Here's my plan (closet setup)

[Smokin Moose]

Hold off on the epsom until your medium issues are dealt with. Apart from the leaf tip blemish, the plant is quite healthy. I think you will find that water in Oz is quite good (except in Adelaide), and epsom is rarely needed. It may end up making the soil too acidic which could result in nute lockout.
The real problem is a too wet medium - everything flows from that. Let your medium dry almost to point of wilt before adding more water. Then maintain wet/dry. Coming up to budding cycle, it is very important to get your watering regimen correct.

 

[StonyGeoff]

I don't use Adelaide tap water, I stick to rain water down here ;-) Would I be correct in assuming that when I install my extra lighting next week, I should see an increase in water uptake by the plant? Therefore my watering cycle will be more often?

 

[Smokin Moose]

The plant will draw more water as growth increases from the extra light (and associated increase in temp), but I would hope your watering cycle is less as you start the wet/dry watering regimen. I can't stress enough how important it is to monitor watering.

Tensio Meters (THE Solution)
We Give Too Much Water.allmost All Of Us
The Art Of Watering/Feeding by DJ Short

 

[StonyGeoff]

Fine reads Moose. My lady won't be getting ANY more water until I can see that she really needs it! Which could be several weeks (probably less once I put in the extra lights).

 

[Smokin Moose]

Cool mate! Good luck.

 

[StonyGeoff]

Thanks mate

 

[StonyGeoff]

I put in new CFLs today. 2x 125W (equiv.) cool-day-light and 2x 120W (equiv.) warm-whites. So now I'm running 8 CFLs all together! I'll get pics up as soon as I can.
Total power output for the lights is equal to 790 watts It's really very, very bright in my closet now You can't look at the lighting rig, it's too bright. I'd have to put sun glasses on or squint really hard to look in there. Yee-ha!

Only thing I'm concerned about now is heat. I'll need to upgrade my piss-weak tiny exhaust fan ASAP. Does anyone think there could be a fire risk inside the closet from the CFLs producing too much heat? Any thoughts on this would be most helpful I have to boot outta here to school for 2 hours and I'm really hoping I won't come back from class and find my home up in flames because my wardrobe caught fire

 

[grandma]

Fire is always a concern in my opinion. Water and electricity don't mix! I keep a small electrical rated fire extinguisher outside my room, and smoke detectors outside or inside every sleeping area. For less than $50 you can have peace of mind. Do it.

700 watts CF! Wow, can't wait to see the pics!

 

[StonyGeoff]

I like your thinking grandma. I've been thinking of investing in a fire extinguisher for a little while now, it's defintely always good to keep one in your household anyway. And a few extra smoke detectors would help me sleep soundly at night. Groovy man

I'll hopefully have some photos for ya's in a few hours.. providing my ex brings her camera with her to my place again LOL, I'm catching up with her for coffee anyway, I'm not just using her for her camera

 

[smoking gun]

very cool setup stoney geoff!!!

 

[StonyGeoff]

Thank you kindly smoking gun

 

[StonyGeoff]

Photo time!

I got the hang of close-up flower shots, so they are a bit clearer than my previous shots ;-)

<== I like this new smiley

 

[ToasterPet]

Looking good man, keep up the grow box love, lol.

 

[StonyGeoff]

Thanks guys! Lol grow-box love. She is 20 weeks old (5 months) this weekend just passed, 11 weeks into flower. She'll be 12 weeks into flower on the 4th of July. It's taken such a long time to get from seed to this point, and the amount of stress I've put this poor girl through I'm suprised she's still going. But there you have it

She was started indoors from seed, shared between daylight and 8W fluro tube at night for seedling and early veg growth. Then I had to move house. Then she got upgraded to a 75W equivilent warm-white CFL, along with the 8W cool-white fluro tube, and moving between outside and inside to get natural light and artificial at night. I stopped doing this as I realised she was growing faster if I left her inside under artificial light all the time. Probably something to do with shocking her being constantly moved I don't know. Then I switched her from 22/2 to 12/12 inside for 2 weeks, forced flower, then moved her outside again .. lol. Also had the incident with tieing her down and when I untied her I had the main stem break. And not to mention my stupid topping after she'd been flowering for 5-6 weeks. Then winter came along here so I went out and found a 2nd-hand wardrobe, built a lighting rig and the grow box came alive! I've adding bits and upgrading the box as I go.

PS, latest upgrades include: 4 new CFLs = 8 in total (790w equivilent) 6 warms, 2 cool. Two new 9" computer fans, noisy as hell, 1 to replace tiny exhaust fan, 1 to boost intake. These latest upgrades have made a helluva difference in growth rate Can't wait for the next grow from clones, won't have to f**k around with building the box and everything, just whack the clones inside and sit back and watch the magic. I'm not saying building this hasn't been fun, I've enjoyed every minute of it!

I'll get some pics up in the next few days or so, of the new growth and new fans

Peace

 

[StonyGeoff]

Ha ha groovy greenacres, it's an exponential learning process becoming a grower So I think at this stage anyway.
Hooray! My 100x microscope came in the mail today! Just checking the trics now..

Ok, they all appear to be clear. Guess I have a little while to wait yet!
*rubs hands together in anticipation*

 

[StonyGeoff]

I'll have latest photos up in a couple of hours.

 

[StonyGeoff]

New 9" exhaust fan

New 9" intake fan (alongside other computer fan)

 

[StonyGeoff]

Sorry for the late photos, here they are anyway

 

[StonyGeoff]

Both intake fans are drawing air from outside the box.

 

[StonyGeoff]

hrm .. I thought it would be better to have 2 fans on the intake, I know I read that on here somewhere. Greenacres are you saying that if I have 2 fans on exhaust and 1 on intake, there'll be less smell excaping from the box?

I haven't got round to building a carbon-scrubber yet, that's my next step because my house stinks right now. You open the front door and straight-away you can smell fresh cannabis. Not such a good thing if Sargeant Dickface comes knocking on my front-door, sticks his head inside and gets a good whiff.

I was thinking of running A/C tubing from the exhaust fan on the back of my closet, to an open window in the same room, and allowing all the smell to be pushed outside. Then just gotta worry about neighbours I have to go out for a few hours, we'll continue this when I get back