Passionate Grower With A Few DWC Bubbler Questions...

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DoubleBubbler

Active Member
Hi everyone. I'm attempting my first grow, with a fresh 2'x2'x6' closet, which is currently caulked for light leak prevention. I also installed 2 Tot Lok's, which I HIGHLY reccomend, these things lock the door tight and it's completely invisible from the outside, just uses a magnet key. I have a 8 bulb fixture, really it's a 4 bulb fixture with 4 Y splitters. I currently have 4 daylight bulbs, marked 5500k, and about 8 2700k soft white bulbs available to me, but I could always by more. (Is 5500k ok for veg?) I believe their all 23w.

Ok, so I originally was gonna go for a soil grow, now I'm thinking a nice simple DWC Bubbler. I figure maybe 2-4 plants, in some sort of tub that fits in the closet space, along with some expanded clay, netted pots, with an aquarium air pump, with air stones on the end, some nutrients, a ph meter along with some pH+ and -. The closet will be painted a flat white, ventilation has not been planned out yet, but I understand the importance and that the exaust should be towards the top, and the intake towards the bottom using some dryer ducting/tubing.

I don't know how many of you guys will have the patience to answer all my questions at once, but maybe I can grab a few answers and links here and there of tried and true methods. Bear with me, I'm a semi-perfectionist (does that exist?) and very dedicated to the grow, this is gonna be the beginning of a beutiful thing and I just wanna start off as well eduucated as I could possibly be, then I can progress forward. Here are my specific questions:

Are the netted pots and expanded clay readily available locally? Possibly at a chain like walmart or home depot?

Would one of those long "wall of bubbles" stones be beneficial? or even two?

Do I keep the flow of the bubbles directly on the roots? Or will the movement damage the roots?

How deep should the plants be submerged in the nutrient/water solution? Both during veg and flowering.

Can I use perlite instead of expanded clay with similar results?

How loud/quiet are these aquarium air pumps? Sound is an issue, but not a huge one.

Is there a certain strength air pump I should be shooting for?

Can anyone provide me some examples of nutrient numbers I should be shooting for? For both stages? I am just starting to learn nutrient mixtures, and am mostly aiming to buy something locally and readily available. MG a no no?

Is there anything that I probably won't be able to get locally? I want ZERO paper trail.

How tall approximately (strain depending) will the plants grow?

What temperature should the water mixture be?

What temperature should the ambient air be? 70-80?

Is it still beneficial to water/feed the leaves by spray bottle?

Are CFL's as acceptable for hydro, as much as it is for soil? I understand HID is better, but I have seen plenty of nice CFL soil grows.
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I know it's a lot, but as I said before, any links to tried and true guides, info, or how-to's are appreciated. If you see any error in my setup, and/or ideas please let me know. I love this forum and what it's all about!!!!

YOU GUYS ROCK!​
 
D

DoubleBubbler

Active Member
I'm such a sad boy, I was hoping to wake up this morning with a full to-do list for this morning :P

edit: I'm also looking into a ph meter, and a ppm meter.
 
J

joneric1014

Active Member
DoubleBubbler said:
I'm such a sad boy, I was hoping to wake up this morning with a full to-do list for this morning :P
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Welcome to Rollitup.org. Youll find there are a few master growers here who help people, and alot of fucking retards and high school kids who like to talk about shit they have no knowledge of. Its real hard to get questions answered here, and when you get an answer, I sugest you cross reference it in case some 16 year old is spitting stupidity at you over the internet from his mothers basement.

Lets see what I can help you with. Im not a master grower, but I think I have already worked thru your list of problems, so maybe my experience will save you some time friend:

Are the netted pots and expanded clay readily available locally? Possibly at a chain like walmart or home depot? Use google and find any local Nursery or Hydro shop. They are everywhere, and they are easy to find. Nothing you will ask for is rare or illegal.
Would one of those long "wall of bubbles" stones be beneficial? or even two? I have 18gallon Rubbermaid containers, and they are roughly 36" long. I use 1 Dual output Air pump feeding 2 36" Bubble wands to power them. Remember, bubbles are the engine for your weed machine, the more the better.

Do I keep the flow of the bubbles directly on the roots? Or will the movement damage the roots? Placement is irrelevant. Just try to get them in the center of the resevior. I run both of mine down the center of the Resevoir, 4 inches apart, like a little Bubble Wand Highway right down the center of my Res.

How deep should the plants be submerged in the nutrient/water solution? Both during veg and flowering. Do not submerge the netpot. You want the pot to "float" in the air a few inches ABOVE your water. The bubbles rise to the surface, burst, and push water droplets into the 2-3 inch "air cushion" UNDER the netpots, and your rockwool cubes will absorb some of this vapor. If you submerge them, you will cause root rot and kill all your plants.

