Freethinkers
New Member
Like everybody, I too am constantly searching for the "best" way to manage my time, garden, money, and most importantly the returns on those items.
Of course to each of us "best" translates to quite a different picture for layouts, methods, products, and Over-all anal-retentiveness.
I haven't been growing all that long, only about 3 1/2 years so far and as you can guess... Success did not occur overnight. I keep an IG under the same name as my screenname here (@Freethinkers).
A snapshot of my garden today... You would see that I built all my own Hydro setups, the first is a hybridized RWDC design used in my Veg tent with 4 sites and an overall capacity around 32 gallons. I also use a blended soil and soilless mix in fabric pots for my "non-hydro" plants that functions as a genetic reserve for future clones. In the bloom tent there is another 4 site setup but it is very much a home reproduction of a Current Culture design and has been working quite well. Speaking of CC, I invested in their nutrient line and it has been working out better than not. The CS line of Nutes is extraordinarily clean mixing and in all of my hydro systems, the PPMs are greatly lower than more traditional nutrient lines would be... So low that I have yet to find a PPM reading of above 500 in the Res to be a good thing (I see the beginnings of lockout) but that is also related to using 80Lpm of air for about 52 gallons of solution.
Getting to the point... I have been highly experimental with a few things.
First - I have found with the CS nutes, that I can perform partial reservoir change outs to great effect in controlling the PPM range, minimizing lockout, reducing waste water, and saving time on the labor involved in moving ~100 gallons of water in a residential setting. I perform a 60 - 80% change out if I see my pH turn acidic (5.4) and my PPMs rise... Add an appropriate amount of UC Roots to the incoming clean water and my plants return to happy. Why would I have to do this in the first place? I have not found my sweet spot in nutrient strength and I am pushing the limits to find the desired results.
Second - I have not Needed to perform full reservoir drain/refills for upwards of 4 weeks at a time depending on the number of plants and environmental variables. I can perform partial change outs and introduce fresh solution anytime nutrition needs change.
Third - I am now running unconventional timings... In veg my dials are set for 6on 2 off x 3 rounds in 24hours, translates to 6 hours on and 2 hour naps all day every day, I've read an article on this schedule and it was compelling enough to try it. In bloom I also have a goofy schedule... Since the most important thing is 12 hours of uninterrupted dark... I didn't mess with that... but I added in an hour dark in the middle of the light period kind of like a Siesta at lunch time...
Beyond those items, I work diligently to make informed decisions and try not to get sucked into all the HYPE out there... Chillers and water heaters have brought so much stability to the systems, the 1k price tag was worth it in hindsight... especially because in order to get those aromatic/flavor notes, the flowers need more warm air which is the enemy if you don't have a chiller.
I am open to critique and suggestions... Anyone else have something unusual that works better than you thought?
Of course to each of us "best" translates to quite a different picture for layouts, methods, products, and Over-all anal-retentiveness.
I haven't been growing all that long, only about 3 1/2 years so far and as you can guess... Success did not occur overnight. I keep an IG under the same name as my screenname here (@Freethinkers).
A snapshot of my garden today... You would see that I built all my own Hydro setups, the first is a hybridized RWDC design used in my Veg tent with 4 sites and an overall capacity around 32 gallons. I also use a blended soil and soilless mix in fabric pots for my "non-hydro" plants that functions as a genetic reserve for future clones. In the bloom tent there is another 4 site setup but it is very much a home reproduction of a Current Culture design and has been working quite well. Speaking of CC, I invested in their nutrient line and it has been working out better than not. The CS line of Nutes is extraordinarily clean mixing and in all of my hydro systems, the PPMs are greatly lower than more traditional nutrient lines would be... So low that I have yet to find a PPM reading of above 500 in the Res to be a good thing (I see the beginnings of lockout) but that is also related to using 80Lpm of air for about 52 gallons of solution.
Getting to the point... I have been highly experimental with a few things.
First - I have found with the CS nutes, that I can perform partial reservoir change outs to great effect in controlling the PPM range, minimizing lockout, reducing waste water, and saving time on the labor involved in moving ~100 gallons of water in a residential setting. I perform a 60 - 80% change out if I see my pH turn acidic (5.4) and my PPMs rise... Add an appropriate amount of UC Roots to the incoming clean water and my plants return to happy. Why would I have to do this in the first place? I have not found my sweet spot in nutrient strength and I am pushing the limits to find the desired results.
Second - I have not Needed to perform full reservoir drain/refills for upwards of 4 weeks at a time depending on the number of plants and environmental variables. I can perform partial change outs and introduce fresh solution anytime nutrition needs change.
Third - I am now running unconventional timings... In veg my dials are set for 6on 2 off x 3 rounds in 24hours, translates to 6 hours on and 2 hour naps all day every day, I've read an article on this schedule and it was compelling enough to try it. In bloom I also have a goofy schedule... Since the most important thing is 12 hours of uninterrupted dark... I didn't mess with that... but I added in an hour dark in the middle of the light period kind of like a Siesta at lunch time...
Beyond those items, I work diligently to make informed decisions and try not to get sucked into all the HYPE out there... Chillers and water heaters have brought so much stability to the systems, the 1k price tag was worth it in hindsight... especially because in order to get those aromatic/flavor notes, the flowers need more warm air which is the enemy if you don't have a chiller.
I am open to critique and suggestions... Anyone else have something unusual that works better than you thought?
