Just another MPB 1st timer

[Gray Beard]

That was my goal, Get 'em finished. pH this morning was 4.5, at lights out last eve it was 5.6. Where do you think the too low point is?

 

[noone88]

Yea the swings can be nuts. Just watch it carefully, I try to lock it in at 5.7-5.8 for optimum P/K absorption. K is still being absorbed all the way down to 5.0, but P stops around 5.7.

 

[Gray Beard]

Week 6 pics

I think the pics speak for themselves. Still getting pH drop which I am sure at this point is the root (haha) of the problem. Also, I may not be pushing enough fresh air to the room. Also, my manifold on the feed lines may be restricting some of the flow to the tubs. Also, I may not have started with the strongest cuts. Also, the strain may not like the MPBs but I don't think that is it with all my problems they have endured, again I am the weak link not the strain, IMO. Also, I probably should not have listened to my grow store "buddy" about the Gen. Hydro nutes. Also, I should not have tried to save a few bucks (as DDs warned) and borrowed an old meter rater than buying a new one. Also, I probably should have bought the 1/2 hp chiller (again as DDs suggested) and not the 1/3hp. Also, I should be running CO2 but money is tight. And on, and on............

 

[antimatter]

0% stretch from the looks of things.

 

[Gray Beard]

Yep, no stretch. I have grown this strain in soil for almost 2 years now and the bud formation on these is not what I am used to. I would not describe these as "colas" but more like thumb size nugs closely spaced pretending to be a bud. I'm not able to get a good look at the big girl roots but the small ones roots are pure white and beautiful. I think I will get a buddy over here this weekend to help me get a better look at the big girl roots. I'll get pics if I do.

 

[antimatter]

Are you sure its not the clones you took ? It seems strange that theres no stretch at all, even if you grow outdoors in crappy unamended soil you can still get a good stretch. I know from when Ive grown from seed in the past you can find some retarded phenos that couldn't grow for shit no matter what system they were in, and that is the main reason I would rather deal with tested/proven elites than seeds.

 

[Gray Beard]

No, I am not sure. All I can say for sure is my problem is not air temps (68n-76d). Not the water had it tested by local lab b4 and after my RO filter. Not rez or mini rez temps (65 & 67) chiller has been going from day one. I think if I can id why my pH swings as it does I will have found the culprit. Major lockout!?

 

[socalsinner]

Is it me or do those air cooled lights look too far from your plants. I know that having them in those tubes takes lumen count down as well.

 

[Gray Beard]

That thought had crossed my mind also. All the lights are 40 inches on center to the plants. I am going to come up with some sort of system to adjust distance not just height.

Girls are actually putting on some weight! pH swings are no where near what they have been. I am able to keep it above 5.5 through the night. One of the net pots filled with roots and wouldn't drain so I went ahead and shut down the drip line. Will be flushing with the next rez change. Leaves are beginning to yellow.

 

[GBOOST]

Hi Gray Beard. Props on the grow, your room looks fantastic. Hope you don't mind me posting being new, but I've been researching the mpb's for months now as I intend to start them myself, am 90% of the way thru collecting everything needed. As such, I've been triple and quadruple checking my facts and numbers over the past months, and when someone said something about your lights being too far away, and you posting that they are the normal 40" from plant to light, the alarm bells went off:nod

The layout is 40" from centre of plant to centre of plant, and centre of light to centre of light, not from light to plant! Your girls are twice as far from the lights as they should be!! Snuggle them in closer mate, like twice as close;) If I took your post the wrong way and you are actually 20" from plant to light then apologies. If you need a better idea, have a look thru the widowmaker make me a drawing thread for labelled diagrams with distances:icon_spin:

Ozzie

 

[easypleasie]

40" center of plant to center of plant does not work if you are trying to place a light in between the plants....there's not enough room to have big trees. Small bushes and shrubs at best. Once you guys have grown big trees in vertical setups, you'll understand more about the distances. 40" plant centers can work if you have rows of plants and rows of lights...not mixed up. The widest your girls should get is 3.5 ft. for that distance. Any bigger and they will grow into each other! My girls are in their first week of flower and are over 3ft wide already.

