First Time Hydro!

[Runamok]

I just finished building my first DWC bubbler. It's a 2 gallon bucket. I put a hose on the outside to keep an eye on the water level and dyed it blue like the Waterfarm. I'm assuming this is so the algae won't grow. I measured and marked the bucket beside the viewing hose to have the water level "just" above the bottom of the net pot. I used a 6" net pot. The water volume will be about 1.5 gallons I'm thinking , so i bought an air pump that is supposed to support 10 gallons of water. I bought a 6" airstone as it was the largest one they had.
All in all, the total construction costs were $21.50. I will put the plant into it tomorrow, as I forgot that I needed time to allow the silicon to dry. I also bought distilled water to start her off ! I will post pics of the Bubbler with the plant in it tomorrow.







As always, any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Peace

[Runamok]

OK ! The DWC Bubbler is built and loaded ! I started the ph out at 5.5, the nutes are The General Hydroponics Flora Series and mixed for mild growth to start out slow and grow into a frenzy ! :p Let's see if I can keep a plant alive in this thing. The plan is to use this bubbler for vegging clones and to make another (if it works) for clones with a dome.

The Bubbles !



The Drain / Inspection Tube



The Test Victim



As always, any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Peace

[Ms.Fox]

That's pretty cool. I wish ya luck!

[Runamok]

The test victim has been in the bubbler for 24 hours now and seems to be doing well. The Clone has grown so much
I decided to start LST today. I'm gonna let her adjust to this and grow some more then I am going to try to get a couple
of clones off her. I have a few questions....I am going to revamp the flowering area a bit in the next few days.
I will be redesigning my carbon filter and adding intake / output fans directly to the reflector to make sure I have a cool system.
I have ordered a 250w hps ballast and 2 bulbs. I personally feel that will be plenty of light for the small area I have.
My main concern is height. I am gonna LST as much as I can, but should I top the plant AND LST ? or should I just
continue to LST the hell out of her ? As soon as I get a couple of clones that I am sure will survive, I'm popping the
plant into the flowering chamber. I have enough room for "The Test Victim" in that area also, so I may pop it in there
also to check sex and the reveg a bit for clones off that plant if it's a girl. Sound like a plan ?
Anyway... a few pics of today's activities.

The Test Victim after 24 hours in the Bubbler


The Snow White Clone after her first LST session


Both together in the Veg area


As always, any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Peace

[Runamok]

In the immortal words of Rosanne Rosanna Dana, "Well, Jane, it just goes to show you, it's always something." LOL

I woke this morning and checked the plants and the bubbler had a large puddle of water under it.
Seems the silicon isn't quite as water proof as I needed :p
So, I trudged to the hardware store, bought a few fixtures and washers and fixed it.
That brought my costs for the bubbler up to $25.00
The plants are doing well and "The Victim" seems to be thriving.
The LST on the Snow White Clone is doing well. Will post again Later.

Peace

[Runamok]

Hello all.
The Snow White Clone has taken to LST well. I'm glad because I'm really worried about my height restrictions.
The Test Victim is doing well also.
I am going to veg them both another week or so and pop them both into the flowering chamber.
I will leave the Test Victim in the chamber until I see if it is male or female and IF it is female
I will re-veg to get a clone. I plan on letting the Snow White flower and continue on her journey
after I take a few clones later this week. I have another week before I change solution for both plants.
I have kept the ph around 6.0 during the entire process so far.
Now for a few pics.

The "Test Victim" after 1 week in the bubbler I made.





The Snow White Clone after 3 weeks in the Waterfarm and LST





Both Plants together in the Veg Chamber



As always, any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Peace

[Be IRIE]

Looking good Run, you are doing a fine job.. Did you get your heat issues taken care of? I am looking forward to seeing how smooth/not smooth your first hydro goes...

[Runamok]

Be IRIE..Thanx for checking my journal. I was worried no one was looking.

