Al B. FAQt - Page 4

Stoney McFried · #31 07-31-2008, 02:12 PM

I got a question for ya, AL.If I wanted a strain that would hit me HARD and last LONG(I Have a high tolerance),do you have any recommendations?Btw, I'm an indoor soil grower.

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Originally Posted by Al B. Fuct

Just long enough to raise the flood level to the overflow. You're right, 20 mins flood is too long, should be closer to 3-5mins. Yes, use a digital timer. Digitals allow single minute increment programming.

coolio.

Al B. Fuct · #32 07-31-2008, 02:27 PM

This is a cross post from another thread, kinda belongs here.

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Originally Posted by pimpnitjc

Hey AL, B Fuct, what do you put in your tray around your rockwool cubes, hydrotron or do u put nothing.

Nothing in the trays.

The RW cubes are not put directly in the trays. They are in pots filled with absorbent media. Each pot is filled with about 25-50mm of tightly packed rockwool in the bottom of each pot with the remainder filled with Fytocell.

This is an older pic. Since Fytocell has a tendency to escape the pot drain holes, in this pic, each pot has a knee-hi stocking over it to keep Fytocell crumbs from washing into the tray. This didn't work so well. Fytocell also has a tendency to float. In later batches, I put in the layer of tightly packed RW floc in the bottom of each pot both to keep the Fytocell in the pots and keep the pots from floating Once wetted, the RW floc is heavy enough to keep pots from floating.

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Also I bought an RO system and the hydro system has a 35 gallon res. I know it takes like 3 gallons of water to make one gallon of water with the RO system or something like that. Is it still cheaper to used the RO system instead of buying water from walmart or somewhere?

How about you just use tapwater? It's served me well for about 20 years.

There's just no need for RO or other heroically filtered water. Chlorine is the indoor grower's friend, suppressing pathogens in rez tanks for a couple of days until the chlorine evaporates. After then, you must use an anti-microbial agent like H2O2 to keep your nutrient soup from being a friendly home to pathogens. Minerals like calcium and magnesium found in tapwater are essential micronutrients, which if they were not in the water would need to be added anyway.

Some folks will maintain that chlorination will kill beneficial microbes in soil. Do you like this 12ft tall cherry tomato plant I grew in my organic veg patch out back last season?

Grown mainly with municipal water right out of the tap. This single plant yielded more than 450 fruit. If tapwater is bad for plants, this plant was ASTONISHINGLY successfully fooled!

Don't waste your money on fancy water. Municipal tapwater is fine.

Al B. Fuct · #33 07-31-2008, 03:18 PM

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Originally Posted by ZEN MASTER

before i start i want to say the this isn't a Al b. fuct ass kissing celebration, it's just a fellow smoker saying thanks.

Well, thank you right back.

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hey what's going on dude?you don't know me cuz i'm new ot the sight,but i wanted to say that i am glad that you are ok and somewhat back in action. you know they say "you never miss your water until the well runs dry". i'm saying that to say you might not know it, but in my opinion you are a invaluable source of not just knowledge, but in my case inspiration. for the simple fact that when you are on you are always extremely helpful to the best of your ability, which to me is stellar,

Thanks again.

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you may be a little sarcastic at times but never insulting, and always funny(to me)

Oh... make NO mistake, I can be insulting, but only to the most deserving of fuckwits. Some folks have to learn the hard way that the only thing you get from being rude to me is that I can be much more rude than you could ever imagine.

I don't bite noobs, though. Pointless. Noobism is (almost) always curable with a little information and experience. I DO lose patience with willfully dumb people who insist that wives' tales or outright misinformation trump replicatable science. That sort of nonsense will get sarcasm out of me quick-smart, but I don't think that's too unreasonable. Even when I'm picking on people, I try to make them laugh while I'm doing it.

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and no matter what you always make a person feel like "I can do it".

See, that's the thing- anyone can do this. It really doesn't have to be complicated. However, I know what you're talking about... some people on pot boards can have ego issues and try to make out that only they know how to do something. If I'm the only person that can do some particular thing, I know I've gotten it wrong or overcomplicated it somewhere. Everything should be replicatable by others, easily and independently.

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Its just a good feeling to know that there are still people in this game that have not turned to cut-throat tactics, and ventured to the darkside of the weed game(thinking of themselves only)and are willing to be somewhat of a "MENTOR TO THE MASSES". because the more of us that there are out there,the stronger we become.I usually don't post alot of post,but i read EVERYTHING you post. So hey man stay up, keep bangin out that good shit, and thanks for being who you are.