 

[GBOOST]

Hey EP, props on the info. I have been following your grow for quite some time now, Hopefrully in the next few months I can share my own experiences:hi

I believe if you look at widowmakers drawings, its not actually 20", without going and finding it, its like 24", as the light isn't directly BETWEEN the plants. I believe the recommendation has all come from DD himself, not sure how he did 40" centres himself when he grew the biggest plants of all, but still, 80" centres is probably a fair bit too wide wouldn't you think?? At best you might need 50??

GB

 

[easypleasie]

I think there has to be some miscommunication somewhere with the distances. I hope DD would chime in and clear things up more with what he means.

My bulbs are 40" to the center of any of the girls. That gives them enough room to grow out and the bulbs can be right beside the plant. Otherwise, you'll have to raise the bulbs above the plants and that's gonna hurt your yield.

There's a ton of setups and diagrams...pick one and grow with it! You'll figure out along the way what works best for you.

 

[Widowmaker]

The distance between the plant center and the bulb center is 28 1/4".

Another way to look at this set up is you have to grow a plant to fit that space if you want to take advantage of the intense light that divers the amazing growth.

When you go with bigger distances you lose the light intensity and I believe you lose the weight per plant.
Just an engineers view, no proof.
:icon_spin:

 

[GBOOST]

Thanks Widowmaker, I didn't have time to go and find the numbers from your drawings at the time, but at 28 1/4", thats a 4 3/4' round plant, I would say about spot on for this system when your smashing it. Due to the space restrictions I have, I have to grow 4 plants with 5 lights in a 2400x2400 room, so it works out I can grow slightly over the 40" centres, but not much, so I'll find out pretty bloody quick if I run out of room!! lol.

Thanks for the pm Widowmaker, I couldn't reply until I get to 50 posts, will hit you back as soon as I do;)

Ozzie.

 

[Widowmaker]

DDs quote 04-04-2010, 10:06 AM
when i transplant my 6x6 cube into the mpb they are only 8 inches tall x 6 inches wide. A nice little shrub. Even at this size bro they get 6-9 days of veg depending on how fast they get over minimal lumen shock. These cuts will end up 3.5 ft tall, 4.5 ft wide and weigh in anywhere between 3 and 5 pounds. I tried running raskals white bubblegum, indica pheno. She was 6inches tall x 6inches wide when flowered and ended up being 5.5ft tall x 5ft wide..... it was sik. It took over everything, all the lights had to be moved to the ceiling and the yield went to shit.
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[YoungDro]

light spacing

I have a question for light spacing layout, I understand that if you setup rows of plants and rows of light that you place the centers 40" apart, I like the "egg of life" pattern because light intensity would be spread out more evenly rather than have huge plants in the middle and small ones on the outside which is not very efficient according to doubleds experience, theory makes complete sense.

Although, what distance then do i place the plants??
I am planning on doing a 10-15 site MPB, I have it all figured just the spacing, oh and ill be doing g13, hashplant, purple kush, bubba gum, black domina, % Himilaya gold

What size room will I need for a 10 site MPB? (15'X20')

and for the 15 light room what size, and not rows of plants but spacing them offset, or egg of life style

thanks for the help

 

[Widowmaker]

egg of life style

Are you wanting to put 6 lights around one plant?
:icon_spin:

 

[easypleasie]

Hey fellas, don't forget you're gonna need spacing away from the bulbs. You really don't want the bulbs much closer than a foot to the plant or it's gonna be a bit hot. Ok with cooltubes but barebulb is way intense. I personally think you should have a foot of space away from the bulb or you're gonna have to raise the lights above the plants to keep from scorching them. You're gonna lose a little bit of yield if they are all growing into each other and blocking light.

A simple way to mess around is take some 5 gallon buckets and place them in your layout of choice. For example, place 4 buckets with 40" centers and put a place marker for the light in the middle. You'll see quickly that a 4ft wide plant will not leave you with any space for the light. You can get away with a 3ft wide plant but then you're not growing trees :)

It's a good amount of work to setup your space for trees so plan carefully!

 

[Widowmaker]

Another way to look at it. You want to preserve the Christmas tree shape of the plant.
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