Newbie Hydro Q's, Nutrient Schedule, Transplant, Watering etc

Hey guys,

First time grower (hydroponics), had a couple questions for the community if anyone more experienced than myself can answer. Quick synopsis- I just germinated my seeds and transplanted them into 1" rockwool cubes. probably 4/10 have started to sprout. I've been reading over the forum for a while but I couldn't seem to find any definitive answers to the following...

Watering
1. How moist/wet should these cubes be and how often should they be watered? I soaked them for 24 hours before transplant, then just poured a little water over them after I transplanted the seeds. Day to day, how often should the seedlings be watered? They're under a humidome and heatmat, btw.

2. Should I be giving them just regular water right now with a pH between 5.8 and 6.2? So far that's what I've been doing...

3. When should I start/stop misting the plants? Some people say not at all, some say until they're in the flowering room.

4. How do I know if I'm overwatering during the first couple weeks? Some people say it's impossible to overwater, some people say leaves will turn yellow...

Lighting
1. When do the seedlings start getting light? The 4 of the 10 that started sprouted I have under fluorescent tubes (warm and cold spectrums) but the cubes that have non-sprouted seeds are also under light right now as I only have one heat mat...is this going to hurt them?

2. Will using NMH bulbs for vegging be hugely better than just using fluorescent tubes?

3. Is it true using green bulbs in the veg/flower room will prevent disruption of the light schedule if you need to work in the room during non-lighting hours?

Nutrients
1. After the seed sprouts, how long should I wait before I give the plants 1/2 strength nutrients?
2. Do most people go to full strength after 2 weeks?
3. Is a PPM meter essential to a hydro-grower?

General/Misc
1. When should I transplant the seedlings to the actual hydro setup as opposed to the humidome? I'm not sure whether people do this when the plant is at a specific height or whether its based off the roots.

2. Can you veg plants for "too long" or will bigger plants just = more bud? Basically I'm asking if I flower my mothers after like 4-8 months of vegging (if I want to have new mothers) without a problem? My ceiling height is about 10' if that makes a difference.

3. If the light goes on or off for a few seconds/minutes during the initial 1-3 week cycle while I'm getting everything set up, is that going to screw up the plants at all?

4. Are reverse osmosis filters a good investment? I think they're like $175 at the local hydro store, it costs me like $1/gal right now...My reservoir will be 50 gallon in the flowering room, probably 20 in the veg room. My plan was to just hook up a garden hose to my sink with an adapter, fill up the reservoir, use the RO filter then add my nutrients once all the water is filtered.

5. How important is keeping the environment 100% clean? I washed the walls with like a soapy water solution before getting everything ready.

6. Carpet, the room has it. Should I put down a tarp or something over the carpet to prevent moisture and stuff or has this not been a problem? I already bought some Mylar to line the walls but I really don't know what to do with the floor.

Sorry for all the questions, maybe I'm caring too much but this is just such an addicting hobby! I'll post some pics once I get the setup done a bit better...Any help is greatly appreciated

Hey guys,

First time grower (hydroponics), had a couple questions for the community if anyone more experienced than myself can answer. Quick synopsis- I just germinated my seeds and transplanted them into 1" rockwool cubes. probably 4/10 have started to sprout. I've been reading over the forum for a while but I couldn't seem to find any definitive answers to the following...

Watering
1. How moist/wet should these cubes be and how often should they be watered? I soaked them for 24 hours before transplant, then just poured a little water over them after I transplanted the seeds. Day to day, how often should the seedlings be watered? They're under a humidome and heatmat, btw.
Keep them moist but not sopping wet.

2. Should I be giving them just regular water right now with a pH between 5.8 and 6.2? So far that's what I've been doing...
Correct

3. When should I start/stop misting the plants? Some people say not at all, some say until they're in the flowering room.
Misting is not neccessary, especially if you have a humidome on them

4. How do I know if I'm overwatering during the first couple weeks? Some people say it's impossible to overwater, some people say leaves will turn yellow...
What type of system? Overwatered plants are usually just lacking oxygen, which is why DWC systems can work.

