside of my grow area).

 

I have a couple of questions.

 

What issues can I expect with the tap water vs RO? Will it simply be that I am starting with a higher ppm?

 

I'm using the 0-5-10 mix right now, so my max ppm should be 829 per the post in this string. I just had to add water for the first time, it was only 1/2 gallon, and I added the regular strength to the water (5ml and 10ml to a gallon). My ppm is at 885 now. Should I empty the res and refill due to this overage? ...or should I watch for evidence of lock out first?

 

I realize now that I probably should have used the formula you gave to determine how much nutes I needed to bring my ppm to proper levels....or should I have added straight water to bring it down a bit? My ph has stayed relatively steady between 5.5 - 6.0.

 

What other techniques do you use in this process outside of the 2 nute Lucas formula? I see above that you have used the bushmaster (which I have used in my Fox Farm regimen) and Florakleen for your flushing...is there anything else in your routine that you would recommend or consider a "tip"?

 

Thank you in advance for your help!

[Grow Thread]

 

 

These are currently under a small 18" fluorescent light, and will be under my T5 in less than a week. My room temp averages in the mid to high 70's, and my humidity I have been able to keep between 45-50% with a warm mist humidifier (otherwise it is pretty dry outside of my grow area).

 

I have a couple of questions.

 

What issues can I expect with the tap water vs RO? Will it simply be that I am starting with a higher ppm?

 

I'm using the 0-5-10 mix right now, so my max ppm should be 829 per the post in this string. I just had to add water for the first time, it was only 1/2 gallon, and I added the regular strength to the water (5ml and 10ml to a gallon). My ppm is at 885 now. Should I empty the res and refill due to this overage? ...or should I watch for evidence of lock out first?

 

I realize now that I probably should have used the formula you gave to determine how much nutes I needed to bring my ppm to proper levels....or should I have added straight water to bring it down a bit? My ph has stayed relatively steady between 5.5 - 6.0.

 

What other techniques do you use in this process outside of the 2 nute Lucas formula? I see above that you have used the bushmaster (which I have used in my Fox Farm regimen) and Florakleen for your flushing...is there anything else in your routine that you would recommend or consider a "tip"?

 

Thank you in advance for your help!

 

45-50% humidity is "ok" but if you can get it higher you will no doubt have better veg results.

 

tapwater vs. RO?? many possibilities....... and maybe no problems at all. thats the problem with tapwater..... it has things in it for sure.... we can use an instrument to measure how much is in there....... but without extensive testing, we do not know REALLY whats in there and how much of each.

 

the main problem is usually some sort of a nute lock-out. where the minerals found naturally in your tapwater mix with the store-bought nutes/minerals and added together make too much of one specific element.......... an effect of having too much of one thing may be that it blocks out another.

 

how bad is your tapwater?? what are the ppms and ph straight from the faucet?

 

many many people use tap with no real probs, but i would invest a couple hundred in an r.o. filter straight away. better to give them "the best" and also to be afforded the chance to know 100% whats your roots are dangling in.

 

really, in my experience it depends on your starting numbers. if its a low number like 50-150ppm you can just give it a whirl as-is and see. if it is much higher than that you might wanna make adjustments for nute amounts and dial it right in.

 

as far as other chemicals that i use on a regular basis? there arent too many really.

 

i like humboldt roots for soaking rockwool cubes in before planting seeds or sticking fresh cut clones in them..... i also use it in aerocloner water.

 

some strains are just plain finicky or very hungry and need an extra dose of cal-mag so i always have that on hand if a deficiency shows up............

 

i think thats about all that sits on the shelves as far as running the lucas

[The Mayor]

My water (after bubbling overnight) has a ppm of about 330-335. :-(

 

pH is right around 7.0.

 

Yeah, of course in the past two days my leaves are looking bad. They look like (from looking at photos online) I have a magnesium deficiency.

 

I know I should get the RO, but that will certainly be a while from now before I'm able to do that.

 

How would I approach adjusting the nutes? I'm not sure I know even where to start. Less of both...or base it on what I think the leaves are telling me? The pH seems to stay steady just fine, and they did pretty well in terms of rooting. But now that the roots have hit the water and are dangling in it, things appear to be going south.

