Thread: Mega lumen setup. Fingers crossed!

Hi all, been a while since my last grow, hope everyone is well. I have taken some time out as I've been planning and experimenting with various things.

But I have recently started my 3rd grow, which is vegging nicely under a 250w 6400k CFL. It basically consists of 2 x 20L DWC buckets (2 plants this time) in a grow area of appoximately 28" x 18". This is the same area used for my first 2 grows which given great yields (over 6 oz dry from each grow) from a single plant each time under a 250w hps.

This time I will be using a cooltube and a 400w hps. I have heard that you can't have too much light so this will give a great lumen per square foot (approx 14,300), and hopefully will give excellent results. I hope with the 2 plants and the extra light I can pull maybe 12-14 oz from this tiny space! This would last ages, and mean I don't have to grow anymore for a good few months after. So subscribe and wish me luck!

P.S. The first pic was 4 days ago and the second is today.

Been thinking about getting my feet wet with DWC. You'll have to teach me a thing or two.

I just checked the log above.
Are you using the submersible air pumps on this grow?
What is the strain? Same as previous grows?

Originally Posted by EvilCartman

Been thinking about getting my feet wet with DWC. You'll have to teach me a thing or two.

I just checked the log above.
Are you using the submersible air pumps on this grow?
What is the strain? Same as previous grows?

Hi,yeah, sure thing, happy to share my experience to help with you starting DWC. Although I'm still a newbie myself really.

Yes, I am currently using submersible air pumps, they have not let me down yet so I cant be arsed to use an external one (the external one I use for my bubbler clone tank is way too noisy, and my grow room is a cupboard in my bedroom).

Yeah, the strain is the same as previous grows, but it's so kickass I am not getting too used to it yet (even after 6 months, although had a few other strains to smoke in between for a change now and then). I am not entirly clear on the strain/makeup of it, but I think it is a cross between psychosis and alpha diesel.

Sorry if I waffled on there but I am . Cheers man!

Forgot to say, the one on the left in the above pics is quite a bit smaller than the one on the right, so I have angled the light more toward the left one to try and get it to catch up a bit. Shit, they are growing so damn fast!

Still going well, and growing fast, but not sure how much bigger I should let them get before putting them into flower. I'm thinking later this week is going to be likely. Then it's 400w of HPS all the way.

The photo below was taken yesterday (2 days after the last pic above). I've just changed the nutes and they are looking great. EC is 1.32 (0.78 out the tap) and pH is 5.5. The fan leaves are huge, don't remember them being this big on the last grow (even though it's the same strain). All in all very happy so far, still as exciting as my first grow!!

Right, I am hoping to put them into flower this evening as they are now as big as I dare let them get in veg. So in with the 400w HPS and cooltube, just got to modify some of the ducting first, and it's up, up and away! Can't wait........

Pics to follow.....

Okay, all done. 12/12 has started. I have a 4" fan and ducting and a 5" cooltube, so I bought a reducer and thats in place. Had a feel of the top of the cooltube and it is cool to the touch.....

Only thing is I bought a digital/electronic ballast off ebay, and I have to say, the 400w light really doesn't look that bright. Hope it's not a dodgy one. Anyone had issues with underpowered electronic ballasts?

Whoops, forgot to add pics.

Pic 1 is the cooltube with a foot of 5" ducting and 5" to 4" reducer.

Pic 2 is before the light was changed.

Pic 3 is after the light was changed.....as if anyone needed telling

Okay then, the girls have been in flower for 4 full days now and growth is going well. They are still running on veg nutes at the moment, but I will switch to flower nutes in the next day or so. With the addition of the cooltube I am able to keep the 400w light about an inch or two from the top of the plant which is great. And the ambient temps are running in at about mid 70's (farenheit). I LOVE COOLTUBES!

OH MY GOOOOO....Been wanting to build a DIY cooltube for the longest...with results like that you just confirmed it...Will deff. be following this one ! GREAT JOB

Originally Posted by deleafer2220

OH MY GOOOOO....Been wanting to build a DIY cooltube for the longest...with results like that you just confirmed it...Will deff. be following this one ! GREAT JOB

Hi Deleafer, cheers for the comment, yeah it shocked me at how effective it is, I could get away with a 600w hps if I wanted!! .

The cooltube isn't a DIY one, I bought it from my local hydro shop. But I have to say it is well worth the investment. The setup works great along with the DWC buckets, as it stops the nute solutions getting warm. This setup is gonna yield a monster harvest, I am certain of that!



