Noob here with new UC grow in need of a lot of help

[Good Vibes]

Hey people, I grew tired of searching through countless forums online only to not find an answer or have to wait forever to either not get it answered or get an iffy answer. Since this is the only site with a UC forum I think I'm in the right place. I'll try and document my full grow from painstaking beginning to end, but I'm in need of a lot of help. So I'm putting 100% complete and total reliance on all you UC guys to get me through <deep breath.... and exhale>. So here goes: I've already set up my UCXL13 system, but its incomplete, for example no chiller, reservoir, etc, and the grow room needs to be set up. I'll be using 4 x 500w Blackstar Led's for the grw. Still have some questions about the grow room which noone has yet answered on this forum or on others so please chime in if you can supply the knowledge.

I do realize I have to get rid of the curtains and line the floor so like I said a work in progress. I'm using 14 of the 16 buckets do to space issues. Room is 16 x 12 x 9. This is an apartment grow so everything, flowering and growing will have to be done in this one room. I didn't do so well with the first round of seeds Wasted $300 bucks on seeds trying to figure out a good way to germ. Hurts bad. I know its not good to grow multiple strains in this system but I figured I'd get a few going anyway. None of my Exodus Kush or Bubba Kush purchased from Attitude Seeds germed. 3 of 6 Purple Wreck and almost 3 of 6 Holy Grail germed. It's day 4 or 5 for the sprouts. They are 2-3 inches under a T5 in a closet in the room which I will hopefully use for the mothers.

Let me know if you guys think they're too close to the light. The sprouts don't look to great to me IDK I just thought they'd be bigger. The one in the top middle has a shriveled root and the second leaf is still kinda stuck in the shell. I'm wondering if it retarded the growth. Also the sprout on the bottom still has not lost its shell after 2 days and continues to stay at the edge of the soil (i personally think its fucked). Let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions

So before I can complete my growroom setup I have a couple questions nobody has been able to answer, and yes i have posted them in the correct forums: I'm running an active exhaust with a passive intake. The passive intake is a darkroom louver. To contain the smell (since I'm living in an apartment) do I need dampers for both the intake and exhaust? If so what kind? With the uc system do i need a res tank and a storage tank? What size should they be? My city tap water is 200ppm. Should I invest in an RO system? The faster I get these answers the quicker I can set up my grow. Thanks for everyone who responds. I will be checking back frequently.

 

[Good Vibes]

Sorry meant uc xl 13 16 site

 

[RollinEndough]

The T5 needs to be at least a foot away from those seedlings, where it's at now is probably too warm. Don't worry about the seed being stuck to the leaf, that isn't what is preventing them from growing a foot every hour.

Please tell me you don't plan on blooming under those LED lights you mentioned. You would be wasting time and money for a weak yielding crop. Unless they're already bought I would skip them as you don't have but a few weeks of veg in the UC XL, making it a pain and waste to swap lights for bloom.

I hope you're on the ground floor and don't have some easily annoyed neighbors as you'll be producing some noise from your unit.

Smell is another difficult one with grows of this size in close quarters with other noses. I would run both a carbon filter and UV purifier on the exhaust to help cover your ass.

Those are the most noticeable points to mention, sorry if it's mostly negative sounding. That new grower spirit of yours can plow through these obstacles, keep at it.

 

[Good Vibes]

when i had it a foot away one of the seedlings on the lower right stretched a good amount so i moved it closer, but yeah it was a little warm so i've since moved it back. The seedling that was stuck has unraveled itself. Was just worried because sometimes i see pics of sprouts that look like they're on day 5 and they have roots pouring out of the medium and lush leaves.

The LED's are in the room, just not hanging. I thought i could veg longer to try to get 6 ft or taller plants for flowering. I'm in the process of putting together a flood and drain table to get the plants 12 - 18" and then put them in the uc system. There's still controversy over LED's but i've seen lots of journals where at least i thought yields were produced comparable to hid or hps. i also wanted to keep my heat footprint down to save on bills and to keep the water temps low.

i've got a 10" filter and fan, which i think is plenty of smell coverage. I just need to know if I should use dampers on both ends (see 1st post). I dunno what i was thinking with the louver but seemed like a good idea at the time. i just gotta figure out how to install a damper there somehow. I'm on the top or 4th flr of the apt so its not as noticeable i think. also can anyone answer any of the other questions i have? thanks

 

[AdvancedBioHydroponics]

I would be worried about smell and vibrations and noise levels in an apartment for sure. .you can try to hang the air pumps to help damper noise and vibrations, or have seen box like "holders" with foam and other sound damping materials.

A "top off" tank and storage tank for water is ideal. Using float switches to control levels. As far as size, I like to suggest twice what your system holds or at least as much as your system holds. You need enough water on hand to be able to completely flush the system and refill. A little extra does not hurt. The size of top off tanks and storage tanks also depends on how automated do you want the system to be?

You can top off the system by hand avoiding the need for top off and storage but it is really better if the water level stays constant IMO.

As far as if your tap water will work, I would suggest you get a analysis done so you can see what your working with. I know you said it was 200PPM but 200PPM of what? Whats the PH?

