MikeHoncho's G13 Pineapple Express T5 Hydro Grow

I must have ordered these seeds a few months back, and the time has come to start the germination process. 5 seeds were placed in a moist paper towel above a a warming pad this morning.

As before, I will be growing in a Secret Jardin DR150 tent and using a T5 (Sunblaze 48, but a Bad Boy may be purchased in the near future) through the entire process. The seedlings will eventually be transplanted into Waterfarm top feed buckets and hydroton medium. Each bucket will have an air stone to make it a combo top feed/DWC. For my first grow, I used GH nutrients (so friggin' simple using the Lucas Formula), but I have been thinking about switching -- we'll see. I've read very good things about other Nute line-ups -- flavor, yield, etc. -- if I feel particularly motivated, I may try to do a side-by-side comparison of the GH line with a competitior -- still debating.

I'm also going to try to use a screen this go around. My last grow of what were supposed to be relatively small autoflowers (Lowryder Easy Ryder AKA Lowryder #2 x AK47) got way out of control, and I ended up with 2 plants well over 5 feet tall at harvest. I'm working on a simple design and would like to come up with something that is easy to assemble and disassemble as needed.

I'll update and post photos as things start to progress. Any thoughts, comments are always appreciated.

I transfered 4 of the 5 seedlings to the Waterfarms earlier this week -- so far everything is going according to plan. I do wish I would have made the switch to the Waterfarm buckets a week earlier -- these little girls have seen some good growth in just a few days time. As noted above, I'm running GH nutes (will switch to Lucas Formula in a week or two) and vegging under an 8 bulb T5. At this point, I'm 99% certain that I will be flowring uder a 600w HPS.

My plan is to veg for another 4 or 5 weeks before switching to 12/12, and in a perfect world, that would allow me to fill what is essentially a 5x5 screen with 4 plants. The frame for the screen can be seen on the floor of the tent -- it is made out of pvc and has removable legs.

Do you plan on running the waterfarm's separately or together with larger reservoir throughout the grow?

Do you plan on running the waterfarm's separately or together with larger reservoir throughout the grow?

Separately -- my last grow had three plants, and I simply changed the reservoirs once a week and topped it off as needed. Still new to this, so I'm trying to keep it as simple as possible -- another grow or two under my belt, and I may go with an external reservoir -- we'll see.

These little girls are about a month old and seem to be doing pretty well under the T5. I'm still trying to decide what to do about the lighting during the flowering cycle -- I've been eyeing a 600W HPS set up that I'm probably going to pull the trigger on in the next week or two. Until then, these gals will continue to veg.

wow man those ladies look damn near perfect! if i can be of any help regarding that 600....you will not be disappointed...i almost ended up buying another 400 and ended up going with the 600...best choice so far....

wow man those ladies look damn near perfect! if i can be of any help regarding that 600....you will not be disappointed...i almost ended up buying another 400 and ended up going with the 600...best choice so far....

Thanks, Naughty -- a little TLC and a modicum of reading comprehension goes a long way. I think that 600 is in my future. Last go round, I used the T5 for the full life of three autoflowers with decent results -- the buds could have been larger and denser, but I had a decent yield. With four plants, I either need another T5 or I need to make the switch to HPS -- seems like a no brainer.

Thanks, Naughty -- a little TLC and a modicum of reading comprehension goes a long way. I think that 600 is in my future. Last go round, I used the T5 for the full life of three autoflowers with decent results -- the buds could have been larger and denser, but I had a decent yield. With four plants, I either need another T5 or I need to make the switch to HPS -- seems like a no brainer.

yea man if you are looking for the density...the 600 will help you a long ways with that...i was happy with what my 400 was doing, but when i got the 600 those extra 200 watts made a big difference...have you decided if youre going with a cooltube or open wing reflector?

yea man if you are looking for the density...the 600 will help you a long ways with that...i was happy with what my 400 was doing, but when i got the 600 those extra 200 watts made a big difference...have you decided if youre going with a cooltube or open wing reflector?

