Overdriven T32T8, First Grow

[SwankyDank]

Thread for anyone who uses or is interested in results for overdriven T8 for flower...

I followed these instructions (https://www.rollitup.org/t/diy-fluro-overdrive.84592/) to overdrive two, four-light fixtures with 4 daylight (6500k) and 4 soft-white (3000k). The information I have read states that over-driving offers a multiplier of 1.7 increase to output. So these lights are giving approximately 48-50w per tube for a total of 400w. Lumens is approx. 38,000-40,000.




The grow is two Seedsman Skunk Haze Regular. Soil.
Approximately 9 weeks in flower.




I will post final harvest results when they are finished but right now they are showing less than 1% amber so it could be few more weeks.

 

[GemuGrows]

I dig it man, can I (strongly) suggest throwing some CFL's near the lower buds? Even with only a few weeks left i'm sure you will see a difference. My last fluorescent grow (which is in my sig) you can see as it went along I added a handful of CFL's to the lower branches of my plants, it made a VERY noticeable difference.

You can go to home depot and buy a light socket clip, and then buy a dual light socket so you can clip 2 CFL's wherever you want. Its under $20 for an extra 43 or so watts, which is an extra 7800ish lumens. Pick up 1-2 of those clips, screw in 2-4 lights, pop them between your plants and you will happy

I had one plant that took 2 weeks longer than my other 6 plants. I threw all my fluorescent lights on it for those two weeks. Most of my plants gave me between a half ounce and 1oz. My last plant just being focused by the light for an extra 2 weeks gave me just over 2 zips Little time, biiiiig difference.

 

[jarvild]

If your running 400 watts of floro's why don't you run 400 watts of HPS for better penetration?

 

[SwankyDank]

Gemu: Great idea, I'll do that. What type of clip are you using? I couldn't really see them close-up in your journal.

 

[GemuGrows]

Gemu: Great idea, I'll do that. What type of clip are you using? I couldn't really see them close-up in your journal.

http://www.google.com/shopping/product/6643898335217075176?lsf=seller:8740,store:4421111379338594510&prds=oid:331371653191413925&hl=en&cm_mmc=shopping-_-googleads-_-pla-_-205031467&ci_sku=205031467&ci_gpa=pla&ci_src=17588969&gclid=COzUmurWk8ICFQsKaQod1WYATQ
^these guys You can take off the metal hood off
http://www.google.com/shopping/product/2248565625847209804?lsf=seller:8740,store:4421111379338594510&prds=oid:1617831092044757215&hl=en&cm_mmc=shopping-_-googleads-_-pla-_-100356967&ci_sku=100356967&ci_gpa=pla&ci_src=17588969&gclid=CLKLgv3Wk8ICFaERMwodDUQAWQ
^And then you screw in one of theeeese guys, cuz it makes your purchase more efficient
http://www.homedepot.com/p/TCP-100W-Equivalent-Soft-White-2700K-Spiral-CFL-Light-Bulb-68923/203954216?cm_mmc=Shopping|G|VF|PLA&gclid=CLX51pLXk8ICFcpAMgodlEkAsQ&gclsrc=aw.ds
^Then you screw in a pair of those guys and have at it! I do suggest getting a little fan, maybe one of these guys V
http://www.menards.com/main/fans/residential-fans/honeywell-table-air-circulator-fan/p-1393844-c-12727.htm
^With one of those fans on my CLF's i could have them an inch from my plant without any heat issue at all, it disturbed the plants very little.

 

[SwankyDank]

jarvild: Good question... I have two reasons why I have this setup:

1. For the past ten years I have been starting vegetable seedlings for the garden and so I already had the lights. The upgrade to overdrive the lights only required purchasing two ballasts, ($40) to get it to 400w. If I were starting with no lights and with no previous investment in lighting I would have gone with a different rig.

2. My first attempt at growing was auto's in the outdoor garden. It was so much fun and rewarding that I ordered more seeds to try indoors. As I continued growing I got hooked and through more reading realized that the output from the regular T8's wasn't enough. SOOO... then I had to adjust on the fly with plants that were 2 weeks into 12/12.

Looking ahead to this Feb and March, when I usually start the veggies inside, I might have to expand the lighting setup. But first I want to see how far I really want to go with indoor growing before I spend the money.

 

[SwankyDank]

11/28/14 Harvest. Trichromes approximately 3% Amber, 85-90% Cloudy

67G wet from Skunk Haze One. 59G wet from Skunk Haze Two.

 

[mudballs]

omg i wanna do over drive! i wanna do over drive! never heard of it

 

[SwankyDank]

A look at the roots:



Very small root mass. These were growing in 5gal and 6gal and they would have fit in 1.5-2 gal without getting root-bound.

What did I learn from this? The pots were way too big!

So a question for any and all: How do you run your grows and how does your experience inform my future grows in this space.

It is 3' x 4' with headroom capped at about 4'. It seems like the options are...

1) 10-12 plants in 1.5 - 2 gal pots and try to take the yield to 600-700 grams wet
2) Veg longer and grow 4 beasts in the 5 gal with a yield of ???
3) Some sort of in-between with 6-8 plants in 3-4 gal with a yield of ???

Follow-up question: Would a 10-12 pot grow decrease light penetration and effectively lower the yield?

 

[GemuGrows]

My next grow i'm probably putting 4-5 bigger plants under my 600w hps. I water everything by hand and grow all different strains so its a pain in the ass to even water 6 lol. But that also has to do with my soil plants ranging from like 2 feet to 5.5 feet, thanks to being out of town for about 20 days in veg.

If I run 4-5 plants, i'm going to start them in a gallon or less pots, then move them directly to their 7-10 gallon pots and veg them a few more weeks before flowering.

