New Grower First Grow - 4 Different Auto Strains in Coco

[Mañ'O'Green]

I'll certainly continue to listen to all the expert input I am so fortunate to have.

Don't get too reverent. Half of everything I say is "Weed Inspired".

 

[Exivious]

Don't get too reverent. Half of everything I say is "Weed Inspired".

Don't worry, I assumed as much of damn near everyone in the scene when I decided to look for a cannabis growing forum to join.

 

[Exivious]

Day 6: The replacement Fugue State already has a long taproot, so I fed the pots and then planted it. We should have 4 viable plants shortly. The Sour Crack that just broke surface yesterday is already taller than the other plants... It's known to be a very fast-growing strain so I don't think this is indicative of lack-of-light stretching or anything bad. The LED is at 22" veg-only.

That does lead me to a question, though: What do people think about veg/bloom switches on LEDs? I've seen some people recommend to always keep both sets of lights on. Until now, I've only had the veg lights on (which are responsible for ~140w of the ~270w total power draw of the fully activated light). This actually surprised me when I checked it as I assumed the shorter wavelength veg array would draw more like 60-70% of the total power.

Also, a variac arrived today so I can now regulate fan speed more safely and with a full 0-130v range. The cheap frequency fan controllers essentially turn the fan on and off over and over again to regulate speed, torturing the fan. The clean action of the variable transformer is so much nicer.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Day 6: The replacement Fugue State already has a long taproot, so I fed the pots and then planted it. We should have 4 viable plants shortly. The Sour Crack that just broke surface yesterday is already taller than the other plants... It's known to be a very fast-growing strain so I don't think this is indicative of lack-of-light stretching or anything bad. The LED is at 22" veg-only.

That does lead me to a question, though: What do people think about veg/bloom switches on LEDs? I've seen some people recommend to always keep both sets of lights on. Until now, I've only had the veg lights on (which are responsible for ~140w of the ~270w total power draw of the fully activated light). This actually surprised me when I checked it as I assumed the shorter wavelength veg array would draw more like 60-70% of the total power.

Also, a variac arrived today so I can now regulate fan speed more safely and with a full 0-130v range. The cheap frequency fan controllers essentially turn the fan on and off over and over again to regulate speed, torturing the fan. The clean action of the variable transformer is so much nicer.

Withholding the red Bloom spectrum in theory promotes better vegetative growth but it limits the total lumens to the plant. Autos need less light than photos but 140 watts is not much. Since they are going to bloom on their own schedule anyhow I would just turn on the bloom as well to get more light overall.

 

[Exivious]

Cool, it's on now. Seedlings are looking great--cotyledons perking up a bit.

Only thing is the VPD situation sucks now with the bloom switch on... I have bowls of water with rags, but can't get humidity to budge from 45% while the temp is 78-80f, unless I turn the inline fan up which cools things down and sinks humidity to 30%... VPD is way off in either situation. In an attempt to better control the balance, I ducted the LED array's two exhaust fans straight to the carbon filter thinking I'd maybe remove a higher mix of heat relative to moisture that way, but I'm not seeing any difference from that effort.

This isn't something I can balance without a humidifier, so I'm about to order a small one I can fit. Humidity and temperature controllers will probably follow--they're going to be necessary anyway come the dry, cold winter months. All this is probably a little silly in a 32x32" tent, but I don't want to take up any more closet space with a bigger tent, and all I care about is getting enough meds for my family and I. Well, that and I am an efficiency-obsessed perfectionist and want to do the best I possibly can (without using too much electricity) with the four plants I can fit.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Cool, it's on now. Seedlings are looking great--cotyledons perking up a bit.

Only thing is the VPD situation sucks now with the bloom switch on... I have bowls of water with rags, but can't get humidity to budge from 45% while the temp is 78-80f, unless I turn the inline fan up which cools things down and sinks humidity to 30%... VPD is way off in either situation. In an attempt to better control the balance, I ducted the LED array's two exhaust fans straight to the carbon filter thinking I'd maybe remove a higher mix of heat relative to moisture that way, but I'm not seeing any difference from that effort.

This isn't something I can balance without a humidifier, so I'm about to order a small one I can fit. Humidity and temperature controllers will probably follow--they're going to be necessary anyway come the dry, cold winter months. All this is probably a little silly in a 32x32" tent, but I don't want to take up any more closet space with a bigger tent, and all I care about is getting enough meds for my family and I. Well, that and I am an efficiency-obsessed perfectionist and want to do the best I possibly can (without using too much electricity) with the four plants I can fit.

I use an inexpensive ultrasonic humidifier with distilled water - not cheap. Hanging wet towels with the ends in buckets to wick the water up works almost as well - cheap. As soon as the plants get bigger they will add a lot of humidity to the tent. It is a balancing act - just do the best you can it will be ok.

 

[Exivious]

Maybe I'll just wait and buy a humidifier later if I have to for the winter months, and for now mist a few times a day until the plants start transpiring more. I increased the size of my towel wick humidifier in the mean time.

 

[Death The Cultivator]

Ink Bird humidity controller. It's digital and will control your min(humidifier) and max(dehumidifier or extraction fan) via two outlet plugs. $36 off of Amazon. I'm getting one soon because the wet towels cause me to swing between 71-81% with my max temp of 83f not needing that much humidity let alone at lower temperatures. I plan to use my currently not in use 240cfm exhaust fan to control humidity of 76% and my humidifier to control anything under 70%. Plus there's no need for extraction of smell during veg so it works out because then I can disable the controller after the flowering stretch and reduce the humidity sub 60% for the rest of the grow.

Plus I'm tired of running upstairs to adjust the humidity because I've hit the 90's or because the humidity stayed decreasing past 65. They also make a two outlet temperature controller that I'll be snagging to run my bigger exhaust fan for high temps and a heater for low temps.

Cool, it's on now. Seedlings are looking great--cotyledons perking up a bit.

Only thing is the VPD situation sucks now with the bloom switch on... I have bowls of water with rags, but can't get humidity to budge from 45% while the temp is 78-80f, unless I turn the inline fan up which cools things down and sinks humidity to 30%... VPD is way off in either situation. In an attempt to better control the balance, I ducted the LED array's two exhaust fans straight to the carbon filter thinking I'd maybe remove a higher mix of heat relative to moisture that way, but I'm not seeing any difference from that effort.

This isn't something I can balance without a humidifier, so I'm about to order a small one I can fit. Humidity and temperature controllers will probably follow--they're going to be necessary anyway come the dry, cold winter months. All this is probably a little silly in a 32x32" tent, but I don't want to take up any more closet space with a bigger tent, and all I care about is getting enough meds for my family and I. Well, that and I am an efficiency-obsessed perfectionist and want to do the best I possibly can (without using too much electricity) with the four plants I can fit.

Sent with Tapatalk while vaping something sweet.

 

[Exivious]

Yep, that's the controller I'm considering for later, and the very similar temp model for winter. We'll see. If I can get humidity moderately high and with only a 10% swing with towels, I'll be quite satisfied for now. That's not too big a swing for me.

 

[Death The Cultivator]

Yep, that's the controller I'm considering for later, and the very similar temp model for winter. We'll see. If I can get humidity moderately high and with only a 10% swing with towels, I'll be quite satisfied for now. That's not too big a swing for me.

Nah it's not bad. The perfectionist in me doesn't really want any swings but I can't control my temperature to such a fine degree that I can humidity unfortunately.