1 Gal Hempy Blue Cheese Tent Grow

[EzExtractions]

Sup guys, i really didnt want to start a journal for security purposes, but i need to document my stuff and get some more opinions on what i am doing. As i am probably not going to update with any pictures, please bare with me if i have to explain something through the text.

Heres some basics

Strain is Blue cheese, i found 8 seeds in an oz of this really stinky, light green, frosty, fruity smelling buds that i was told was Blue Cheese.

Container(s) is 1 Gal hempy bucket (Hawaiian punch bottle) and roughly a 75/25% Perlite/Vermeculite mix

Tent is a 4'x2'x4' with passive air intake vents and 6'' exhaust ports

Light is a 400w Lumetek Ballast, 400w PlantMax MH for veg then switch it to a 400w PlantMax HPS

Reflector is a 6'' Cool Tube from HTG supply

Ventilation is a 440CFM (max) 6'' Inline fan sucking air through the carbon scrubber, over the light, and exhausting out the top of the tent. Have small desk fan blowing on plants.

Reservoir is a 5 gal sports drink cooler. I have a 24/7 monitor in the res that reads pH,ppm, and temp

Res levels are 5.5pH 0500ppm and 62*F

Nutrients are BPN 3 part nutrient line (the nutrients are over a year old, i know they have an expiration date, but i have kept them in my cool dark basement since i bought them, They still seem to be delivering nutrients to the plants.

Light schedule is 18/6.

I started germing 4 seeds on 3/26. By 4/1 all seedlings were in the tent under some CFL lights. I also started germing a white rhino bag seed at this point.

A short while after this , i was doing work in the tent and a cfl light fell ontop of one of the smallest seedlings , didnt have a chance so i had to toss it

Now im left with 3 plants, 1 ,2 and 3. and the one white rhino seedling that took for ever to germ, and is not growing very fast, its kinda just coming along for the ride im not really expecting it to flower, it seems like its a bit deformed.

1 and 2 are the most mature, 3 took a bit longer to germ, and show true leaves. 1 and 2 took right off

around 4/10 i Fim'd plant 1 and LST'd plant 2.

So i just have a question about flushing my hempy buckets.

Im on veg 1 of the 3 part BPN feeding schedule. So lets so i have had the nutrient water in the hempy containers for about a week. Should i then empty the water, then flush everything out with plain pH'd water, empty it, then fill it right back up with new nutrient water?

Or should i let the roots/plant absorb some of the plain pH'd water for like a day or 2 before i empty it and fill it back up with nutrient water.

THis is my first time ever doing a soil-less grow so i am going to need as much input as possible from other people.

I hope to get over my parinoa and post pics soon

 

[EzExtractions]

Ventilation set up

24/7 Res. Monitor

group shot

fim'd #1

(a closer look)

LST'd #2

#3 is slowly catching up

and this is the white rhino seedling that took for ever to germ, aand is growing very slow and weird, came from a bag that only had like one or 2 seeds in it, could be a hermie or something not really sure, but im going to let it flower when i do the other ones and just keep an eye for any male parts

Temps are fluctuating alot. but trying to keep them between 70-85*F as much as possible. were going through some weird weather here but im going to need an AC for the ambient room temp soon.

 

[GreatLife4All]

Subscribed - good luck on your grow.

 

[EzExtractions]

went to bed with my res pH at 5.8 , woke up with it over 6.1pH. Guess im going to not fill the res up as much where the plants arent drinking much water at all. I feel like im wasting my pH down i have to add a tiny bit every day to keep the pH levels accurate and the plants arent even using the water.

So last night i checked the pH in one of the hempy buckets and it was way to high at 6.8pH. So emptied the whole hempy buckets of the water, Gonna let them dry up throughout the day and going to flush them out today after work with plain pH'd water.

I intend on leaving hte plain pH'd water in there for at least a day so that the plant can "Flush itself out" i think i see early signs of nute burn and also my leaves are twisting and shit probably because the pH levels were so out of wack.