Are you planning on upgrading your lights at all for the next run? I can probably tune in on some suggestions if i know how much your going to be using

 

[SwankyDank]

Are you planning on upgrading your lights at all for the next run? I can probably tune in on some suggestions if i know how much your going to be using

No plans to upgrade the lights for now, but I have added in the side-lighting you suggested. I hung two vertical lights using ikea pendant cords with 43w cfls. There are two plants vegging with this added lighting and it is already making a difference.

 

[SwankyDank]

12/4/14: Dried and curing.

21g from Skunk Haze One



The scent pours out of the jar and fills the room with sour and hints of dill, reminiscent of pickles! Also citrus and peppery as well so it could lean more towards capers? . Not a bad smell just definitely not the usual fruity/sweet smell I get shopping at the dispensary.

The appearance is olive-green, very frosty, very fluffy buds, with many orange pistils... Lots of space in these things.

The feel is soft and sticky with lots of give in the buds. The individual buds will not stay separate and continue to form one large bud mass in the jar even if I space it out when open for a curing.

17g from Skunk Haze Two



The scent is much weaker and subtle then pheno one. Still a slight sour, but much more towards the citrus side as well a definite fruity layer as well. I'm pretty sure I screwed this one up and let it dry a little too long. When first harvested it smelled like Sour Patch Kids but now that it has dried it has lost most of the punch and that has disappointed me. Now it has a slight herbal(think green tea) almost hay scent that is slowly mellowing as it cures and the Sour Patch is coming back a bit but I think I lost the magic.

The appearance is olive-gray, slightly frosty, medium-dense, with many orange pistils. Still some room in these nugs but not like pheno one.

The feel is slightly crispy with little to no obvious stickiness. The buds are solid with little give. They remain separate when turning the bottle while curing.

Smoke report later.

 

[SnapsProvolone]

Wow, 400 watts yielded 38 grams. :/

 

[SwankyDank]

Wow, 400 watts yielded 38 grams. :/

I know right!!! Well, sort of. They flowered under 200w until the last 2 weeks when the lighting upgrade was finally finished. Plus this is my first grow and so there is a rather depressing list of stupid mistakes that impacted the grow. The biggest being growing in Vigoro Organic Soil from Home Depot. Here's what they looked like at the flip:





...and they had already been vegging for five weeks. That junk soil locks out and has already caused me more problems until I realized how bad it is using it straight out of the bag. The second biggest being dropping a light reflector that snapped off one-fourth of a plant. The third being growing these babies in pots that were too large and under-watering. They never wilted but closer to harvest I noticed cupping and tip burn and at harvest I was surprised by the dryness of the soil. I learned quite a bit and I have high hopes that the next round will see something much different at harvest time.

 

[SnapsProvolone]

400 watts of HPS could easily run a gram per watt.

 

[SwankyDank]

400 watts of HPS could easily run a gram per watt.

Would 400w of hps pull that with those pitiful looking plants growing in junk bigbox soil and it was only two plants? So 200 grams per plant dried?

 

[GemuGrows]

My next grow i'm probably putting 4-5 bigger plants under my 600w hps. I water everything by hand and grow all different strains so its a pain in the ass to even water 6 lol. But that also has to do with my soil plants ranging from like 2 feet to 5.5 feet, thanks to being out of town for about 20 days in veg.

If I run 4-5 plants, i'm going to start them in a gallon or less pots, then move them directly to their 7-10 gallon pots and veg them a few more weeks before flowering.

Are you planning on upgrading your lights at all for the next run? I can probably tune in on some suggestions if i know how much your going to be using

and you could add even a few more CFL setups for your next run! Assume you could yield up to .5g/watt with each extra watt of CFL, so long as you utilize them properly.

I wouldnt suggest this harder if it didnt produce FANTASTIC results for me on my first run. $20 for 8-10g seems worth it enough to me

 

[SwankyDank]

Smoke Report for Skunk Haze Phenotype One, Sativa Dominant
(Hand rolled and also vaporizer)

Taste begins floral with some fruit. As the smoke progresses herbal and green tea begins to dominate and ends fully in a herbal, almost incense laden smoke. Flavors include grape, citrus, pepper, green tea, and sandalwood.

Fully effects in 10 minutes. Clear-headed buzz. Some numbness in the legs and feet. Heightened sense of sound. Rapid jumps in time and thought process. Post-peak nostalgia with a deeper sense of appreciation for friends and family. Lasting about 3 hours.

If I take too much at one sitting... periods of chills and facial tension.

Overall a very complex aroma and flavor experience with a solid sativa high.

 

[farmerfischer]

I dig it man, can I (strongly) suggest throwing some CFL's near the lower buds? Even with only a few weeks left i'm sure you will see a difference. My last fluorescent grow (which is in my sig) you can see as it went along I added a handful of CFL's to the lower branches of my plants, it made a VERY noticeable difference.

You can go to home depot and buy a light socket clip, and then buy a dual light socket so you can clip 2 CFL's wherever you want. Its under $20 for an extra 43 or so watts, which is an extra 7800ish lumens. Pick up 1-2 of those clips, screw in 2-4 lights, pop them between your plants and you will happy

I had one plant that took 2 weeks longer than my other 6 plants. I threw all my fluorescent lights on it for those two weeks. Most of my plants gave me between a half ounce and 1oz. My last plant just being focused by the light for an extra 2 weeks gave me just over 2 zips Little time, biiiiig difference.

Agree he needs compacts in along the sides, it does help

 

[SwankyDank]

Added the lights between grows and it is making a noticeable difference. Big thanks @GemuGrows and @farmerfischer