First Time Grow, looking to do it right.

[_VLAD_]

I say this on every thread asking for light recommendation but id get on alibaba, talk to vicki at KINGBRITE and get 2 240 watt fixtures.

Im new to this forum, only ran HID lighting 10 years ago, the guys here walked me through alibaba (first purchase there). Only took 5-6 days to get here from when they shipped. Which was either the day i paid or the day after. Worked out great and basically paid half of what HLG/etc would cost.

I will say warranty issues I cant speak on, id doubt there would be a problem, and LED are known for lasting quite a while. Its up to you, I just wanted to give my opinion on the alibaba lights as most seem to think its a hassle.

 

[workngrow]

I say this on every thread asking for light recommendation but id get on alibaba, talk to vicki at KINGBRITE and get 2 240 watt fixtures.

Im new to this forum, only ran HID lighting 10 years ago, the guys here walked me through alibaba (first purchase there). Only took 5-6 days to get here from when they shipped. Which was either the day i paid or the day after. Worked out great and basically paid half of what HLG/etc would cost.

I will say warranty issues I cant speak on, id doubt there would be a problem, and LED are known for lasting quite a while. Its up to you, I just wanted to give my opinion on the alibaba lights as most seem to think its a hassle.

I am leaning more and more in this direction every day. The price points are just too good and so long as quality is the same. Some give warranties for the driver for 3 years, some warranty the board for a year it appears.

Just really tough to deny when you get get a 600w and 250w light for 1/3rd of the cost.

Looking at these:

2023!!! Kingbrite 480w Lm301h Grow Bar Light With Xp-e2 460nm Royal Blue Samsung Led Strip Grow Lamp For Clones And Veg - Buy Lm301h Led Grow Light,Lm301h Grow Light,Grow Light Lm301h Product on Alibaba.com

2023!!! Kingbrite 480w Lm301h Grow Bar Light With Xp-e2 460nm Royal Blue Samsung Led Strip Grow Lamp For Clones And Veg - Buy Lm301h Led Grow Light,Lm301h Grow Light,Grow Light Lm301h Product on Alibaba.com

www.alibaba.com

Kingbrite 320w Samsung Lm281b Mix Osr 660nm Deep Red Led Grow Light Bar For Tent 2*4 Ft - Buy Kingbrite 320w led Grow Light samsung Lm281b Product on Alibaba.com

Kingbrite 320w Samsung Lm281b Mix Osr 660nm Deep Red Led Grow Light Bar For Tent 2*4 Ft - Buy Kingbrite 320w led Grow Light samsung Lm281b Product on Alibaba.com

kingbriteled.en.alibaba.com

 

[_VLAD_]

So far so good for mine. Its been going only a month, others here have had theres running way longer id assume

 

[workngrow]

So far so good for mine. Its been going only a month, others here have had theres running way longer id assume

Yea I mean they use the same pieces as the main high end equipment here. Chinese based products in the past just have this bad rap thats hard to overcome but their rep seems to be building. Deal with specific companies there, specific people.

 

[M0nStarNuggety]

I don't run KingBrite brand. But I did purchase from Alibaba vendor. VERY HAPPY, won't go anywhere else now. The sales rep still emails me occasionally. Finishing 2nd grow now with them. Will definitely be getting more.

 

[dazedX_Xspirit]

Whatever happens multiple lights are likely to get purchased, whether I shove 2 in a 5x5 or get 1 higher end light for flower and a lesser light for veg.

Yea the Nutes is going to likely be either Jacks or Lotus probably just haven't finalized any plans there. Cost is going to be 3-500 roughly in nutes per grow cycle start to finish. LED wont add a hole lot to the power bill and if I can keep the rdwc system running on just the 1 pump it'll all help keep the price per grow down.

When I ran price comparisons on 2 of the more popular liquid nute options it just gets out of hand with all the add on shit. Just a few gallons of liquid grow and bloom is quite a few hundred dollars. Seems like the powder based nutes could run closer to half the price and cover all the same necessary points. I get that at this point its somewhat of a hobby, and you have to pay to play but you also shouldn't have to bend over the table for whats basically plant food. My dog eats less food in a year than it does to feed a single 4 plant grow.

