Buds Buddy Does DWC: Critical 2.0 For The 1st Time

bebecillo said:
Check practical engineering in YouTube. He explains how many of these systems work and a bulb might go on.
Click to expand...
Truth is, DWC is starting to look like it's a PITA compared to Soil. Constantly worrying about water temps & pH. I'm losing interest in it quite fast as I'm looking to simplify & have to go in my grow room less. I think the Auto Pots may work out better once I have that grow room going. Just waiting on a carbon filter to get here so I can start it.
I have a 6 outlet 40 liter per minute air pump I'm going to try here shortly. If that doesn't work it has to be something with the stones. If so, I'll go buy some at the Hydro Store.
 
Guess it was those pumps. Hooked up the big pump & it's bubbling like a sauna. Going to get this running tonight so I can transplant the plugs tomorrow. But need a bit of info 1st.
I'll be using MC (Mega Crop) so what is the recommended amount per gallon starting out with DWC ? I was thinking about 1 gram per gallon; but I think wrong a lot so I'm asking before doing this time. What about Hydroguard ? Is it 2 ml. per gallon ? Anything else like Cal Mag or anything I need to add ? pH to 5.8 ? Just starting the plugs in the 6" net pots. How high should I get the water level since roots aren't through the pebbles yet ? Any help I can get would be much appreciated as I'm ready to get this rolling. Going to hook up the 4" Fan & Filter now & then the buckets so hopefully someone will chime in during that time. Thanks !!!
 
Aloha,

if the air is pumping bubbles then I would have the water touching the bottoms of the net pot. Until the roots poke thru and are in the nutes. Once the are lower nute solution level to an inch or two so the popping bubbles still splash onto the net pot. This will keep them moist and they will get the O2 thru the air gaps above the solution.

I’ve never used the nutes you mentioned so the only advice I can give is start low and see how they adjust to the strength, once you know what the company recommends. Have you tried their website to see if it lists the amount? Remember don’t add nutes until the first true leaves are out and looking for light.

puff puff pass, haven’t tried the strain you mentioned either. Lots of different strains avail and I have my favorites. GG is my current fav. Train Wreck and Chocolope are go to regulars.
 
When i started out using M.C my 5 gallon buckets held 3.5 gallons of ro water to about 2 inches below the net pot so with the air stones on it was just splashing the bottom of the net pot and hydroton, you want to keep the bottom of the net pot a little wet so the roots work there way to the water sourse,you might have to adjust your water level in bucket to where it is splashing the bottom of the net pot. I started with 2 grams of M.C per gallon for a total of 7 grams, seemed this was to much so ended up going with 6 grams total for the 3.5 gallons at the start of the grow which they seemed they liked. Had one that really liked ( needed the cal/mag) at 5.5 ml per the bucket (3.5 gallons) and the other one ( different stain) only used 1.5ml in bucket, so this you will have to figure out what they need if any for cal/mag. I always use hydrogaurd at 5-6ml per bucket 3ml to start till there bigger. I ph every morning and adjust accordingly, which i like to keep at about 5.8 this can jump all over the place it seems. Once the roots get bigger it will take a little less water, and once they get bigger you could be adding 1/2 to1 gallon of water every morning. I change the reservoir once a week usually saturday, and when it start drinking and your adding water every day i add a little more M.C with top up water on Wednesdays. You might have to top feed the odd time till the roots hit the water, not to much though, once roots hit the water she should take off. And yes dwc is more expensive than soil, later on when you have a little spare money you might want to buy another air pump as a spare, i is always good to have spare items. Hope this helps and good luck. :peace:
 
bebecillo said:
I see your frustration and that's why I'll probably never do DWC. It's like an aquarium, but even more boring. I think that once you see the huge yields vs soil you will be a lot more forgiving with dwc
Click to expand...
Hope you're right. Got it all going so updating now.
 
