Did a bunch of hydro back in the early 80s, Prototron, closets, etc. Just getting back into it now as I near retirement. Things have advanced a lot in the last 40 years, so much so that what I did back in the 80s seems like child’s play today.
Strain: Zkittlez Auto
Climate: Coastal Virginia
This is the gear I started with a month ago:
Good luck with your grow. Looks like you have what you need for a great start!
Welcome back! Not bad for taking a break for so long. Things have gotten much better as you can see! Keep us up to date with it and everyone here will help with any issues you might have. I will point this out, with dwc you will need to add beneficials to keep root rot down. Cooler temps help but beneficials will keep you’re Rez clean. They also offer auto PH lines that make life a bit easier depending on who you ask. Water coolers were a must at one point! Best of luck, welcome back to the scene!!
2nd week after germination I started some LST using “Yoyos” as weights to pull the whole main stem over sideways. Attempting Canna-Bonsai…
This is on day 30:
Learned a lot about my gear, my environment, in the last 30 days. Also maneuvered through several mistakes. This will definety not be a Blue Ribbon grow, but I am learning volumes…
Looking good so far!
Nice! For me, coming back evening after 15 years, one of the biggest changes is the efficiency/effectiveness of LEDs. I feel like they were experimental/a joke, not too long ago …
Hello Mr. Wizard, plants look beautiful, you have not lost your touch.
Watching your hydrogrow. Great Graphic intro
Pulling up a chair joint rolled popcorn in hand
Peace
Paps
Howdy, @MrWizard ,welcome to Overgrow!
I used a Hydrofarm hydroponic system back in ‘82 through ‘84. The garish orange colored cage for the ballast of my first MH light sounded like a noisy electric razor… what a loud buzz it made!
That was my one and only use of hydroponics, since then I went back to the soilless that I used through the ‘70s, and have used only soilless mixes since ‘84
But that is one of the great things about this fantastic hobby, there are many different ways to grow fine ganja, all of which work very well!
I have been growing since 1970 with the only break enforced on me by having been hit by a car in 2015…. It took about 1 ½ years for me to recover, and then I jumped right back into it.
If you enjoy the process, it is almost a certainty that you will produce some very fine flowers.
I love the new LEDs
Good luck and have fun!
Thanks @OGSince03 and @corey ,
Can you point me to literature on these “beneficials” please?
Winter time here so temps are usually low. I have managed to keep the Nutes temp around 68-72, with heater if it drops below 68. I have been able to regulate the reservoir temp by removing the lid on warm days. I can see where I will need a chiller to do this in the summer.
I pretty much lost VPD control during week 2 as I had to go out of town and direct my wife on tweaks remotely. VPD stayed around 1.2 to 1.4 that week. Root cause was a rise in ambient temp, which in turn made the LEDs radiate more heat. Adjusted LED height from ~12" to 18".
Week 3 I kept the VPD around 0.85 and week 4 I let it bump up to a VPD of 0.95
I have struggled with humidity both high and low depending on ambient dewpoint. Needed larger (de)humidification than I thought I was going to need. Not sure I can pull this off in summer months. unless I add AC…Probably wont go to the expense, will just try outdoors during the regular growing season.
Another thing I have struggled with is Nute ppms. So much conflicting info. I went by the Dyna-Gro instructions for recirculating systems. I am convinced that I have the nutes too high. I lowed them a couple days ago to around 800ppm, down from 1100ppm. It would seem that a manufacturese recommendations would be pretty close, but I read everywhere that less is more, just not sure “how much less”…
Also read conflicting info on what ph the nutes should be, specifically for hydro. I was initially keeping my ph around 5.8-6., but then I read somewhere here that hydro has a different range, and that you want ~5.20. So lowered my ph to 5.4. Plants seem happier between the lower ppm and ph.
A lot of the original fan leaves stared getting brown spots and yellowing going late into week 4. Not sure if normal or not. Also not sure about whether to trim them or not. I read conflicting stuff on that.
I did “pinch” off yellowing leaves.figuring they couldnt be contributing much anymore.
Good luck with your grow
Edit: Here is a link for good information I just found. Dwc brown roots
Hydro guard and voodoo juice are just two available options for beneficials. While some plants like low 5 range for ph. It’s usually best to allow for a slight swing between 5.8 - 6.3. Some nutrients are not available at different levels, so a swing of around 1.0 is not a bad idea. 5.5-6.5
You’re ppm will depend on how many additives you will be using. I always liked to keep my Macros for the first two weeks at about 200. Less is more only because it’s easier to fix a deficiency than a toxicity. More so with hydro as pants respond almost immediately.
You’re tap water could be around 1-300 or more, depending on how close to the water plant you are. Some people prefer tap as it keeps things cleaner without much headache.
RO water is preferred mostly because of chlorine and chloramine are present in tap.
RO will require adding back cal+mag as it is stripped during the RO process.
You’re ph could be a culprit for the yellowing leaves, as nutrients become unavailable with ph level changes.
Another thing could be high ppm levels locking out other nutrients needed. Backing off will likely show improvements.
As far as plucking leaves go, I try to refrain from it. They are solar panels and should only be taken off for added value to lower canopy. However, if they are on their way out than removing them will hurt nothing. It will move the plant issues further up the plant if it has any though! I hope this helps! You’re vpd will likely not be a big issue until it comes time to flower. Powdery Mildew will take hold on plants with vpd issues, if the genetics allow for it. I think you’re range is ok for now. 
Glad to watch this one. So many good tips and tricks are available right here at OG.
Good luck .
Nice work @MrWizard!
I haven’t indoor grown for quite a while either, and I looked at Amazon and was astounded at how easy it is to get a full killer setup! It used to be you had to source stuff here and there and carefully and quietly haha.
These days Amazon will have it all on your doorstep in a few days!
Anyway, good luck!
Nice setup, I started in dwc, stand-alone buckets. Curious to see if there’s a benefit to recirculating with a single plant, I imagine it makes water temp management a lot easier.
I’d skip the bennies and run sterile if your system isn’t chilled .25ml bleach/gallon you’ll have clean white roots and healthy plants even if res temps get a little high(emphasis on a little)
If you want to save on nutes dry is the way to go. Jacks, masterblend, mega crop all great options and you can get a bunch of grows out one bag.
Main reason for the reservoir is that it will allow me to scale up to 2 to 3 plants after this trial grow.
Water temp seems easier with a reservoir. There is about 3 gallons of liquid in the bucket, another 6 gallons in the reservoir.
Larger volume of water means changes happen more slowly.
Reservoir is outside the hot tent, with ambient in the garage between 30 to 60f which helps cool the reservoir.
My roots are creamy white with hints of brown. I will upload a picture soon.
What is the ideal nute temp?
What is the danger zone that promotes root rot?
Thanks for the input…
M
Welcome and Thanks for Sharing Your grow with Us.
Anyone who wants to display their grow and share with us is awsome, Got my chair pulled up…
Ideal res temp for both nutrient uptake and avoiding root rot/algae is 66-72f (19-22c)
Many thanks, I am in a good range then. Might add .25ml of bleach tonight.
