couple dwc design questions...

I thought I'd decided on a good plan. 2x4x7 tent, two 10-15 gallon coolers, two plants scrogged, 400w cool tube 6" exhaust/fan/filter right through the roof, passive intake. some sort of bomb sativa or hybrid.

But time comes into mind now. I'd rather not wait 2 months veg, 2+ months flower then curing time for that one harvest.

I'm thinking that's a minimum of 3 months flower and drying alone before I can enjoy.

I've read about perpetual grows.. which makes me think about attempting a really careful aeroponic 18 site or wtv instead instead of the 2 plants, in the same tent/space. possible with perpetual? or should I stick closer to my original plan?

Is one cooler better for what I'm trying to do?

What I'd really like to know is can I keep my initial design.. and somehow put the 2 plants into flower right away or pretty quickly...

Also, What would be my best option(s) for something simple to root my seeds and get them ready for the 2x4 without another tent w/ venting ect? how long should that part take or what should I keep in mind with that?

SOG and perpetual grows go hand in hand for shorter inbetween harvest time.

Honestly, you can perfect an indoor grow and sustain from one grow room. Starting "perpetually" would be really hard for a beginner.

that's good news because i'd rather perfect the indoor grow from the room... i'll stick with the coolers.

so are you saying I should follow the standard 8 weeks veg, 8-10 weeks flower because it'll be worth it?

or am I mistaken thinking that people put the seeds into a humidity dome or wtv, let em root then do a short veg cycle + full flower? <<< i think this is what I'm not clear on.

A lot of people will mislead you.. let me try to clear it up.

You grow to your space/equipment. I'm running 250 watts in a closet, so I veg for a month (maybe a month and a half if only doing one plant.) If you have bigger space/bigger lights you can veg longer, or do more plants.

Your amount of veg time/plants SHOULD directly correlate to your equipment/space.

i have heard of a perpetual grow of 9 plants in different stages of growth with NO veg, harvesting every 3 months of 4-10oz.

I think I see what you're saying Void. So veg depends on the space that i have - for example i have apx 7 ft in height and the coolers will take about 2 feet from that, leaving about 5 feet of grow space.. subtract another foot for the light and i'm left with 4 feet vertical space.

It's sounding like i should definitely do one cooler with a scrog and let that single plant fill the space? And i'll find out when I get there based on how the plant looks in the space, when the best time is to flip it into flower?

@ jesus, I like the idea of no veg b/c of time, but now that i think, I want to do it right. now if there was a perpetual that i could do in my small space and come out with 3-4 oz a month that might push me in that direction lol.

My goal is to have at minimum a 2oz/month supply plus extra out of my space.

How much experience do you have?

Btw I won't go into all the detail of WHY veg is so important.. but if you want to check out some AVERAGE 12/12 from seed yields, look at my journal..

Some people do better, mostly because of better equipment..

I have zero experience. That's why I'm so intent on doing things the right way the first time (as best I can). I'm prepared that it will take time to dial things in and perfect the grow. I just want to be sure that I get started in the right way for what I'm trying to do.

I'll look into it for my own knowledge, but I can make some guesses why veg would be so important. And will look at your journals because that's exactly what I want to get a understanding of -- if going to flower quickly from seed is going to give me the results I desire.

If the total 4+ months of grow time is going to yield over a pound (which it seems like it would), then maybe it's worth the wait. But if I can get my desired results (minimum of 2 oz a month personal, ideally more) by throwing them into flower sooner, and having more grows through out the year.. that sounds maybe a little better to me.

I'm just imagining my first grow taking 6 months from start to finish and that's a bit hard to swallow considering how much I spend on meds now.

Growing takes time and patience.. mostly experience. I suggest starting out in something a bit easier than DWC (coco, hempy) but if you must, learn absolutely all you can. There's a lot to watch for, and a lot to maintain.

I hear you. I have been lurking here on and off for a while. I'm a smart guy. I feel pretty confident with the help of the various grows similar to what i'm doing, and strong attention to detail meaning a daily log (defo seen a few templates i'd follow here and otherwise), come here or wherever in an emergency and I should be okay.

Here's my list:

400w (ballast/cooltube/reflector/hps)
2x4 growlab
hid hut 6" cannon fan and filter
hanna Hi 98129 Combo pH/EC/TDS/C/PPM Tester
nutrients - general hydroponic/undecided
2 x 70qt ice cube rollers
scrog zip ties / undecided
400w mh bulb veg
air Pump
air Stones
ph up/down
small fan x2
quality 12 outlet, 10ft, surge protector
wall thermometer w/humidity guage
ducting 6"x25ft
rockwool cubes, net pots, tubing

I'm sure there's more.., unless i go the home route co2 n whatnot will have to wait. but correct me if i'm wrong that seems like a reasonable place to start a grow from what I've read.

My idea is the coolers because i want the roots to have as much space as possible for each tree.

You don't have to have co2.. There's enough even indoors to grow. It's more of a luxury item..

The main concern with DWC is reservoir temperature. I guess that's being controlled by the "2 x 70qt ice cube rollers?"

Good luck.

Looks like a decent list I didnt have all those things my first couple times around.. I say go with your dwc if you read enough on various places I think you can do it but plan for some mistakes. Such as if this is your first time with this setup I'd say plan to lose atleast 1 on the way especially if its your first dwc. I mean who's to say you wont get lucky but you dont wanna wait all that time to have it dumped months later, I can see you want results as fast as possible (im kinda the same way so I can relate). So thro a couple more in just to make sure. dwc isnt all that difficult its just a little touchy..a little too much nutes here, a pump dies there.. and your SOL.
I would first establish a mother or two, tweak your setup see which one will last the stress and you found your strongest girl (hopefully) fimm/top/w.e else you wanna call it at a month or so into veg so she branches out, once those branches are long enough cut them and clone (remember take a couple extra just in case) wait a couple weeks for them too root and throwem into flower in a sea of green method. this is how my perpetual is running (a good read is AL B Fuct's havest every 2 weeks thread search it!)
Its slow at first but once you get a good mom she'll just keep branching, take the cuts and repeat. If you got any questions go for it lots of helpful people in these parts fo sho

be good!