So just as I'm finishing up this round I'm thinking this current setup/environment is worth mentioning as I've had several phenos finish with 7 weeks, that's potentially up to one extra cycle per year if it can be replicated. Negative DIF is also something I think is beneficial if you're looking to bump up production.
Some basic environment info for the last 2 rounds (summer):
- Temps lights on: 78-82, averaging 80F
- Temps lights off: 78-82, averaging 80F (heat generated by dehuey maintains temps)
- (as close as I could get to negative DIF, meaning temps same or higher lights off)
- RH lights on: 54-58% (controlled by lights and incoming/exhausted air)
- RH lights off: 54-56% (controlled by dehuey set @55%)
- Incoming air: 24/7 full blast through summer
- Exhaust: 24/7 1/3rd on variable controller
- Main Lights: 11.5/12.5 LED COBs, Cree 3590/80cri and Citi 1212/90cri at 30w/sq/ft
- Initiators 660nm: 12 minutes (10 min before lights on + 2 min overlap)
- Initiators 730nm: 12 minutes (2 minute overlap + 10 minutes after lights off)
I'm not questioning negative DIF as beneficial because I've run it two summers now. Last summer I was running 12.5/11.5, this summer 11.5/12.5. Both times I noticed a good bump in production, massive donkey dicks on some of the more vigorous strains/phenos. I think one of the most if not the most important effect here is that with those temps (24/7) and maintaining RH in the mid-50 range, the plants are transpiring and drinking heavily throughout the whole round. A week into flowering and right to the end, they're probably drinking/using as much as 50% more water. Some evaporation of course would account for that but the roots are getting saturated every other day regardless of container size and bone dry within 48 hours or less. That's building great root balls and in turn bumping yields. I don't think it has a significant effect on finish times, will see coming up as I won't be able to maintain those lights-off temps through the fall/winter.
I believe the biggest factor affecting finish times has been the 11.5/12.5 reduced lights on times, along with the initiators (the combo). I've been running the initiators at 12.5/11.5, 12/12, and 11.5/12.5. They didn't seem to do much if anything at 12.5/11.5, had some effect at 12/12, but at 11.5/12.5 they seem to have reduced finish times for everything I ran in there. The only thing I have to validate is how much the initiators had to do with it, vs. the reduced cycle for the main lights. I'll do that a couple of rounds out by turning off the initiators and leaving the main lights at 11.5/12.5, with a known clone of course for control. I expect it will have an effect by a few days, nothing extreme but some effect. But the combo seems to be a winner.
Thoughts, comments, findings, questions, constructive criticism (not trolls) are all welcome. Reducing your finish times by 6-10 days per round could bring in up to an extra crop per year!
For this first go, I've calculated that I can get the most out of the time period with two bigger waves of plants, and efficiency rules the day.
