First Grow And Looking For Input!

[Pain Releaf]

I'll do my best to provide all the info I have for now, feel free to discard whatever is irrelevant. Figure as a new grower, as at present I'm not the best judge of what might be relevant or not :)

I'll break my (really long) list of info into separate replies to make it easier for folks to provide input on individual topics...

 

[Pain Releaf]

OVERALL ROOM CONSTRAINTS:
We purchased the place less than a year ago. Thankfully it has an uninsulated-but-furnace-heated (aka expensive to maintain temp) shop that's about 800 square feet with 14' ceilings. However within the shop there's an enclosed-and-insulated room in one corner that's was a combo washroom/mud room-w/utility sink that is about 8' x 11' total with about 7' x 8' of it readily usable for plants.

So the initial area is 56 sq. ft.

I also have a 5'x5'x80" grow tent that I can set up outside that room, adjacent to it, to either house a second batch of plants on their own cycle or else the mamas (if I don't keep the mamas inside the actual house.)

Shop also has a nice and surprisingly thorough security system... the prior owner ran a business out of it... another bonus feature.

 

[Pain Releaf]

ROOM CONFIG:

I had the tent in there then decided to remove it to provide more flexibility. So I am just finishing up lining the room with foil-faced styro sheets. The electrician also just finished up putting in 10 quad outlets across the walls and ceilings, using 2 extra circuits in the main power panel. Both circuits are 110v for now; he can come back and put a 220v back in with some reconfiguration if I end up needing it.

Also the switched room lighting was changed to have two ceiling surface mount bulb fixtures, which I've put in 2 green CFLs so I can enter during the off hours.

 

[Pain Releaf]

GROW MEDIUM:
Soil.
I was going to go RDWC based on things I had read, but my local clone guy (*fantastic guy, willing to set aside time from his business to help new growers any time and has been a tremendous help*) recommended I run at least my first grow in soil, saying it would teach me a lot I can then translate to other approaches. So I'm currently in soil, while I also am building out an 8 to 12 site RDWC for the next cycle (mothers may or may not be kept in soil.

Soil is a 4-in-1 composted soil with Mycorrhiza blend out of Canada; additional vermiculite added, with slightly more than that added to the first 1 or 2 inches in the bottom of the pot.

Current pots are 3 gallon.

Next (final) transplant of my current plants in veg will likely be to my 7 gal air pots.

 

[Pain Releaf]

LIGHTS:
Especially need a bunch of input here!

Final initial light setup TBD.

I have been using a combination of standard T8 flouro's and LED flouro replacements (had most of them on hand already), along with some lower end grow LEDs from Amazon that I've been testing over the last 2 to 3 weeks. I've tried about a dozen different lights and sizes and as an aside, a little while later today I'm probably going to post a brief "lessons learned with lower end LEDs" thread for those interested. Suffice it to say I've not been impressed with the **lower end LEDs (have only been looking under $350)**, either strength, evenness of coverage or for many, the completeness of the plant-desired light spectrum. Most don't have all the bands they state, are under powered for any but single or near-single plant usage, are overrated re: their advertised output and are poorly made. That coupled with their high cost (and the fact I'm on a tight budget) makes it unlikely I'll be keeping them.

So as of 2 days ago I started taking a second look at CMH or an MH/HPS combo.

Options include new of course and a used partial setup a friend has. He is selling 3 XXL MH/HPS enclosed combo hoods set up for 6" air cooling, along with some (don't know how many yet) 1-cycle used bulbs, adjustable hangers, but no ballasts, for $200. He said the hoods brand was "Sun-something or other." Honestly I was leaning CMH/LEC 315s based on reports here but am wondering if his price might warrant me buying them and going MH veg / HPS flower. I am definitely looking for input on this area especially! Timing's important: I'd like to buy the final setup in the next 2 to 5 days due to some personal time constraints and to potentially take advantage of Thanksgiving sales too.

The one big caveat here is that my budget is a paltry $700 to cover the 7'x8' area!

Btw, currently I am running the flouros and LEDs on a 21/3 hour cycle based on my cloner's recommendations with these breeds.

 

[Pain Releaf]

NUTRIENTS:

Primarily Botanicare (BC) Pure Blend (PB). So far (just over 3 weeks since I got the clones) I've used BC PB Pro Grow, BC PB Tea, BC Hydroplex and Golden Tree tonic (primarily fulvic acid and micro enzymes I believe) along with Clonex solution for B1 at transplants to help with shock.

