question about hydro (first hydro grow)

i have a questions regarding my res, i'm aware that it must be kept around 68 degrees. now, my house is usually 72 degrees and my room has 2 nice sized fans in it which keeps it nice and cool. my 400w light is a good 2 and a half feet above my res. im using maxi products with hydroguard and recharge. now, when i put my hand in the res its nice and cool, almost like spring water, ive also noticed when i dropped a second air stone in my res it got slightly cooler but i dont have anything to measure my water temp so im still dropping a frozen bottle into my res to keep it cool (about 3-4 times a day). my question is what will happen, besides growth shock, if the water gets to cold ? will i notice anything on the leaves? also, im noticing the plant is taking up a lot more water now and i obviously have to fill it up a bit. i keep my res just barely touching the bottom of my pot, maybe about a half inch. when i do this should it be nute water + hydroguard + recharge? or just plain PH water? i change my res every friday as well if that helps give a better answer.

PLANT DETAILS
strain: northern lights X big bud
stage: vegetative
days old: 24
light cycle: 24/0

Well first off recharge I use it awsome stuff.. hydroguard has some bennies in It as well but I prefer recgarge. As for the temps ideal is 65-68. The reason for the temp is keep root rot at bay. And better do levels. Personally I would recommend res change on Fri mix up recharge sepreitly in a little pitcher or cup about 12-to 24 Oz water. 1/4 tsp recharge mix really well and pour it directly at the plant stock. It will drip from top to bottom getting all the Bennie goodness on them. I could spend a hr talking about the awsome shit in rechage. Dudegrows out of Colorado knows there shit. During the week I would top off with plain ro/ph'd water. And add recharge at least 1 time a week I like to do it every time I add to me res. I used to use a chiller on my rdwc system but noticed it wasn't needed after I kept my root zone inoculated with beneficial microbiology.

djlucidd said:

Well first off recharge I use it awsome stuff.. hydroguard has some bennies in It as well but I prefer recgarge. As for the temps ideal is 65-68. The reason for the temp is keep root rot at bay. And better do levels. Personally I would recommend res change on Fri mix up recharge sepreitly in a little pitcher or cup about 12-to 24 Oz water. 1/4 tsp recharge mix really well and pour it directly at the plant stock. It will drip from top to bottom getting all the Bennie goodness on them. I could spend a hr talking about the awsome shit in rechage. Dudegrows out of Colorado knows there shit. During the week I would top off with plain ro/ph'd water. And add recharge at least 1 time a week I like to do it every time I add to me res. I used to use a chiller on my rdwc system but noticed it wasn't needed after I kept my root zone inoculated with beneficial microbiology.

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thanks! very helpful... yeah i know the reasons why the temp should be what it is, i did a shiiiiiiit load of research before dropping a bean. but yes i would looove a water chiller but theyre expensive or difficult to make. ive seen plenty of DIY videos but nothing seems practical. the whole a/c unit thing was like "WTF" and i dont have a huge res i only have whats in the buckets. am pretty lazy, i could build a res and add some water pumps but im not interested. i seen some online for about 100 bucks but theyre to long and dont fit in my bucket. anyways, great stuff man... what would a res thats to cold do to the plant? would the leaves show any signs ?

djlucidd said:

Well first off recharge I use it awsome stuff.. hydroguard has some bennies in It as well but I prefer recgarge. As for the temps ideal is 65-68. The reason for the temp is keep root rot at bay. And better do levels. Personally I would recommend res change on Fri mix up recharge sepreitly in a little pitcher or cup about 12-to 24 Oz water. 1/4 tsp recharge mix really well and pour it directly at the plant stock. It will drip from top to bottom getting all the Bennie goodness on them. I could spend a hr talking about the awsome shit in rechage. Dudegrows out of Colorado knows there shit. During the week I would top off with plain ro/ph'd water. And add recharge at least 1 time a week I like to do it every time I add to me res. I used to use a chiller on my rdwc system but noticed it wasn't needed after I kept my root zone inoculated with beneficial microbiology.

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im actually thinking of buying this one now that im actively looking...

