First Time Bubbleponics User Need Suggestions...

[legitroller]

OK so I have had successful grows in soil and o decided to try something different and I have some question. OK so my setup is 30gal tote, 250GPH water pump tetra air pump up to 40gal with a 5" airstone Disk. Now my question is considering I'm using a 30gal tote should I be using 2 airstone Disk or is the one fine.... Now my next question is about nutrients OK so I'm using fox farm now how do I measure now that I've switched meaning on the schedule it says 2tesp BB 1tesp GB now it's a 30gal Res do I still use that much or do I double it cause how many gal the Res holds just confused on the feeding thanks for the help

 

[gtran]

I have almost the same exact set-up your using now, I connected a drip system to the water pump in the res so i only put ten gallons of water in the res to begin with. I have 6 plants in a 25 gallon tub. I cut 6 holes in the top and put the net pots in the holes, run the drip pipe around the tote and run it 24/7. This will keep the plants oxygenated and feeding the entire time. I would def use 2 air stones especially if you fill the tote up all the way. You really dont need more then ten gals in there especially if your only doing 6 plants like i am. I used fox farm as well when i first started and i hate to tell you but i would get rid of them ASAP. In hydroponics the FF line will make the ph fluctuate CRAZY. Ive used 5 different lines of nutrients since ive started and FF is by far the biggest pain in the ass. I thought FF was the end all be all of hydro nutes until i actually used them. I would go with Advanced Nutrients PH Perfect series or General Hydroponics 3 part. Advanced nutrients did there thing with this PH perfect technology, once you add the nutrients it will bring your water to an even 5.8 ph and it will stay there. GH 3 part has a PH buffer that makes it easy to maintain constant ph. I personally use GH 3 part but i will be switching to advanced nutrients when i get the money. As a rule of thumb ALWAYS START WITH A 1/4 STRENGTH NUTRIENTS SO YOU DONT BURN THE PLANTS. It is almost impossibl to under feed in a hydro system but VERY easy to over feed and burn the leaves. Once this happens it could ruin a crop, so if your nutes call for 2tsp per gallon i would do 1/2 tsp per gallon. Trust me when i tell you that if you follow the feeding schedules on the bottles then you will burn the plants no doubt about it. Advanced NUtrients is the only line you can follow the feeding schedule exact becasue they are the only company who specifically makes nutrients for marijuana.
These are some pics of the start of my grow and where im at now. Does my set-up look anything like that you have going on?

 

[legitroller]

Thank you for the response vary helpful now my question you said 1/2tsp per gallon now does that mean ten 1/2 tesp to one gallon of water or how many the schedul says thanks.

I have almost the same exact set-up your using now, I connected a drip system to the water pump in the res so i only put ten gallons of water in the res to begin with. I have 6 plants in a 25 gallon tub. I cut 6 holes in the top and put the net pots in the holes, run the drip pipe around the tote and run it 24/7. This will keep the plants oxygenated and feeding the entire time. I would def use 2 air stones especially if you fill the tote up all the way. You really dont need more then ten gals in there especially if your only doing 6 plants like i am. I used fox farm as well when i first started and i hate to tell you but i would get rid of them ASAP. In hydroponics the FF line will make the ph fluctuate CRAZY. Ive used 5 different lines of nutrients since ive started and FF is by far the biggest pain in the ass. I thought FF was the end all be all of hydro nutes until i actually used them. I would go with Advanced Nutrients PH Perfect series or General Hydroponics 3 part. Advanced nutrients did there thing with this PH perfect technology, once you add the nutrients it will bring your water to an even 5.8 ph and it will stay there. GH 3 part has a PH buffer that makes it easy to maintain constant ph. I personally use GH 3 part but i will be switching to advanced nutrients when i get the money. As a rule of thumb ALWAYS START WITH A 1/4 STRENGTH NUTRIENTS SO YOU DONT BURN THE PLANTS. It is almost impossibl to under feed in a hydro system but VERY easy to over feed and burn the leaves. Once this happens it could ruin a crop, so if your nutes call for 2tsp per gallon i would do 1/2 tsp per gallon. Trust me when i tell you that if you follow the feeding schedules on the bottles then you will burn the plants no doubt about it. Advanced NUtrients is the only line you can follow the feeding schedule exact becasue they are the only company who specifically makes nutrients for marijuana. View attachment 2816814View attachment 2816815View attachment 2816816View attachment 2816817View attachment 2816818
These are some pics of the start of my grow and where im at now. Does my set-up look anything like that you have going on?

 

[gtran]

Just take whatever the measurment says on the bottle and do only a 1/4 of that per gallon.

 

[PetFlora]

gtran, does the pvc over the net pots spray them , and if yes, is it on a timed cycle?

I made a DIY top feeding spray system using pvc and did quite well considering I was anot able to get complete saturation to each net pot

I found a youtube link for Hydro Halo Drip Rings, by using a more powerful pump, the nutes come out like a rainforest shower head

Now on my 2nd grow using them.

Drop by to watch the show. Plants are 5 weeks old from cracked.