Im using 3 part BPN nutrients, does any one know what my res PPM's should be at for the VEG 2 stage on the feeding chart? Im on VEG 1 right now and my ppm is over 0500 that seems a bit to high for me


Thanks for the comments so far!

 

[Mono]

Looking really good, I'm excited to see these plants grow

+ reps

 

[mcloadie]

Subd ez, will catch up soon...welcome!

 

[mcloadie]

went to bed with my res pH at 5.8 , woke up with it over 6.1pH. Guess im going to not fill the res up as much where the plants arent drinking much water at all. I feel like im wasting my pH down i have to add a tiny bit every day to keep the pH levels accurate and the plants arent even using the water.

So last night i checked the pH in one of the hempy buckets and it was way to high at 6.8pH. So emptied the whole hempy buckets of the water, Gonna let them dry up throughout the day and going to flush them out today after work with plain pH'd water.

I intend on leaving hte plain pH'd water in there for at least a day so that the plant can "Flush itself out" i think i see early signs of nute burn and also my leaves are twisting and shit probably because the pH levels were so out of wack.

Im using 3 part BPN nutrients, does any one know what my res PPM's should be at for the VEG 2 stage on the feeding chart? Im on VEG 1 right now and my ppm is over 0500 that seems a bit to high for me


Thanks for the comments so far!

Welcome bro, not so many speaking to you yet, I'm organic soil guy, but I know a little about hydro. First, ya wanna go on the bpn website and get the feedin schedule for your nutes, it should explain alot. Keep working like you are....set the ph low before you retire, check it in the morning...it will rise to some extent. A journal that will give you plenty of insight is jon705, I think he's using the same nutes and can help ALOT. Your reasoning to change nutes once a week and flush for 24 hrs sounds good. You'll get it dialed in soon and can concentrate on fine tuning! Get over to my journal when you can and sub to some journals, pretty soon you'll see whos doin what, find someone with a similar rig and sub to their journal. Again, welcome...you are in the right place to accomplish your goals!

 

[EzExtractions]

Welcome bro, not so many speaking to you yet, I'm organic soil guy, but I know a little about hydro. First, ya wanna go on the bpn website and get the feedin schedule for your nutes, it should explain alot. Keep working like you are....set the ph low before you retire, check it in the morning...it will rise to some extent. A journal that will give you plenty of insight is jon705, I think he's using the same nutes and can help ALOT. Your reasoning to change nutes once a week and flush for 24 hrs sounds good. You'll get it dialed in soon and can concentrate on fine tuning! Get over to my journal when you can and sub to some journals, pretty soon you'll see whos doin what, find someone with a similar rig and sub to their journal. Again, welcome...you are in the right place to accomplish your goals!

Good call, im going to let it the plants take up the plain water for a day, then go back to the nutrients.

It doesnt seem like many people are doing 2L hempy's any more, they were all the craze about a year ago when i was on this site. Ill have to search a little harder tho i just skimmed quickly.

Everything is loooking good today, i gave them there flush today.

Im going to run my vent fan 24/7 but only at 25% on the speed controller, that way it is not to loud and noticeable to neighbors, and its constantly pulling negative pressure in the tent to control odor.

1 and 2 are 15 days in veg, 3 is 13 days in veg, White Rhino is just finally starting to show tru leaves after 13 days, like i said i dont have much hope for the white rhino its kinda just coming along for the ride

#3

#2

#1

White Rhino Seedling

Thanks for peepin so far guys!

 

[mcloadie]

Hey bro, could you explain briefly how your system works? How do the hempys get the solution, and how does it get back to the res? The Rh could be a little better, I like to see it around say.....at least 50 at this point. IDK what your normal ambient Rh is, looks like it's pretty low.

 

[EzExtractions]

Hey bro, could you explain briefly how your system works? How do the hempys get the solution, and how does it get back to the res? The Rh could be a little better, I like to see it around say.....at least 50 at this point. IDK what your normal ambient Rh is, looks like it's pretty low.