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Free-shipping-Smallest-lengshui-mute-fish-tank-aquarium-chiller-cryocooler/970544411.html

would you happen to know how this thing works??? looks simple enough, run a tube from my res to the chiller, then from the chiller back into the res. can it really be that simple?

i checked that thing out. not sure what "semiconductor" cooling is? it does say it cools 30L but doesn't say how many degrees it can cool.

i used this: http://hydrobuilder.com/chiller-refrigeration-unit-1-10-hp.html?dzid=csegps_AACH10&gclid=CM_Z9seEqcYCFQcxaQod8TAA0g

and then you could add one of these per bucket:
http://www.homebrewing.org/product.asp?itemid=2734&utm_source=google&utm_medium=ProductAds&gclid=CPae0eiEqcYCFQoKaQodZPYA9g

and then one pump to pump the water from chiller to buckets.

in my experience with hydro (dwc), it's hard to beat a chiller for best plant (root) health. just depends on how you want to plumb all your buckets. and what your budget is.

some people get by using a sterile res at higher temps with no root problems. or even good bacteria too.

See if you need the chiller first.... using recharge 2x a week probably won't need it at all. As long as res temps stay around 74 or below with bennies. Get a cheap thermometer form the fish pet store it will help.

Too cold of a solution will slow growth..keep it between 65-70. How big is your res? I bought a couple cheap digi fish tank thermometers for keeping track of my Res's like this>

I'm in a 29L res and add a frozen 1L bottle if it get over 75F, that'll keep it down in the low 70's for 4-6hours.

water temp to 80 degrees will slow growth but not stop it. You decide risk/reward on cost of purchasing extra equipment and power running it. Either way get yourself a thermometer. I use one similar to WeedFreak78 that you can pick up at any aquarium store.

kenobi said:

i have a questions regarding my res, i'm aware that it must be kept around 68 degrees. now, my house is usually 72 degrees and my room has 2 nice sized fans in it which keeps it nice and cool

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Is the 400 on when nutes feels cool. If yes----good to go.

Yea, ~68f is ideal----however; I've ran many good yielding crops running mid 70s.

Never had problems in the root zone.

A~~~

Alaric said:

Is the 400 on when nutes feels cool. If yes----good to go.

Yea, ~68f is ideal----however; I've ran many good yielding crops running mid 70s.

Never had problems in the root zone.

A~~~

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Yeah everything seems to be going great... here's an update... today is officially 30 days from when the seedling popped out the top of the clay. Should I start feeding it full strength? Im using maxi gro... it seems to be needing a little more to get it growing big time... I might increase this Friday when I feed again.

kenobi said:

Yeah everything seems to be going great... here's an update... today is officially 30 days from when the seedling popped out the top of the clay. Should I start feeding it full strength? Im using maxi gro... it seems to be needing a little more to get it growing big time... I might increase this Friday when I feed again.

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Plant looks good

Do you have a ppm meter? If not, do yourself a favor and get one----ph meter too----don't forget the calibration solution.

I've never used the maxi product----but did a little research----only negative I saw with this form of dry nutes was how well (fast) it dissolved.

Usually the feed charts on products is overkill. I've run GH 7/14 micro/bloom, ro water and cal mag for both veg and flower (once clones and seedlings got large enough)-----really didn't notice much difference in yield.

I suggest going to 1000 ppm (.7 conversion meter).

Keep us posted,

A~~~

Alaric said:

Plant looks good

Do you have a ppm meter? If not, do yourself a favor and get one----ph meter too----don't forget the calibration solution.

I've never used the maxi product----but did a little research----only negative I saw with this form of dry nutes was how well (fast) it dissolved.

Usually the feed charts on products is overkill. I've run GH 7/14 micro/bloom, ro water and cal mag for both veg and flower (once clones and seedlings got large enough)-----really didn't notice much difference in yield.

I suggest going to 1000 ppm (.7 conversion meter).

Keep us posted,

A~~~

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i never really understood that whole "parts per million" thing... how exactly do i adjust this if its under 1000??? i understand that it measures the minerals and other substances are in the water but how would i adjust it? also, whats up with the TDS? ive tried staying away from ppm and tds just because i have no clue what to do with it. when i google i always get "scientist talk". all these numbers and ratios lol... can you dumb it down a bit?? sometimes thats what we all need lol

alaric is right on. you need to invest in a pH meter and ppm/EC meter if you plan on doing hydro well.

think of ppm as how strong your nute solution is. to lower it, you'd add more water to dilute what you have.
when i was starting out, i kept very detailed journals of my grows. i could then go back and see what i did if a problem popped up.

Why I prefer water culture to other methods because with proper monitoring tools (ppm/ec, ph, air temp, nute temp)----no guessing.

And if you want to get fancy-----DO and light meter.

^^rkymtnman gave a good explanation of ppm.

I like to see a small amount of leaf tip burn (very small) that tells me nute strength STRONG ENOUGH.

Different strains can have different requirements-----I've grown NL and loved how well it grew, cloned, and yielded------ran it as high as 1500 ppm in flowering.

