Stealth Cabinets

BudBaby said:

Just been looking at my metre and im giving it a soak in ph 7 liquid for 2 hours to get a faster reading. I have 3" rockwool cubes, i havent got a bowl big enough for them but i do have 2 trays with my prop that fit 2 cubes in very nicely.

Can i use these trays as my bowls? They have got holes in and underthem will be an absorbant mat to help maintain moisture, basically can i use my propogator as the bowl sort of thing? I cant see why not its sort of how the box it came in tells you to do it. Im just gonna have to try the 4 seeds as thats all my prop will allow me.

As soon as this ph mentre is soaked enough im gonna have a go Wish me luck

Ill attatch a pic of my propogator to show you what i mean.

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Those Rockwool cubes are way too big .. you need the ones that are much smaller, can you get/have you got any of the smaller ones??




- STELTHY

Oh shite i havent mate and guess what, ive just planted the seeds in them Will they not work at all mate?

What shall i do shall i just see how they go there all in the propogator now Dont forget my baskets are massive not the small ones you get with normal oxy pots.

That ph down stuff is strong as fook, i got a jug with 2 ltrs of water in and my ph was 7.4, i literally dipped my mixing paddle handle in the ph down and flicked about 2 drops into the jug which right away took it to 7.0!!

Ive cut them down a bit mate, ive also tipped any excess water out of the propogator just incase they were to wet, im off out in a bit but when i get back ill see how they look.

I have just had another look and i think one of the cubes i cut i took to much off the bottom.

If you plan on using the 3" cubes in the future you might think about investing in some 1.5 " starter plugs. They are designed to fit down into the large hole on the block to make transplanting easier. I don't happen to have a hydro store near me, the nearest is 3hrs away and they suck, but I was able to find some at a nursery in the next town over. After researching them for you at this link.....
http://www.growwurks.com/grodan-stonewool-a-ok-starter-plugs-1-5-x-1-5.aspx I found that my local store was more expensive at $18 plus tax.
Don't know if any of that was useful to you, but I thought I would pass it on.

Thanks very much, im not sure how this will turn out now i have cut the cubes down, if they dont germ then thats ok i have some more seeds and next time i will be getting dome smaller starter plugs to fit into my 3". Its my own fault it was lack of research.

Just been looking at these http://www.greenshorticulture.co.uk/Growing-Media-198/Rockwool-289/

They do a 36mm propogation plug to start it off then i take it i need a 3" transplant cubes also?

BudBaby said:

Oh shite i havent mate and guess what, ive just planted the seeds in them Will they not work at all mate?

What shall i do shall i just see how they go there all in the propogator now Dont forget my baskets are massive not the small ones you get with normal oxy pots.

That ph down stuff is strong as fook, i got a jug with 2 ltrs of water in and my ph was 7.4, i literally dipped my mixing paddle handle in the ph down and flicked about 2 drops into the jug which right away took it to 7.0!!

Click to expand...

They are too big to start seeds off in.. The net pots should be full of Hydro Clay Balls (MAKE SURE YOU WASH THE HYDRO-CLAY BEFORE PUTTING THEM IN THE NET POTS!..THE BALLS ARE VERY DIRTY) and you dont want to start a grow with contaminated parts/equipment!

The small RockWool Cubes should be placed in the net baskets (CENTER) so the tops of the cubes are flush with the top of the Hydro Clay balls, Providing you get some smaller Rockwool Cubes soon, the seeds should not have cracked.. So transferring the seeds from your BIG cubes into the smaller ones will be of no hassle to you.

Yeah Phosphorus acid is hardcore 82% I think (PH Down) if you ever get any on your fingers etc wash them asap the stuff propper burns!

* YOU NEED YOUR RES. PH TO READ 6.5, (Both before and after nuits have been added!)


* YOUR RES. TEMPS SHOULD READ BETWEEN 17oC AND 20oC I think 21 oC is spot on! any warmer than this and you'll start getting mould..and any cooler and plant growth will be slowed.


* Ambient room temps should be between 19oC and 26oC (The closer to 26oC you can keep the Grow-Cabs in both night and day the better your plants will grow..) ... Its ok to drop a few degrees upon the lights switching off for the plants night cycle (This is natural for plants even in the wild).

Hope that info helps - STELTHY

BudBaby said:

Ive cut them down a bit mate, ive also tipped any excess water out of the propogator just incase they were to wet, im off out in a bit but when i get back ill see how they look.

