rockwool/drip system question

[LilGrowPup]

is that a co2 tank in the corner??

 

[Al B. Fuct]

In the upper right?



No, that's a sulfur evaporator for controlling powdery mildew. I don't use CO2.

 

[LilGrowPup]

wow thats some heavy duty shit!
i really hope to be able to do that
im just kinda new so i cant really build
my own set up.
is this a whole room you used for this??

 

[Al B. Fuct]

It's a very small 'room' as they go. It's 8' x 9' x 7' tall, just a corner of some spare space I had.

Stick around, get some practise in and you can do a grow like mine if you like. It'll take you a year to really get your eye in, but once you're proficient, no reason why you can't duplicate an op like mine.

 

[LilGrowPup]

i really hope so
i am truly fascinated
by your grow.
what would you say an ideal or good
temperature for the water and room is
for the girls?
i find myself between 75-77
so you use a flood system??
sounds interesting i havent heard much of
it

 

[Al B. Fuct]

Air temp should be 24-26C. Water loses it's dissolved O2 rapidly above 25C and so should be kept at or below that temp and constantly aerated with a pump & airstone.

However, water temp isn't as critical in flood systems as it is in other methods, so I don't actually monitor my water temps. It can't be any higher than the air temp in my room, which is held to 25C by a thermostat.

Tray based flood systems are the simplest and most reliable watering systems possible. Can't clog, easy maintenance. They're also the most common and the cheapest watering system, to boot.

 

[LilGrowPup]

are those babies in veg or bloom??
and do you use hps & Mh or fluorescent??

 

[Al B. Fuct]

The above pic is from my flowering area, lighting in there is 2x 1000W HPS. My vegging plants run under a 400W HPS, my clonebox has 3x 24" twin-tube fluoros.

 

[LilGrowPup]

so you run hps all the way through?????
never heard of that....
why....

 

[Al B. Fuct]

HPS works fine for vegging mums, though it does yield somewhat elongated plants compared to MH. Since I prefer long stems for my cuttings, this suits my style of op.

 

[LilGrowPup]

with all those plants so close together
how do you have room from them to grow
i had a plant grew out all lanky i had so many
problems cause i didnt have much room

 

[Al B. Fuct]

The SoG method involves flowering clones right after they set root and pruning off any branching which appears in wks1 & 3 of flowering. You can grow up to 4 SoG style plants per SF.

 

[LilGrowPup]

then you do what???
throw away the branches or
take the leaves into cloning???

 

[Space Angel]

I let mine drip 24-7 and they look fantastic and grow more rapid (I think) than just airstone alone, plus run 2 airstones for more oxygenated feed. it's been workin for me Al, do you see anything wrong with it?

 

[hamburger]

Two airstones with one pump will put out just as much air as one airstone with one pump, correct?

Anyways I've been doing alot of research and I believe this thread answered one of my final questions in how long to water for when I water? I was told to water 3 times a day with a drip system with 4" rockwool cubes, I was just never told for how long to water when I do. I was also told that its impossible to over-water rockwool due to the high amount of air concentration is contains at all times.

 

[Al B. Fuct]

then you do what???
throw away the branches or
take the leaves into cloning???

compost the clippings. Of no use for cloning since the plants they have come from have been flowering.

I let mine drip 24-7 and they look fantastic and grow more rapid (I think)

That's fine for plants in pellets which are under 24/0 lighting. Plants should not be watered in lights-off periods.

than just airstone alone, plus run 2 airstones for more oxygenated feed. it's been workin for me Al, do you see anything wrong with it?

Two airstones with one pump will put out just as much air as one airstone with one pump, correct?

It's possible that more airstones may allow more airflow than one. owing to less restriction to airflow and a greater area from which bubbles are emitted.

I was told to water 3 times a day with a drip system with 4" rockwool cubes, I was just never told for how long to water when I do. I was also told that its impossible to over-water rockwool due to the high amount of air concentration is contains at all times.

You were told wrong. RW is the very easiest hydroponic medium to overwater. Rockwool has a fibrous structure which contributes to a strong wicking action, which will take up water to the point where all air is displaced from the material. When all air is displaced from the medium, roots drown and die. Roots require oxygen for proper formation and development.

I would not drip feed rockwool blocks, though I'm quite aware that the Mr Green cannabis videos depict this practise. Top watering RW will guarantee a thick slime of green algae on the media top surface. 3x/day sounds excessive except for large, vigorous plants which can use up the water quickly. Drip feeding very small plants in 4" blocks 3x/ day would almost guarantee overwatering symptoms, including root problems with the attendant leaf yellowing, slow growth and wilt.

 

[tems]

compost the clippings. Of no use for cloning since the plants they have come from have been flowering.



That's fine for plants in pellets which are under 24/0 lighting. Plants should not be watered in lights-off periods.



It's possible that more airstones may allow more airflow than one. owing to less restriction to airflow and a greater area from which bubbles are emitted.


You were told wrong. RW is the very easiest hydroponic medium to overwater. Rockwool has a fibrous structure which contributes to a strong wicking action, which will take up water to the point where all air is displaced from the material. When all air is displaced from the medium, roots drown and die. Roots require oxygen for proper formation and development.

I would not drip feed rockwool blocks, though I'm quite aware that the Mr Green cannabis videos depict this practise. Top watering RW will guarantee a thick slime of green algae on the media top surface. 3x/day sounds excessive except for large, vigorous plants which can use up the water quickly. Drip feeding very small plants in 4" blocks 3x/ day would almost guarantee overwatering symptoms, including root problems with the attendant leaf yellowing, slow growth and wilt.

i followed mr green a lil to closely

but following his directions helped my plants. once their roots start to really develop into the hydroton, its safest since it dries so quickly. also check that ph daily or every two days at least.

mine spiked constantly.. for some reason.

 

[Al B. Fuct]

i followed mr green a lil to closely

but following his directions helped my plants. once their roots start to really develop into the hydroton, its safest since it dries so quickly. also check that ph daily or every two days at least.

mine spiked constantly.. for some reason.

The Mr Green vids DO have some generally good basic information, which will get you started. However, he misses a few critical detail points.

pH can jump up as a result of pathogen activity/root rot in the system, which is usually as a result of overwatering. If using inorganic nutes, you can treat nutes with H2O2 50% grade @ 1ml/L, reapplied every 3-4 days. When the root rot is stopped, the pH will usually stabilise.

Once cubes are nested in pellets, you're quite right that overwatering is a lot less likely, but you should use a drip ring to avoid wetting the cube constantly.

 

[Matty10]

Hi guys how is everyone doing. I am about to start my first grow ever and I am just trying to go over everything before I start. I drew a picture on paint that depicts how my system will work. I have a sprinkler
instead of a drip ring, will this work. I too am unsure as too how many time I should water each day. I plan on purchasing clones and plugging those into my 6" RW cubes. After I get my clones and put those into the RW cubes I will cover everything in Hydroton rocks.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thank You

Matt

 

[Eharmony420]

rock wool you will learn to water by weight. When it starts to feel light you will learn to recognise. I watered my 4 in cubes in a flood once every few days in veg and once a day in flower.

i overwatered in the beging and got slower growth. it took forever to get the balance back. now i can feel it out, one quarter grow later.

drip? drip i cannot say. i use flood. a few min and inch or so up the cube. once a da and I am fine in 4 in cubes. never let the rw go completely dry. GRODAN had a nice website set up to answer all rockwool questions.