I am hand feeding my plants, the resivoir was just so i didnt have to make a new batch of water every feed, but it looks like it might have to be that way now considering my pH levels change so much.

Here is Twelve12's blog post on how to make a 2l DWC Hempy bucket.

Im probably going to empty out that reservoir and fix the PPM and pH before i actually give the plants any more of the water from it. I just wanted to take a picture of the monitor and show you guys how much it changes on a daily basis (as far as pH goes everything else stays pretty solid)

Going to try and train #2 some more by tying it down.

By the end of the night i should have them back on nutrients.

My RH% in my neck of the woods is very low, all season very low, never gets over 20%.

I suppose i ought to invest in a humidifier, is it a possibility that my plants are growing some what slow because of low RH%?

I went to 2 different walmarts and could not find humidifiers, they had DE-humidifiers but not regular ones!

 

[mcloadie]

I am hand feeding my plants, the resivoir was just so i didnt have to make a new batch of water every feed, but it looks like it might have to be that way now considering my pH levels change so much.

Here is Twelve12's blog post on how to make a 2l DWC Hempy bucket.

Im probably going to empty out that reservoir and fix the PPM and pH before i actually give the plants any more of the water from it. I just wanted to take a picture of the monitor and show you guys how much it changes on a daily basis (as far as pH goes everything else stays pretty solid)

Going to try and train #2 some more by tying it down.

By the end of the night i should have them back on nutrients.

My RH% in my neck of the woods is very low, all season very low, never gets over 20%.

I suppose i ought to invest in a humidifier, is it a possibility that my plants are growing some what slow because of low RH%?

I went to 2 different walmarts and could not find humidifiers, they had DE-humidifiers but not regular ones!

Thanks bro, coupla things. Rh is VERY important, I will say this, the closer we can keep the environment to optimum conditions, the better the results will be, which will propel us toward achieving our goals. That's very good that you have low Rh as normal, IMHO it's easier and cheaper to manipulate a low Rh as opposed to a high one. It seems like some folks are able to get their ph stabilized pretty well, however, i see tremendous success by working WITH the fluctuating Ph, rather than fight it. The plant takes up different nutrients ( in elemental form ) at different Ph levels, that being said, they usually ( I have heard a coupla people say the opposite ) start the Ph at the bottom of the acceptable range, then as it rises the plant absorbs the various nutrients at the various Ph levels. I'm getting ready to run an aeroponics rig soon, and we will see how well I'm understanding the whole concept. I usually don't like to dictate procedures, but will in emergencies, but would rather explain a concept, and let the person doing the work come to conclusions. This is pretty important stuff, it's way mo betta to avoid problems, than spend our time fixin em. I go to second hand stores for humidifiers, last time I got 2 for 4$, the cool mist type put moisture in the air faster, and in more copious amounts, but if you have hard water you will have to put r/o water in it or deal with the mineral build up. The filter or wicking type are less maintanance, but are less efficient....quieter too! I use both, and lots of em!

 

[EzExtractions]

Thanks bro, coupla things. Rh is VERY important, I will say this, the closer we can keep the environment to optimum conditions, the better the results will be, which will propel us toward achieving our goals. That's very good that you have low Rh as normal, IMHO it's easier and cheaper to manipulate a low Rh as opposed to a high one. It seems like some folks are able to get their ph stabilized pretty well, however, i see tremendous success by working WITH the fluctuating Ph, rather than fight it. The plant takes up different nutrients ( in elemental form ) at different Ph levels, that being said, they usually ( I have heard a coupla people say the opposite ) start the Ph at the bottom of the acceptable range, then as it rises the plant absorbs the various nutrients at the various Ph levels. I'm getting ready to run an aeroponics rig soon, and we will see how well I'm understanding the whole concept. I usually don't like to dictate procedures, but will in emergencies, but would rather explain a concept, and let the person doing the work come to conclusions. This is pretty important stuff, it's way mo betta to avoid problems, than spend our time fixin em. I go to second hand stores for humidifiers, last time I got 2 for 4$, the cool mist type put moisture in the air faster, and in more copious amounts, but if you have hard water you will have to put r/o water in it or deal with the mineral build up. The filter or wicking type are less maintanance, but are less efficient....quieter too! I use both, and lots of em!

alright so im getting a little frustrated with trying to maintain any kind of pH level.

