1st Time Grower (Chemdog) in SoCal

[Kepster]

Hey all,

It's really my second grow (my first grow I lost to powdery mildew). Growing what I was told to be Chemdog. Started with 4 plants one which is stunted in comparison to the others, 3 are still vegging and in their 5th day of flowering and (sigh) again powdery mildew appears. This time around (after reading some of the threads) I decided to use a garlic/neem oil mix on the stunted planted to see how it reacts to my "homemade" solution if it appears ok by tomm afternoon I'll apply the same treatment to the others. I also ordered a few of the recommended sprays I've read about. (SNS 244 mold and mildew killer and Green Cure)

Currently growing in a 50" x 50" x 78" tent, 400w MH & HPS bulbs, using Foxfarm nutes (Big Bloom, Tiger Bloom and Grow Big for Vegging) took some clones from the 3 healthiest plants, some have rooted and seem to be doing ok with the exception of the mildew which is apparent on a few of the kids. I'll take a few pics of the grow in the next couple of days and would love any input pro's could lend. Thanks in advance, I'm looking forward to getting to know you cats on here.. oh, and keep it lit!

 

[Papa]

welcome Kepster!

 

[Kepster]

welcome Kepster!

Thanks Papa!

 

[Bruce Fever]

Hi Kepster i am new here too but been growing 5/6 years might be able to help. you using soil or hydro?

 

[Kepster]

Hi Kepster i am new here too but been growing 5/6 years might be able to help. you using soil or hydro?

Heya Bruce,

Soil (Foxfarm Ocean Forest) got some Eagle 20 that I applied tonight, crossing my fingers hoping for the best! Aside from that what would you recommend?

 

[Bruce Fever]

I would get the humidity as low as poss for now and the temp up high over 77^f dry out the environment. I would imagine it originated from over wet conditions an/or poor air movement/ ventilation, so maybe address that. Hope that helps a bit m8

 

[incognito]

I like lots of ventilation in my tents. Below is a 4x4 with two 4" intake fans and one 6" exhaust fan. I tape foam filter over the intake pipe to prevent dust and debres from blowing into the tent.


Here is a 5x5 tent with two 600W hps lamps. I have two 6" intake fans and three 6" exhaust fans for this tent.


I use a speed controller to regulate the pressure in the tent. I like to keep the tent slightly inflated. It prevents air from drafting into the tent through vents, seems, zippers, etc., bypassing the intake foam filter. One intake fan creates airflow above the canopy and the other below the canopy to keep plants well aerated. I would add more fans, but I ran out of holes in my tents.

I hit my ladies with a mist of Eagle 20 a week prior to bloom. All powder mold issues forgotten about with air flow and Eagle 20. I call it "Super E" because it is so damn good. Neem works, but the protection is gives doesn't last the entire bloom. Add a few drops of dish soap to give your leaves a beautiful shine and help the Super E stick to the plant.

 

[Biomorphic]

I had a simalar situation happen to me a while back . I was running in a DR 150 and a last minute toss in to my garden ended up giving me the PM.. my advice is between runs use a great cleaning solution everywhere bleach water works great! But clean everything , if your hoods are vented get all up in that shit even behind the reflective metal where your hand dosesn't fit! Get new ducting clean inside of scrubber , inline ports in tent .. I went apeshit and I also have learned my lesson from getting dirty cutts from buddies :) all the environmental stuff is a must as well , GL 2 u brother !

 

[Kepster]

Well plenty of time has passed since my bout with PM and it has not returned. Applied the Eagle 20 then another shot of SNS 247 a couple of weeks later as I understand it to be systemic as well as the E20.

Installed a Can Fan (440 CFM) that cause's the tent to deflate a bit, as it sucks all the air out it's apparent that I need an intake fan. Should it be pulling in less or about the same as the exhaust?

Had a small bout with Nute burn as I applied too many and way too much, flushed using RO and a week later the leaves started to begin turning yellow in droves, N def or Aphids? I tried reintroducing N a few days ago to see if I would get it's deeper green color back but nothing yet.

