Novice Grower Needing Starting Advice PLEASE:)

[ElevatedLife]

Hello everyone! I hope all are having a wonderful night! I'm new to rollitup, stoked as hell on my next grow, and need some advice.

I'm new to the forum, and have put off asking for advice for so long but with the investment I have put into this last grow I want to make sure everything turns out perfect, because in the past I have never been able to get to flower & harvest due to various problems outside of my control...-_- I guess it comes with living in a non-legal state. As of now I've been through 3 partial grows, and I just got my order from herbies.com. Ill list the grow specs below:

4 plants in soil and perlite(auto flower 45 day fem seeds which ive never tried) - GSC, OG, Super Hashplant and Narcotherapy

Large closet, about 5x2x5

400w HPS and an army of cool CFLS to supplement for full spectrum

I also fabricated the required C02, drip, timer, vent, and air scrubbing systems

I specifically want to ask:

1. Im not worried about temp but do y'all think there is such thing as too much light for the plants, any opinions on 400w HPS for 4 plants?

2. And WATER, water really scares me. Everywhere I have ever read online tons of people use tap water and it works for them. I know people in my area that have done it with no issues. But I have grown about 30 plants in the past, in different areas of the city, and besides the 10 or I basically killed instantly by watering them with tap water I notice even if they dont die they cease to thrive, get yellow, burn and stop growing. I even went as far as to check which additives like chlorine and
fluoride were in the water in my specific area. The levels in my area have always been below national levels significantly and ph levels were always within acceptable growing range. With the amount of people who have successully grown with tap water I really dont understand whats going on here, so any ideas on this would really be appreciated because im stumped?

I'm really excited to be a part of the forum, and thanks everyone I look forward to actually talking to other serious growers for the first time in my life. If you read this thank you because my rambling tends to get extensive.

J

 

[SPLFreak808]

Hello everyone! I hope all are having a wonderful night! I'm new to rollitup, stoked as hell on my next grow, and need some advice.

I'm new to the forum, and have put off asking for advice for so long but with the investment I have put into this last grow I want to make sure everything turns out perfect, because in the past I have never been able to get to flower & harvest due to various problems outside of my control...-_- I guess it comes with living in a non-legal state. As of now I've been through 3 partial grows, and I just got my order from herbies.com. Ill list the grow specs below:

4 plants in soil and perlite(auto flower 45 day fem seeds which ive never tried) - GSC, OG, Super Hashplant and Narcotherapy

Large closet, about 5x2x5

400w HPS and an army of cool CFLS to supplement for full spectrum

I also fabricated the required C02, drip, timer, vent, and air scrubbing systems

I specifically want to ask:

1. Im not worried about temp but do y'all think there is such thing as too much light for the plants, any opinions on 400w HPS for 4 plants?

2. And WATER, water really scares me. Everywhere I have ever read online tons of people use tap water and it works for them. I know people in my area that have done it with no issues. But I have grown about 30 plants in the past, in different areas of the city, and besides the 10 or I basically killed instantly by watering them with tap water I notice even if they dont die they cease to thrive, get yellow, burn and stop growing. I even went as far as to check which additives like chlorine and
fluoride were in the water in my specific area. The levels in my area have always been below national levels significantly and ph levels were always within acceptable growing range. With the amount of people who have successully grown with tap water I really dont understand whats going on here, so any ideas on this would really be appreciated because im stumped?

I'm really excited to be a part of the forum, and thanks everyone I look forward to actually talking to other serious growers for the first time in my life. If you read this thank you because my rambling tends to get extensive.

J

1. Yes there is such thing as too much light, when you hear the words "more light wouldn't hurt" it is oftenly said in the cfl forums but it is definitely possible to use more chlorophyll then the plants can produce and it varies from strain to strain.
400 watts of hps is nothing to sweat, you'll be fine. For example, too much light is more like 3000 watts in a 4x4, some strains might take it. "Light saturation"

2. Tap water, what did your report come back with? Plants should not yellow out from tap water unless something is wrong with the water or some type of house water filter/pipe causing problems. Where do you get the water from? Do you let it hit room temp before watering?