I haven't decided -- my basement is relatively cool, and the tent is set up in a small room that is walled off from the main part of the basement -- I think I could keep temps in the tent below 75 degrees or so fairly easily without using a cool tube. I was talking with some guys at my local hydro store, and they suggested a P.L. reflector -- they had one set-up in a tent at the store with just an oscilating fan going, and the temps weren't out of control.

In the future when you obtain a hps I imagine you would just abandon the T5 right? The intensity would have to be worlds apart.

great start Honcho, I got my 2 waterfarms because of your success in your last grow. I also used the GH basic nutes for the first time because they came with the waterfarms, and I love it. side by side against technaflora products, there was no comparison, GH was better. I added the supplements for the expert feeding program, and I couldn't be happier. I'm not a big DIY guy (thus the waterfarms) but I found the reservoirs a little small, so I went to a 5 gal bubble bucket with no top feed system. I just veg the plants out in netpots/hydroton and then throw them in the lid. Works great so far.

I'm subscirbed, good luck dude

I don't think you'll regret getting that 600wHPS. I have a 400w and it is great, and doesn't get my tent over 78F with only a 95 cfm fan hooked to a 4" carbonaire filter

In the future when you obtain a hps I imagine you would just abandon the T5 right? The intensity would have to be worlds apart.

The T5 will always have a home -- this this thing is great for seedlings and vegetative growth.

True that . You need to keep that pineapple in the family.

great start Honcho, I got my 2 waterfarms because of your success in your last grow. I also used the GH basic nutes for the first time because they came with the waterfarms, and I love it. side by side against technaflora products, there was no comparison, GH was better. I added the supplements for the expert feeding program, and I couldn't be happier. I'm not a big DIY guy (thus the waterfarms) but I found the reservoirs a little small, so I went to a 5 gal bubble bucket with no top feed system. I just veg the plants out in netpots/hydroton and then throw them in the lid. Works great so far.

I'm subscirbed, good luck dude

I don't think you'll regret getting that 600wHPS. I have a 400w and it is great, and doesn't get my tent over 78F with only a 95 cfm fan hooked to a 4" carbonaire filter

Nice looking thread dangerous -- very impressive.

Size has been my only concern. I was planning on letting these veg for a few more weeks and try my hand at a scrog, but the root mass has me concerned. Anyone out there vegged for an extended period of time in a waterfarm or other 2gal bucket?

My only experience has been with the autoflowers last go round, and there wasn't much room left in the reservoirs when those were harvested. These already have a decent root mass going, and I expect them to explode in the next week or two.

I was eyeing Budslinger's DIY for recirc bubble buckets -- that may be the next project...

I had 2 mothers growing in the waterfarms and the root mass was so big that I could barely get a gallon of nutes in there because when I would put the top back in, it would overflow the nutes, haha. That's the ONLY thing I didnt like about them, but I really like the top feed part, it helps plants that are young grow into the rez faster.

even without the central rez, bubble buckets are super easy, all you need is a black (or lightproof) bucket, air pumps and some tubing. budslinger and rumple have some great stickies on DIY stuff. however, you can find pre-made systems on amazon or ebay. i'm not much of a DIY guy, unless there are no other options.

I'm about to get my 400 watt HPS and MH in a week or two too. I have high hopes for it's safe arrival. Have your already purchased yours?

make a res for 13.00:eek:

Switched to 12/12 on 2/20 -- 7-8 weeks to go. I'm using a 600w HPS to flower, and I'll be skipping the ScrOG this time around.

My main reason for skipping the ScrOG was the portability of the plants and the ease of checking the reservoirs and changing water/nutes. Four buckets under a scrog that aren't attached to a recirc reservoir set-up seemed like it would be a nightmare to deal with. So the day after I switched to 12/12 I had an epiphany -- individual ScrOGs attached to each of the waterfarm buckets (patent pending). The results can be seen below. Each screen is approximately 2'x2', which will give me a 4'x4' overall area that seems about right for a 600W light. Each ScrOG is mounted on its own bucket, and I can lift the upper container with the plant and hydroton without having to worry about the screen -- it seems to be working pretty well thus far -- I wish I had come up with it a week or two before switching the light schedule...

Edited by mikehoncho, 26 February 2011 - 06:51 PM.

I like the side by side comparison of scrog vs no scrog! Plants look great man.