hydro system lighting help help

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metalmetalhead

Active Member
my plants are growing very slow and im going to try to give great details on what im doing

ok my hydro system is made with pvc pipes, a power head pumps water thro it. the plants are in water bottles some little pvc tubes. the water is from my healthy ponds out back. i change it almost everyday to keep the ph between 7 and 8. i think the hydro system is working fine but i dont really know iv got cloth in some bottles to draw the water up the dirt and rocks are staying wet. and some of the roots from the bigger plants are almost 2' long. any improvements i can make with this?

now the lighting on the other hand..well u see it lol. 4 fluorescent tubes 40 watt cool white. and a 120 watt spot gro light i just put in. i cant buy hps right now i have 3 more fixtures for the flouresents from a job i did that im not using right now. the most iv spent on this is i think maybe 8 bucks for the spot grow light.

i think i need to find a way to get fresh air in the room. but i dont know why they are growing so slow alot of the leafs died on the bigger ones i put mircale grow on one and it died. and u see my biggest is that from the heat or something else? iv been searchin i think its just from the heat but i know i could be very wrong about this whole set up. what do you think about all this..i hope is post isnt to long.






 
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earnie

Well-Known Member
I noticed in ur first post u said u had something to draw water to the DIRT and rocks, you shouldnt have dirt thats why its called hydro and rocks arent the best thing to use either you need to get some rockwool or some other type of grow medium commonly used with hydro.
 
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earnie

Well-Known Member
1kooguy said:
Just trust me.2-3 gallon pots under that light.pottingmix ,costs less than hydro.
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very good advise, hydro is not for beginners especially if ur trying a home made system, no offense but its obvious you really dont know as much about hydro as you think. Dont be fooled into thinking that hydro gives better bud i've done both sucessfully and now prefer soil over hydro much less work and worry.
 
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metalmetalhead

Active Member
i agree. but iv already put alot of effort into this. it looks like im lackin the nutrients for the plants and maybe more fresh air. every cup is different trying different hings some have dirt over rocks none of them have much dirty tho. is there a brand that has all the nutrints i need at a place like lows or home depot?
 
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metalmetalhead

Active Member
i got my 16 nutrients wrote down but i have no idea where to get them do they have to be ordered? can doesnt lowes or some place carrying them? iv been lookin on there websites but it doesnt give me info on it
 
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earnie

Well-Known Member
metalmetalhead said:
i got my 16 nutrients wrote down but i have no idea where to get them do they have to be ordered? can doesnt lowes or some place carrying them? iv been lookin on there websites but it doesnt give me info on it
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the best part of hydro is that you control the nutrients ur plants get. but by using pond water and dirt/rocks which all have nutrients within and prolly not the ones you need, your defeating the whole purpose of hydro,

my advise would be start over, i hope you didnt pay for the seeds ur growing.

do away with the dirt, rocks, and pond water.

clean your system with some weak bleach water 1/4 cup per gallon and let it run through for 15 mins then empty it.

then mix some apple cider vinager with water and run that through 15 mins to nuetralize the bleach residue.

then run tap water through to rinse the system.

replace the pond water with distilled water.

replace the dirt and rocks with rockwool plugs

when using the nutes dont mix them stronger than the directions say if anything make a little weaker.

good luck

here's a site where u can order it all.
http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=GMRWMP033&eq=&Tp=

Grodan Macro Plugs - bag of 32


click to enlarge
MaxiGro 1-part Growing Formula - 2.2#


click to enlarge
MaxiBloom 1-part Bloom Formula - 2.2#


click to enlargeRetail Price: $14.40
Your Price: $13.50 per Each
Retail Price: $14.40
Your Price: $13.50 per EachQty:
Retail Price: $6.50
Your Price: $5.95 per Each
 
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metalmetalhead

Active Member
ok great thanks for the stuff man. but the reason for hydro is to control your inviroment. it doesnt matter if its pond water.. the pond has cycled its a healthy thriving pond..hydro systems have to be well balanced but if u run ur water from a pond u dont have to worry but its gotta be a cycled pond tho..i have another hydro system out back with vegitables in it thats doing great..its bigger pipes tho. but i cant have a pond in my closent so it changes things. but its ovious the plants are getting something from the water cuz they are growing. but with in 9-12 hours my ph is gone changing my water everyday isnt even enough to keep my ph stable. im not to smart but im not a complete idiot either. cleaning my system is a waste of time i want it to be orgainc and natural anyway. but before i jump the gun asuming things..why cant i just add the proper amount of plant food in the water?
 
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earnie

Well-Known Member
metalmetalhead said:
ok great thanks for the stuff man. but the reason for hydro is to control your inviroment. it doesnt matter if its pond water.. the pond has cycled its a healthy thriving pond..hydro systems have to be well balanced but if u run ur water from a pond u dont have to worry but its gotta be a cycled pond tho..i have another hydro system out back with vegitables in it thats doing great..its bigger pipes tho. but i cant have a pond in my closent so it changes things. but its ovious the plants are getting something from the water cuz they are growing. but with in 9-12 hours my ph is gone changing my water everyday isnt even enough to keep my ph stable. im not to smart but im not a complete idiot either. cleaning my system is a waste of time i want it to be orgainc and natural anyway. but before i jump the gun asuming things..why cant i just add the proper amount of plant food in the water?
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dude u have dirt and dirty rocks that stay wet mold and or fungus will grow but good luck
 
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metalmetalhead

Active Member
oh ok i see what your saying..but for now since iv already started im gonna go ahead and see what happens..i didnt pay for the seeds but next time im gonna. but i need to have everything already before i do so. but again thanks alot youve helped a great deal
 
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earnie

Well-Known Member
metalmetalhead said:
ok great thanks for the stuff man. but the reason for hydro is to control your inviroment. it doesnt matter if its pond water.. the pond has cycled its a healthy thriving pond..hydro systems have to be well balanced but if u run ur water from a pond u dont have to worry but its gotta be a cycled pond tho..i have another hydro system out back with vegitables in it thats doing great..its bigger pipes tho. but i cant have a pond in my closent so it changes things. but its ovious the plants are getting something from the water cuz they are growing. but with in 9-12 hours my ph is gone changing my water everyday isnt even enough to keep my ph stable. im not to smart but im not a complete idiot either. cleaning my system is a waste of time i want it to be orgainc and natural anyway. but before i jump the gun asuming things..why cant i just add the proper amount of plant food in the water?
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When growing indoors you control the environment wheteher in soil or water in terms of light cycle, temp humidity ect...controlling the environment is not exclusive to hydro but having 100% control of the nutrients ur plant recieves is exclusive to hydro.
 
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