So i flushed with 5.7pH water last night (or so my pH tester said) and i measured the pH of the run off (what was in the bottom of the containers) and it was at like 6.8pH. I think my pH tester needs new batteries so im going to buy some today.

Hopefully i can get this pH thing locked down before it fucks my plants up. if i have to ill drop the money for an expensive pH tester to know that i am gettin proper readings, thats the most frustrating thing is not knowing if anything is working properly, like i calibrate it with the pH solution and its good for that instant but i have no idea if its staying calibrated 24 hours after, 48 hours after, a week after? i dont want to have to calibrate the meters every day but i f i have to i will


sorry im just venting, thanks for stoppin buy hopefuly we can get some more hydro guys to pop in, guess ill have to visit some more journals!

 

[mcloadie]

alright so im getting a little frustrated with trying to maintain any kind of pH level.

So i flushed with 5.7pH water last night (or so my pH tester said) and i measured the pH of the run off (what was in the bottom of the containers) and it was at like 6.8pH. I think my pH tester needs new batteries so im going to buy some today.

Hopefully i can get this pH thing locked down before it fucks my plants up. if i have to ill drop the money for an expensive pH tester to know that i am gettin proper readings, thats the most frustrating thing is not knowing if anything is working properly, like i calibrate it with the pH solution and its good for that instant but i have no idea if its staying calibrated 24 hours after, 48 hours after, a week after? i dont want to have to calibrate the meters every day but i f i have to i will


sorry im just venting, thanks for stoppin buy hopefuly we can get some more hydro guys to pop in, guess ill have to visit some more journals!

It's cool bro, you're gonna teach me hydro....I'm right where you are in my understanding......I'll follow closely and see what you come up with, I'm putting the finishing touches on the aeroponics rig and I'll be with you...or close behind shortly...+ reps for dealin with it!

 

[Hiker]

Hi Ez. Found your journal. Glad you decided to post pics. It really isn't that risky as long as you don't post anything identifying to you and remove any GPS data from the files. If you took the pics with your cell phone, be sure to do that last part!

You don't waste any time putting the babies into bondage! LOL

I am hand feeding my plants, the resivoir was just so i didnt have to make a new batch of water every feed, but it looks like it might have to be that way now considering my pH levels change so much.

Here is Twelve12's blog post on how to make a 2l DWC Hempy bucket.

Im probably going to empty out that reservoir and fix the PPM and pH before i actually give the plants any more of the water from it. I just wanted to take a picture of the monitor and show you guys how much it changes on a daily basis (as far as pH goes everything else stays pretty solid)

Going to try and train #2 some more by tying it down.

By the end of the night i should have them back on nutrients.

My RH% in my neck of the woods is very low, all season very low, never gets over 20%.

I suppose i ought to invest in a humidifier, is it a possibility that my plants are growing some what slow because of low RH%?

I went to 2 different walmarts and could not find humidifiers, they had DE-humidifiers but not regular ones!

IMHO, 420fied is the hempy style expert.
420 Magazine ®

He's doing 2L hempy, so you might find some good info in his journal.

20% is pretty low, and it WILL affect growth rate. The big thing it will do is make the plants use more water. My rh was sitting at 16% most of the winter. You would probably do well to pickup a humidifier. Get the cool mist kind. You don't need to put more heat into a grow room. I'm surprised your walmart doesn't have them, especially given the rh in your region. Are you looking in the right area? I found mine in the health/beauty section.

As a short term measure, you could spill some water on the floor or put an open bucket out or something.

alright so im getting a little frustrated with trying to maintain any kind of pH level.

