I would love some input from you pros

First of all, Bless this forum, bless these people!

I am a first time grower, indoor - pipi (indica dominant hybrid), 100-120 watt UV light 16/8, med strength nut watering 1-2X a day during morning/mid day and since seed the plant is now about 2 1/2 - 3 months old but will not bud yet.

Some problems that I have is keeping the temperature low which I believe is stressing the plant (hi 86), I've suffered nut burn, guttation and perhaps some wind burn? Unfortunately I am growing inside of my closet, I have high powered fan pulling cool air in from the AC duct in my room and another smaller fan oscillating and pushing air around and out of the closet.

1.) The seed that I used was bought from Europe - advice?input? I've never heard of pipi and I probably will stick to something more generic and popular but does anyone know any specifics about this strain in respects to its maintenance and what it likes?

2.) How are you guys able to keep the temp lower without using a lot of money on utilities?

3.) Am i doing anything that is effecting the budding process of the plant? I know i'm supposed to switch to 12/12 but the plant is only about 14-16 in tall...is this tall enough to be budding? Should i keep the hours longer for veg? Or switch and start on 12/12? Should i expect it to bud so soon?

Thank you guys so much, all of your help is very much appreciated and I am very excited to be a member of this site and forum!
 

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smokeymcpotz

Well-Known Member
1.) I havent heard of that strain but it looks like some good bagseed i had.
2.) Ill let someone else answer this because good air circulation keeps my room at steady temps.
3.)How much space u workn with? what kinda lights? would flower now because its gonna atleast double in size...
 

mcbain78

Well-Known Member
Your plant looks like it's ready to flip the switch to 12/12. I have 8 plants flowering in a 4x4x7 room with 2 fans and it stays at about 74 degrees. I have one fan in the exhaust position and one in the intake position and it stays nice and cool. I am growing in a basement closet but still those temps are good considering I have a 400w HPS light in there. You can keep it cool on the cheap if you use you're smart about where you position your fans. I apologize if this is the most obvious thing but you want your intake toward the bottom of your room and your exhaust on the top.

There's also a good thread on here somewhere about converting a Stanley box fan to an exhaust fan which pushes about 250-300CFM. If you exhaust your air 2-3 time a minute that'll help keep it cool.
 

Burger Boss

Well-Known Member
Hey Dirty, First, your girl, Pipi, HERE she is: http://www.cannabis-seeds-bank.co.uk/pyramid-seeds-pipi-feminized/prod_708.html
You weren't very clear about your lighting: "100- 120 watt UV light", LOL, just not sure WHAT you have.
If your grow area is only going 86 degrees high, I wouldn't worry about it. I will probably catch some flack for that comment because an awful lot of folks seem to crap their knickers when the temps get above 90, without any thought of the fact that cannabis THRIVES in equatorial Africa & South America, where the temps & humidity are off the chart! My patio grow reaches 110 occasionally, they don't LIKE it, but have never had one "belly-up" over the heat. Wishing you Good luck & good grow.......BB
 
Thank you guys, wow those were some fast answers. Well the light that I have is a Compact Fluorescent 27w bulb but replaces a standard 100w bulb somehow something or other....
http://www.sunlifelighting.com/replacement-bulb-27w/

The closet is about 3X5X7 and I have intake fan towards the base of the plant, and exhaust fan up near the lamp. The thing is I have a HPS bulb as well but when I tried using it before the closet got WAY too hot, somewhere around 90 degrees and it evaporated the water very quickly causing the guttation before that you see on some of the lower leaves and stressed the plant.

Thank you to everyone!
 

Burger Boss

Well-Known Member
What ever else you do, PLEASE get more light, like a couple of 150 watt CFL's, (actual wattage).......BB
 

jawbrodt

Well-Known Member
Just so you don't get confused with the advertising hype....27 watts = 27 watts, when we're talking CFLs. They advertise them as replacements for 100 watt incandescents, but that's only for reference, and has no meaning in the world of growing. :)
 
Again, thank you wise ones so much for the knowledge and sense of community. I switched the light over to 12/12 (7am-7pm) 150 HPS, watering once a day for 15 minutes at around 11am with med strength nut and one heavy fan for cool air intake at the base of the plant and a lighter fan for hot air exhaust towards the top of the plant. My only concern is that it's not even 9am and already the temp in the room is about 80 degrees. What's the hottest point where I should be concerned about the health of the plant? And should I try and stick to CFL or is HPS okay at 2-3 months old and 16 in tall?
 

gobbly

Well-Known Member
2.) How are you guys able to keep the temp lower without using a lot of money on utilities?
There are two things you need to consider when you try to lower temps. One is that you have two choices, you either need to increase the amount of air being vented (measured in cubic feet per minute, cfm), or you have to use something like an AC to artificially cool the air.
With venting, you will need to ensure the air coming in is as cool or cooler than you want your closet. If you can, cut holes, put nice looking grating over them so it doesn't sick out (many closets are vented, this isn't odd, just that you'll have two). Put your intake close to the floor where the cool air is, put your exhaust up high, above the level of your lights. If you don't have a floor above you, the bathroom ceiling fans work well to vent to an attic or crawl space.
With AC (which is a little pricey), you have to understand that AC units themselves will generate heat. Most AC's will need a place to vent that heat. I've seen some electronics cabinet coolers which don't produce tons of heat, but are condensing water, and need some sort of drain.
Check out the grow room design forum, there are many posts on venting and heat control.

3.) Am i doing anything that is effecting the budding process of the plant? I know i'm supposed to switch to 12/12 but the plant is only about 14-16 in tall...is this tall enough to be budding? Should i keep the hours longer for veg? Or switch and start on 12/12? Should i expect it to bud so soon?
You can bud anytime you want, though I don't suggest waiting for years :) I typically wait to bud till I either see alternating nodes, or the plants starts approaching 3' tall. One of the biggest benefits to growing indoors is that this decision is 100% up to you. Mature plants (up to about 6 months from what I understand) are typically more potent.

What's the hottest point where I should be concerned about the health of the plant? And should I try and stick to CFL or is HPS okay at 2-3 months old and 16 in tall?
I would try to stay under 85. ~78 is better. The 150 HPS is going to make a decent difference for you, and will probably increase growth. Work on venting and cooling, if you can run the CFL's around with the HPS from above, all the better, just don't burn it.
Far as upper end, outside plants can get subjected to 90's for periods on a regular basis, so it's not going to kill them, just not ideal. Higher than that, and I have seen some fairly bad reactions (and it's been strain dependent as well).
 
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