 

Is there a site for diagnosing plant issues you would recommend (with photos). It seems like most sites have the same information, if not the exact same photos. But a recommendation from someone in the know would be reassuring.

 

Getting that humidity up...I have steam vaporizer in there...but it's a small space and my ventilation is reasonably efficient, so it doesn't really get very high. My flower room the humidity (in these winter months) stays between 35-40% usually. Occasionally it dips down to 30%. But I should keep that humidity lower, correct?

 

 

I'm using the 0-5-10 mix right now, so my max ppm should be 829 per your Lucas post in this string if I'm understanding it correctly. When I had to add water for the first time, it was only 1/2 gallon, and I added the regular strength to the water (5ml and 10ml to a gallon). My ppm is at 885 now. Is it safe to assume those ppm's listed are my max and I should avoid going over on them? Could this overage alone be my issue?

[Grow Thread]

My water (after bubbling overnight) has a ppm of about 330-335. :-(

 

pH is right around 7.0.

 

Yeah, of course in the past two days my leaves are looking bad. They look like (from looking at photos online) I have a magnesium deficiency.

 

I know I should get the RO, but that will certainly be a while from now before I'm able to do that.

 

How would I approach adjusting the nutes? I'm not sure I know even where to start. Less of both...or base it on what I think the leaves are telling me? The pH seems to stay steady just fine, and they did pretty well in terms of rooting. But now that the roots have hit the water and are dangling in it, things appear to be going south.

 

Is there a site for diagnosing plant issues you would recommend (with photos). It seems like most sites have the same information, if not the exact same photos. But a recommendation from someone in the know would be reassuring.

 

Getting that humidity up...I have steam vaporizer in there...but it's a small space and my ventilation is reasonably efficient, so it doesn't really get very high. My flower room the humidity (in these winter months) stays between 35-40% usually. Occasionally it dips down to 30%. But I should keep that humidity lower, correct?

 

 

I'm using the 0-5-10 mix right now, so my max ppm should be 829 per your Lucas post in this string if I'm understanding it correctly. When I had to add water for the first time, it was only 1/2 gallon, and I added the regular strength to the water (5ml and 10ml to a gallon). My ppm is at 885 now. Is it safe to assume those ppm's listed are my max and I should avoid going over on them? Could this overage alone be my issue?

 

here's a great spot for self-diagnosing: http://www.rollitup.org/marijuana-plant-problems/216537-self-diagnose-your-plants.html

 

your humidity in flower is good. 35-50% is fine you dont want to go too low, or you will interrupt transpiration.... and you dont wanna go too high, or you run the risk of mold and all kinds of crazy airy buds.

 

there are 2 ways to backfill using the lucas method:

 

1. Top off the reservoir daily using a pH corrected water solution as required to maintain full reservoir level. After adding back an amount of water equal to the amount of your reservoir capacity you should change the reservoir and put in fresh solution.

 

2. Top off the reservoir daily using a pH corrected 100% strength nutrient solution as required to maintain full reservoir level. Continue to use this nutrient solution without dumping the tank unless the PPM rises above acceptable levels.

 

i recommend that newer growers use method #1. it is much safer.

 

you have some fresh pics you can show?? what lighting are you using again??

 

may be able to help more with pics

[The Mayor]

I have them under an 18" flourescent "garden" bulb that is right over them for a few more days. They're only 4" tall right now.

I have a bubblebucket plant of considerable size that is about to go into flower and due to how high I have to have it elevated, the tote isn't getting any of it. I may just pull clones and start my next tote a bit ahead of the 18 day mark since I'm at the beginning of the perpetual program and make the T5 available.

 

I'll try to shoot some pics and post them in the next 24 hours.

 

I'll start the water back fill like you said until I get more used to the method.

 

Now, when the second step says 100% nutrient solution, does that mean 5ml and 10ml per gallon, or does that mean doing the calculations so that your nutes/volume are added in such a fashion as to raise the ppm up to the maximum?

 

I was reading one board where Lucas himself was answering questions and I got the impression that keeping your ppm up to the maximum was key in the success of the method. Did I misunderstand that? It appears as though I might have since we are discussing back filling with just pH adjusted water.

 

I'm really excited about both the Lucas method and the perpetual grow using the totes. So I hope I can get this all dialed in. I am a true convert when it comes to the DWI/bubble method.