I've been growing for a little over a year. I run two 1k watt hps lights in vented hoods over a 4x8 tray. I use an ebb and flow system of feeding. Botanicare's Aeration growing medium in 1 gallon pots. Advanced Nutrients sensi-gro and bloom, big bud, bud candy, and recently bud ignitor in the early weeks of bloom. I top all plants about a week before switching to bloom. I just finished a run of blue dream, a strain I have heard people pull 1.5-2 lbs per 1k watts. As you may have guessed by the title of this post my finish product was nowhere near that amount. It was less than half. I vegged for 26 days and pulled just under an oz per plant, 1.5 units total. These are results that I have been getting consistently since I started. I am happy to finally be self sufficient as far as my medicine goes, but with the cost of growing so high I would be very happy if I could increase my yields. My question is, based on the small amount of information I've shared, what the hell am I missing? What would you add and/or change to the system in order to push my plants to their full potential?
1+ year experienced grower with shit yields..... every time.
- Thread starter bigdog123
- Start date
ChronicObsession
Well-Known Member
I would change to soil and keep the rest of the gear. 1 year of experience in my opinion is not enough to tackle hydro but that depends on how much a man can spend
scroglodyte
Well-Known Member
i would top sooner than that. recovering from topping and going 12/12 so close together may be holding you back
scroglodyte
Well-Known Member
*snicker*.....
olias of sunhillow
New Member
I agree with Scrog...I would also veg longer than 26 days. I usually don't go by time, I go by height. I veg until they are 1/3 of the desired finishing height.
I don't get it.
scroglodyte
Well-Known Member
he was referring to grow green's condescending attitude
Temperatures range from 60-80. Humidity stays between 45% and 65%. I have an 8" inline and an 8" exhaust that pump 24 hours a day. PPM are set at around 800 during veg. Anywhere from 900-1200 in bloom, depending on how strain responds. I keep my hoods about 12" away from the top buds. Flood once a day for 15 minutes as soon as the lights turn on during both veg and bloom. Don't know my reservoir temps.
Thought he worded that a little hostile considering I admitted to giving a "small amount of information." I don't like to bore people with too many details until they ask for them.
phillipchristian
New Member
Are you using the ebb & flow buckets? You really should be feeding them 3 times a day while the lights are on during flower. 4 times during veg. 15 minutes each time. I really think that might be your problem. Are you having any issues with your reservoir temps? You should try and keep them between 63-68 if at all possible. Try getting some small water bottles and freezing them. Add one to the reservoir everyday or so to see if that helps to keep the temps down; maybe you'll need to add 2 or add 1 every 18 hours. Just tweak it till you find the right formula. Are you having any issues with slime or algae in your reservoir? How often do you change your reservoir? Also, I would say you should start veg at 300ppm and finish at 900ppm and when you switch to flower start at 800ppm and finish at 1500ppm before you flush. What nutrients are you using? Have you tried pushing your plants at all? I mean adding a little more nutes than normal to see how they react. As soon as you see burn then you'll know to back it off a little. It could be a number of things but those are a good place to start.
phillipchristian
New Member
Don't feel bad at all. He is very hostile. I have seen him in other threads and he is very rude. He told me a few days ago in a thread that almost everyone on RIU didn't know shit about growing and that he was going to teach us all. Your best bet is to just ignore him.
Can't report problems with my reservoir temps because I have never checked them. No problems with algae in the reservoirs, but I have noticed inconsistencies with how the solution ends up looking. I always shake the bottles very well before adding. I noticed a slimy film had developed on the bottom of a reservoir a couple weeks ago. When I went to stir the res the film moved and broke up, but not completely. I use Advanced Nutrients sensi-grow a&b and sensi-bloom a&b as my base nutrients. I use big bud, bud candy, and bud ignitor as my additives. Oh yes, and sm-90. It's a pretty simple regimen. For the most part I just top my reservoir off. I drain, rinse, and refill when I switch to bloom and before I start flushing.
The first thing I'm going to change is the flood routine. Thanks for that bit of advice. Second, I'm going to get a thermostat to slap in my reservoir. 65 degrees F, right?
Last, but not least thanks. What is +Rep and how does one go about using it?
