Round 3: Extrema & El Monstre DWC Cooler Scrog

usually he sends them faster than that.. I got my first batch in less than a week, and the second about the same too. still, I trust him like no one else, and his strains are dank.

That extrema is really looking sugary , I got some of those on the way.

So que paso with the bleach dude? not sharing your recipe for algae abolition with me?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJhnRQAkTC4

Lol nice video. I didn't forget about you. I haven't had to use bleach in a while but I used it about 1-2 mL per L. Depending on how much algae you have in the rez start light and add if needed. And also double check and make sure everything else is correct such as no light getting in the rez, net pots covered, enough DO air bubbles in the rez.

Extrema is looking and smelling great! Just touching her makes my fingers stick together.
I am looking forward to seeing what kind of budz she produces and harvesting this beauty.

pH 5.3
PPM 920
Rez Temp 64
Cab Temp 76

BluBerry said:

Having a Tri-meter sure makes it easier to manage rez numbers. It was a small investment but well worth it! ($115 w/Free Shipping on eBay)
It sure beats raising the rez lid to get a small cup of water to test my numbers.

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Good to know, definitely gonna have to invest in one of those soon. √

Blu,

Awesome Journals, thanks for the detail and your time!! ++rep I do NOT want to hijack your thread but you are the only guy I have found that has my problem and fixed it. (feel free to delete this post otherwise or tell me to shorten it to just (how did you fix..)

In any case, I am having the same trouble as you in your first grow, roots that are short, spagetti like and brown/yellow. I find that they go down to the water and then stop and basically die at the tip, just like yours did. I have raised/lowered the levels to no end with little to mostly no results. What I have already done is suck all the water out of the rockwool (surrounded by hydroton) in the pots after flushing and changed the resevoir to 1/4 nute solution, I was running it really hot with the recommended dose for formulex from about day 15-20 from seed(this morning changed res) while I wait for my GH 3-part nutes (don't have a PPM meter yet, damn store was out - on the way) but the "tomato" plants are REALLY perfect looking, lush, green, etc. just kind of lacking in growth speed for DWC (IE mostly 4/5 nodes and 3-5 inches tall) and a little N def on a couple plants which I attribute to root def because the plants around it.... but my point is I started 1/4 strength but they looked like they handled it which the plants did so I kept upping it every few days I didn't just poor the bottle in there without research lol.

Now in the beginning I had some PH issues before I had a meter, really high for first 10 days leading to purpling of the stems P def (ph 7.5+ purpling of seedling stems/veins makes me uneasy while most say its ok), and also some slim issues (h2o2 didn't work, so now I use bleach but go for about 5ppm dose or .5ml/L which works great when any smell is coming along). Also had a light issue in the res at first which I fixed the day after I got everything going.

After reading through your first journal, ++more rep, I know I will add another pump probably for a total of about 8 watts and a couple air stones tomorrow (even though I only have a 5 gallon tot with a 3 watt pump on there running two 10 inch round air-stone things <where I am there are no hydro stores>).


Info: (I do not want to post pictures of my heirloom "tomatoes" without making another user account/proxy etc. but if you look at your first grow during veg, the roots look exactly the same or worse than your worst roots)

ph: 5.8-6 (tap water 7 downed with GH PH v)
ppm: unknown (currently running about 1/4 recommended formulex, no other additives 2.5ml/l but was HOT before<waiting on meter>)
temps: 75-82
hum: 35-40
lights: Cool (5500) floros - 6 4ftx36w - 2-5 in from plants
bubbles: 3wt with 2 - 10in round bubble things (about half the surface area is agitated - working this tomorrow, at-least double watts double stones as you did)
res: temp 68-73, much like yours just a bit smaller and clear plastic sealed from the light with pot covers, tin-foil, electrical tap (will be using rdwc and will have stable res temps later in veg)
strains: mostly greenhouse "tomato" company but this issue is not strain specific

Now my question(s) are what do you think caused your problem exactly? What fixed your problem exactly?
-Lack of DO (bubbles/surface area enhancement)
-Nutrients too hot (that didn't burn the plant but burned/stressed the roots < this is my theory as the roots in the hydroton/rockwool have some buffer to the nutes and continued uptaking obviously from looking inside the pot but the roots growing into the water burned)
-Water level (to me i think we should be able to be just at the bottom of the pot or higher the whole grow <w/o saturing rockwool, etc.>)
-Saturated/top-fed rockwool/starters (causing weak roots or happy roots that didn't want to fish for food)
-Water issue (was it the tap water/did you change it)
-Bleach (now I think the chlorine rocks the smell/slime but on your current grows did the 1ml/l of bleach ever burn your shit<roots>)

Thanks in advance any advice would be greatly appreciated and again sorry to thread jack you!!!!!!!!!!!!!
z
(ps don't mistake my post count for a lack of intellect )

(ps^2 as to your envelope getting opened on 3 sides without anything being taken. I do not want to freak you out but if you are in the states I am 100% positive it was the post office searching your envelope, I am surprised because if they caught it at customs they more than likely would toss it. View this thread:https://www.rollitup.org/michigan-patients/494910-police-followed-me-home-post.html - keep in mind that is not enough evidence or even close for any officer to enter your house but bear in mind you do not have to answer a door for a knock-and-talk <surely don't let them in> if god-for-bid the post office ever did forward such info to your local 5-0)

(ps^3 hope you get/got a couple 5 points this season)

Group Pics





Extrema Pics













Extrema on the left El Monstre on the right



El Monstre Pics

Supz Blu!! Sorry man I've been offline for a few weeks.....damn HD crashed in my pc :/ Now that all is fixed and well again it was time to catch back up on everyone's grows. First of all, congratulations on that Extrema!!! Bout damn time you got a female!! lulz It only took you 3 rounds to find one, BUT damn she looks sweet! Love the canopy as usual and I've learned to expect great things from ya. Alwayz a pleasure reading your thread....keep em comin mane!

oh lawdy they looking nice. i never understood how you did it the first time without a tri-meter.. it is by far the most important tool i use. Id be fukd without one. I mean shit, instead of premixing you can just add the proper amounts until hitting the desired ppm and pH. genius! a huge difference maker IMO.