I never had heat problems in the Veg chamber.
I have not yet revamped the flowering chamber. I ordered a 250w HPS ballast and bulb and
those things have not yet arrived. Hopefully tomorrow.
As soon as they get here, I am going to modify the reflector I have to add 2 fans
and I have an idea about how I want to make my next carbon filter. Since the area is
SO small, I just felt the 400w was the main source of my heat problems, so hopefully
the new HPS and fan array will totally solve my heat problems. I heard concern that
a 250w HPS would not be enough to do me well, But I HAD to try and really, I believe it
will do fine. The flowering area is 2'x2'x4'.
I feel fairly certain that the lower wattage light will solve the problem but we'll see.
If the new fan array works well, I may just pop the 400w back in.

Again, thanx for looking Be IRIE...and man, again , your grows are so beautiful. :)

Peace

[Be IRIE]

Thank you Mr. Run.... You will always have the 400 to fall back on if the 250 doesn't work out...With your space that should do you well, and if you need to you can add a few cfl's for supplimental lighting... You will get it figured out and have a great hydro grow... I have confidence in you, it's good to see people that pay attention to the little things and not just care about yield...

[BubbaKush]

good job on your grow. I want to do a small scale hydro too. snow white is a beautiful little girl keep it up !!!

[Runamok]

BubbaKush, thanx for looking and thanx for the kind words. I'm REALLY trying this time
to have a full and complete grow. I just wanna see mature buds on her :) I am finding
that the hydro is a bit easier for me, I think. I just took clones. We'll see how they do...
gotta build the clone bubbler tomorrow.
Will post more then.

Peace

[tintala]

HEY RUN: just wanted to chime in, when i am in the states , I grow with WATERFARMS< 8 pack. You can be assured the 400W will give you more bud, especially in the waterfarms they are amazing and VERY VERY FORGIVING! I started growing in waterfarms, i mean my first ever grow . They truely do amazing things to the genetic potential of strains! I use airstones in my controller res. Also when you transplant, you should use "HORMEX" it's a rooting solution that helps reduce transplant shock and really makes em take off n the farms.. Work on that heat issue and stay with the 400w.

[Runamok]

tintala , thanx for checking my grow. :)
I already have the 250w ordered and it "should" be here today.
Altho this is my 1st hydro grow, this is my 3rd attempt at growing
and during the first 2 grows, I changed everything I could to address
heat issues *except* the 400w hps. So...since I already have the 250w
on the way I've decided to give it a try.

You are correct in stating that the Waterfarm is very forgiving tho,
as I've only been working with it and hydro for 3 weeks or so, but It
seems MUCH easier for me to control. I'm still amazed by how well the
plants are doing after these 3 weeks and as I learn it will only get better.
I've been checking and adjusting my Ph every morning and night to feel
safe and I've been keeping a very close eye on the plants themselves,
to see how they are responding to the nutes I've been providing.

All in All , so far I am really happy with the way the plants are looking
and growing so far. I checked the clones this morning and they seemed
to do well during the night. I am hoping these 2 clones I've taken
will root and thrive soon , because as soon as I am SURE I have healthy
clones, I am moving the Snow White into the flowering chamber.
Will post more later.

Peace

[Runamok]

Hello all. Just a quick question...
I have built another bucket DWC bubbler just like the one I've shown here, except I have it so it will hold 2 small plants. I plan to put my 2 clones in it .
I use the Nutrient Calculator that is shown HERE to mix my nutes. Should I use the "Seedling" tab to mix nutes for ROOTED clones ? Just wanna make sure they live when I pop 'em in the DWC in the Veg chamber and put the Mother in the Flowering Chamber.

Peace

[4twenty4all]

Hey Run, very nice journal so far, I like your bubbler setup. Plants are looking very happy in their home. I'm only a soil guy at this point but may consider a small hydro project to get my feet wet so to speak...
Good Luck!