ChicagoJoe's 1st Grow - SCROG - 150W - Suggestions Welcome

[ChicagoJoe]

It's hard to believe these pics were taken only 3 weeks after the first scraggly ones I posted. during day to day, it seems like this is taking forever, but checking out the pics and seeing the growth over time, I'm very satisfied.

I cut two 4" holes in the steel cab. I marked the hole with a coffee can lid. Used a long screw to punch starter marks in the steel at the 8 points of the compass. Then used a small bit to drill 8 starter holes. Then used a larger bit and drilled 8 larger holes. Then used a reciprocating saw (jig saw?) to cut from hole to hole, making a rough octagon. It worked perfectly.

Now some pics.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

 

[Woodsman]

ChicagoJoe, took your link over here and just caught up with your grow. Very nice set up your making and the plant looks super healthy. I'll be following along with you. Interested because as you know I've also got a low wattage set up. You can always add some cfls to the equation to bump it up a little, hanging from either side of your 150. Great grow and Reps.
Mazar Afghan 10 and a 1/2 weeks flowering. Pics

 

[ChicagoJoe]

Thanks woody - I'm really close to the switch to 12/12 and am very excited to see the girl start budding. I took a clone 3 days ago and have a cfl above that in the cab.

I have an oscillating fan in there, but it takes up too much room and is too loud. So I'm replacing that with some of these quiet pc case fans $13 ea:
Silenx IXP6414 iXtrema Pro Fan - 92mm x 25mm, 14dBA, 42CFM at TigerDirect.com

Then there's this fan controller specifically for pc fans. The controller has a power adapter that plugs in the wall and the 12v PC fans plug directly into the controller to get power. $26 Silenx IXAFCEX Four Channel External Fan Controller at TigerDirect.com

 

[Velodrone]

ChicagoJoe, Thought that I would stop in and check out your grow. Looking good. Hope you don't mind if I peek my head in every once and awhile. Keep riding!

 

[Woodsman]

Great idea with the PC fans. Good luck with the clones.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

update, no pics, all came out pretty blurry,
maybe cause I was in a hurry.



I noticed a couple or 3 different signs of nutritional deficiencies on the leaves. The markings are only noticeable in a few places and I'm not going to bother with the descriptions without the pics. I checked the awesome thread Cannabis Plant and Pest Problem Solver - Pictorial and got lots of good info.

I think it's time to head to the store. I'm going to pick up one of these to get a nice array of stuff. Most grow stores seems to sell this for $30-35.

And I also need advise on top dressing the soil since I'm pretty sure I'm seeing the roots coming up. I might need to transplant this girl.

If any of you grow type with experience would like to comment, I am thankful.


SOIL GROW - scrog

Strain - Indica mix, unknown
# of Plants - 1
Grow Type - Soil
Grow Stage - Vegetative, just about to switch
Bucket Size - rectangular window pot, 24"x12"x4"
Lights - (1) 150 Watt HPS
Nutrients - General Hydronponics
Medium - MG soil - 8 months old
PPM - xxx
PH - 7
RH - 35% to 55%
Room Temperature 80-86
Solution Temperature -xxx
Room Square Footage - 1.5' x 3' (18" x 36")
Pests - xxx

Problem:

I'm seeing traces a few different nutrient deficiencies.
Also seeing roots at top of soil.

Should top dress the soil since I have about 2 inches of room?
Or transplant into 5 gallon bucket?

If I transplant, should I wait before switching to flower? The plant and I are both ready for the switch.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

Update:
I suck and don't have pics for you. The last pics were from Jan 4 and there's been a lot of growth.

I made a few major changes to the cab.

1. I purchased a Broan QTR080 Ultra Silent Bath Fan, 80 CFM and use it to pull the air thru a DIY carbon filter. I had to cut another exhaust hole in the cab.

I used the method described by Bulénath.

2. Added the PC fans and fan controller. 2 of the fans are secured to stiff wire and attached to the side walls of the cab. One blows under the canopy, the other above. I also added an intake fan to relieve pressure on the exhaust fan.

Before I light sealed the cab, lighted temps were around 74.
After light sealing the room, temps were around 86.
Now with this latest addition, temps are around 68.

I'm a little worried about the low temps. My first solution is to buy a fan controller to lower the volume of air leaving the cab thru the filter. My cab is 27 cubic feet. I calculated 20% loss of the 80 cfm fan when blowing thru the filter. So even at 64 CFM my cab air is being exchanged more than twice per minute. If I restrict the fan to exchange air in the cab every 5 minutes as suggested in the grow faqs, I think my temps will be better.

3. I removed solid shelf at the top of the unit, replaced with a wire shelf. This is where all the bulk of the hardware is kept (the ballast, filter, exhaust fan, power strip, etc). This was needed for easy air exchange to the top of the cab where the filter is located. It also solves a problem with condensation forming in the upper part of the cab where there was no air exchange (I just noticed yesterday this).

I have not transplanted yet, but went to the grow store and tried to purchase some FFOF and nutes. The grow clerk listened to my needs and since I am ready to go into flower, he suggested a different soil with less nitrogen added.
I got this Bio Bizz All Mix

and this:

I will transplant when I get some time and take some pics.

 

[CocoJoe]

Looks like hot dogs and pan pizza are not all that is rocking in Chitown.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

Looks like hot dogs and pan pizza are not all that is rocking in Chitown.