BTW, just noticed, the ambient temps are around 21 deg C / 70 deg F, due to the cool air being pulled in from the attic. Thats at floor level, but it will be nearer 25 deg C / 77 deg F at canopy height. Perfect!

Just changed to flowering nutes and they are looking dead fine.A
Approximately 9 weeks to go, god that's gonna feel like a lifetime. Any comments welcome....

looking good loafy!

i might have to invest in one of those cool tubes if i get an HPS. they won't fit around my MH bulb i don't think.

keep up the good work.


-shake

Originally Posted by headshake

looking good loafy!

i might have to invest in one of those cool tubes if i get an HPS. they won't fit around my MH bulb i don't think.

keep up the good work.


-shake

Hi Shake, yeah they are great, plus you can get them in different sizes. I have a 5" diameter version, but I know you can also get a 6" version which might be big enough for you. Because my duct work is 4" due to being a fairly small grow space, I bought a small length of 5" duct and a 5" to 4" reducer so I can run it from my 4" fan....works a treat. Rock on Shake

Below is a pic from last night. I raised the cool tube a bit to encourage the plants to grow upward a bit as they are getting really dense and bushy, more than the space can allow. They are also starting to show early signs of flowering (7 days of 12/12) which I like a lot!

This is gonna be a super phat jumbo harvest for 3.5 square feet!!

Just a wee bit bushy... Haha it's a mini jungle! Lookin' great.

Im sure the plants are loving the temps my brother keep up the good work...btw guy at my hydro shop keeps tryin to get me to buy one them 5gal. bucket set-ups, might have to check out for next grow

Originally Posted by Loafyboy

Hi Shake, yeah they are great, plus you can get them in different sizes. I have a 5" diameter version, but I know you can also get a 6" version which might be big enough for you. Because my duct work is 4" due to being a fairly small grow space, I bought a small length of 5" duct and a 5" to 4" reducer so I can run it from my 4" fan....works a treat. Rock on Shake

Below is a pic from last night. I raised the cool tube a bit to encourage the plants to grow upward a bit as they are getting really dense and bushy, more than the space can allow. They are also starting to show early signs of flowering (7 days of 12/12) which I like a lot!

This is gonna be a super phat jumbo harvest for 3.5 square feet!!

OMG...t that's amazing meng!

Whoops! Just noticed one plant was growing much quicker than the other and thought "Mmmm, that's odd". But on closer inspection it would appear I forgot to plug in the submersible airpump on the lagging plant after I changed the nutes on 22nd (5 days ago!) . Strangely the lagging plant flowers appear to be more developed (more pistils etc.), even though they are identical clones. I wonder if the lack of air pump has anything to do with it?

I think I will change the nutes on both plants tonight (wasn't gonna change them until Thursday), just to be on the safe side.

I'll post a pic or three later, after changing the nutes....

Good on ya, Bub! Best of luck with the blooming.

Mega lumens = neat idea...subscribed

Right then, time for an update....

I think I did the right hand plant no good at all by forgetting to switch on the air pump (5 days without pump), it seems to be in poor health compared to the left hand plant. A lot of the leaves have become discoloured toward the edges and growth has stunted (except for the flowers, they are still growing). I have flushed it twice in the last 3 days and hope it will pick up again.

Other than that, the other plant is doing great, so not the end of the world.

Couple of pics below.....

Well, looks like the right hand plant will be okay. It still hasn't started stretching wildly like the left hand plant, but it's condition hasn't got worse, so all good.

Flowers are still developing nicely, can't wait till the trichs start glistening..

Also, I have a couple of small plants (about a foot high, not more than an eighth ounce on each I wouldn't imagine) which are in small pots in the garden that I completely forgot about. They were clones that I put in soil ages ago as mothers but then didn't need, so they got thrown into the corner of the garden. The flowers are not yet complete, but it's getting cold and wet outside, so I'm a bit concerned about bud rot (a tiny bud has already gone grey and mouldy) so may harvest them soon. They smell amazing, and will be a proper head high.

Pics below taken yesterday.

Looking great..going to look at cool tubes soon..you have me convinced on them now ..Thanks LB

Whats goin down Loafy! Looks like them buckets are treating you right, as long as the air is on

stupid question, but fairly new to growing. how easy are those buckets to flush and change the nuets as my grow space is in my attic. and what sort of money are those cool tubes. cheers. plants looking mega!