GrowingGirls' Mystery Seed Growing Adventure Journal - 2010

[SanibelGreen]

GG what fan are you using? Where are you running the air to? How is the water situation? We can figure it out just start throwing info out, those temps and humidity are not that bad. It is all a learning process so keep your chin up!

SG

 

[GrowingGirls]

GG what fan are you using? Where are you running the air to? How is the water situation?

I can't find the box the fan came in now even though I know I saved it. Home Depot had two options for inline duct fans, so I bought the bigger one which is 6" and I think the CFM is like 250. Going by the rule of thumb of the fan being able to move the room's volume of air 2-3 times in a minute, the fan is too small but would be just right if I had the plant area inside that room closed off better. But, I've also read that once every 5 minutes is enough, in which case I'm covered even considering the entire room. I'm running the air out into the main area of my basement.

I might be able to seal off that back area better by knocking out the shelves and basically putting a wall in front of the plants. I would also need to totally reroute the fan, and cut holes in things...with tools I don't have.

The water situation is that they were pretty thirsty today, but not ridiculously dry. I mixed up the nutes weaker than last time and added 1 tablespoon of molasses per gallon. The PH of the runoff was about 6.5 when I flushed them last week.

Do I need to raise the ballast again, maybe? The 150W HPS is about 8-9 inches from the canopy.

 

[SanibelGreen]

I can't find the box the fan came in now even though I know I saved it. Home Depot had two options for inline duct fans, so I bought the bigger one which is 6" and I think the CFM is like 250. Going by the rule of thumb of the fan being able to move the room's volume of air 2-3 times in a minute, the fan is too small but would be just right if I had the plant area inside that room closed off better. But, I've also read that once every 5 minutes is enough, in which case I'm covered even considering the entire room. I'm running the air out into the main area of my basement.

I might be able to seal off that back area better by knocking out the shelves and basically putting a wall in front of the plants. I would also need to totally reroute the fan, and cut holes in things...with tools I don't have.

The water situation is that they were pretty thirsty today, but not ridiculously dry. I mixed up the nutes weaker than last time and added 1 tablespoon of molasses per gallon. The PH of the runoff was about 6.5 when I flushed them last week.

Do I need to raise the ballast again, maybe? The 150W HPS is about 8-9 inches from the canopy.

good rule of thumb is put yur hand at the closest part or canopy and feel how hot it is to your hand and if it real warm move it back, water seems fine. How man fans do you have circulating air?

SG

 

[HorseBadoritz]

So I just got back from my 2+ day absence, and although there weren't any major tragedies while I was gone, I'm not very happy.

In the flowering room, humidity ranged from 51-60 and temp from 76-84. The plants look like they got really hot and dried out, and I don't see any new growth. My duct fan isn't working well enough.

I don't know what the fuck to do. Should I install another fan? Or make the one I have more effective somehow? How am I going to keep the temps from going sky high at the end of flowering when it's time to pull out all the humidity? How can I get a decent overnight drop in temperature with that hot-ass dehumidifier not even dialed up as high as it should be yet?

Somebody must know what I can do to make this grow awesome...

I simply can't induce the right conditions for my plants, and I'm so fucking sick of trying! Been working my ass off for weeks and I still can't get it right.

GG, I don't have a clue how to make this gro awesome, well, you could lower your expectations Hey, or smoke a bowl, have a beer, and cogitate???

I'm having some of the same problems. I'm thinking of moving my dehumidifier away from the gro area for a while, but then my whole space is open. Might not make any diff.

I just put in an insulated 6" exhaust duct for the light/tent. I might be down to 88° now, dang.

I'm thinking of coming about on a new tack and put the 24 hour lights in a tent, then keeping the flowering girls and the crawl space on 12/12.

Hey don't get bummed, the dorking around to get things right is pretty interesting... and when 420 has a grower's convention, we can all get stoned and say "Hey y'all, you shoulda seen whut I done..."

Hang in there. Once you're dialed in, it'll be cake and pie

PS, ya may want to condition that basement, or just the grow room? What's the house's HVAC ducting deal?

 

[GrowingGirls]

good rule of thumb is put yur hand at the closest part or canopy and feel how hot it is to your hand and if it real warm move it back, water seems fine. How man fans do you have circulating air?

SG

It doesn't feel terribly warm to me at the top of the canopy, so I've always thought I was safe on that...until today, because I'm grasping for solutions.

There are 3 fans in the room....2 are decent and 1 is mostly useless.

