Hydro noob question??

IndoorJock · 02-19-2008, 01:52 PM

Ive grown soil for awhile and ive decided to give hydro a go. Im actually probably going to be growing some tomatoes and a few other things at first until my soil grow that i have right now finishes but my question is whats a good meter to read all the necessary things? Like the ec and ph and all that good stuff? Im going to be using an ebb and flow system i made myself if that matters. I dont want to spend a ton of money but i also dont want the absolute cheapest. While im getting advice, can someone suggestion a good growing medium? Ill be using hydroton or some other clay pebbles, but whats a good medium? Ive heard rockwool is kinda picky with the ph...any tips are greatly appreciated.

tokecrazy · 02-19-2008, 03:26 PM

Hey Indoorjock, Ebb flood tray grow.What size is your res?The meduim is the hydroton{clay pebbles} .Fill your net pots with hydroton and place them in the tray,fill the rest of the tray with hydroton just to the bottom of the over flow tube.I use rapit rooter plugs to root my clones or pop my seeds in.They dont have tobe conditionm or anything like that.After you get them to root put them in the net pots.Now for test meters for PH & TDS I use oakton PH pen and there TDS meter to keep my res right.First time in hydro what kind of nutrs are you using?I use the GH 3-part and there feeding chart on hydroponic.net under infor.Keep it simple and you will lessen your chance of having big problems.Give us more infor on your set up and I can help you all the way through to harvest.Your initial investment of grow tools{PH&tds pens} lights, tray, res, pumps, air & water are all one time costs to get started.You will need to calabrate your PH &tds pens from time to time.And a bottle of storage solution to keep your meter working right.Calibration solution 4.01 and 7.01 to calibrate your PH pen and TDS calibration solution to calibrate the TDS pen with.PH & TDS is a big part of the the grow.If you got them right then you are half way home to harvest.Get some pixs up and let us see your set up.We are all pix whores here. Anything I can help you with just ask,BUT DO ALITTLE RESREACH FIRST before asking and then ask. PEACE

Hobo · 02-19-2008, 03:32 PM

Heres a DIY tutorial on a great ebb and flow i made, you can fill it with clay pebbles, or use baskets with pebbles in them so the roots can outgrow them and chill in the basin, aslong as the top is covered so light cant reach the roots.
http://www.greenpassion.org/diy/3259...cs-system.html

Here is also a hydro FAQ i made, if you have any more questions after reading this, i can help you, i looooves me my hydro.

http://www.greenpassion.org/hydropon...-answered.html

IndoorJock · 02-20-2008, 09:47 AM

i dont really want to put up pics at the moment cause theres nothing to see. its just a 14 gal tubberware res and a tray. i got 4in grodan cubes and hydroton. i got the fill/drain kit that is in all store bought setups. and at the moment i have bc grow along with the other nutes i have left over from previous soil grows like a little earth juice catalyst, dynagro protekt, bontanicare hydroguard and calmag+, and fox farm open sesame, beastie bloomz and chaching. and i dont have much of any of that left, just left overs. like i said, for a little while this will actually be for growing tomatoes and other things (i know this is suprising, but i like growing in general and im getting ready to start school for horticulture and botany. actually, gotta go today for the final paper work!!!!) at the moment im out of work and starting school so im getting pieces and nutes as i go. ill get the bc bloom in a few weeks, and a meter when i can. i do have GH ph up/down kit so i can control that. since im not growing bud with this setup at the moment im not too too extremely concerned about the ppm/ec/tds, etc for my tomatoes and other plants. this is kind of a learning process while im waiting on school to start and find a part time job. until then i just ahve to buy a little bit of stuff as i go...i will give you some pics of my soil grow though. These are Jock Horror 4wks today and are grown in miracle grow compost with add cactus soil for the sand, perlite, lime, compost from my garden under 2 26w day, 2 26w warm, and 2 42w warm for something like 11,500 lumens. They were bent over for a few days to get a compact, bushier plant as you can see. look at how close those nodes are and how bushy these are for 4wks in soil. Gettting them ready for scrog, start bending them young! They were started from seed obviously and i used mg 15-15-15 for a few days, then started using 30-10-10 along with catalyst, hydroguard, protekt, and a little opensesame as needed. See the way i grow is simple. i dont get caught up in all of these measuring and chemicals and this and that and technology. I do like jorge cervantes says, give the plants what they need when they need it and keep them growing FAST at all times. Guys, learn to love your plants, listen to them. Dont get caught up in the newest product and sales gimmicks. Especially new guys. Reading all the products and ways of growing and tips, tricks, and scams can make you think so hard and actually cause anxiety thinking you arent doing something right that you forget that plants need 5 things...growing medium, air, water, nutrients and your love. thats it, period. These go to show what you can actually do with a few cfl's and basic supplies. You dont have to have $600 lights, $500 worth of nutes, and $1000 worth of this and that to grow great bud. The most important thing is genetics. Start with good seeds, get good bud. Remember guys, these are plants. Just take care of them and dong get caugt up in all the hype. And im not preaching or trying to say these are the best plants ever grown with cfls. i just want guys starting out that dont have the space or means to buy the newest and biggest (not necessarly better) products, to know you can grow amazing smoke. dont get me wrong, i have grown with banks of 1000w, enviroment controllers, tanks of co2, and ventilation system with enough air to fly a jet but you dont need all of that. And now im 100,000,000% against using co2. It doesnt produce enough of a noticable difference for what it does to the earth.