3 are under HOT5s, 4 under 100w of household leds

 

[gtran]

What i did was setup the pvc drip system like i was ready to use it. I then marked exactly where the pipe was in the middle of the pot and you drill a small hole in the middle and to the left and right of the middle hole. Mine all work perfect and i run it 24/7. The water dripping down also creates oxygen when it breaks the water. I noticed you said you use a 250 gph pump? With a pump that big it pushes the water to fast and it goes right over the holes. To lowes and go to the pond section of the garden area and buy a fountain pump that costs around 14-17 dollars. Should only be 60-100 gph. This will make the water slow down to where it will come out every hole evenly. I set this exact thing up for 5 diff people now and i never have a problem. Just make sure all the holes you drill are facing down. The hydroton will dostribute the water throughout the entire root system before it drops back into the res. the spray rings work great as well but i promise u will get better results if u do it this way

 

[PetFlora]

gtran, thanks.

So you say I will get significantly better results than these... not quite 1 month old from cracked?

I have my doubts

 

[gtran]

Not so much from switching from the drip rings to the pvc drip system but running it 24/7 as opposed to once every X amount of hours. I was scared i was gonna drown my plants as first so i only ran the drip system for 10 min every few hours. After reading some more i took a chance and ran it 24/7 and my plants exploded!!!!! I was also runnning GH 2 part system, the most basic nuts you can get and still had good results. Those plants you have are beautifull, i like the set-up you have going on as well. What kind of lighting you have going on for those?

 

[PetFlora]

Thanks. I spray (more of a fast drip, due to 150 gph pump unable to fully push 3 HH Rings to the point of spray. Not that big a deal. I feed the HOT5 every 18 minutes for 18 seconds during lights on. Under the leds ~ 23 seconds every 30 minutes.

In the HOT5 tent I use a variety of aquarium and horticulture bulbs mixing spectrums as needed. In the LED tent I combine 18w led tubes + 4 A19 globes in between. I have extenders for those which allows me to get the globes below the canopy once the plants get taller

I use Hydroponic Research VEG+BLOOM a one part dry formula

Not so much from switching from the drip rings to the pvc drip system but running it 24/7 as opposed to once every X amount of hours. I was scared i was gonna drown my plants as first so i only ran the drip system for 10 min every few hours. After reading some more i took a chance and ran it 24/7 and my plants exploded!!!!! I was also runnning GH 2 part system, the most basic nuts you can get and still had good results. Those plants you have are beautifull, i like the set-up you have going on as well. What kind of lighting you have going on for those?

 

[gtran]

Ive been looking into LED lighting for a little while now, still a little unsure becasue it seems that finding the right spectrum might be a little much for me. I like being able to buy a HID light and just turn it on, but if LED work as good as people saying they are and dont have that high temp then im game to learn more about them. Why no HID lights in the set-up? I run a 400 watt mh/hps setup and i find it hard to beat that.

 

[PetFlora]

gtran I use a combination of neutral white (NW= ~ 5000K) for veg and warm white (WW= ~ 3000K) for flower

I plan to add a 10.0 UVB reptile bulb during flower to enhance tric production

Can it be any simpler?

 

[gtran]

I just feel that any amount of CFL, flourescents, or grow bulbs will produce subpar results as far a yeild then a HID. Im sure if you did a side by side test even with more amount of cfl, fluorescent etc the yeild of a HID will be significantly more?

 

[PetFlora]

Huh? The pic is LED tubes and LED globes. I do have a 3 yo 428w (8 bulb) HOT5, which works great, BUT, bulbs cost > $20 and only really last max of 3 grows. UVB LEDs are very expensive and require frequent replacement, but CFL UVB is used sparingly during flower

I just feel that any amount of CFL, flourescents, or grow bulbs will produce subpar results as far a yeild then a HID. Im sure if you did a side by side test even with more amount of cfl, fluorescent etc the yeild of a HID will be significantly more?

 

[nameno]

gtran My set up is a lot like yours,but I run 1 good size water line from bucket up to plant 24/7 and I leave no space between net pot and water I keep it up to the plant saves a lot of energy,I got that from heath r. but roseman's a good bubbleponic deal. That works unbelieveable in the early part,if it would grow like that through flower we would be in good shape.GG &HY

 

[gtran]

gtran My set up is a lot like yours,but I run 1 good size water line from bucket up to plant 24/7 and I leave no space between net pot and water I keep it up to the plant saves a lot of energy,I got that from heath r. but roseman's a good bubbleponic deal. That works unbelieveable in the early part,if it would grow like that through flower we would be in good shape.GG &HY

Yeah this was literally my first time putting one of those together and when i first posted a picture i got alot of really good feedback. Apparently doing a combo of DWC and NFT was a good idea because i have about 5 diff people ask me how to make it. I want a setup like your where i can keep all the water in one big cooler so it stay colder but what i have is working so well i dont want to tamper with it. Do you drain to waster or do you have a setup to where after the water is feed through the line it is sent back into the res?