LOL cocoJoe, thanks. I can't wait for the tops to start budding.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

I transplanted the other night and was extremely worried about losing the plant. Even though I know that it will do everything in it's power to survive, I'm still a little worried.

the big deal was that the old planter (if you look in the pics above) is a rectangular pot that is made to fit over a window sill. When I transplanted into the 5 gallon bucket (I should have gotten a wide mouth square pot) I had to slowly loosen and remove about 40% of the dirt and roots so the root mass would fit into the new pot.

So it's been about 36 hours since the transplant and my lady still looks really good. No major signs of her stressed.

I was so worried about getting everything done smoothly and quickly that I didn't take any pics.

 

[CocoJoe]

So it's been about 36 hours since the transplant and my lady still looks really good. No major signs of her stressed.

(

 

[Woodsman]

Hello ChicagoJoe, Just caught up since my last post. Sounds like your re-potting is working for you. Just curious about your clone, everything OK so far? Sending positive vibes..........

 

[ChicagoJoe]

Hello ChicagoJoe, Just caught up since my last post. Sounds like your re-potting is working for you. Just curious about your clone, everything OK so far? Sending positive vibes..........

woody - thanks for askin, but the clone didnt work out. I was keeping the humidity dome on keeping the media moist, but after about 7 days I noticed green stuff growing on the white (maybe perlite) stuff in the soil. So I dumped it.

I don't have a secure place to grow the clones now, so I asked a friend to buy the parts and build a simple bubble cloner. We will try the clones in a bubble cloner at his place.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

ChicagoJoe's 1st Grow - SCROG - 150W - ABANDONED

man o man, this sucks, in a good and bad way, eh.

I had to give up the grow. It was taking up too much time and then the deficiencies really hit hard and I knew I needed help. So I gave the whole setup to a friend who promised to do his best. He said said he will buy a ph pen and get everything back on track. Apparently the water here was 7.8 on the liquid test. duh right, the most simple mistake.

My problem was that I never ever had problems with the plant, so I figured I never had problems with my ph.

Long story short, now that I do not have the grow, I can concentrate more on the fight for medical cannabis in my state. Yay.

So I am officially abandoning this thread. I suggested my friend log on here and continue his own log where I left off.

 

[Woodsman]

Re: ChicagoJoe's 1st Grow - SCROG - 150W - ABANDONED

man o man, this sucks, in a good and bad way, eh.

I had to give up the grow. It was taking up too much time and then the deficiencies really hit hard and I knew I needed help. So I gave the whole setup to a friend who promised to do his best. He said said he will buy a ph pen and get everything back on track. Apparently the water here was 7.8 on the liquid test. duh right, the most simple mistake.

My problem was that I never ever had problems with the plant, so I figured I never had problems with my ph.

Long story short, now that I do not have the grow, I can concentrate more on the fight for medical cannabis in my state. Yay.

So I am officially abandoning this thread. I suggested my friend log on here and continue his own log where I left off.

ChicagoJoe, sorry that you had to end your grow. Some things don't always turn out the way we want, but keep the faith man and you'll be back growing again even better. I hope your friend will salvage your crop and share the rewards. Good luck my friend!

 

[Love1Fear]

Great luck to you and medical Cannabis needers in IL, they have the bill already made up just needs to pass i hear.

 

[logitech227]

Thats to bad you gave it up. Im almost upset I just noticed this until now because I spent the last 10-15 minutes reading your pages and your questions. A lot of your questions where easy answers and everyone has them with their first plant.

Your biggest friend when cultivating MJ is a pH pen, hands down. You can purchase the most expensive nutrients but with out proper pH in range, they wont matter. I would have recommended Ebay, pH pens are cheap, 19.95 w/3.20 shipping. If you wanted to but even more precise you could have also bought a ppm pen for about 14.00 w/shipping. 35.00 spent and your grow would have been just fine. If saving money is your thing, you could have also bought General Hydroponics Flora series 1 liter set for 38.99 w/shipping. Who doesn't like saving a buck or two, especially with a fun hobby like this? Those three things and you would have gone all the way to a successful harvest.

Your cabinet was great, only thing I was thinking when reading the post's were "he needs to ditch that desk fan for something more space efficient so he can get that plant directly under the light", and sure enough you thought of it on your own with the addition of PC fans. Good move.

Over all it was a solid start, if next time you decide to try again, make sure to know the bear minimum supplies you need are the things I listed. With out them, no grow will go well. Nutrients can be found for even cheaper, I just used GH as an example. As long has you find a two or three part nutrient plan, with proper N-K-P for flower and bloom along with essential traces, you'd be just fine.

 

[ChicagoJoe]

ChicagoJoe, sorry that you had to end your grow. Some things don't always turn out the way we want, but keep the faith man and you'll be back growing again even better. I hope your friend will salvage your crop and share the rewards. Good luck my friend!

Thanks woody, I'm sure he will have no probs picking up the tab on a digital ph pen and sharing the crop. We're going to trim together.

Great luck to you and medical Cannabis needers in IL, they have the bill already made up just needs to pass i hear.

Thanks. By removing the grow from my home I am able to be more active in the IL medical cannabis movement.

Thats to bad you gave it up. ...

Over all it was a solid start, if next time you decide to try again, make sure to know the bear minimum supplies you need are the things I listed. With out them, no grow will go well. ...

Yep, thanks, next time I will set up the entire cab or grow area before throwing in a singe plant. This grow was full of n00B mistakes. Hopefully the next one will be legal in IL.

 

[BassBong]

Good luck in your future endeavors.