Lighting
1. When do the seedlings start getting light? The 4 of the 10 that started sprouted I have under fluorescent tubes (warm and cold spectrums) but the cubes that have non-sprouted seeds are also under light right now as I only have one heat mat...is this going to hurt them?
You should have the light on them always. They will seek the light and tubes are weak anyway.

2. Will using NMH bulbs for vegging be hugely better than just using fluorescent tubes?
Fluorescents can be used on small plants a couple inches away, but that's about it. Use MH when you start nutes.

3. Is it true using green bulbs in the veg/flower room will prevent disruption of the light schedule if you need to work in the room during non-lighting hours?
I've heard this but never risked it.

Nutrients
1. After the seed sprouts, how long should I wait before I give the plants 1/2 strength nutrients?
When they have about 4 nodes. 1/4 nutes if you are worried first time.

2. Do most people go to full strength after 2 weeks?
2 weeks going from weak to full strength is more then enough time imo. I give my clones full strength in a week, but that's slightly different.

3. Is a PPM meter essential to a hydro-grower?
It's a smart idea but you can get away without it if you clean out your rez weekly. Recommended picking one up to save on nute costs, and so you can control things better.

General/Misc
1. When should I transplant the seedlings to the actual hydro setup as opposed to the humidome? I'm not sure whether people do this when the plant is at a specific height or whether its based off the roots.
When you start nutes.

2. Can you veg plants for "too long" or will bigger plants just = more bud? Basically I'm asking if I flower my mothers after like 4-8 months of vegging (if I want to have new mothers) without a problem? My ceiling height is about 10' if that makes a difference.
This is generally fine. More veg=bigger plants for the most part.

3. If the light goes on or off for a few seconds/minutes during the initial 1-3 week cycle while I'm getting everything set up, is that going to screw up the plants at all?
You can potentially end up with hermies and is not recommended.

4. Are reverse osmosis filters a good investment? I think they're like $175 at the local hydro store, it costs me like $1/gal right now...My reservoir will be 50 gallon in the flowering room, probably 20 in the veg room. My plan was to just hook up a garden hose to my sink with an adapter, fill up the reservoir, use the RO filter then add my nutrients once all the water is filtered.
Let the water sit 24 hours to allow chlorine to evaporate, or get chlorine remover from a pet shop.

5. How important is keeping the environment 100% clean? I washed the walls with like a soapy water solution before getting everything ready.
A dirty room can invite mold and bacteria. I've never been crazy about keeping clean. But generally things are tidy.

6. Carpet, the room has it. Should I put down a tarp or something over the carpet to prevent moisture and stuff or has this not been a problem? I already bought some Mylar to line the walls but I really don't know what to do with the floor.
Carpet is a breeding ground for mold and bacteria. If the room is humid at all, get it covered well or removed.

Sorry for all the questions, maybe I'm caring too much but this is just such an addicting hobby! I'll post some pics once I get the setup done a bit better...Any help is greatly appreciated

wow did that take longer then expected lmao =p.

+rep?!

Thanks a lot for the reply, that was very helpful!

As far as the carpet goes, I can't really remove it at this stage of the game so getting it covered is probably the best option. As the carpet is white, should I just use like a drop-cloth type thing or should I spring for the visquine/vinyl/pvc stuff?

You need to cover it with plastic to do anything. If you can keep your humidity at like 40% you may be fine, but a drop cloth will hold moisture to, so it's useless. I have no idea what your set-up is so this is just speculation. I personally would not flower in a room with carpet

Chlorine evaporates at room temp. So you don't have to let it sit 24 hrs. Normally i will run the pump in the water so everything is moving and let it sit about 20 minutes. Normally by the time i am done mixing my nutes and adjusting the PH its been 20 minutes.

However depending on where you live you might want to use tap water. Where i live its 200-250 ppm which is about normal. Part of that 200-250 ppm is calcium and magnesium (cal-mag) The bad part is i dont know how much.

I used RO water for a while because i had problems and i thought it was the tap water. After i had everything dialed in, i went back to tap water and haven't looked back. My plants look amazing i get great yields and i dont have to wait for water to be ready.

NOTE:
Some nutes require RO water and some nutes recommend tap water. Also PH is much more stable with tap water.