Munki's Ebb n Flow 3 x 3 SCROG 400W HPS Grow

sonzor said:
I like the Coleman Xtreme Cooler idea, Im going to have to look in to that.
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One nice thing about using an insulated container is that I can freeze some water in a 2 liter bottle and stick it in the rez to use as a chiller.

They have some versions of this cooled with the roller wheels on them so they can be eased into a tight spots then rolled back out to empty. It does have a drain hole at the bottom and I do not trust that it will hold when full of water. I may silicone it up or connect some tubing to it and secure it to the side so I can use that as a convenient visual fluid level checker.
 
Ms.Fox said:
^ Neat! The cooler on wheels would definitely be a plus. ;-)
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Too bad the store was out of them when I got there. Oh well. The one I without the wheels still slides well on the plastic as long as it is done on a smooth surface or material. It is also 8 quarts bigger than the wheeled one. Hope to have it up in running within the week but definitely before the reservoir change to flowering.
 
Some pictures from the end of day 43's light cycle.

Canopy

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Front side

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and here is a new viewpoint from the back side of the bucket.

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I'm still a mite confused. Are you going to cut away all that unproductive undergrowth and help the plants concentrate their energy up top where it will net you something useful come harvest time?

I can't help but think that once the top buds start filling in - which they will, being close to the light - that they will pretty much shade everything below from receiving any useful amount of light.
 
Oh, my friends, you will see that I will be doing that in due time. If you go back over my previous pics, you may notice how I am also incorporating other LST methods like using gardening twist ties to pull down the major branches down until they ran horizontal. Just a few days ago, you could see the silver from the back wall through the side. The plants have been pushing out more side branching from these tie downs but are just getting back up to the screen. The shot from the back appears more pushed up against the bucket as I have a small 8" fan on the ground blowing up into this area and that is pushing back the leaf mass.

So, my goals right now are to create as many branching sites as possible and to help them find their way to the edges of the screen or up in the middle. Stripping out leaf mass and weak branches won't happen until I right at the switch or soon thereafter.

Oh, I hate to burst anyone's bubble, but I'm not going to fill this 9+ square foot screen. As I stated before, I do not have a container to handle the maximum root mass that would be needed to feed such large plants. Next time though, I will have a much better growing container.
 
Andy Botwin said:
I'm all caught up and subscribed munki.
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Cool. Thanks Andy. BTW, just about got my new reservoir almost done. Check it out.

Here is the front where all the power, air, fill and return lines will be located.

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Here is a top down shot that also shows a pump. It would be a second pump that will just mix the solution around. It isn't vigorous but should help. I will only run it when I run the air pump which is for 30 minutes just before the main pump floods the tray.

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Finally this shot shows where the drain plug is located. I wasn't happy on how easy the plug came out so I devised this tube running off of it and secured with a clamp at the bottom and a hook I screwed into the side to hold the tube up. I will use it as a sight glass so i can see how much fluid remains in the rez.

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This should triple my current reservoir capacity which should get me through the flowering of this grow. I will probably try throwing a frozen 2 liter bottle filled with water to help chill down the nutrients.
 
I just had a wicked stupid idea i wanna run by you guys. Alright, do you have any lids for those 5 gallon buckets? maybe you could cut the buttom off your current container and set it into the lid of the 5 gal like a giant version of a net pot install.
 
Very, very nice. Love the res. That thing is going to work perfect, great job. I would give you a rep. but once again they won't let me. Any great job again and good luck..
 
CharlieMopps said:
I just had a wicked stupid idea i wanna run by you guys. Alright, do you have any lids for those 5 gallon buckets? maybe you could cut the buttom off your current container and set it into the lid of the 5 gal like a giant version of a net pot install.
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Nothin' stupid about the idea. Based upon the design of the bucket the plants are in, it acts as a flood tray and to drain properly, the fill tube must be to the bottom of the bucket. I would have to redesign this fill tube which I do not want to do mid-grow. Don't want to get too 'cute' with the grow. I'll take a little less in bud to have them all look healthy.

sonzor said:
Very, very nice. Love the res. That thing is going to work perfect, great job. I would give you a rep. but once again they won't let me. Any great job again and good luck..
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I'm in the same boat with the reps. I'll probably try to get some spread around today. I need to visit some other areas of the 420 forums I guess.

The rez should get put in within the next two days. Only 5 gallons of nutes does not go far and I don't like to do much more than 40 - 50 % water add back before changing out the whole rez. Nutrient levels drop too low for my tastes.
 
Sorry, i was real stoned last night. Nice res, be careful not to shock the plants with the cold water. So now the 30 million dollar question, how much longer do you wanna veg for.
 
stully said:
I don't know a whole lot about hydro, but I can say with confidence that you are the MacGyver of hydro. Great res build bro. If I didn't have to spread it, I'd lay it on ya.
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Thanks stully. I don't know if I'm THE MacGyver of hydro but am honored to be in the MacGyver club! I was able to +rep ya, so done!

CharlieMopps said:
Sorry, i was real stoned last night. Nice res, be careful not to shock the plants with the cold water. So now the 30 million dollar question, how much longer do you wanna veg for.
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Thanks Charlie. I'll watch those temps if I try to chill the rez. I put in a second pump just to circulate the water for 30 minutes just before the tray is flooded. That should help mix up the nutrients and cooler fluid that was next to the frozen bottle. I'll be careful if I do go this route though. Looking to get the fluid to the low 60s F if I can.

As for when to flip the lights, I was going to veg it for a couple of weeks then reassess. I'm not even 1 week into this aggressive growth mix and it is getting depleted. The growth is pretty thick and the big branches I had tied down a few days ago have their branches reaching back to the screen. I may go to flower this weekend. Really, I'm watching day to day and when it "feels right", I'll do it. There is a lot of science in this hobby, but a strong dose of intuition seems to be essential as well.
 
any updates munk?

let's see how its filling out:yummy:

what i meant to say in fieds journal was chocolate thai stix, not weed.
you know those two?
had 'em, never made 'em yet.
want to.

maybe end of next run.

fill us in on the filling out. :ciao:
 
Got some pics to share. I'll talk about the issues I faced tomorrow as I am tired but wanted to get these pics up.

Here is the components labeled in the rez.

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The new layout of the tent. Had to move the plants over to make room for the big cooler.

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A better view below...

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The canopy at day 45

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and what I'm calling "the Thicket". I will be doing some pruning tomorrow.

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Problems ... yes, but that will have to be for tomorrow.
 
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