*blush*

Thanks for that.

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Wow looks like I did kinda get my nose in there abit, huh?

It's cool, I bathe often, your nose ought not to come out too brown.

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P.S. i knew that the 2 wk harvest post might not last that long, because you would probably be overwhelmed by the barrage of questions from everyone that didn't read the post completly,so i added it to my favorites just in case, and for reference material.
AL B. FUCT you fucking rock dude!!!!!!!!!!!!
PEACE!!!!

heh, thanks again. That thread ran for about a year and a half and remains stickied at the top of this subforum. It has gotten more than 110,000 reads, about 15,000 since the thread was closed. Other folks must be using it as a reference as well.

I'll probably wind up re-covering most of what's in that one in this thread, but I don't mind.

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Originally Posted by Stoney McFried

I got a question for ya, AL.If I wanted a strain that would hit me HARD and last LONG(I Have a high tolerance),do you have any recommendations?Btw, I'm an indoor soil grower.

Hard & long? BABY! You must want that Johnny Holmes strain.

Kidding aside, you probably want some sort of indica dominant hybrid. They tend to give a heavy buzz that does last a while. You may want to have a couple of strains as some folks develop a tolerance. I have grown Sweet Tooth #4 since 2002 and have not developed any tolerance to it (nor has any of the several others who smoke my buds), but everyone's different.Your mileage may vary.

Stoney McFried · #34 07-31-2008, 03:27 PM

Awesome!Thanks Al...and I think John Holmes got considerably less attractive when he DIED!

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Originally Posted by Al B. Fuct

Hard & long? BABY! You must want that Johnny Holmes strain.

Kidding aside, you probably want some sort of indica dominant hybrid. They tend to give a heavy buzz that does last a while. You may want to have a couple of strains as some folks develop a tolerance. I have grown Sweet Tooth #4 since 2002 and have not developed any tolerance to it (nor has any of the several others who smoke my buds), but everyone's different.Your mileage may vary.

WWgrower · #35 07-31-2008, 03:37 PM

Hi al , not to change the subject, but to change the subject back to water. I live in the mountains in the east. I have to use a well for the house water. The water has a low to high iron count to it. I guess Iam asking with the iron in the water is it still alright to use this water for my drip system. I just got through with a grow and used store bought water. Cost a small fortune. Next grow will be in the winter so I will collect snow then, but if it gets scarce would like a opinion on the iron water. One last thing am thinking of getting a 600 digital light. What's your opinion of them? Thanks I'll toke up and wait for you reply.

Al B. Fuct · #36 07-31-2008, 04:06 PM

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Originally Posted by Stoney McFried

Awesome!Thanks Al...and I think John Holmes got considerably less attractive when he DIED!

I tend to agree, dead is just not hawt... but you know, necrophilia means never having to say you're sorry.

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Originally Posted by WWgrower

Hi al , not to change the subject,

Oh, perfectly fine to change the subject. This is kind of a free-form thread intended for just that sort of wandering.

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but to change the subject back to water. I live in the mountains in the east.

East of... Mars?

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I have to use a well for the house water. The water has a low to high iron count to it. I guess Iam asking with the iron in the water is it still alright to use this water for my drip system.

Iron's fine. It may stain your rez tanks but won't generally hurt the plants. Iron toxicity is pretty rare in cannabis but would appear as bronzed leaves with brown spotting. Iron deficiencies are much more common, particularly when one is using distilled or RO waters, which are absent all minerals.

However, the drip system itself may bite you. You MUST clean those drippers with a toothbrush and clean water at least every other day. If you don't, they will crust up with nutrient salts and clog. Once crusty, a toothbrush won't remove the crust and you will be tempted to clear the drippers with a pin or something- this is sure to damage the dripper. Keep spare dripper heads on hand just in case.

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I just got through with a grow and used store bought water. Cost a small fortune.

Yeah, it would! I use about 1200L per month in my op. Out of the tap, that's about $1 (80c/kilolitre). I recover about 10L of distilled water per day from my dehumidifier, which I recycle back into the tanks. Saves about 300L per month from coming out of the tap, but I can guarantee you that it costs LOTS more in electricity to run the dehumidifier (400 watts, 24/7/365) than it would to draw 300L of water out of the tap.

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One last thing am thinking of getting a 600 digital light. What's your opinion of them?

