First Hydro Attempt...

New, but well-informed.
Though I've grown only 4 crops, all indoors, I wouldn't say I'm a 'novice'. My family (3 separate members) have a total of about 50+ years growing experience; and you should see one's all-organic vegetable garden he plants each year. With mentors like these, I've attained quite the 'green-thumb'.

All 4 of my little gardens were indoors; the previous 3 were all in soil (I experimented with 3 different soils, all-organic). Never more than four plants at a time, I was able to set-up a closet. Great results each time, with the last being the best.

My newest is about 10 days into flowering, and from seed to harvest, it will be 100% hydroponic. I started with 6 vegetive plants, chose the top 4, then killed one with a watering oversight. 2 out of the remaining 3 turned out to be male (damn it!). But, watching the last one grow, I should have plenty to last my wife and I for a while...


Pic 1.) Now that I have the heater setup correctly, it maintains a temp between 65 and 70 F; average 35% humidity. That's the smallest air pump I found at the pet store, like $12, running two airstones set inside 12 gallons of nutrient solution.

Pic 2.) A close up of how she's doin... gorgeous

Pic 3.) I made this from scrap lumber and CFL's. 4 75w equivalent bulbs, 2 100w equivalent bulbs, lined in mylar. It delivers 7000+ lumens, and uses little extra power. When I started flowering, I added two 150w 3500K CFLs, and 2 2-bulb 24" T5 tubes. It's all aglow.

Pic 4.) this is an above view of the complete setup. I have a homemade wooden frame from an old shop-cabinet. It's 75% wrapped in Mylar; the temp got up to 107 degrees F in one day when it was 100% covered.

Pic 5.) This is a very simple, highly effective carbon scrubber. It's a bathroom vent fan ($15) set on top of a make-shift duct made out of diaper boxes. Inside is 2 large containers worth of activated carbon ($20 from pet-store), sandwiched between two 3in. thick layers of pillow stuffing. At the very bottom is an air filter made for a Jeep, buttoned together with duct tape. It runs 24/7 inside a 4'x3' closet, and you can't smell a thing.

Pic 6.) Ain't she a beaut... She's about 22" tall, and 10 days in. The next few weeks are gonna be exciting.

Inside, I have 12 gallons of nutrient solution. I use GH Flora series nutes, and I add Superthrive. After everything is mixed, I adjust the ph to between 5.5 and 6.0. Looking back, I sshould've made an easy drain for the tubs (which I change out with fresh solution every 2 weeks). 12 gallons of water weighs like 60lbs. That's terrible to move, let alone two...

So Shealla (yeah, I named her; what of it?) is the only one left. But I'm hoping for... 3/4 - 1 ounce from her in 5+ weeks. I'll be happy with that, for a first hydro set-up.

Please let me know if you see anything wrong, or something you would do different...

Thanks

PS... I'm enjoying the site. Thanks GC!

 

Had the time today, so I decided to throw a few more pics up.

Pic 1.) This is everything I use to grow: FloraGrow, Bloom, and Micro nutes with Superthrive amendment; GH ph adjustment kit (I'll never use the ph-up, except to correct my mistake); rockwool and expanded clay pellets as the medium.

*fyi: my outdoor closet has dropped to 45F, and jumped to 107F, while I was trying to get the space-heater setup correctly. The only thing I can think of that allowed my plants to survive my inexperience (thrive, really; no pun intended) is the Superthrive. 1ml per gallon and they've shown zero stress*

Pic 2.) This was the setup I had them in during veg growth. The drippers were on 24/7 hooked to a small 90gph pump. The air-pump ran thru the circular air-stone (bottom left), also 24/7... of course. I gotta say, this 10 gallon tub ($8 at the hardware store) was so much easier to handle than my 18 gallon one she's in now.

Pic 3.) A close-up of how the drippers sat atop the 3" mesh pots.

Pic 4.) How the roots looked today. She's loving having so much water and space to herself.

Pic 5.) I started 4 new seeds today (the others have not sprouted a strong enough rootlet yet. Probably tomorrow... I crack my seeds by wetting a paper-towel, folding it twice to sandwich the seeds, place them in a plastic sandwich bag, and, believe it or not, place the bag on top of the water-heater for a couple days. Works like a charm

The seeds are in sat in moistened rockwool starter cubes and placed inside a clear plastic tube (98 cents at wallyworld). Once they sprout out of the cube, I'll place the entire thing under a 24" 2-bulb (6500K) fluorescent light.

Super easy. Super cheap. And extremely fun and addicting.
Why buy smoke when you can grow your own?

Keep it small. Keep it quiet. And enjoy the fruit of your own labor

 

Thanks man. I've enjoyed fooling around and making it all myself. God Bless the internet and its limitless database of diy how-to's.