Its not my set up it is just, imo, the most basic possible setup. I think if he had the basics down he would have had a successful grow by now. How is that not logical?
Because I think you start with just letting a plant survive and move up the competence/complexity/yield/potency ladder from there. If 1 is simplest and 10 is most complex, and you skip from the start right up to 7 or 8 and get consistently bad results, it just makes sense to start over again at 1. I don't think there is good advice for his current problem that can be given online or over the phone etc because there are just too many variables. I think this situation calls for in-person training type of thing and no one is going to do that. Instead, online, it is him attempting to describe and show what his assessment is of the problem, and then others responding with possible solutions to a problem they can't even be sure has been properly assessed, much less sure that their solutions will be properly applied.
This is no offensive to the OP. Just a justification for why I think the best advice for someone who has not had a successful grow using fairly advanced methods, is for them to the simplest possible methods and go up from there. And I really think, am almost positive, that once this grower does start from the absolute basics, masters them before moving up a step in complexity, he will never have the same problem he is having now again. He will know how to prevent it and if it does happen will know the best way to deal with it. Just my opinion, as strongly worded as it may be.