First Grow --- Comments Requested

http://www.buyershelper.com/stats/plant.jpg
Problem Plant Photo

Equipment:
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HydroHut Mini
Cool Tube
Gavita 600w HPS
Galaxy 600w Electronic Ballast
Grodan Mini-Blocks as starter medium
Superthrive
Liquid 10-15-10 Nutes

Transplant Medium is 1 Part Miracle Grow Potting Soil, 3 Parts Organic Compost Soil, 2 parts Perlite and a touch of Dolamite Lime.

Water is adjusted to 5.8-6.5ph. Nutes are currently at 1/3 concentration. Only a few drops of superthrive per gallon.

Light is constant 5 feet from plant canopy. Temps fluctuate from 72.0-80.0F.

Ventilation is constant and sufficient.


So what the hell is going wrong already???

I'm about 2 weeks in to seedlings and I put them in the grow room and now after two days, I'm getting this:

Leaves were all green before going in to the chamber of death. Now, the center of the leaves are streaking bright yellow. I imagine that the light was too close, as I had it much closer the first few days, but pulled it back after I saw the damage. The temps never went that high, but I've read about immature seeding getting too much light.

I re mediated with a flush of 1/2 strength nutes and more superthrive. If I lose these...... ungh. Help. Does anything seem really off?

From what you described, mine did something like that. I actually never figured out what caused it and one of my plants is almost all yellow now. Pictures would help if you have any. It sounds like your set up is fine, and i dont think its an over heating thing. Sounds like you could even get closer to the light if its that far. I have a 1000w 2 feet away and its almost to cool

as i understand you veg with your 600W HPS right now which is 5 ft away from the plants?? first, normal HPS bulbs are not in the range needed for vegging really, far to much into the red. second, you lights are damn far away with 5ft, move them in as close as possible, every inch more wastes usable energy!
the medium is good, but you have to watch that those cubes are never soaked nor dry out which both happens easily if attention isn't paid.
the nutes you use are more universal nutes and not specific for grow, rather get some real stuff for the job. and veg nutes should be high on N, which your stuff isn't.
also your nutes you used to start with been quit high, and did you really pH'ed there anything? you state there you pH'ed from 5.8 to 6.5, that is a damn wight range!

that damage wasn't done by the lights nor does it sounds way to much like temps but NUTES! seedlings can hardly take any, so to start rockwool never use more then 1/8 really.

A couple good points, so I'll respond.

The bulb I'm using is a Gavita which is supposed to have enhanced blue spectrum. Probably not as good as MH for veg, but it's all I have.

When you said that you had a plant that was almost entirely yellow.... was it otherwise healthy? I tried a couple plants before and when they turned quite yellow , a few days later I was throwing them away.

I should probably get a good ph meter, because I've been using a pool test kit (phenol red). It's almost always in the 8's out of the tap, so I end up adding a few drops of vinegar per gallon to knock it down.

I read that hard water can effect nutrient uptake and that Zinc deficiency has similar symptoms, but I can imagine seedlings can be deficient in much.

I took a look at them and they appear a bit greener today, so I think I'll just use RO or distilled water for a couple days.

<Fingers Crossed>
Thanks.

I put way more nutes on mine than was needed and fried em. They are recovering, pretty hurt but it will only put them out for like a week and they will be right back in there.

I'm dropping the light to 4' from the canopy. Temperature is a steady 75F right now, so I could probably go closer, but I'm going to wait until I get C02 running.

I slammed them with nutes yesterday (1/2 strength + superthrive) and today I decided I'm only going to use RO or distilled water, because it's too maddening to think that the minerals in tap could be locking up the nutes. They are recovering a little today, the yellow is less yellow/lime greenish. I'm going to keep a close eye on them and see if they continue to improve.

Honestly, I think I was low on nutes. Growing is kinda tricky. I thought this would be much easier. But, I found a hobby I really love learning about, so, what they heck.

Oh, and correct me here if I'm wrong....

this HPS bulb is rated at ~95,000 initial lumens. I understand the inverse square principle for light, but also the interior of the grow room is 90&#37; reflective. The hut is 3.3'x3.3' which is about 11 square feet. That equals over 8,500 lumens per square foot.

I think that it's pleeeeeenty of light. I just need to work on the watering and nutes.

Once plants have rooted from the Grodan material in to soil, should I be using water/fert/superthive mixture each day, or should I fert every third day and use only RO the off days? I think I definitely over watered last time, so I used a lot of Pearlite this time to help drainage. Ungh.

Its the hydrohut. I also have the same problem- started when I got a Hydrohut 4x4x7. I changed the nutes, the strains, the lights, added fans- and the only thing that ever worked was taking them out the freaking hut. I tested for everything- including light and air flow. If you check out other sites, people have the same problem with these contraptions- unless they are manufactured by someone other than Hydrohut...