Still trying to get the pics to upload so please be patient and thank everyone for their insight!!!

 

[incognito]

You will have to play with the air pressure in your tent by using a speed controller with one of your fans, usually an air intake fan. If your drawing air out of your tent and pushing it through a charcoal filter with an inline fan as an exhaust, you will need at least that same size inline fan as an intake to counter-balance the vacuum.
Glad to hear your PM problem is resolved. The damaged vegetation will recover somewhat, but the new growth should be green. If Aphids, you would see the infestation by now. I will keep my eye out for the pics.

 

[Cort]

You dont need an intake fan, just more intakes

2 light proof passive intakes is fine for a tent. You want some negative pressure so any air leaving the tent gets thru your filter.

 

[Kepster]

You dont need an intake fan, just more intakes

2 light proof passive intakes is fine for a tent. You want some negative pressure so any air leaving the tent gets thru your filter.

At the moment I'm only flowering 3 plants so I haven't invested in a filter yet, especially since the smell is not a real big concern of mines. (If that's what you were referring to) what do you mean by negative pressure though? I finally was able to get some pics of what I've got goin on...

 

[Kepster]

Inside the tent..

 

[Kepster]

I've got a 6" connected to one side of the hood the other side is completely open which runs thru the roof of my tent out to a can fan (440 cfm) another smaller 4" duct is attached to the wall and serves as a passive intake. (I had to bend the ducting several times to prevent it from bouncing light into the grow room).




Temperature is constantly an issue ranging from mid 60's to mid 80's.. some time's even 90+ when I forget to open the tent on time. Any insights you pro's have are greatly appreciated!

 

[incognito]

You dont need an intake fan, just more intakes

2 light proof passive intakes is fine for a tent. You want some negative pressure so any air leaving the tent gets thru your filter.

I agree if you are maximizing smell removal. The negative pressure effectively pulls odor through the carbon scrubber. I don't prioritize smell removal. I want to avoid drafting unfiltered air through my tent. I don't want any critters sucked in through vents, zippers or seems. That is why I prefer my tent slightly inflated. I filter the intake air. You need a fan to draft the air through the intake filter.

 

[Cort]

I have a tent, here is what I do:

2 filtered 6" passive intakes (no fan)
6" fan controlled by CAP VSC-Dne (controls fan speed based on night/day temps I set)
Fan sucks air through the carbon filter and pushes it through a 1k sealed light. Hot air then is pushed out into the house. (its like free heating to me)

Plants get CO2 from one of the intakes being near an open window and 2 exhale bags (i did not notice a difference using the bags)

Negative pressure = tent being sucked in. I control what air goes in

 

[Kepster]

I have a tent, here is what I do:

2 filtered 6" passive intakes (no fan)
6" fan controlled by CAP VSC-Dne (controls fan speed based on night/day temps I set)
Fan sucks air through the carbon filter and pushes it through a 1k sealed light. Hot air then is pushed out into the house. (its like free heating to me)

Plants get CO2 from one of the intakes being near an open window and 2 exhale bags (i did not notice a difference using the bags)

Negative pressure = tent being sucked in. I control what air goes in

Gotcha!

 

[incognito]

...(its like free heating to me)...

...I control what air goes in...

It has been a long time since I last used the furnace. I love it. Hey, the power companies made their money on our grow lights. No need to give them more.

I didn't consider putting the fan/filter inside the tent. A fan and filter is heavy to hang, even for an expensive metal-framed tent. Maybe I shove too many plants into a tent. Floor space is at a premium. I immediately see some benefits to this setup. Putting the fan/filter inside the tent probably generates a sinister vacuum, enough to use dust filters on a passive air intake. You only have to buy/operate one fan! As long as all vents/ports are sealed, I can't see any drawbacks to negative air pressure other than loosing a little space in the tent.

 

[Cort]

You control the neg pressure with fan speed and intakes. If you need to open a 3rd intake to keep temps down and a slight negative pressure, feel free to do so.

Also, you can construct some wooden supports for the inside of your tent to hang heavy filters from. or get a lighter filter.