Sorry Guys for such a slow start. Every time I thought I had it ready ... some other issue occurred.
You know the song ... Three Steps Forward & 2 Steps Back. Well I think I got it right so far this time around ... lol. Still haven't done the site tube / drain hoses yet because the kits haven't arrived yet.
But starting without them & will add them when they get here.
Anyway, the 1st pic I'm posting is the Air Stuff I tried to use the 1st time & it did not work. 2nd pic is the stuff I bought today & it's a bubblin real good now.
Other pics of stuff I'm using, the tent with the buckets & the 2 - critical 2.0 seedlings & their roots.
The N.L. I trashed. She did not pop.
Here's the pics ....
1) R4T.JPG
2) R4T.JPG
3) R4T.JPG
4) R4T.JPG
5) R4T.JPG
6) R4T.JPG
7) R4T.JPG
8) R4T.JPG
 
So today I added 7 ml. of Hydro Guard to each bucket as I think someone originally said 2 ml. per gallon. Mixed that good & then added 7 grams of MC & mixed it real good. pH was 6.3 so added 2.5 ml. of pH down to get it to 5.8. Running it all night to make sure there's no issues.
There's about 3.5 gallons per bucket. The water level is just barely touching the net pots.
So now I have 2 questions : Are these 2 plugs ready to put in the net pots or should I wait longer ?
Is there any way to quiet the Air Pump down ? Damned thing is pretty loud considering the tent is in my bedroom.
 
1ne eye said:
Maybe try setting the air pump on some styrofoam might help a bit.
Click to expand...
Good idea. I might try a small Styrofoam Ice Chest to quiet it down even more. A couple of small 1" holes in the lid & it should work.
 
Those pumps are loud, sorry to hear....no pun intended.

how long was the air hose you used the first time? Also, I would get rid of the 4 x air manifold and run a straight hose, pump section to each pot. Direct is better. Might also want a good air stone. They will provide a better dispersion of O2, any pet store has them. Also “quieter” and not so expensive air pumps

If you’re worried about temps you can insulate the buckets with Refletix it will help a degree or so. Hydroguard as mentioned by 1ne eye I believe, will come into play there.
 
Sorry man. Took another look at you’re stones. They are the ones I was talking about. The first quieter pumps should push air through them if you go from each pump to ea stone direct and it may work for ya replacing that loud one.
 
Buds Buddy said:
Working on my 4 DWC Buckets. Siliconed the rubber washers to the buckets inside & out so waiting on that to dry.
Still no life on the N.L.
Is there any certain way to start these seedlings in the Root Riot Cubes ? Never used them before so I'm just giving them about 2 - 3 ml. of MC per day (1 gr. per gal.). The T-5 is about 4" above them.
One last thing .... Do you know of any U.S. Seed Banks that have Dr. Krippling Seeds ? There's a few strains I want to buy from him.
Click to expand...

If you're still looking for Dr.Krippling seeds they have it at the vault right now with a promo for a free seeds with purchase and I believe they have a discount code on the sponsor page worth taking a look.
 
I found a few U.S. seed banks but I don't know how reputable they are. Seems every place has 2 out of 3 that I want. Ordering the Incredible Bulk (Dr. Krippling) & Dos Si Sos #33 (Barney's Farm) this Friday. Looking to narrow it down to 3-5 strains I grow over & over so I can try to perfect my grow.
 
AlohaHaze said:
Those pumps are loud, sorry to hear....no pun intended.

how long was the air hose you used the first time? Also, I would get rid of the 4 x air manifold and run a straight hose, pump section to each pot. Direct is better. Might also want a good air stone. They will provide a better dispersion of O2, any pet store has them. Also “quieter” and not so expensive air pumps

If you’re worried about temps you can insulate the buckets with Refletix it will help a degree or so. Hydroguard as mentioned by 1ne eye I believe, will come into play there.
Click to expand...
Do these pumps usually get hot ? Mine is real hot. Ready to put it outside the tent.
 
Hey guys, are the 2 seedlings ready to go in the DWC Buckets ? - OR - Do I wait longer ? Not sure how big the plant should be or how much root should be showing or what ? How do you determine when to put them in the buckets ?
 
Checked pH this morning & it went up to 7.1. Big jump. Is this normal ? pH'd back to 5.8.
I put the seedling plugs into the Hydrotron & gave each 15 ml. of MC water to get them wet.
Did I put the plugs in correctly ? Not sure how far down they're suppose to go.
Well here they are. 3 Pics of each. And they're off to the races....LOL.
7-1.JPG
7-2.JPG
7-3.JPG
7-4.JPG
7-5.JPG
7-6.JPG
 
All the rest of the stuff I need to complete the Auto Pot Grow room is suppose to be here this week.
I'm guessing another 10 days til everything is up, tested & ready to roll.
 
Riot plugs should be lvl with the hydroten. The base of the plant doesn’t like overly wet feet. It can cause rot or fungus. You look good bro. Patience is a Gardner’s virtue. Also the best thing for you’re plant daily is you’re shadow! It means your showing it some love. Puff puff pass.
 
Back
Top Bottom