My New RDWC Journal

[Sdh777]

Thanks man, its a work in progress, im always changing stuff or wanting to try different things, so it never ends.

Here’s another component to my drainage system which allows me to drain the entire system to less than an inch deep.
Two slip elbows that slide into the bulkheads. They are situated just off the bottom of the bucket, so drainage capacity is increased & it helps to inhibit roots clogging. I also use paint strainers on my grow buckets to help contain roots & root debris.

 

[Sdh777]

Day 42 from Seed
My Ebb & Flow grow has really kicked into gear since adding the lid, suspending the net pots & changing the watering cycle to 15 minutes each hour. I’ve topped them & began defoliation in preparation for the SCROG going in next week.


The roots look awesome! Before I modified this Ebb & Flow system, the roots would air prune in the open tray so they never grew beyond, or outside, of the net pots.



The RDWC grow is cranking & I’ll likely flip to 12/12 this coming weekend.



I also added Mylar insulation jackets to the grow buckets for temp control. There was so much condensation on the buckets from the water chiller temp drop that the tent floor was soaked. The jackets did the trick & my chiller is not working as hard to keep temps around 66°F.

I also took a clone from each plant today. I’m flipping them to 12/12 immediately to confirm the sex of each plant by next week. I put them in Rapid Rooters & then stuffed them in used Starbucks K-Cups that I cleaned out.

 

[Axion42]

For the flood system, did you start seeds in it from the get go? I'm using a similar setup, 3inch netcups with seed in rapid rooter and am having problems getting them going. Had a few casualties due to the rooter drying out. I didn't have the flood reaching the rooter plug as I thought it would get too saturated. A few seedlings made it, and more than a few did not.

 

[Sdh777]

No. It’s so easy to let the seeds dry out or to over water them so I’ve come to the following germination method through trial & error after losing my fair share of seeds.
1. Soak in pH water in the dark until the seeds drop
2. Place them in a moist paper towel & place in a ziplock sandwich bag & seal for 2 days max
3. Place seeds in Rapid Rooters (root down) & toss them in a cheap propagation tray with dome
4. Keep tray & Rapid Rooters moist by spray misting several times a day. I try to keep them from ever drying out
5. Move them to net pots with clay pebbles a week after sprouting & then toss them in the Ebb & Flow
6. Flood for 15 minutes 6 times a day. 2 weeks later I’m flooding 15 minutes per hour

 

[Sdh777]

For the flood system, did you start seeds in it from the get go? I'm using a similar setup, 3inch netcups with seed in rapid rooter and am having problems getting them going. Had a few casualties due to the rooter drying out. I didn't have the flood reaching the rooter plug as I thought it would get too saturated. A few seedlings made it, and more than a few did not.

I also burry my Rapid Rooters pretty deep in 6” net pots & then I gradually top off clay pebbles as the plants grow taller

 

[Sdh777]

Just averted a system failure. I noticed the water level was low in my RDWC even though it auto-fills from an exterior reserve that was still full. I started taking shit apart & the float valve that regulates the water level in my RDWC was clogged with debris. It wasn’t much debris either but I guess I never realized how small the inlet is on those 1/2” float valves are.

 

[5BY5LEC]

Good luck on your flip. Your plants look like they are rocking it again this year.
I gotta lose the cheap trellis nets and actually build a decent scrog like yours.
I just never have had luck with rapid rooters but it sounds like they work well for ya.
I switched to using rockwool, because I can sterilize it and the seed with hypochlorite.

 

[Sdh777]

Hey Man...Happy New Year!

I just found pistols on all 4 plants in my RDWC tonight (only 2 were feminized seeds), so I’m stoked & flipping to flower this Sunday.

I love Rapid Rooters & have had great success with them. The Rockwool just didn’t work as well for me in hydroponics because they seem to water-log my plants or drown my seedlings.

I use the metal Scrog grids because they offer total control for horizontal plant growth & spreading out the canopy. It’s less forgiving & more work to tuck without snapping branches, but my grow set-up is fairly small & manageable. My tents are only 6 feet tall so I have to seriously manage plant height. I get the grids off Amazon & build the frame from PVC.
Scrog-Pro makes some pretty cool one’s with plastic grids for a decent price.

How’s your grow going?

 

[5BY5LEC]

Thanks for the link. Yeah my friend built some nets out of PVC similar to that, but used screws spaced at intervals along the PVC as anchors which he wrapped twine around.
From using cheap trellis net I can appreciate how sturdy a metal net would be in that it would have no "give", and that you could secure the plants to it from the bottom with wire as well. If you wanted to just bend them down as opposed to supercropping. You could literally build a "web" of branches underneath.
It's going man. I really did not expect much from the autoflowers. I have found that since you cannot control veg you cannot control height, so to speak. Its been a problem I have had to stay on top of.

 

[Sdh777]

I’ve never used auto flower seeds because I read that the harvests come sooner but are typically smaller. I still want to try it though...

 

[Sdh777]

I just found out last night that all 4 of my plants in late veg have early pistol growth so they are all female. I feel like a proud new dad...Great way to start off the new year! I’m flipping to flower this weekend...

 

[Sdh777]

Day 44 from Seed
Flipping these luscious ladies to flower in 3 days.

 

[5BY5LEC]

Shit man great news! Weren't you saying you kept those two in the front so you could keep a good eye on them?

 

[5BY5LEC]

I’ve never used auto flower seeds because I read that the harvests come sooner but are typically smaller. I still want to try it though...

God no. I am on day 70 and just starting to see some reddish hairs underneath. These will go a full 90-100. I am impressed to say the least.

 

[Sdh777]

Yah. The 2 in the back are feminized & I’m pretty sure I got lucky & the 2 up front are also females, but I’m not 100% sure yet. I’ve got 4 more plants vegging in another tent, so if either plant turns out male I can easily replace them. They’re the same age, but much smaller though.
Do you still have a Journal? I want to see pics of your grow...

 

[Sdh777]

Saturday January 4th / 46 days from seeds

It’s go-time. Just flipped to 12/12. I think it’s time & I’m done waiting. They’re full & healthy, but I’m still not completely sure if the front 2 are females. If not, they’ll be ripped out, cut to pieces & replaced by my 2nd string girls waiting in veg.

It’s really tough getting good close-up shots under Scrog, but here’s a few pics of their pre-flower genitalia...

 

[locario]

looking pretty nice. those sure look like fems!

 

[Sdh777]

 

[Sdh777]

Front right Guptlla...
Closest I’ve seen to pre-flower pistol formation so far.

 

[Sdh777]

Day 51 from seed / Day 3 of Flower

The plants are progressing nicely. I’m tucking branches in the Scrog like crazy to manage height & maximize space. There’s still no definitive sign of developed pistils & it’s driving me nuts. That’s why I usually go with feminized seeds, but they weren’t available in this Guptilla strain which I just had to have. As long as I have enough females, I’ll be making my own feminized Guptilla seeds in another tent.