RageMonkey's Phototron - White Widow

I have made all the mistakes over the years. I am a hard head stoner that used to get over technical but I got better.
Besides, phototrons are not the easiest grow boxes to grow with cause of the compact size so when you do get the plants going, flower early.
 
Urdedpal said:
I have made all the mistakes over the years. I am a hard head stoner that used to get over technical but I got better.
Besides, phototrons are not the easiest grow boxes to grow with cause of the compact size so when you do get the plants going, flower early.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. So far the biggest problem I've seen with these boxes is that they can easily go over 87 F even with the fans running non-stop. I'm going to have to add more cooling to this thing on the next try. Ideally, I would like the temp pegged at 80 F. I'll also drop the plastic wrap next time around. =)

I just put in an order for 10 NL and 10 NL x BB cross. When these come, I'll give it another shot. BTW, have you tried rapid rooters? I head these were pretty reliable for starting seedlings for both hydro and organic setups..
 
They work better than rockwool. Many growers swear by them. They are not really necessary in soil grows but many people still use them because of their unique qualities of holding water with a great substrate texture that seedlings have no problem grabbing hold of and rooting.
You can also germ with less light if nessecary to help keep the temps down and since the cooler season starts, it should be easier to get the temps in check. Good luck, NL is known to be quite a hardy strain, its a reason many cash croppers use it. That and the good yeild that normally comes with them. The other cross I know little about.
 
Urdedpal said:
They work better than rockwool. Many growers swear by them. They are not really necessary in soil grows but many people still use them because of their unique qualities of holding water with a great substrate texture that seedlings have no problem grabbing hold of and rooting.
You can also germ with less light if nessecary to help keep the temps down and since the cooler season starts, it should be easier to get the temps in check. Good luck, NL is known to be quite a hardy strain, its a reason many cash croppers use it. That and the good yeild that normally comes with them. The other cross I know little about.
Click to expand...

Since I'm experimenting, I don't want to try any expensive seeds until I can figure out a setup that works. The NL x Big Bud from Nirvana will give me a chance to try something that grows a little fatter and taller in the phototron. i would like to see how the less shrub like plants do int hat box provided I can get one to grow. lol

I'm going to clean out these sprouts this week. Hopefully I can get something going in about 3 weeks.
 
Good news. 2 seedlings survived and are producing a second set of leaves. the petals were drying badly and about half of the first two leaves disintegrated. The portions of the leaves that remained have grown and both sprouts are now sporting a new set of leaves approximatly 7mm long. leaf color has returned to a healthy green again.

I believe these pulled through because I flushed each of their cups with a cup of water and let them basiclaly dry out until today. So here we are 3 days later and they seem to be making a turnaround.
 
I'll get you guys a picture of the two remaining plants. The main leaves look raggedy as hell, but the new leaves are rockin'. Both are bending in towards the center where the blue led is focussed. Three new photos have been uploaded and are awaiting approval. As soon as they are aproved, I will get them posted. You can see the leaf damage and the new set clearly However, I had just sprayed water on the this morning and they caught a bit of reflection from the blue LED, so you will notice some strange cyan spots on the leaves. Both are still relatively short. The one with the thermometer probe is approximately 1" tall and the other is approximately 2" tall.
 
Photos of the 2 remaining plants:

DSC012321.JPG


Temperature is being maintained at 80 - 85 F with a relative humidity of approximately 25%.

DSC012341.JPG


DSC012331.JPG
 
I think 81 might be a lil too hot for the seedlings, Their looking pretty good theyll get healthier later on their growth looks like they have a lil nute burn.
 
It's seriously difficult to lower the temperature. These phototrons run crazy hot. It's built like a huge convection cell, which requires placement in an open room to ventilate properly. I have about 6 inches of clearance above the unit, which won't really cut it. However, I added the side mount fans and I leave a 4 inch gap at the top where I dropped a sidepanel down. This allowed me to lower the temp an average of 5 degrees Farenheit.

It was really strange, all the seedlings popped up and suddenly they were all tits up and taking on water. I believe the soil was too hot. Anyway, I flushed all of them with a cup of water and less them dry out for 3 days. Afterwards, these two survived and now they apear 200% healthier than when they started going south.
 
HHGreenHand said:
Amazing for a days growth. Do your cups have any drainage on the base?
Click to expand...

yeah. i cut about 6 x 1" vertical slices in the bottom of each cup. I am charging my camera. I'll get photos tonight showing 1 more days growth. You have to see it to believe it. Tthey are taller than the rim of the cup now.
 
what kind of circulation do you have in the tron? i dont see a fan down there so the air could be getting stale sittin low in the cups.
good luck with you grow bro. when you have your own jungle then youll be a true monkey :Rasta:
 
greenmonkey said:
what kind of circulation do you have in the tron? i dont see a fan down there so the air could be getting stale sittin low in the cups.
good luck with you grow bro. when you have your own jungle then youll be a true monkey :Rasta:
Click to expand...

The unit is built like a convection cell. Heat rises in the unit drawing air in at the bottom of each sidepanel. There is a space at the top of each sidepanel as well as a rectangular 2" x 4" hole in the center of the top.

You can run the box in a large room without fans and the heat will be tolerable, but stealth goes out the window. I added a single phototron AVP panel that vents the air from the top of the unit and blows fresh air in hald way up from the side. This managed to lower the temperature at the soil level by an averag eof 5 degrees farenheit.
Sometimes it still gets up to a max of 88 F, but this is only when the outside air temperature goes up.

I was considering adding CO2 to this later on, but since I have to actively vent the unit at all times to maintain temperature - that would be pretty much a waste. I could put the CO2 and fans on an alternating 15/15 timer, but the temperature would be all over the place.

Anyway, these things are growing like gangbusters. I submitted 3 more photos from about an hour ago. As soon as they are approved, I'll put them up.
 

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