Light leaks -check- duct tape is awesome

air injection -check- no specific stats but I've got 4 - 7.8Lpm pumps chuggin away, but can NEVER have enough.

I put 10ml into each 20 gal res. Killed that shit immediately, but still have a slight cloudiness. I'm hoping the excess will dissipate before my roots hit the drink. I think il be o.k. but we shall see.

TheGreenHornet said:

oh lawdy they looking nice. i never understood how you did it the first time without a tri-meter.. it is by far the most important tool i use. Id be fukd without one. I mean shit, instead of premixing you can just add the proper amounts until hitting the desired ppm and pH. genius! a huge difference maker IMO.

Light leaks -check- duct tape is awesome


air injection -check- no specific stats but I've got 4 - 7.8Lpm pumps chuggin away, but can NEVER have enough.

I put 10ml into each 20 gal res. Killed that shit immediately, but still have a slight cloudiness. I'm hoping the excess will dissipate before my roots hit the drink. I think il be o.k. but we shall see.

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Glad to hear that it cleared away the problem and I'm sure the cloudiness will dissipate and you will be fine. Yes I love my duct tape as well

Blu,

Definitely think I will do something about the rockwool next grow. Thanks for the advice and the detailed response!!!! Seriously!! Turns out where I am now the tap water comes out brown at times - I got to thinking.... I'm pretty sure the problem is copper toxicity at this point, as when I was first growing it was with bottled water and although the PH was high the roots were still coming, about a week in I switched to filtered tap (hindsight is 20/20-the tap water is what "changed") which is when the roots started running from the water (looks and smells lovely and no chlorine - but carbon filters do not remove copper, zinc or any other metals for that matter). Luckily for me the rockwool/hydroton appeared to buffer the plant from the toxicity and I think I shouldn't have any problems making "tomatoes."

Info below for you and your followers knowledge, not listed in most "deficiency" guides (possibly maybe even could have contributed to your roots on the first who knows). Thanks for the time again, and best of luck to you in the new year!!!

z

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  Root stunting is characteristic of calcium deficiency, acidity, aluminum toxicity, and copper toxicity. Some species may also show it when boron deficient. The shortened roots become thickened, the laterals become stubby, peg-like, and the whole system often discolours, brown or grey.​

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here for my daily drive by.. Can you take a pic of your roots? I like lookin at the roots, lol

my 2 cents; RO water saved my life. or my tomatoes lives.

I won't be able to get a full root shot until after I harvest but I'm sure they are wrapped around the bottom of the cooler.

TheGreenHornet said:

here for my daily drive by.. Can you take a pic of your roots? I like lookin at the roots, lol

my 2 cents; RO water saved my life. or my tomatoes lives.

Click to expand...

Luckily I have well water as opposed to city water. It's great for the tomatoes! Thanks for driving by!

On my third Scrog now bluberry I have followed your "El Monstre's" in the past your plants are looking beautiful by the way! how does one use DWC and SCrog I read most of your thread and it says something about an external res and not changing it very often but I am confused. These type of systems don't need trays under them do they like for water leakage?

And how do you fill the res back up without cleaning it wouldn't excess salts be left over obviously not because you seem to have it dialed in. I barely make my screens 8 inches above my pot because I hand water in coco and my watering can wouldn't fit in the height to the screen and it would be a hassle DWC seems like such a nice experience being able to put the screen at any desired height decresing the veg time. Is it complex to do this or pretty straight forward every time I go to home depot looking for things I fail miserably I know I can get the air stones airline tubing and air pump off ebay for pretty cheap but I can't figure out how I am going to keep my res clean and nutrients up to par with a screen 7 inches above it haha wish I could see one of these things in person I am a much better visual learner but any input is greatly appreciated!

-dapio

Hey there Dapio! This is my exterior rez with my air line going into it to keep the water oxygenated. I have it in the rubbermaid container sitting on top of a hard box about 8 inches off of the bottom of the container and this is just in case it leaks then it will fill the rubbermaid up instead of my floor. I had to remove the drain attachment that was on the cooler and replaced it with a 1/2 plastic piece with a nipple and that is what I hooked my feed line to on the ext rez cooler. I cut a hole directly across from it which my feeder tube goes from the cooler thru the rubbermaid and into the grow cab to a splitter. Then from the splitter the feeder tube goes to the rez and hooks onto the float valve that is in each grow rez. The float valve is adjustable so you can adjust your water level to your desired height (before you put plants in) and that is where it stays. It's pretty simple and takes care of itself for the most part. I add water and nutes to the ext rez and check the PPM with my portable PPM meter and I leave the Tri-Meter hooked up in my grow rez at all times. (DO NOT use clear tubing, use black) As far as a pump goes you should get a commercial grade pump and not a cheap $20 fish air pump. I use a cheap one to oxygenate my ext rez but for my grow rez I use a 70 LPM commercial grade air pump with an 8 way splitter. As far as the salt buildup and changing my water. These two ladies drink about 1 gallon of water a day so there is always fresh water coming in from the ext rez keeping the water level the same. I still have a bit of learning to do myself and I learn something new everyday. I hope I haven't confused you and this will help you out somehow. For a picture of the float valve, scroll up to the root pics and you can see the float valve in the rez.