Ro water is always easier and better to work with as you have complete control but your tap should be workable. Main thing you need to know is how much calcium and magnesium is in it and what the total alkalinity number is (TA). Other things to consider is what is added to the water by the city or town? Chlorine? Water softeners? ..ect.

Interested to see what you can pull with those LED's! Some bad ass units on the market these days and the tech just keeps getting better and better!

Good luck!

 

[All4freedumb]

You don't need the dampers. All you need to do is keep light from entering the room.. Dampers are more for controlling multi rooms using one air supply, the dampers would close when it doesn't need to air handle one room. I use them for my 5 ton, it controls three rooms by using dampers and a control board.. i just use vent cover in my room with insolated ducting comming through the dark room.. I have 6+ft of ducting and have no issue with my room pushing or pulling air as needed. I ran passive for years.. Being on a top floor apt it would be a good idea to seal the floor of the room with pond liner or something simular, be sure to go up the walls a foot or so... accidents do happen and an outer pond would keep an accident in your room and not to your neighbors ceiling.. keep all electrical plugs up off the ground along with your airpumps. Just some thoughts.. best of luck, I'll be in on this one.. I like watching projects turn to beauty...
A4FD..

 

[RollinEndough]

I'm now confused why the seedlings are under the T5 and not an LED. Your idea of the seedling stretching is funny, it's like an inch tall. You could have the T5 2-3' away and not see stretching.

There's a limit to the amount of light they'll use in veg and its easily met. 1000-2500 footcandles.

I'd focus on the seeds for now. Check their temperature, the RH and hopefully the PPM and pH they're being fed at.

Rock and Roll.

 

[Good Vibes]

I would be worried about smell and vibrations and noise levels in an apartment for sure. .you can try to hang the air pumps to help damper noise and vibrations, or have seen box like "holders" with foam and other sound damping materials.

A "top off" tank and storage tank for water is ideal. Using float switches to control levels. As far as size, I like to suggest twice what your system holds or at least as much as your system holds. You need enough water on hand to be able to completely flush the system and refill. A little extra does not hurt. The size of top off tanks and storage tanks also depends on how automated do you want the system to be?

You can top off the system by hand avoiding the need for top off and storage but it is really better if the water level stays constant IMO.

As far as if your tap water will work, I would suggest you get a analysis done so you can see what your working with. I know you said it was 200PPM but 200PPM of what? Whats the PH?

Ro water is always easier and better to work with as you have complete control but your tap should be workable. Main thing you need to know is how much calcium and magnesium is in it and what the total alkalinity number is (TA). Other things to consider is what is added to the water by the city or town? Chlorine? Water softeners? ..ect.

Interested to see what you can pull with those LED's! Some bad ass units on the market these days and the tech just keeps getting better and better!

Good luck!

I was just going to either put the pumps on top of the boxes they came with or tubs to keep them off the ground. All I can find in my area is 55 gal drums, and bigger tanks cost too much on shipping to order online. Should i use one 55 gal drum for a res and then take maybe 3 or 4 more of them and route them together with piping and just use that for my water storage? Seems like it would take up a lot of space though. . . any other ideas?

I checked up on my city's water report, but i don't see any mention of chloramine, but that doesn't necessarily mean its not in the water. the water doesn't smell like chlorine, but i heard chloramine doesn't have a smell. report said calcium is ~35 and magnesium is ~14 - i just see numbers on the report, no label or key. ph is 7.6.

 

[RollinEndough]

6' tall plants under LED? 1000w HPS can only penetrate 24" before the nugs start to get larfy and unsellable.
Confidence in technology and unrealistic expectations are two different things.

I'm locked in to be proven horribly wrong in a few months.

 

[Good Vibes]

You don't need the dampers. All you need to do is keep light from entering the room.. Dampers are more for controlling multi rooms using one air supply, the dampers would close when it doesn't need to air handle one room. I use them for my 5 ton, it controls three rooms by using dampers and a control board.. i just use vent cover in my room with insolated ducting comming through the dark room.. I have 6+ft of ducting and have no issue with my room pushing or pulling air as needed. I ran passive for years.. Being on a top floor apt it would be a good idea to seal the floor of the room with pond liner or something simular, be sure to go up the walls a foot or so... accidents do happen and an outer pond would keep an accident in your room and not to your neighbors ceiling.. keep all electrical plugs up off the ground along with your airpumps. Just some thoughts.. best of luck, I'll be in on this one.. I like watching projects turn to beauty...
A4FD..

i was going to line the floor with roofing liner. heard pond liner was not easy to work with, but i'll look into it also. already have a couple sentinel controllers, but not a whole lot to plug into them yet. i'm an idiot that gets excited and purchases all the good stuff first then have to figure out if i can use it later. I was planning on mounting all surge suppressors and monitors to plywood on the wall. thanks

 

[PrefersHam]

No offense but i think you need to invest in a few crucial books. A lil reading goes a long way.

Peace,


Ham

 

[RollinEndough]

No offense but i think you need to invest in a few crucial books. A lil reading goes a long way.