I also have BC PB Bloom once I go to flowering, along with BC Liquid Kharma, Flush and their sweetener, along with Black Strap Molasses for the flower stage.

Water: 27 aerated reservoir in the room that I keep topped off to allow for temp stability, let's chlorine evaporate and I PH to 6.6 for waterings and when mixing nutes.

 

[Pain Releaf]

AIR, ETC.

- CO2: Currently I'm just allowing the plants to use the CO2 I produce when in the room daily; may grab a used $70 CO2 tank and regulator my buddy is selling - looking for input especially on this one also! It seems like it would be worth grabbing at that price, especially if I'm going to be upgrading the lighting

- TEMP: Lasko thermostat controlled fan set at 73 to keep the night time temps within range

- HUMIDITY: Have been simply placing a couple buckets with water and Hydroton in them for now. Though I do have a regulated humidifier, I've not been using it; during this time of year in the NW USA where I live, the relative humidity until recently has been staying around 40 to 50 percent almost by itself. The last few days though it seems to be dropping, perhaps because as the plants grow larger and faster they are taking some of the humidity out of the air?? Not sure. The important thing is that as I understand it our area is prone to powdery mold so I've been leaning towards not going above the 40 to 50 percent range, at least until I know what I'm doing better.

 

[Pain Releaf]

CURRENTLY GROWING:

I have 6 plants in veg and just got my medical approval to go to 15. This 6 I currently have are:

- Three Frankenstein (these things are unkillable and grow like crazy)

- One Blue Dream CBD

- One Purple Orange CBD

- One Candida (CD-1)

(Very tentative - hoping for input on this from y'all - Strains I am considering adding to get to the 15 limit: Pennywise, White Bastard (combo of DJ's Short Blueberry and God Bud), DJ's Short Blueberry, God Bud, GDP, Mazar Sharif, Tahoe OG Kush, Blueberry Silvertip, Platinum or regular Bubba Kush and/or possibly Purple Star. However my strain knowledge, especially on the newer strains, is pretty limited and I'm betting most folks up here would know a ton of others that might suit as well or better... The symptoms I am looking to address are: severe pain, sleeplessness, muscle spasms, neurologic tremors, migraine, PTSD. The one I personally have to be very careful of is a cannabis sensitivity to paranoia. Any input on this or any areas I've listed are super appreciated!!!


The current plants are all from clones; according to the data I was given the Candida is the youngest (10/10/17); the BD and OP CBDs next (9/20/17) and the Frankensteins are the oldest at 8/20/17.)

The plant sizes at present (after multiple FIMs, Tops and Supercrops) are:

- Frankensteins: 24", 25" and 26.5"

- Blue Dream CBD: 17"

- Candida (CD-1): 17

- Orange Purple CBD: 19.75"


I am tentatively planning on taking clones tomorrow and cropping the older Frankensteins back about 10", to go back to a period just before I got them. The reason is that initially I didn't have enough blue light and they stretched significantly for about 10 days. By cropping them back that much I am hoping to eliminate the stretch section, greatly encourage the lower branches to bush the plants out more, and lastly give the other 3 younger plants a chance to partially catch up as far as height by the time I head into flower in a 2 or weeks.

 

[Pain Releaf]

... and lastly:

- SENSOR/DATA LOGGING: Found a really good option on this one. I've settled on a product I really, really like called SensorPush Wireless Thermometer / Hygrometer for iPhone / Android. It's a really great sensor with an even better app. It has fantastic, exportable data logging and graphing, allowing you to see your temps and rel. humidity anywhere within Bluetooth range and you can add a wifi gateway (optional) that let's you see it over the web. You can even set configurable alarms for temp and humidity that get pushed to your phone or tabled. Super helpful and just under $50. Has really helped as some days physically I'm not able to make it out to the shop unless it's an emergency. Saved some sleepless nights.

GROW LOG APP:
Jury is still out on this one. I have no idea what the best option is for tracking your overall grow and would love some input on this one too if folks are so inclined.

Thanks for your time, tips and info!

 

[Pain Releaf]

I'll definitely get to uploading some pictures up there once I get my gear put back up and things sorted out in the grow room in a day or two.. Right now it's a mess in there as I still have a bit to go laying the floor material, etc.

Appreciate the input all, especially right now on the lighting decision. All the best.