Electronic (rather deceptively called 'digital') ballasts are not on my favourites list. I can get a standard inductive (aka 'magnetic') 600W HPS ballast for about 20% of what is asked for an electronic ballast. A ballast is a current limiter. That function is accomplished quite easily with a coil of copper wire on an iron core with much greater average reliability than with an electronic circuit. Electronic ballasts control current with semiconductor devices (SCRs or triacs) and some control circuitry. A coil of wire on an iron core will ALWAYS outlast a semiconductor junction and all the associated soldered connections.

I have tested a Lumatek 600W electronic ballast side by side with a standard 600 magnetic. Despite Lumatek's sales claim of 'up to 30% more luminous output' with their ballast, the luminous intensity delivered is absolutely identical to that from a standard ballast. The Lumatek drew 55W less from AC mains power than the magnetic; magnetics waste some power as heat via eddy currents in the iron core. That's a savings of about 9%. It'd take you many years, far in excess of the roughly 5 year lifetime of the electronic ballast, to recover the cost difference between a magnetic and an inductive ballast. Standard ballasts are renowned for their durability. It's not unusual to see 20+ year old ballasts in service. My pair of 1000W CWA ballasts are now about 10 years old and remain silent and work fine.

dertmagert · #37 07-31-2008, 04:50 PM

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Originally Posted by Al B. Fuct

Do you let the pots get rather light before watering again or do you give a certain amt of water each time regardless of pot heft feel?

Flushing is optional in any case. I don't bother. Makes no difference to the smoking quality.

yes... my pots are very light before i water.. i have very high temps so they suck the pot dry quickly.. i have to water/feed every other day
i might add that the plants in the first set took a bit of stress when i first put them into the flowering room (the temps were in the 90s.. and it made them hault growth for a couple days)

since then i managed to bring the room down a couple degrees (still way too high for a plants comfort ) and i found that if i take the clones from the cloning chamber (powered by a single floro), and place them in the veg chamber for 24-48 hours (this room has 8 CFLs, and a higher temp than the cloning chamber) it relieves them of that initial heat stress...
set 2, 3, and 4 have not had any ill effects that the first set did.

so what do u think? probably due to heat?

Al B. Fuct · #38 07-31-2008, 05:09 PM

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Originally Posted by dertmagert

yes... my pots are very light before i water.. i have very high temps

[...]

probably due to heat?

Say no more. That's the problem.

You're looking for 25C +/- 1C (24-26C), day and night.

No exaggeration, cooltubes are a magic bullet for hot ops. They need to source and dump their air from outside the room's airmass and have their own blower to be effective. The cooltube blower should be on its own timer, set to run during lights on plus about 15 mins extra at the end of the cycle to cool down the tubes and sockets. This will extend the life of both. A 150mm axial blower will do for up to 3 cooltubes in series with about 4m total duct length. Costed it out once- the cooltube blower itself costs about 30c per month to run but causes my big 200W centrifugal main exhaust blower to run only about 25% as often as it used to before cooltubery.

Cooltubes totally fixed my op's persistent air temp stability problems. Cooltubes prevent the warm air convected off the lights from mingling with the room's airmass. In concert with a thermostatically controlled exhaust blower, you should be able to maintain that 25C setpoint at all times as long as you have air at 25C or below to draw into the op.

Seriously, just get some.

Al B. Fuct · #39 07-31-2008, 05:52 PM

I opined:

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Don't waste your money on fancy water. Municipal tapwater is fine.

About the only exception to this is if you have a bore that has high salinity. That's really the only situation where I'd consider using RO or distilled water. Salt will stunt if not kill cannabis plants.

As a rule, if you can safely drink it, you can grow cannabis with it.

dertmagert · #40 07-31-2008, 06:08 PM

ok.. your not the first person to tell me that a cool tube would do the trick.. but you are the most reputable!..

since i planned on investing in a portable ac ( which is expensive in electricity consumption alone ) i will definately try a cool tube first...

the only doubt i have about its function is that my grow space is a room built within a basement.. the basement itself is not air conditioned and maintains a temp of about 28

so even if i have perfect ventilation and my cool tube is cooling the light enough to not allow any raise in temp, i will still be at 28.. which is by farrrrr better than 33..

well.. now im going to go out and buy the thing.. what can it hurt..

(one more question)

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They need to source and dump their air from outside the room's airmass and have their own blower to be effective.

the room i have is only 3.5' x 4' x 6' ... and is exhausted by a 295 cfm blower. .
i was wondering if one could "get by" with just running the cool tube off of that, having the intake end of the cool tube pulling air from inside the grow (so it could double as cooling/exhaust)

... that would probably be too easy tho huh? lol