Edit: I will be putting these in 3-5gal pots depending on size in a few days when i see preflowers and get the males out of there. Ill actually hang on to the best male i have for pollen. Im one of those green freaks so i like to reuse things when possible. It kind of offsets the power i use (EVERYONE should do this...just turn off a light in your house, or cut 2 or 3 minutes off your shower. Since some of you use SOOOO much power and chemicals and god forbid co2, like we dont have enough of that already, we need to do our power to offset that.)

smokedoja · 02-20-2008, 01:01 PM

you tell em brotha!!!!!!

i agree with you completely......stick to the basics....

i havent used co2 ever, but ive read alot of journals with co2, and i dont see those guys getting more bud than me

nice plants btw.... those girls would be able to keep up with my dwc girls (maybe

)

IndoorJock · 02-20-2008, 01:34 PM

Well i doubt they would keep up with any hydro plants. But these are grown in soil under cfl's with minimal nutrients. And the main nutrients, at the beginning, was miracle grow which many people seem to think is impossible to use for marijuana. These are also in miracle grow soil. in the past i used ocean forest soil with a little happy frog and light warrior and tons of other additives. for this closet grow i decided to try something new. instead of $50 for soils, i spent $13 and there has been absolutely no noticable difference. and i would know because i use to grow with better stuff. as for nutrients i was using mg 15-15-15 for starters and then 30-10-10 for the veg with other hydro nutes as i said. now im using strictly hydro nutes but the point is, its possible and very easy to grow great plants with out cutting edge aka super expensive, products. these are 4weeks old today and are looking pretty good if i do say so myself. if i would have had a 600w and a few other things they would be bigger sure, but for $30 spent on the lights....i cant complain

I dont want this to sound like im bragging or anything cause im not. this is mainly for new growers that are reading tons and tons of things about hps and mh and all these expensive products and how much of these and that to give and when to do this and when not to do that. i remember when i first started i wanted to try everything i read and i thought if it wasnt done exactly right i would grow anything. Its simply not true. If the plants are growing good, then dont change anything. I remember my first time i had them growing great and i was reading about leaching and flushing and thought i had to do this, so i did. Well, it ended up killing them all. If i had just kept doing what i was doing and not trying to do everything i read then i would have had some primo smoke. And dont go rushing to adjust nutrients or doing something extreme every time you see a spot or a yellow leaf. Its not necessary. To anyone that has grown for awhile and know how to adjust for ever single spot, this isnt for you cause you obviously know what you're doing. I just want new guys, like we all once were, to know this is just a plant. Give it what it needs, when it needs it. If its looking healthy and growing good, then you are doing fine. You dont have to do everything you read and buy every product on the shelves. On a side note, i dont know how i got started on this, hahah. I originally wanted some suggestions on a good meter to get since im gonna try growing hydroponically. Ive know tons of people that grow hydro, ive helped them do it, i know the basics of it, and i know how to set it up. Im just not sure of a quality meter that doesnt cost 200 bucks. I know you get what you pay for, but since i wont be growing marijuana with this ebb and flow setup for a few months at least, im not that concerned. When it comes time to grow our favorite plant, ill splurge a little and get the best

Hobo · 02-20-2008, 01:42 PM

Im actually interested in studying botany, right on. You have some innovative pots there, i like! lol

IndoorJock · 02-20-2008, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hobo

Im actually interested in studying botany, right on. You have some innovative pots there, i like! lol

I live in knoxville, tn and we have a great agricultural school at the university of tennessee that offers great botany and horticulture classes. ill be going to community college for a few months to get required courses and starting at the university of tennessee for the summer semester. One day i hope a degree will help me get a job in a big hydroponic greenhouse and eventually with enough knowledge, time, space and money i want to start breeding marijuana. I dont believe in just crossing stuff all over the place messing up genetics. If im gonna do it, i want to do it right. Its cool to cross plants for personal use or for a few friends. On a big, pro scale i think you need to do it right. And like i said, im a big "green freak" so i like to reuse stuff when i can. But ill be repotting soon as i see preflowers which should be any day now. Ive grown marijuana plenty of times, but every time i get ready to flower its soooo exciting!

Edit: Oh, i almost forgot!!! I sit my plants outside when its pretty and a little bit warmer. There is absolutely no hps or mh better than the sun and no co2 or ventilation system better than natural air and nice breezes. When marijuana is legalized, i will never grow indoors again. Theres absolutely no need it in then. If its legal, youll be able to grow enough outside when the weather is right to last you through the winter. And if you are growing to sell it to make money, well then you are growing for the wrong reason and when its legal people wont need you any more any ways so im glad for that too.

tokecrazy · 02-20-2008, 02:50 PM

Hey Indoorjock,I use a oakton PH pen and a TDS-3 by Hanna.I had 3 other Ph pens before I got the oakton.I ask here on the site what everybody used and most said oakton.I had milwaukee,gocheck,drops color test and I can say that now having the oakton it's the best for under $90.00.Easy to calabrate no srcews to turn,just push a button to calabrate.I'am hard on my meters too and this one is holding up.I have only calabrated once since I got it.Holds calabration for along time.Checked it twice and both times it's right on.What size of a hydro and what kind are you planning on doing? PEACE

IndoorJock · 02-21-2008, 09:45 AM

Awesome man, thanks for the advice. Right now its an ebb and flow with a 15gal res and like a 8 or 9 gal tray....cant remember. Its just to mess around with and right now its for growing some veggies and a few other plants i have. When i decide to start growing cannabis with an ebb and flow ill get a bigger set up for sure and just use this one for clones or a small sog or something. Ill definitely check those meters out. And im getting the feelin that everyone seems to think im asking how to grow hydroponically. Thanks for taking the time to help, but i know how the systems work and how to grow hydroponically. Ive been around it for years and helped people, ive just never done it myself so im not sure what meters are good. I know the $250 ones are great, but i want one on the cheaper end for right now just to play around with. Under $90 sounds great, thanks dude!!!

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Hydro noob question??

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