Hey, I've successfully ran through 5 grows now with everything ranging from indica->sativa and anything in between lol. The biggest things that seem to be causing inconsistancies in my grows are nutrients and bulbs. Now The only time I run into problems is when I'm not home and have to leave instructions for ppm's and ph for my roommate(who isn't stupid, but doesn't know what to look for in the plants) because I'm out for school for a week or something-and the end of the grow I always either over, or under feed. I don't have a lumen meter so I think sometimes I use MH or HPS bulbs beyond there useable life and my plants suffer because of it. I guess what I'm here to ask about is the new Ideal420 soil I keep seeing ads for and reading about in HighTimes. Has anyone used it? This would solve my nutrient issues, and do you water with RO water with this soil, or just ph'd tap? I also want to buy a 300W Gravita LEP light for veg and use it as supplimental lighting during flower, I will add HPS in also(with the newest bulbs I have purchased lol). Anyone using a similar setup currently or have experience with LEP? This will be a huge expendature towards my grow but I have enough from the last grow to improve my setup so These are what I'm deciding to spend my money on.
I wouldn't not use the LEP with your HPS. sounds like a decent investment. no experience with the soil although it seems to have some good stuff in it.
Now I'm wondering what to compare output's with, but I'm thinking I could run 4 plants-each in 5gal buckets drilled for airation with Ideal420 soil under a single 300W LEP during veg, then add in 2x400W HPS during flower. I'm going to do some more research before I just go buy it, but I think that setup might be what I end up gowing with. I won't be adding extra heat and my electricity usage will be very similar to my last grow(2x400W MH/HPS + 240W blackstar LED) so I shouldn't have to change much to do it either.