So i flushed with 5.7pH water last night (or so my pH tester said) and i measured the pH of the run off (what was in the bottom of the containers) and it was at like 6.8pH. I think my pH tester needs new batteries so im going to buy some today.

Hopefully i can get this pH thing locked down before it fucks my plants up. if i have to ill drop the money for an expensive pH tester to know that i am gettin proper readings, thats the most frustrating thing is not knowing if anything is working properly, like i calibrate it with the pH solution and its good for that instant but i have no idea if its staying calibrated 24 hours after, 48 hours after, a week after? i dont want to have to calibrate the meters every day but i f i have to i will

sorry im just venting, thanks for stoppin buy hopefuly we can get some more hydro guys to pop in, guess ill have to visit some more journals!

Let me make sure I understand what you're saying. The "reservoir" you're talking about isn't the one in the hempy bucket, you're talking about a container of extra nutrients, ie you mix up enough for several feedings. Is that right?

Assuming I understand correctly, I don't understand why your nute reservoir's ph would change just sitting there unless you have something living in there. I'd scrub that thing out, and sterilize it with some bleach or H2O2. Make sure to rinse real well obviously before mixing new nutes.

I completely agree with McLoadie about embracing the ph drift, but that's more for when you're feeding via hydro I think. Just to add to what he said... Normally, the ph of the res will rise over the course of the week. I start my res at ~5.5ph. If it hits 6.2 before I change it, I knock if back down to 5.4 and let it drift back up again. The plant absords different nutrients at different rates depending on the ph. A ph of 5.9 is sort of the sweet spot where the plant can absorb everything it needs fairly well, but it absorbs some things better slightly higher and lower, so the drift helps to make sure the plant gets everything it wants.

So if you calibrate your meter to exactly 7.0 and 4.0, then you should trust it's reading a little bit. What happens when you check the calibration again later? Has it moved very far? I keep my calibration solution in spice jars. They are tall and narrow and hold a good amount to cover my probe, but not too much to waste the solution. I've found that it keeps a very long time. I only recently dumped my 7.0 ref solution because it had stuff starting to float in it after 4+ months. It was still exactly 7.0 though. I calibrated on the old stuff, then checked it with fresh solution and it was spot on. I had doubts about my meter quite a bit at the beginning too. My ph difficulties were due to my hard water (~420ppm out of the tap), so it got better when I bought an RO system.

It sounds like your runoff ph is real high though. Rather than just letting phed RO sit in the hempy res, you should flush them. Pour at least 3 times the hempy volume, ie 6L, through them, or at least until the runoff ph is the same as what you're putting in. Once you know the ph is right in the bucket, then add some nute. That's what I would do at least, but I don't run hempy.

In regards to what we talked about in the other thread concerning your ventilation fans. I'll see if I can get an HVAC guy to come give his opinion whether or not my idea will work. I think it should work. Sure, putting 2 fans inline will cause some air turbulance, but I think it will still accomplish the goal.

I don't think it matters too much where you put the second, smaller, fan. Closer to the filter might be best if it's a real weak fan.

Has your existing fan, at 25%, kept the temps where you want them day and night? That's great if you can find a setting that works. You will probably have to keep making adjustments depending on the weather, ie temp changes, but maybe you can get away with just doing that?

 

[Mono]

Sounds like your learning as you grow buddy. Sounding good!

 

[EzExtractions]

You don't waste any time putting the babies into bondage! LOL

Nope i sure dont, there not gonna veg for long so i wanted to get them started quick



20% is pretty low, and it WILL affect growth rate. The big thing it will do is make the plants use more water. My rh was sitting at 16% most of the winter. You would probably do well to pickup a humidifier. Get the cool mist kind. You don't need to put more heat into a grow room. I'm surprised your walmart doesn't have them, especially given the rh in your region. Are you looking in the right area? I found mine in the health/beauty section.

As a short term measure, you could spill some water on the floor or put an open bucket out or something.