The first thing I'm going to change is the flood routine. Thanks for that bit of advice. Second, I'm going to get a thermostat to slap in my reservoir. 65 degrees F, right?
Last, but not least thanks. What is +Rep and how does one go about using it?
hellraizer30
Rebel From The North
Hey big i dont have a ton of time to read over everything but if you got some Q you would like to ask please do!
Il get back to you asap
Il get back to you asap
ganjagoddess
Well-Known Member
You had said you are using Botanico Medium, Switching to something like ATAMI COCO could yeild a little more in a finely tuned system..
I havent seen Botanico medium tho, couldnt find through google search either so I dont know how good it is...
I havent seen Botanico medium tho, couldnt find through google search either so I dont know how good it is...
richinweed
Active Member
dont top a week before bud...hate to be a douche but its a no brainer and IS most likly your prob....going into bud u want big robust healthy tops ....duh, not no tops at all
phillipchristian
New Member
The slimey stuff is a form of algae that builds up in those systems a lot. There are a ton of little tricks you need to learn about those systems that can really help.
First off, that algae is builiding up in your reservoir and also in the tubing that leads to your buckets. You really should get on top of controlling your reservoir temps. This will help alot. Also, look into using either Hygrozyme or 5ml per gallon of Hydrogen Peroxide in your reservoir. Between every grow you should take all of your tubing off, your buckets, and reservoir and rinse them out really well. The reason that algae is forming is probably because of the reservoir temps.
Those buckets aren't designed perfectly and so you may notice that water sits in the bottom of the buckets between feedings. This water is stagnant and heats up over the course of the day and later in flower you just have roots sitting in that water. Also, the water that sits in the tubing and in the control bucket is heating up as well. That water can get up to 90 degrees under those hot lights all day and sitting in black tubing and buckets. When the feed cycle comes on you are basically shocking the shit out of your roots with hot water and algae. Use foil tape to wrap your control bucket and the tubing so that it reflects the light.
As your plants get bigger and the roots start to sit in the bottom of the bucket use some PVC cutouts to raise the inner bucket 2-3 inches as needed so that the roots don't hang in the bucket. It also helps to drain the buckets if you place them 2" higher than the control bucket. Use pieces of wood or whatever. Just make sure they are all 1-2" higher than the control bucket. Also, slightly leaning them toward the drain helps to get excess water out.
Check this thread out. Look what this guy did to his buckets. https://www.rollitup.org/general-marijuana-growing/513182-newb-grow-journal.html
I would change your reservoir once a week and mix new nutrients. This will help a lot with keeping the lines clean and algae free. Also, in the middle of flower run you reservoir on just water like a flush. This will help to leach some of the built up salts in your plants and prepare them for higher nutrient uptake during the last weeks of flower when your buds really start to swell.
I also use Advanced. You should be pushing your plants more than you are. When you start your bloom nutes they should be at 300ppm and then build them up to 800ppm over the course of your veg period. 1100ppm if you do a 4-5 week veg. When you switch to flower then start them off at 800ppm and push them to 1300ppm 2 weeks before flush. Then back them off to 1300ppm the week before flush. This will depend on your strain but if you start to see burn then just back the nutes off. If you don't see any burn then the next grow cycle you can push them a little more. Every strain is different. I started that way and built up certain strains that are getting 1900ppm in late flower and 1300ppm in late veg.
Anywhere between 62-68 and you are good for your reservoir.
+Rep is a way of giving points (or reputation) to someone who has given you good information. It's a way to thank someone who is actually making the site better by helping people. There is a star on the bottom left corner next to "Journal This Post." If you click on it then a box will come up. You can type a message in there and click on the tab to give that person +Rep. They are displayed as the green bars below everyones username. The more bars you have the more +rep you have received.
Do this. HR knows a lot!
bird mcbride
Well-Known Member
You need at least three floods a day with a single res. Go 1/6 of what the instruction say on your ferts. Run clones and don't top. Only take a snip from your seedlings for cloning purposes. Get a pump up sprayer for spraying with fresh balanced water or res water. I use 1.5" hose to plumb my grow. Raise the pump up 4" in your res and clean and change your res water every five days. Top up your res daily with ph balanced water...
bobby brown 1
Member
Maybe it's your genetics?