Can I use perlite instead of expanded clay with similar results? In my opinion, just buy some net pots, soak an appropriate sized rock wool cube in pre-PH water for a day, and simply put seeds/cuttings into this. Your success rate will be huge hopefully, mine has been 99/100 so far. Personally, Ive never used perilite, so Ill not answer this one, rather Ill just share my experience.

How loud/quiet are these aquarium air pumps? Sound is an issue, but not a huge one. You get what you pay for. Nice ones are quiet, cheap ones are not. Ask your local Aquarium shop for a demo before you buy, then buy them from Ebay for 1/4th the price.
Is there a certain strength air pump I should be shooting for? No hard rules on this Ive ever found, but I will say that you can get a Hagen 802 Dual output air pump from Ebay for about 6 bucks delivered if your patient.

Can anyone provide me some examples of nutrient numbers I should be shooting for? For both stages? I am just starting to learn nutrient mixtures, and am mostly aiming to buy something locally and readily available. MG a no no? I am a scientist by trade, and work with chemistry on a daily basis. After much research, and even with plans to make my own nute mixes at the lab to play with, I said fuck it and bought a pre-made system. I just bought a couple bottles of Ionic Bloom and Grow sauce, and I have to say, I am nothing but pleased with my results and yields. My point is ask the local dude in your Hydro store to point you towards some cheap good nutes. Remember: Its a fucking weed, it WANTS to grow. Dont over think it.

Is there anything that I probably won't be able to get locally? I want ZERO paper trail. No. Even your lights can be gotten dirt cheap off of craiglist for cash.
How tall approximately (strain depending) will the plants grow? Indica plants stay low, Sativas grow like trees. Try Indica strains first, preferbly one bred for Hydro, like Nirvana.coms Supergirl or Wonder Woman. I am growing both, and both are amzingly hearty and forgiving to mistakes.

What temperature should the water mixture be? Room temperature, unless you live in an igloo or on the sun. Anything in the low to mid 70s works, dont get higher than that though.
What temperature should the ambient air be? 70-80? 70ish careful of any heat sources in the room that can effect this, particularly your light rig.
Is it still beneficial to water/feed the leaves by spray bottle? Only sray feed your clones, and then use only PHed water with no nutes in it. Never spray feed with your lights on or you run the rish of burning up your plant.

Are CFL's as acceptable for hydro, as much as it is for soil? I understand HID is better, but I have seen plenty of nice CFL soil grows. I am using CFL 45w spiral bulbs for my cloning and mother plants, and they work like a champ. Ive even considered trying to run a complete grow using only CFLs, they seemed to work so well.


Anyway, thats my experience so far, hope it helps.

-J
 
Loafman

Loafman

Active Member
Hi, I am a nOOb doing a DWC bubbler grow. I was straight in at the deep end and so far things have gone great! I have a cupboard approx 2 1/2 ' x 1 1/2 ' x 7' and I have 1 plant in there (once they get going in a bubbler, 1 plant should fill 2' x 2' x 6' depending on strain).

I'll have a go at some of your Q's....

Don't know about your local availability for net pots and clay pebbles as I'm in the UK (I have a few hydro shops in the near vicinity, may be worth seeing if you have)

Submersible air pumps are often quieter, I use a Hydor Ario 2 (have a look on ebay) and you can't hear it + you don't need an air stone etc. I was worried about the roots getting caught in the pump but that hasn't happened (yet). and the root mass is almost completely filling the DWC bucket!

Keep the bubbles directly on the roots, it works like a charm!

You don't actually submerge the plant, you let the roots grow through the net pot and into the nute solution. the water level should be just below the net pot. You may need to feed from above until the roots reach the nute solution.

Perlite may fall through the net pot, so I wouldn't do that.

I am using Canna Aqua Veg and Canna Aqua Flores (make sure it's the Aqua range for bubblers NOT the Hydro range). I have had fantastic results for a first time grow.

As for height, that depends on type/strain, sativa tend to be taller and indica shorter/bushier, but most strains are a mix between the 2. My plant is currently ~55 inches tall and as wide as the grow area.

My water temp is about 65 to 70, and ambient ranges from 65 to 75. As a new grower I don't know if a bit warmer may be good, but I will experiment with future grows.

I don't spray the leaves, although while the roots are being established it may pay dividends if your humidity is low.

I used a 125w 6400k envirolite CFL for the veg stage, but switched to 250w HPS for flowering. I would defo recommend HPS for flowering!

I hope these answers help a bit, they are based on my experiences so far, but please bear in mind I am a new grower! BTW I have attached a pic of my plant at 3 weeks old, that was a month ago, and she is well into flower now! Good luck!

All the best, Loafman :bigjoint:
 

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Loafman

Loafman

Active Member
Ha ha!! I must have been typing my answer as joneric1014 was posting his!!

:lol:

BTW, pH and PPM meters are essential kit!
 