Maybe i should check the health beauty section, i was looking where the fans, ac's and de humidifiers were.

And i have noticed that leaving a wet towel on the floor of the grow tent for a night will raise the RH%



Let me make sure I understand what you're saying. The "reservoir" you're talking about isn't the one in the hempy bucket, you're talking about a container of extra nutrients, ie you mix up enough for several feedings. Is that right?

Yes thats correct

Assuming I understand correctly, I don't understand why your nute reservoir's ph would change just sitting there unless you have something living in there. I'd scrub that thing out, and sterilize it with some bleach or H2O2. Make sure to rinse real well obviously before mixing new nutes.

ok i scrubed it out today, with a low % solution of ISO alcohol to water. got my pH back at 5.7

I completely agree with McLoadie about embracing the ph drift, but that's more for when you're feeding via hydro I think. Just to add to what he said... Normally, the ph of the res will rise over the course of the week. I start my res at ~5.5ph. If it hits 6.2 before I change it, I knock if back down to 5.4 and let it drift back up again. The plant absords different nutrients at different rates depending on the ph. A ph of 5.9 is sort of the sweet spot where the plant can absorb everything it needs fairly well, but it absorbs some things better slightly higher and lower, so the drift helps to make sure the plant gets everything it wants.

So if you calibrate your meter to exactly 7.0 and 4.0, then you should trust it's reading a little bit. What happens when you check the calibration again later? Has it moved very far? I keep my calibration solution in spice jars. They are tall and narrow and hold a good amount to cover my probe, but not too much to waste the solution. I've found that it keeps a very long time. I only recently dumped my 7.0 ref solution because it had stuff starting to float in it after 4+ months. It was still exactly 7.0 though. I calibrated on the old stuff, then checked it with fresh solution and it was spot on. I had doubts about my meter quite a bit at the beginning too. My ph difficulties were due to my hard water (~420ppm out of the tap), so it got better when I bought an RO system.

I must have really hard water, my pH right out of the tap is 10 and the the PPm is 340

It sounds like your runoff ph is real high though. Rather than just letting phed RO sit in the hempy res, you should flush them. Pour at least 3 times the hempy volume, ie 6L, through them, or at least until the runoff ph is the same as what you're putting in. Once you know the ph is right in the bucket, then add some nute. That's what I would do at least, but I don't run hempy.

I flushed them again today, going to do it again tonight after the lights come back on

In regards to what we talked about in the other thread concerning your ventilation fans. I'll see if I can get an HVAC guy to come give his opinion whether or not my idea will work. I think it should work. Sure, putting 2 fans inline will cause some air turbulance, but I think it will still accomplish the goal.

I don't think it matters too much where you put the second, smaller, fan. Closer to the filter might be best if it's a real weak fan.

Has your existing fan, at 25%, kept the temps where you want them day and night? That's great if you can find a setting that works. You will probably have to keep making adjustments depending on the weather, ie temp changes, but maybe you can get away with just doing that?

Yeah i mean the fan running at 25% is still creating negative pressure, and still keeping the tent temps cool. I may not even install an inline booster fan, with the inline fan at 25% its barley audible

Thank you thank you for stopping by hope you stick around

Heres some quick pics before lights off, i scrubbed the res , flushed the hempys with 5.7pH water (again)

 

[Mono]

Have your plants just been watered? Looking slightly droopy.

 

[EzExtractions]

Have your plants just been watered? Looking slightly droopy.

well i just flushed them today, if anything id say there probably over watered? I hope i didnt put to much vermiculite in my hempy mix and its retaining to much water.

On a brighter note, i see some nice white roots starting to hit the bottom of my hempy buckets which means they should take off soon!

 

[Mono]

Could be over watered, however just after flush that's fine.

Good news on the roots buddy!

 

[EzExtractions]

lol so i just took that picture about 45 mintues ago where my res pH was at 5.7, now its all the up at 6.2 lol this is ridiculous im going on eBay right now to find a good pH meter.