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Cutting them into 1.5" cubes could work if you absolutley can't get the propper smaller cubes. The Rockwool Cubes should be MOIST but NOT waterlogged, and there should be around 1.5CM deep water in the actual tray of the Propergator. (This will keep the cubes damp, even when the humidity rises and the water/nuits start to eveaporate/condensate.) - STELTHY

BudBaby said:

I have just had another look and i think one of the cubes i cut i took to much off the bottom.

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Hmm thats not cool, Oh well! ...It's only a small hic-cup, we really need the smaller cubes - STELTHY

BudBaby said:

Thanks very much, im not sure how this will turn out now i have cut the cubes down, if they dont germ then thats ok i have some more seeds and next time i will be getting dome smaller starter plugs to fit into my 3". Its my own fault it was lack of research.

Click to expand...

Yeah the 1.5" starter plugs/cubes are whats needed. Add some pics of the cubes you have cut down from a couple of different angles - I'll be able to tell if and how we can get by with them. I'll try n find a video on-line on how to do this stage, it may help you in more detail - STELTHY

BudBaby said:

Just been looking at these http://www.greenshorticulture.co.uk/Growing-Media-198/Rockwool-289/

They do a 36mm propogation plug to start it off then i take it i need a 3" transplant cubes also?

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I just looked at the LINK... Yeah those are exactly what you need and good news you wont need a 3" cube after at all the plants will happilly grow from seed to bud in the small 36mm ones, surrounded by Hydro-Clay Balls.. Its all I've ever used and thats good enough for me

Yeah stick to just using the small ones, You may as well buy a load of these in bulk... They are quite cheap and you'll be using "8" per grow - STELTHY

Ok mate ill order some now, thats great i only need the small ones, ill get some piucs dnoe now of the other ones, i dont think they will be any good though one of them is breaking up. Ill order the small ones now and hopefully transfer the seeds into them tomorrow.

Could i take the seeds out of these ones now and just reuse them tomorrow?

BudBaby said:

Ok mate ill order some now, thats great i only need the small ones, ill get some piucs dnoe now of the other ones, i dont think they will be any good though one of them is breaking up. Ill order the small ones now and hopefully transfer the seeds into them tomorrow.

Could i take the seeds out of these ones now and just reuse them tomorrow?

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[video=youtube;dgKA-zWdBxY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgKA-zWdBxY[/video]

Despite the nonsense this guy is rambling on about and the fact his water level is way to high!!! This is how the Smaller Rockwool Cube shold look in the net pot with the Hydro-Clay around it

Yeah just the smaller ones , By all means providing the seeds havent popped and started to sprout yet take them out and keep them in a dark dry place untill your new cubes turn up soon - STELTHY

I think i will do that mate, these cubes are in a right mess. Ill have the other tomorrow with any luck where i can start over. Again i thinked i rushed into it without giving it proper thought, it seems this is a trait of mine lol.

I just retreived the seeds, none had popped although i could only find 3 seeds and i planted 4 lol, one may of dropped out as i was cutting the rockwool.

Ive wrapped them in tissue and put them in my draw ready for tomorrow when ill start again. Never mind you live and learn and i have only wasted 1 seed

stelthy said:

Cutting them into 1.5" cubes could work if you absolutley can't get the propper smaller cubes. The Rockwool Cubes should be MOIST but NOT waterlogged, and there should be around 1.5CM deep water in the actual tray of the Propergator. (This will keep the cubes damp, even when the humidity rises and the water/nuits start to eveaporate/condensate.) - STELTHY

Click to expand...

Ok mate thanks, so i now know my ph should be 6.5 and not 7, shall i just do what you said yesterday and push the seeds in, quick soak and then flick the excess water out, add them to a bowl with water coming half way up the cube and then more water in the actual prop itself?

I'll draw a diagram later for you when I upload my MONDAY UPDATE and post it to your thread I'll make it as clear as poss, consider it an instruction manual - STELTHY

Ok thanks mate, i have done some research but it seems everyone has there own opinion on the best way to do things so i think its best to save confusing things if i just follow what you say.

Ive been thinking about the size of my buckets also mate, what i may do tomorrow when my new cubes arrive is actual do a test to see how much they hold when in operation. I have a feeling it will be closer to 20 ltrs, hopefully this will give me a better indiation of how to sort my feeds out.