 

[GrowingGirls]

PS, ya may want to condition that basement, or just the grow room? What's the house's HVAC ducting deal?

Definitely thinking about it. I wish there was some portable appliance I could buy that could do it all...cooling, heating, drying, dampening. I would pay SO MUCH money for something like that.

There is HVAC ducting into the basement but there are only 2 vents and of course neither of those are in either of the grow rooms. I've thought about building a grow room under each of those vents for future grows (or at least one for a more controllable flowering room), but it would only help so much because the thermostat is on the main floor.

I wish I had room for growing on the main floor, but it would be absolutely impossible. Not only do I lack the actual space, but I am a parent with a very mischievous young child.

 

[GrowingGirls]

A pic of the problem, finally...I've been unable to get photos off my phone all afternoon. I've got yellow patches and the new growth is curling up right away.

 

[SanibelGreen]

Well I think it could be some possible light bleaching from being too close or most likely just real thirsty and more water (correct me if I am wrong), remmeber they start drinkign a lot more in the later days of flower

SG

 

[HorseBadoritz]

Definitely thinking about it. I wish there was some portable appliance I could buy that could do it all...cooling, heating, drying, dampening. I would pay SO MUCH money for something like that.

There is HVAC ducting into the basement but there are only 2 vents and of course neither of those are in either of the grow rooms. I've thought about building a grow room under each of those vents for future grows (or at least one for a more controllable flowering room), but it would only help so much because the thermostat is on the main floor.

I wish I had room for growing on the main floor, but it would be absolutely impossible. Not only do I lack the actual space, but I am a parent with a very mischievous young child.

If the basement isn't finshed, and you can get to the duct work, you may be able to do some re-routing. An air return to the system would be a big help. Otherwise, an inline fan to the outside would do a lot just to keep air moving, which seems to make all things healthy.

Do you own the house? If you do, it may be worth it to make the basement liveable for flora and fauna.

I would kill for any kind of basement

and, have you been to this thread? My New Room

 

[GrowingGirls]

and, have you been to this thread? My New Room

I have now. Very nice! I loathe hanging plastic with every molecule of my being, which is probably why I didn't use any. Remember, I started out lazy on this grow!

I do own the house...no way in hell I'd be running all that business around in the basement if I was renting here. I'd love to finish the basement fully enough to make it easier to grow here, but everything costs money and I need time to make money.

It would actually be pretty simple (I think) to extend one of the vents from its current spot into the bloom room. It wouldn't make anything perfect, but it would be a start.

I need to give the ladies one last look before bedtime tonight...they missed me while I was gone, obviously.

 

[GrowingGirls]

I'd like some opinions on if the little ones should be transplanted. They are still very short (tallest is just under 3" from top of soil to tip of plant), and I've had to cut off quite a few lower leaves that didn't want to live (and trim others), but these roots make me think they need to get into bigger pots if they are going to be able to get taller. Is it time?

These are the two that are lagging behind. Other than the still-green stems (the others are mostly purplish), they look the same as the others on the outside...but their roots are way behind. I will probably just transplant them at the same time as the others and let them sink or swim.

Group shots before and after feeding:

Tomorrow it will be 3 weeks since I cut these clones from the moms that were just starting to get their flowers...shouldn't they be about ready to revert back to some serious vegetative growth by now?

 

[SanibelGreen]

You will see a lot more growth and color from them when they get transplanted, they are looking to expand

SG

 

[dfw-guy]

The clones don't need to be transplanted yet. Wait until a couple more new leaf sets emerge. They're still babies, no need for a bigger home right now. Also if you keep the CFL's closer to the clones, within 3 inches, they should start growing a bit faster. Sorry to hear about the dehumidifier problems, glad you lucked out on the used deal. About the big girls, I don't think your having PH problems because your stems are still green. How close are they to that HPS? Just so you know it's recommended that you keep the HPS light at least 8" away from the plants to prevent burning. I think you didn't have any problems until now because your grow area is so cool. Just back the HPS off and see if it helps. As long as it's within 12" you'll still get max light penetration. The CLF's however should be kept as close as possible (not closer than 1" though), just be careful that the girls don't grow into em

All the trial and error your going through will make your next grow just that much easier and better.

 

[GrowingGirls]

Wait until a couple more new leaf sets emerge. Also if you keep the CFL's closer to the clones, within 3 inches, they should start growing a bit faster.

How close are they to that HPS? Just so you know it's recommended that you keep the HPS light at least 8" away from the plants to prevent burning. As long as it's within 12" you'll still get max light penetration.

