I’ve been tracking your run because it’s been pretty close to mine in terms of timing. I’m starting a flush and planning to harvest next week. A little ahead of schedule but necessary due to some late flower stress. It’s all good. I learned so much on my first run, which makes it all worth it! Can’t wait to compare results!
Harvested 2 plants, both just on ready. The two runts that had been bullied out of getting enough light by the other plants. And after tying some of the tops down and away from lights it looks like a trip to the hardware store to get some stakes to keep them in position. Cleaned out reservoir and filled with water, adjusted pH to 6.0 - 6.5. On track to harvest in a week or so. But I did find something that is confusing me a bit…when I checked pH of tap water it was 4.5. Usually it’s about 7.0-7.5. I’m using a tube that has a 5ml water sample then 7 drops of liquid dripped in and that gives a colour reaction to compare to a chart. It goes up by .5 so I don’t have a more accurate reading, but I just thought it really strange that water out of the garden hose test 4.5 and inside the house tested 7.5. Possibly residue of pH down or nutes or salts on the plastic tub used as reservoir?
Has anybody had experience with using co2 and how it affects harvest time? I’ve just gone into week 8, and going by the trichome clear/cloudy rule, they are ready to harvest. Mostly cloudy, some clear. I have read once they ripen to a point the thc is reduced as the cbn increases, giving them more of a couch lock effect. I hate couch lock. I know some who prefer it, but it’s definitely not for me. Should I harvest 1 bud to dry and cure, then another in a couple of days, then the rest in a week and compare in a month or two when it’s ready? Or has the co2 accelerated the ripening that much that they’re ready now? Tough question I know, but I’d rather harvest lower quality early than have a heap of couch lock bud.
Still too early IMO. Clear = immature, cloudy = ripe, amber = over ripe. I would wait until you get a few more cloudy and a tiny bit of amber…
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Thanks mate. Yeah, probably a bit of impatience creeping in aswell…
Wait those extra couple of weeks and you’ll be happy you did mate. I know the feeling of wanting to just cut them and smoke but yeah patience is a virtue as they say…even though I don’t have much patience myself haha
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I’ve dialled back the lights on the digital ballasts and cut feed. I know it ruins the light spectrum but some of them were still throwing out new pistils. Yeah, and having them in jars to cure for however long is REALLY gonna test my patience! Haha
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Just have a “tester mix” of each strain before you put them into jars, I love the taste of freshly dried bud. Terpenes are insane! Good luck mate
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While putting stakes in to support buds I had to move some pots and while doing so this one “accidentally” fell off. Lemon venom by Cream of the Crop. Smells great and solid as. Checked trichomes and I’d say 90% cloudy 10% clear so a bit early but as previously stated I have little patience! 
It will be good to compare to the rest of the plant anyway…
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Harvested. Trimmed up and drying. Reasonably happy, but have some ideas for next run. Changing light configuration, plant one strain, change pot setup to name a few. I’ll start a new grow diary once it’s set up, hopefully within 2 weeks I’ll be up and running again. Thanks all at OG, couldn’t have done it with you all!!
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After persisting with those for that entire cycle I’ve made some changes to lighting. Those reflectors, I found, were pretty ordinary. I’ve moved onto batwings with no cool tubes for this run. I may run a cool tube with no reflector vertical down middle of plant rows. I think some of my biggest errors first run was with lighting.
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That looks like the go…i need to change cooltube intake and exhaust as I was using exhaust to heat outer room but it’s going to start getting pretty warm over here soon. I’m definitely going to need an air conditioner. Was running lights at night to use the heat of them but probably will have them on during the day now, that way I can deal with the heat all at once
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How do you find the light footprint/intensity with the Cooltubes? I read somewhere it can focus light to greater intensity on a smaller area, hence I thought I’d try open reflectors
I don’t know, I honestly don’t think it changes much with a good reflector.
I just calculate with the footprint, of the adjust-a-wing reflector.
Sure the glass will filter the light a tiny little bit, but I have to say I have never seen a decrease in yeald or anything.
If anything I would say the combo of a quality batwing and cooltubes, makes the canopy more even and it’s more a question about not getting the light too close, then fearing they aint getting enough light.
Yeah definitely agree, a quality reflector makes a big difference. This article bought up issues like hot spots etc. But I suppose for every argument there’s a counter argument. The reflectors I have are cheapies but I think I’ll fit them to the Cooltubes and run this cycle with them, like yours, and see how it goes. Thanks mate. 
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No problem mate, anytime!
I just drilled two holes in the reflector, fitting the screws, for hanging the cooltube.
I think any batwing reflector, will preform better then what you started out with.
But was watching with interrest, as I liked the reflector mount. I have been away from growing for 10 years, but back then I had never seen anyone else do this.
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