First Time Grow-Bag Seed Stealth Dwc 400W Mh/hps With Homemade Chiller Experiment

Discussion in 'Hydroponic Growing' started by swampthang14, Jun 29, 2014.

  1. #1 swampthang14, Jun 29, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 29, 2014
     Ok so ive spent a long time reading the forums and the past year on this build. I wanted this cabinet to be stealthy and effective. DWC seemed like the only logical way for me to achieve the results needed to make this worth the time and effort involved. I have decided bag seeds was the only way to go since this is my first grow and results may vary. When the build was complete I torture tested the unit to verify its ability in substaining life for the required time needed. The test was at full power with 24/7 lighting for 3 months straight. Not only did I get to fine tune the unit for air and res temps but I also got to get an estimate on power costs. 60 bucks a month is acceptible for my home. I will give a list of the setup and then provide pics and a more detailed description as we go.
     
    Standup double door closet
    reflective insulation
    5 gal bucket res
    tetra 60 air pump
    2 fine bubble air stones
    400w mh/hps cooltubed
    rpm adjustable swirl fan for light cooling
    intake/exhaust window unit fan (for chiller coil on back of unit)
    several pc fans intake/exhaust
    small water pump for top feed drip (only til roots established)
    office style water cooler for homemade rez chiller
    cool mist humidifier (just incase but hasnt been needed yet)
    hydroton clay pellets
    homemade net pot
    ph/ppm digital meters
    various thermometers (reg and digital for both ambient and res just to be sure)
    ph up/down with tester (i use both daily just to double check)
    hollands secret nutrients
    well water at 250 ppm
     
     
     
     
    I am gonna stop here and wait to see if anyone is actually interested in this build before I put in the work to provide pics and more info. If there is enough interest I will prob start a grow journal. If anyone wants me to continue please reply and I will be glad to provide more info to help future growers and those looking to make a chiller for under 50 bucks. Thanks to grasscity and all the members who provided info that helped me make this possible.

     
  2. I am deffinately interested, i will stay tuned.
     
  3. #3 swampthang14, Jun 29, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 29, 2014
    So if you guys want an idea of how its actually goin this is week 3 of veg. I placed it in the bucket as soon as it sprouted and top drip fed until roots could be seen.  This is when I started counting days. Here are a couple pics to show the progress so far.
     
    6.28.2014.sized_cleaned.jpg 6.28.2014.sized1_cleaned.jpg
     
  4. Soundz cool.  What temp's (and other operational parameters as relevant) did you decide on?  
     
  5. For my system the most extreme air temp has been 88f and res at 60f with my room temp at 78f. I have tried other temps and figured this was best incase of a fan failure my res will still stay under 68f even if air temp hits over 100f. The cooler has to run off a timer or even on the lowest settings the thermostat wants to make the water 35f and yes I have tried that temp on a plantless bucket and It makes the bubbles become foamy and the surface real frothy almost slushy like. 60f is what my plant seems to like so far. I know alot of people say thats to cold for res but I have not seen any change in growth at this point. That doesnt mean it will always like it that cold but we shall see. It also helps keep the ph from having to be adjusted daily. I have to drop it down a lil bit every 3-4 days so far. 
     
  6. For those interested this is what I used to make my homemade chiller. It was a 5 gallon water bottle cooler for a typical office. I got it for 20 bucks local and gutted it out. I then took the coils that wrap the aluminum cup and cut the cup down as far as possible. I then took a plastic modeling kit from hobby lobby used to make plastic model parts and incased the coils that will be in the rez with it. I didnt want the copper to be exposed in the water 24/7. I then took a rubber hose and split it to run over the copper up out of the bucket. I used clear silicone to fill the hose and keep the copper from water contact.
    stealth12_cleaned.jpg
     
    This is with it in the setup. Its the round white bowl in the bottom of bucket..
    stealth7_cleaned.jpg
     
    The main compressor and coils are on the backside of box with a fan blowing inside air out onto it to help cool it down.
     
  7. Day 23
     
    Did some training, pruning and topped. Im counting 11 tops/branchs pointing up so we shall see how this goes. Im planning to train a few more days and prob flip to flower on the 9th. That would be a month of veg and I am in restricted air space. Im keeping the plant 6 inchs and trying to get all the tops even before the flip. 
     
    7.2.2014.jpg
    7.2.2014.1.jpg
     
  8. nice growth man looks healthy :D i don't no much about DWC as i grow with soil
     
  9. also good idea keeping the even before flower :D
     
  10. Day 25
     
     A lil more trimming and training. Took 3 clones yesterday from branchs on the bottom side that couldnt get to the light to easily.
    7.4.2014.side.jpg
    7.4.2014.1.jpg
    7.4.2014.2.jpg
     
    Any tips would be greatly appreciated since this is my forst grow.
     
  11. Just a lil update. I know this board isnt as active as it use to be but I figured ill share for those that do like to watch..
     
    Anyway switched to 12/12 on July 9th. This is one month exact of veg and no signs of sex yet. It took 6 days for her gurl parts to start showing so the July15th was day 1 of flower.. She started at 4.5 inchs at the flip and went well over 14 inchs in just a short 20 days. This of course was a mystery bag seed and I may have got lucky with a gurl but not so lucky with the strains height requirements.
     
    7.24.2014.jpg
     
    Anyways after some careful wood work I was able to make a completely hidden veg and flower room inside my home to give her max height needed.
     
    7.27.2014.jpg
     
    I know its hard to tell from pics but can anyone tell if this is a hybrid? This was a bag seed from some ok regs down in texas so Im not expecting much after all this was a first time tester plant anyway.
     
    7.22.2014.jpg
     
    ppm 850
    soup temp 60
    air temp 80
    light 8 inchs from top
     
     
     
     
     
  12. How does the alum go in the res.


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