The CFL's however should be kept as close as possible (not closer than 1" though), just be careful that the girls don't grow into em

I had the CFLs just over an inch away from the clones for about a week, and it didn't help. I moved them to about 3 inches away before I left for the weekend just in case they shot up...but obviously they didn't. I can move them back, but I don't know how much good it will do. And for every new leaf set they get, I end up with another set dying at the bottom that I need to cut off. They can only grow tiny leaves. It's driving me absolutely fucking nuts, and I think I might transplant half of them today just to see what happens.

So, with the big ladies, I basically need to have the canopy 8-12" from the HPS, right? Problem is, the light is already about 8" from the highest point in the canopy, and 12" from the majority of the lowest flowers. I can't really even it any more. If I move the light up, I'll be helping some buds and screwing others. And, I've got the CFLs as close as is safely possible already.

I rearranged the fans this morning; I don't know what else to do. I'd reroute the duct fan if I thought it would do any good...I really don't think it's pulling out much heat at all. Could it have something to do with where inside the duct the fan is placed? Does the fan maybe need to be closer to the duct opening on the sucking end? I'd sort of rather stab myself in the face than re-do the whole duct fan today, but if it'll make the difference between my plants being awesome or being ruined, I'll do it.

 

[SanibelGreen]

What have been the temps the last few days? As log as you have some CFO side lighting it is ok to move the light away more I think it is still recommended for lower wattage hps to be 12 - 18 inches away, check some of the light sites for just to make sure, I would for ya but I am at work and I saw that you said you got that one at BMW depot, given any thought to getting a Eco plus inline or something I am worried that fan yo have isn't pulling the air as much as it should.

SG

 

[GrowingGirls]

What have been the temps the last few days? As log as you have some CFO side lighting it is ok to move the light away more I think it is still recommended for lower wattage hps to be 12 - 18 inches away, check some of the light sites for just to make sure, I would for ya but I am at work and I saw that you said you got that one at BMW depot, given any thought to getting a Eco plus inline or something I am worried that fan yo have isn't pulling the air as much as it should.

SG

Temps are getting into the mid-80s, with only about an 8 degree drop at night. Actually, just this morning I took the outdoor probe thingy on my thermometer and laid it out on the top of the canopy, so maybe I'll get a more accurate reading. Unfortunately it will also probably be a higher one.

I just made a makeshift air conditioner by putting a fan at the back of the dehumidifier, where the unit is actually cold (by the coil). If it shaves a couple degrees off, I'll be happy. Er, less frustrated. Happiness might still be a stretch.

You are absolutely correct that my duct fan is insufficient; I just came to this realization after asking about it in my last post. I'm not ready to invest in a new fan yet, though. I am going to take down the whole mess down today, chop off a good portion of the duct on the sucker end, tape it on the blower end so it'll still be long enough to get to the hole above the door, and reset it with the fan as close as I possibly can to the center of this heat mess.

And I am going to buy some damn duct tape this time!

 

[Hypo Hippy]

Hey GG, my suggestion would be go to the grow support section and ask for help. start from the beginning there are some great members that are eager to help.

hang in there.
HH

 

[SanibelGreen]

Temps are getting into the mid-80s, with only about an 8 degree drop at night. Actually, just this morning I took the outdoor probe thingy on my thermometer and laid it out on the top of the canopy, so maybe I'll get a more accurate reading. Unfortunately it will also probably be a higher one.

I just made a makeshift air conditioner by putting a fan at the back of the dehumidifier, where the unit is actually cold (by the coil). If it shaves a couple degrees off, I'll be happy. Er, less frustrated. Happiness might still be a stretch.

You are absolutely correct that my duct fan is insufficient; I just came to this realization after asking about it in my last post. I'm not ready to invest in a new fan yet, though. I am going to take down the whole mess down today, chop off a good portion of the duct on the sucker end, tape it on the blower end so it'll still be long enough to get to the hole above the door, and reset it with the fan as close as I possibly can to the center of this heat mess.

And I am going to buy some damn duct tape this time!

Good idea cutting some off, chances are that the fan is too low CFM to run the whole duct, and duct tape solves everything! remember this is a first so no worries yours looks better than mine did! Keep your chin up.

SG

 

[GrowingGirls]

From what I've just read, the penetration of the 150W HPS really drops off after 12". But, I'm feeling okay with it at the 14" I just raised it to because I pulled the CFLs in really close.

And, I transplanted 4 of the babies. They are going to need more light!

 

[SanibelGreen]

Lookin good! Growing is like fishing a patience based activity lol

SG