Peace,


Ham

Don't you jive with the "tell me everything to do" approach? If everything works he gets to take the credit and any mistakes get passed off as bad advice. Win-win.

 

[Good Vibes]

6' tall plants under LED? 1000w HPS can only penetrate 24" before the nugs start to get larfy and unsellable.
Confidence in technology and unrealistic expectations are two different things.

I'm locked in to be proven horribly wrong in a few months.

The UC brochure shows 13 gallon units with words saying grows up to 6' tall plants. I saw some pics on this board even with big ass pot trees. Dunno if they were 6' footers, but they looked huge. I may be unrealistic, but I'm willing to push the edge on this. BTW glad you're looking in on this one. Always good to have the vets watching out.

 

[Good Vibes]

No offense but i think you need to invest in a few crucial books. A lil reading goes a long way.

Peace,


Ham

I promise you I have read my ass off with all the free weed manuals and watched so many youtube videos, but the best thing to do is to jump in. The stupid books gave me tons of ways to germ my seeds. I did it just like they said and i tried multiple techniques. Did I fail. Pretty much, but I won't learn anything by continuing to read the same literature for the next year.

 

[RollinEndough]

Did they have vertical or horizontal lighting? Did they bare fruit all the way down?

The UC is also sold for outdoor and greenhouse growers who can get 6' tall tomato plants no problem.

Anyhow you don't have to worry about hitting 6' tall if you're only vegging to 18" tall. They'll end up being 3-4' tall.

 

[All4freedumb]

I like my 6ft UC trees.. I shave their legs too, they just have longer legs.. ;) Saying that, I do run vertical and I can't see LEDs touching the depths of the plants it needs to.. Even growing vertical with 6ft trees, I will be adding a horizontal between each two, reason being..... well, Rollin is right, light penetration is a bitch when you like your women big... ;) I thin out my insides and have thick solid fruit all the way around.. I flip at 42-48in strain dependent and get 6ft trees. If you train and top, then I'd go bigger in veg to obtain 6ft. but then the skill comes in to match your plant with your light penetration to insure light can hit everything on your 6ft tall and wide ass Bush, not tree.. I've seen many go too big and too wide in the UC. I know about all that larf and I hate it.. I shoot for no larf and solid filled branching.. I hit a steady 1.75 a light and have hit over 2 with more larf then liked.. I can't see LEDs banging 6ft trees, I will watch and hope I'm wrong...

 

[rvd]

you will get water spills and leakes be careful.

 

[Good Vibes]

Did they have vertical or horizontal lighting? Did they bare fruit all the way down?

The UC is also sold for outdoor and greenhouse growers who can get 6' tall tomato plants no problem.

Anyhow you don't have to worry about hitting 6' tall if you're only vegging to 18" tall. They'll end up being 3-4' tall.

The plants I saw were huge mother plants in UC buckets. Don't know why anyone would do that, but other than being indoors I didn't see the setup. I'm not vegging at 18". I'm setting up a flood and drain recirculation table I saw off a youtube video to put the sprouts in. I want to bring them up to 18" on it then move them to the UC so I'm not wasting light. You're probably right, I probably won't produce the kind of weight you guys are getting, but its gonna be fun trying:D. Plus I like that it'll be easier maintenance and I won't have to worry about replacing my bulbs all the time.

 

[Good Vibes]

Just an update. Moving the light up to around 8" is giving the plants a little more breathing room. The one stuck in the soil is starting to split its shell. I know you guys grow seeds with no problem, but I'm happy the little gals made it after I pretty much drowned the rest of them. So here's some of my mistakes so others can benefit: 1) do not over water or poke around the medium after planting, 2) when soaking in water as soon as you see a root, even a tiny root, remove the seeds from the water immediately, 3)when germing using the paper towel method, don't throw the paper towel with the seeds into a baggie and set on a heating mat - i smelled popcorn the next day. I actually found the best place to germ was actually the oven. I wonder if the co2 from leftover gas helped promote faster growth. . . just a theory. Oh yeah the 12 x 24 louver came in today. Its well constructed and lets in 0 light. 2 louver fans can actually be purchased and installed in them to intake air. seems a bit costly right now so i'll hold off and see how this holds. Thanks to everyone who's looking into this grow. Whether its an epic fail or epic win I hope to learn a lot. BTW anyone get spectacular grows off of any nute line? Was thinking of running Dutch Masters Gold line.

 

[UClover]

A couple of the finer points:

1. Since your plants are seedlings, take the extra time (6-8weeks) to complete your room correctly. Setting up the system will be the last thing you do.
2. Lay down a pond liner under the syetem, hundreds of gallons on a wood floor will ruin your room.
3. Vibrations from air pumps and stones on wood floors are going to make some noise.
4. Like rollin stated, just cause you can grow a 6ft. tall plant doesn't mean you necessarily want to. HID's can only penetrate about 2-3ft. which means you have a 6ft tall plant with good flowers on the top 2ft. Try to develop a nice tight 18"-2ft bush before flowering, should yield a 3-4ft plant and you will still need to trim the bottom 1/3.
5. Good luck with the LED's, they sound good in theory, but I and many other long time growers have yet to see them compare to HID's.