I wish I had heard of powder nutes before I grabbed more liquid ones, freakin live and learn I guess lmao. Yeah this hobby is a bit pricey, but every hobby is when you really jump in with both feet. I think that the next go I am def gonna switch to powder, seems sooo much cheaper.

 

[workngrow]

I wish I had heard of powder nutes before I grabbed more liquid ones, freakin live and learn I guess lmao. Yeah this hobby is a bit pricey, but every hobby is when you really jump in with both feet. I think that the next go I am def gonna switch to powder, seems sooo much cheaper.

Yea I've just been digging deep to understand where and why all the cost levels, finding ways to scale and keep those costs low at little to zero. Based on some rough math you can have a full fairly high powered setup for perpetual grow and processing it for under 3k. Doing it is a bit of work but you can produce a decent yield for a 5x5 and also produce a range of types of medicine, concentrates, etc.

Lets not forget, the general skills you build going through the process, if you thoroughly understand what is going on the applications range much further than just weed. You can grow shit, and not only that you would understand at that point how to kind of manipulate nature. Its not super complex, its not basic, but the process will escape most people. If someone says they just never had a green thumb or everything they ever tried to grow died, they just simply didn't try hard enough.

The first few plant training videos I watched were pretty eye opening to the resilience of these plants and their ability to just churn right on through given the right conditions, through all the trimming, pruning, defol, super-cropping, transplanting, being cloned, whatever else. People are literally beating these plants to death and somehow it just bounces right back. I should be firing things up in the next few weeks. Just waiting for finalizing grow plans and maybe let the chill leave the air to start up the first grow. Pretty amped.

 

[workngrow]

Btw anyone ever messed with those co2 canisters? The slow release ones? Was trying to find some reviews but just probably haven't dug hard enough yet.

 

[Mostlymooses]

Canisters are great just make sure your room is sealed air tight or you will dump gas and money.

 

[Mostlymooses]

Get a nice environmental controller to hook up to your regulator. The cheap ones are not really worth it. You will replace them.

 

[workngrow]

Get a nice environmental controller to hook up to your regulator. The cheap ones are not really worth it. You will replace them.

Yea Ill have to add a tank and reg later on/as I go through. Found some used tanks for like 50 bucks and a regulator isn't too much money. I just haven't done enough research to piece it all together yet. For the first grow I'll prob just roll with 2-3 bags then transition to a tank and an actual controller. Judging by the rest of the way the build is shaping up I do want to add it but I shouldn't need to overdo it. I also want to keep some actions with this a manual process for the first time or 2 instead of jumping straight into automation.

If any disposable option, seems like the exhale bags are best bet but need multiple 2-4 to reach those higher co2 levels based on information in another thread here. I'd probably just take them out of the tent but leave them in the room during that night cycle. Should still keep elevated co2 in the rotating air, either that or put them in a sealed container during night cycles if the co2 could potentially be damaging to the plant but the post said the levels would have to be ridiculously high for that, way more than the bags can generate assuming the room isn't filled with a ton of them.

The tent is fairly sealed tight and its in relatively small-ish room about 10x12, with the door shut, floorboard covered, and the window frame covered it should seal the room fairly well I would imagine.

 

[Mostlymooses]

The bags will do a decent enough job, and honestly there is a lot more to worry about first than co2. I don't even have co2 running at my current grow and I've been at this one for a year and a half now. It's definitely not a necessity in the same way some of the other things discussed here are. Not to say you shouldn't be thinking about it at all, just for a brand new grower you will have more to worry about at first.

 

[workngrow]

The bags will do a decent enough job, and honestly there is a lot more to worry about first than co2. I don't even have co2 running at my current grow and I've been at this one for a year and a half now. It's definitely not a necessity in the same way some of the other things discussed here are. Not to say you shouldn't be thinking about it at all, just for a brand new grower you will have more to worry about at first.

Yeaaaa, no doubt. I do everything in a series of checklists/workflows so for me this just something else to shovel on the list. The bags are fire and forget so theyll just get tossed in e z p z.

 

[workngrow]

Should have most of the stuff ready to be assembled in the next week and a half. Sourcing the right parts for the uc rdwc hydro system has definitely been odd. Fittings not coming in the right amounts, some places charging wildly more than others. Found one spot that sells it all in one go but wanted 2-300 in shipping, its been wildly interesting. So I've had to piece together things from multiple locations. Par for the course I suppose but I just didnt like the sizing and layouts of a lot of these pre-built ones.