 

[ElevatedLife]

Hey 808,

Thanks for the reply, what you said reaffirms what I was thinking which boosts my confidence but the weird thing is I've grown in three different cities within a larger valley so the water is pumped from a single location, My test didn't find anything besides normal levels of chlorine and fluoride, nothing else was picked up in detectable amounts. I have been sticking with certain brands of bottled water as boiling tap water has the same effect in my new place, when it used to work that way. I worry about different waters brands now also because some of them have that mineral chlorine taste in them and I worry that will harm the plants also.

 

[EarthBow]

With only 5' of vertical space, flower when they are smaller so they don't grow into the light at the end.

At the least, let the tap water sit out in an open container for a day or 2 so the chlorine will gas off. A lot pf people use reverse osmosis filters, which work great, but there are easier/cheaper ways that work almost as well.

Get 3 five gallon buckets with lids from Lowes or wherever, then get a ceramic/charcoal filter. Drill a hole in one of the tops and another hole in the bottom of one of the buckets. Now put that bucket on top of the lid you drilled and use the filter to connect them. That's it, yer done.

Put the bucket/lid/filter on top of one of the other buckets and fill it with your tap water. In a few hours, it will have all filtered into the bottom bucket. You can take this to your grow area to use on your plants. Meanwhile, you can put the bucket/lid/filter on the 3rd bucket and have that one filtering. This way, you always have 4 or 5 gallons of good water in reserve and some to water with.

The best filters are from Berkey, who also make one that will remove fluoride. These are expensive, but you can find cheaper ones. Just look for "ceramic candle filters."

Edited to add: If you get the white food grade buckets, this system will also serve as an emergency water supply for you. It will let you drink water from ponds, streams, puddles, rainwater... whatever. You can put a 3 bucket system together for about $30.00.

 

[SPLFreak808]

Hey 808,

Thanks for the reply, what you said reaffirms what I was thinking which boosts my confidence but the weird thing is I've grown in three different cities within a larger valley so the water is pumped from a single location, My test didn't find anything besides normal levels of chlorine and fluoride, nothing else was picked up in detectable amounts. I have been sticking with certain brands of bottled water as boiling tap water has the same effect in my new place, when it used to work that way. I worry about different waters brands now also because some of them have that mineral chlorine taste in them and I worry that will harm the plants also.

Chlorine can only harm the plant at stupud levels, Cl is actually a needed trace mineral for cannabis and many other plants, even humans and animals also! Try not to over think it, the problem most likely lies with something in your house/water pipes/watering bucket ect make sure no chemicals are used in the same watering bucket you use for the plants.

 

[ElevatedLife]

With only 5' of vertical space, flower when they are smaller so they don't grow into the light at the end.

At the least, let the tap water sit out in an open container for a day or 2 so the chlorine will gas off. A lot pf people use reverse osmosis filters, which work great, but there are easier/cheaper ways that work almost as well.

Get 3 five gallon buckets with lids from Lowes or wherever, then get a ceramic/charcoal filter. Drill a hole in one of the tops and another hole in the bottom of one of the buckets. Now put that bucket on top of the lid you drilled and use the filter to connect them. That's it, yer done.

Put the bucket/lid/filter on top of one of the other buckets and fill it with your tap water. In a few hours, it will have all filtered into the bottom bucket. You can take this to your grow area to use on your plants. Meanwhile, you can put the bucket/lid/filter on the 3rd bucket and have that one filtering. This way, you always have 4 or 5 gallons of good water in reserve and some to water with.

The best filters are from Berkey, who also make one that will remove fluoride. These are expensive, but you can find cheaper ones. Just look for "ceramic candle filters."

Edited to add: If you get the white food grade buckets, this system will also serve as an emergency water supply for you. It will let you drink water from ponds, streams, puddles, rainwater... whatever. You can put a 3 bucket system together for about $30.00.

Hey Earth thanks for that filter idea I'm at the store right now I'm gonna try it out. Here's my issue though. What weirds me out is for the last 3 years I've been boiling my tap water and then letting it sit out for 2-3 days just to make absolutely sure and up until this last apartment that would work. However now I've tried that same process and it burns the plants and kills them within one watering it's INSANE. It really worries me and I'm probably just going to have to stick to bottled because I can't afford an RO filter. I don't understand what could be causing this so I'm worried because I don't have another chance to do this years grow as I just got laid off and have NO MORE SEEDS so I think I'm going to try that idea you gave me and add in some activated carbon for good measure. I guess we can't ask other members to send me seeds can I?

