Dr. Funkenstein

Couldn't I just use a light mover with a 1000wHPS, and shift plants around? The thing I am concerned about using a 1000wHPS is it's hot spot, and the way it'll gear the plants to grow. What do you think?


Dr. Funkenstein

Batting1000

Light mover is overkill IMO. That 1000 will cover the 3x3 tray perfectly at 15 in above the plants, and the two buds in the middle that get a little curling or bleaching..so what!..cut off the top 3 in of those buds and enjoy the thickness of the others that surround it.

ALL my stuff is store bought with the exception of the benchwork to hold the tray above the res...for that i used 2x4's. I made the back legs 1/2 in taller for good drainage to the front. (3x3 trays, panda reservior cuz i like the shape and thickness of the plastic, 1/2 in black hose and 3/4 hose for the drains, 4 gal/hr dripstakes(blue) etc.

I DO use the flood and drain for the vegging cuz they are on 4 in rw cubes. One week before flower, i cut rw Slabs into 3 piecesand put a plant on each one with 2 drip stakes (in case 1 clogs). Then i switch the drain and fill fittins on my tray, cuz the water comes from the top now, and hook the drip hose to my pump.

I use the stakes because the plants are now raised on the slabs and i feel they get better watered from the top down. The tops of the cubes now extend above the rim of the tray.
I clean them with a scrub brush EVERY harvest and i replace the 1/2 main line and 1/4 drip lines about every 3 harvests. The hose will get hard and brittle over time and tends to get slimy on the inside.

I also extend netting across the top of my plants to hold them vertically. If you do this, it is next to impossible to move them after week2 of flowering.

The perpetual grow will not affect the grow room other than u are going to need more reservoirs because you will have different plants in different stages all needing different nutrients!

BTW...I just bough a new home and will soon be building my 4000w 12x15 flower room and 7x12 veg room. I plan to frame it out, all new electrical, Exterior doors (with weatherstrip) for a tightly sealed entry. I also got a DIY spray foam insulation kit online(Handi-Foam) and plan to seal EVERY wall and floor joist (its in a basement) for a permanent Seamless sealed room with 0 air leaks. Im doin this one right . I will take pics and make a journal for all to check out.

Batting1000

you also asked about other equipment i have. I'll just list a little for ya.

4- 6' air cooled reflectors
2- 6' vortex fans (1 pushing at start, 1 pulling at end)
100 gal/day reverse osmosis system
100 gal potable water tank (online)
30 amp timer box
4 MVP ballasts (running 240v from the timer box)
6 burner CO2 burner
6-8 desk and stand fans
at least 15 programmable timers
A hotbox sulfur burner (last resort for powdery mildew)
water chiller for the r/o water
Sentinel CO2 control module
3- Panda reservoirs (hold shape well, slender, short)
4 8 bulb tech 5 lights for veg
1- 600w MH (moms)
Trimbox trimmer (small clamp on one for like $1200) Instead of all day trimming it now only takes 4 hours---best investment ever!!!
14,000 btu dual hose portable a/c
65 pint dehumidifier

Advance Nutrients High Yield Kit- A, B, Carboload, Big Bud, Overdrive, Mothers Tea, Barricade. (sometimes Bud Blood...only if the are getting too tall in week 1 then I use it to stunt week 2 vertical growth.)

Losts of tucking leaves, and at the end of week 2 I lolipop my plants as well.
I probably forgot some stuff comsidering i've spent over 15k on equip. But what 15k when i havent worked in over 2 years

bgb_123

i have never used a light mover - but from what i have read they suck

bgb_123

i totally disagree on the light movers - and i also read the 95degrees on the co2 - but dont beleive everything you read -- opinions are like........

95 is a max w/ co2 but not optimal - optimal is 86 -- the question on co2 and temps was more in respect to veg vs flower since heat makes fluffy buds and cooler temps more tight buds - ideally you want 86 w/ co2 until late flower then you want to cool it - but im my case i have 2 trays going at 2 different stages of life so changing temps isnt an otion - therefore i was looking for happy medium if one exists

sorry back on point fot his thread-

light mover is not the answer

the quote about the 600 watt light having highest lumens/ watt is very true and you can keep them closer to tops of plants if height is an issue

but the 1000 watt isnt much more money than 1 600watt

so you will spend almost double if you buy 2 600 watts vs 1 1000 watt

so if you are short on height and can afford it - get the 600s

if height isnt an issue and cash is then get the 1000

bgb_123

comments in bold above

bgb_123

oo - im getting excited - did you say DIY spray foam kit-- got a link -- share please please please

Dr. Funkenstein

WOW! I can't wait to see glimpses of that. I can hear the angel's harps playing now! Haha Your current rig itself sounds immaculate.

Ok, just so I've got this correct. You are running both, Drip Feeds aswell as a classic Flood&Drain/Ebb&Flow, at the same time? Or do you mean, you're running the classic Flood&Drain/Ebb&Flow method for Vegging up until a week prior to Flowering, where you switch to the dual Drip Feed for a week? Then you throw them into Flowering, still using the Drip Feed method, or back to the Flood&Drain/Ebb&Flow method?

Your plants never make it to pots? They remain in RW cubes or on slabs their entire lifespan? You put them on the slabs to give them more root space, right? Just making sure I can follow the method to your mayhem. Have you ever used that coconut fiber stuff? They say its similar to RW and organic so you can redistribute it thruout your outside gardens, to dispose of.

You said you've built your table with the back legs raised a half inch to help with draining. Does that mean you've had draining issues in the past with store bought tables? Are draining issues a common problem?


Thanks, man.

Dr. Funkenstein

bgb_123

ya - i read the post and was also missing something to--

my best guess is maybe he is using smaller medium for first part of veg - maybe a 3x3 or 6x6 RW cube - then he stacks that cube on top another larger RW slab

this would force him to top feed since water level in ebb n flow wouldnt reach high enough during flood - stacking them allows growing large plants that needs large medium area for roots -

the other benefit i can see is he can fit more plants in a smaller area during a short veg to save space since RW mwdium is smaller in veg than in flower - you simply veg until roots out grow medium then stack on another RW

RW does not require a pot unless your using floc - although many stll use pot to keep roots from getting taggled amongst other plants so you can move the containers around - in or out or what ever

top feeding also has an advantage because it will wash excess salt build ups from medium better than flooding

disandvatage is the tubes and cleaning - he covered his but by adding 2 tubes in case one gets clogged - but what sticks in my mind is just the word CLOGGED

dont have this problem with just flooding and you can always rinse your medium with a hose from above draining down periodicly to rinse salts and top res at the same time

Dr. Funkenstein

Here ya go, Batting1000. All my questions are in bold. Thanks for your input, once again. As always, it is greatly appreciated.

Dr. Funkenstein