Not a fan of the kitty litter style bucket with the plant on one side of the top and under current is likely much harder to do in round buckets because you are limited more in pvc size. Getting a nice non leaking connection to a round bucket is tough. My under current pipes are going to be 3''.

Light-wise likely to go the alibaba route. Just doesn't appear to be as much of a risk as originally viewed and I can start with 2 high end lights with this budget instead of 1 to set up a separate veg spot.

 

[workngrow]

Nute-wise definitely settling on Jacks 3-2-1. Just cant beat the cost and what they provide. Can do multiple grows plus add silica, hydroguard, and if needed cal-mag and still come in at way under 4-500 per grow.

Lightwise, for flower, settling on 2 of these. Heavy on the red spectrum, seems like a monster of a light. With 2 should get that coverage solid wall to wall in the tent.

This product is no longer available.

This product is no longer available.

kingbriteled.en.alibaba.com

Veg will have one of these, higher blue spectrum, with some solid red in there.

This product is no longer available.

This product is no longer available.

kingbriteled.en.alibaba.com

As for the hydro system itself, I have had to go even more 'custom' with the build due to some of the inconsistency in the sides of the containers. Having to adjust where the undercurrent pipes are located and I think ultimately I will end up with a simpler build.

Still planning on doing the run without airstones, I think the 2 1'' water drains being pumped into each plant site will be enough to keep perpetual agitation of the water going enough to oxygenate coupled with a slightly shallow container size and the undercurrent pulling the oxygenated water at the surface down. The theory is there, hopefully works out as planned. If not then will just end up adding the stones anyway.

That's been an interesting process in itself, I can see why some would recommend not jumping into a system like this off the rip but I am enjoying the challenge and learning a lot of new things

 

[workngrow]

She on the way up. Getting the spacing right. Should have base dwc system ready to roll in another week.

 

[_VLAD_]

Niiice I almost went with those totes. And ive been seriously considering doing rdwc

 

[TheBadChoice]

I’m gonna have to toss my two cents in here, if this your first hydroponics grow going right into RDWC might be a little much, I personally would have started with an single system and work up from their. Is this grow going to be live or sterile?

 

[workngrow]

I’m gonna have to toss my two cents in here, if this your first hydroponics grow going right into RDWC might be a little much, I personally would have started with an single system and work up from their. Is this grow going to be live or sterile?

I can understand the concern. Live grow to start as I'll be using stuff like hydroguard to introduce beneficial bacteria. This is not something I idly decided to jump into, many dozens of hours of studying has gone into this at this point. With an emphasis on paying attention to mistakes people generally make, though I am sure I will make some of my own. The forum here and others like it have a wealth of knowledge, most challenges can be overcome with a bit of tenacity. If something looks off don't wait, get the information needed and make the appropriate changes.

So long as the fundamentals are sound and the variable control is there I don't see this as any more or less complex than a single site or using soil it just provides its own set of challenges and the volumes are larger. All of the variable control for every medium still needs to be done correctly. Assuming the genetics in each site are the same then all will either pass or fail at once.

Right now as far as anything going into the water:

Jacks 3 2 1
Silica based additive (havent decided which yet)
Hydroguard
Maybe Cal-Mag (but Jacks should have the appropriate levels, research said some strains require more.)

Hydroguard seems to be most commonly mentioned though I know there are others out there.

I have reached the point of no return anyway but I don't generally fuck about with hobbies or interests. This will be taken seriously.

 

[workngrow]

Water testing, will let this sit for probably a day or so to build up some confidence in the pipe connections. Had a slight drip coming from one of the bulkheads but corrected by simply tightening it a bit more. All the PVC connections are primed and glued. More worried about bulkhead to container than anything else especially considering plastic can flex. This stuff is pretty tough but even at this full the containers have a slight swell but it doesnt seem to be anything to worry about.

Will have to raise the system on pavers or a platform of some kind by about 4'' so the out pipe to the res can clear the tent hole but the plant sites should be damn near center in their respective locations for a 5x5.

Once the remaining drain fittings and pumps are here, will drill the 1 3/4'' holes for the 1'' bulkheads, connect the tubes and give it a test run and tune the pump to make sure the water levels in each container stay consistent and continue checking for leaks.