Definitely drop the AN, there are much better nutrients out there. However just because the price tag is high does not always mean the product is not worth it. Rock nutrients are a bit on the expensive side, but there are a max of 5 bottles to buy you can really run with only 4 of the bottles as one is a foliar. I have seen some incredible results using the Rock gear, and it leaves very little residual salts. Rock is an Australian brand and the Australian requirements on nutrients is more stringent than we have here is the States, so if you are not looking to go organic the Australian made nutes are a good place to start. What nutes did you use before AN?
As you had mentioned
Botanicare also makes a very solid line of nutrients. If you are looking to go Organic
Bio Bizz is one option, there is a lot of good buzz around their products at the moment and their line is not particularly extensive. I have no personal experience with
Bio Bizz so I cannot speak to its efficacy from personal experience. I have had great success with Roots Organic as well. They put out their full line about 5 plus years ago and have not changed a thing since. The consistency speaks volumes to me about its quality.
However with your current set-up I think a schedule of feed, feed, water may be too much. The excess nutrient salts (which AN leaves behind tons) are building up in your soil and may be the cause of your leaf burn. I would back off nutrients for a few days and when you return go much lighter with the nutes.
Its definitely rough having to order everything online. I am not sure where you live, but i am sure there is some kind of garden center near you; go over there and see what products they carry. These days more of the standard garden centers are carrying gear for indoor use. This may be your best option for finding what you need.
While it may not be necessary now to have the T-5 it may be of great use in the future. The units are not prohibitively expensive so they are a worthwhile investment. When you say you have a 125 watt CFL does that mean a 125 watt equivalent or a CFL that runs on 125 watts. The "equivalency" that they label CFL's with are only in comparison to and incandescent light bulb and even then the number is totally bogus. If you have the gear for a proper 125 watt CFL I would just replace that bulb instead of buying a new T-5 unit.
In the future I would wait considerably longer before flowering out your plants, for so much space that plant is tiny. It seems like you knew you had time constraints and that may be the reason you began flowering so small, so you may already be aware of this.