 

[ElevatedLife]

Chlorine can only harm the plant at stupud levels, Cl is actually a needed trace mineral for cannabis and many other plants, even humans and animals also! Try not to over think it, the problem most likely lies with something in your house/water pipes/watering bucket ect make sure no chemicals are used in the same watering bucket you use for the plants.

Yeah I totally agree with you about the pipes because I've tried boiling, filtering, evaporation and in my current apartment that doesn't do the trick anymore and the plants still die. I usually wouldn't over think this but this but I just got laid off so I'm worried cuz I don't have anymore seeds and I currently can't find any in the area, so this is my only shot at success currently lol. I'm hoping positivity, moderation and some attentive tlc will see me through till he end. BTW I am growing Dinafems new GSC strain and I have to say it's the most vigorous strain I've ever encountered personally, very impressive.

 

[EarthBow]

What weirds me out is for the last 3 years I've been boiling my tap water and then letting it sit out for 2-3 days just to make absolutely sure and up until this last apartment that would work.

Boiling will kill any microbes, but won't remove contaminates. The ceramic filters have 2 layers: the outside layer is ceramic, and the inside layer is activated charcoal. These will physically remove just about anything. I use them every day to filter my drinking water, and they make a HUGE difference.

If not your water, it might also have something to do with your media. What are you growing in?

 

[Wilderb]

Where are you getting your soil?

 

[Roobarb]

Are you PH'ing your tap water? You didn't mention it

 

[ElevatedLife]

Ive gone through everything you can literally find on the internet short of buying an RO machine myself. Im working on the filter idea earthbow mentions and ill see what happens. The mystery continues. I just dont know of any contaminates that wouldnt be removed through proper ph and two step filtration. I always PH my water yes.

 

[ElevatedLife]

Hey bro I have a really important question I need to ask you but its to long to send in a message, do you have an email or something I can send the text to? IDK why but the forum limits to 420 characters lol.

 

[ElevatedLife]

I get it anywhere, but I never get soil that is pre muted, always organic. Any suggestions for in store brands I can find?

 

[qballizhere]

you can use tap water but you need to know the starting ppm and ph the water correctly.
I dont grow in soil Im in coco

 

[EarthBow]

One more question... do you have anyone living with you that doesn't like the fact that you grow? Someone, for example, who might poison your plants because you refuse to listen to reason? Just askin'.

 

[shinedog55]

I grew in soil for years. It was really the simplest way for me when I first started. There's a red flag when I read this post and that was the way you described the manner in which they died. I believe you described them as turning yellow and burning. You mentioned soil and perilite. I always used Fox Farms with a heavy mix of perlite about a 60/40 of 70/30 mix. I would recommend Fox Farm and it's available at most hydro shops. Make sure the soil is loose, youve got to let those roots breathe. Just like they need water, nutrients and CO2 they have to have oxygen as well. I'd be concerned that the soil you're using just doesn't have the nutrients needed or if you are adding nutes you're burning up the plants or the soil is maybe packing too tightly after you water. Also, make sure you can bleed the water off. If you water the plants and the water has no where to go you can drown them. I used 5 gallon buckets, drilled holes in the bottom, lined the bottom with rocks and then added my soil mixture.

As mentioned above check your PH and PPM on your tap water. My PPM falls somewhere between 200 and 300 out of the tap and my PH is around 7 to 7.2 so I always had to bring it down a bit. When your plants are young especially starting from seeds they will get everything they need for the first few weeks from the soil itself. As they mature you need to begin introducing nutrients. Letting the water sit out for a few days is also a good idea and also allows the water to warm up to room temp.

Also, keep in mind the size of your container in which you are growing. The roots have to go somewhere and if you veg for too long in a small container those roots have nowhere to go. It's kind of like an iceberg, the plants going to be larger below the soil than above the soil so you need to plan for that and make sure your container is large enough to accommodate the size of plant your looking to grow.