Once you get everything dialed in--- get ready for a growth explosion.

There is a collective wealth of knowledge (based on experience) on this site-----I suggest you use it to your advantage.

If I were limited to only one meter----I'd choose ph. If you've seen the nute absorption chart relative to ph----- I like to see a gradual ph swing that covers the entire spectrum.

A~~~

Alaric said:

Why I prefer water culture to other methods because with proper monitoring tools (ppm/ec, ph, air temp, nute temp)----no guessing.

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Exactly why i went hydro, i wanted as much control as possible and i liked the quick reaction of the plants to changes in environment or nutrients. No waiting days to see a deficiency or burn starting, it shows in as little as a couple hours sometimes, and a fix is as easy as a nute adjustment or a dump and new res. And because of the quick reactions , you'll know if what you just did made a difference or you need to try something else.

Alaric said:

I like to see a small amount of leaf tip burn (very small) that tells me nute strength STRONG ENOUGH.

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I did that, creep up on it till i see just a little tip discoloration then i diluted by about 10%, by eye, just to get away from that upper limit a little.. Seemed to keep it strong enough for huge growth but not burn a tip. My leaves were really dark green though, across multiple strains, making me think i could cut back a little more. I'm down at 50% of where i was getting tip burn with no discernible changes in growth, this is all in veg, in flower they get hungry.

Alaric said:

If I were limited to only one meter----I'd choose ph. If you've seen the nute absorption chart relative to ph----- I like to see a gradual ph swing that covers the entire spectrum.

A~~~

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I agree,you can have the perfect mix of nutes but if the PH is way off they may not be available to the plant, whereas a poor nutrient mix in optimal PH will make the limited nutrients available. I've found once I got to know my setup and follow a nutrient schedule, it became like clockwork almost. I grab a pen every now and then just as a sanity check, but as long as i mix per directions, it's dead on every time.

yes the PH pen was the first thing i got... i always keep it around 5.5 - 6.0... i will invest in a ppm reader, knowing how strong my solution is would be ideal for me. you guys say top keep it at 1000ppm ideally? thanks for explaining that whole ppm bumbo jumbo, kinda feel like a fool because it was so easily explained. i will get one of these and see how high i can get it before it starts showing burn on the tips juuust slightly. so basically i drop my nutes in the water and measure my solution to make sure its at 1000ppm. if by the next day i dont see any burning i crank it up to 1100ppm the next time? and so on until she shows signs of nute burn? sounds simple enough.

kenobi said:

you guys say top keep it at 1000ppm ideally? i will get one of these and see how high i can get it before it starts showing burn on the tips juuust slightly. so basically i drop my nutes in the water and measure my solution to make sure its at 1000ppm. if by the next day i dont see any burning i crank it up to 1100ppm the next time? and so on until she shows signs of nute burn? sounds simple enough.

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That's a good strategy about the nutes. You will hear many conflicting stories about nute strength. I think primarily because of different "sweet spots" between strains and the different conversion factor from ec to ppm.

If you're totally new to growing, you'll probably ask yourself "should I flush"? That's a matter of personal preference.

I've noticed a metallic taste to buds when smoked running very strong nutes all the way through (>1200).

I like good tasting smoke----just not my first priority----quality of the high and yield is 1st.

End of ramble,

A~~~

Are you saying it's better to run ppm at max 1000 during veg and flower? Or is it more strain specific? I do prefer a clean tasting smoke. I do not run past 3/4 strength nutrients in soil. Is that good for hydro as well? Do you flush your final 2 weeks in hydro?

Smokenpassout said:

Are you saying it's better to run ppm at max 1000 during veg and flower?

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Not "better"-----depends on strain how strong

I don't flush---- would be more hassle that it's worth harvesting 1 of 8 tubes every 7 days.

No complaints from the hood about the taste----and they are picky bunch.

My opinion why people flush hydro / aero is because nutes are very strong----all I've ever noticed is more salt buildup in the tubes and rez -------no noticeable difference in yield.

I have no experience to speak of with soil.

Don't know if I answered your question or not?

A~~~

Alaric said:

Not "better"-----depends on strain how strong

I don't flush---- would be more hassle that it's worth harvesting 1 of 8 tubes every 7 days.

No complaints from the hood about the taste----and they are picky bunch.

My opinion why people flush hydro / aero is because nutes are very strong----all I've ever noticed is more salt buildup in the tubes and rez -------no noticeable difference in yield.

I have no experience to speak of with soil.

Don't know if I answered your question or not?

A~~~

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That is interesting. So you run nutrients right up to harvest. What sort of ppm's do you run max?