D

DoubleBubbler

Active Member
Wow, both of you rock, I am soo much closer to starting now. I live in an inner city sort of ghetto area, so I haven't been able to find any hydro shops yet, so I may go to ebay for the last of my needs if necessary. I was gonna go for an HPS for a full 12/12 from seed in soil, but was talked out of it since my space at the time wasn't adequate. I was gonna go for a 150w though, my main concern now is ventilation, it's like I have all the ingredients but not sure exactly how to bake it lol.... My problem is that the back of the closet is warped severely, so severely that I don't know if screws will hold it in place for long, but I guess I should try. Another problem is cutting the holes in the plywood for the vents without a jigsaw, maybe I'll drill a series of holes with my dremel and punch it out lol. Also the door leaks light, I was thinking of hanging a curtain in there to sort of double-layer the door, but that means more investment... Any ideas fellas? See photos....


Above is $50 worth of purple something or other... I can't afford that, besides it's more fun to grow your own...

The warped backing of the closet, maybe screws will hold it together...

Another shot showing the warped back, lights are just resting there for now, not installed. I will be suspending it from a chain so it's movable.

Tot-Loks, most awesome invention ever...

Caulking the corners with wood filler (it's what I had lol)

A picture showing the areas in the front where the light leaks, may install a curtain on a rod to double lightproof the door. But don't want a fire hazard.

Oh yeah, and thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you,!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
D

DoubleBubbler

Active Member
Can anyone show me some pics of their light proofed closets shaped similarly? I'm about to head out in search of netted pots and all that good stuff... W00T!
 
Loafman

Loafman

Active Member
:idea: You're not wrong about great minds joneric1014!! :idea:

DoubleBubbler, you could always cover and seal the inside with mylar or black/white plastic sheeting, that should stop light escaping through most of the gaps. The closet I use is built into my house. I coated the inside with black/white plastic and I sealed the door with standard door seals and added two bolts (top and bottom) to hold it firmly shut so no light leaks out (or in during dark period). As for ventilation, the ceiling of the closet leads into the loft space, so I have a 4" intake and a 4" outlet. I cut these out by drawing 4" circle on the topside (loft) of the ceiling board and drilling lots of small holes around the outside then pushing out the middle. The outlet has an inline fan sucking air into the loft space. This in turn forces fresh air to flow into the closet, which is then circulated by a 9" deskfan on a manual fan speed controller. I left the clothes rail in so I can hang my light from it. See pic below for more info.

Another option is to forget the closet you have and get a grow tent, although this will be more obvious. But that would be another expense....
 

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D

DoubleBubbler

Active Member
I'm gonna seem like an annoying little noob with all these questions, but how close should I have the netpots to the water level? Are you supposed to be able to see the splashes of water hitting the new roots or is it more of a vapor thing? I'm more worried about in the begginning stages while it's just a seedling and still all the way up towards the top of the netpot. Sorry for all the ?'s but as I said, I really want this to happen! Each bud of this weird purple stuff I smoke today will be puffed with you guys in mind, I can't thank you enough!
 
D

DoubleBubbler

Active Member
Where in the hell am I? said:
Seriously, if ya want an inexpensive way, staple fabric over the areas so that it overlaps but you can still open it!
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Yeah, thats what I was figuring, just with the whole curtain idea so I can pull it open and closed... as someone else said in this post, great minds think alike! Was just seeing if there were any obvious solutions that my stoned ass overlooked :bigjoint:

Thanks for the reply!
 
D

DoubleBubbler

Active Member
Loafman said:
:idea: You're not wrong about great minds joneric1014!! :idea:

DoubleBubbler, you could always cover and seal the inside with mylar or black/white plastic sheeting, that should stop light escaping through most of the gaps. The closet I use is built into my house. I coated the inside with black/white plastic and I sealed the door with standard door seals and added two bolts (top and bottom) to hold it firmly shut so no light leaks out (or in during dark period). As for ventilation, the ceiling of the closet leads into the loft space, so I have a 4" intake and a 4" outlet. I cut these out by drawing 4" circle on the topside (loft) of the ceiling board and drilling lots of small holes around the outside then pushing out the middle. The outlet has an inline fan sucking air into the loft space. This in turn forces fresh air to flow into the closet, which is then circulated by a 9" deskfan on a manual fan speed controller. I left the clothes rail in so I can hang my light from it. See pic below for more info.

Another option is to forget the closet you have and get a grow tent, although this will be more obvious. But that would be another expense....
Click to expand...
Wow, you did exactly what I was thinking as far as the drilling and punching, and I was also hoping to use an exaust fan and then just another vent to let the air circulate naturally. I have a nice little double fan I will put in on an angle with adjustable speeds to blow it all around. I gotta put vent louvers on my shopping list now : )

Since I'm just starting this is all a lot of work, but I know once it gets going it will be absolute bliss, especially after I get used to everything. Work or not, I'm enjoying the hell out of it already lol.
 
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