5by5's 2nd RDWC grow

Here we go again.
System took a weekend to get back up and running. I had folded up the tent and put everything into totes last year so I could use my garage for other things.

I just soaked the seeds same as before. Overnight and then threw them into rapid rooters. They popped the next day.
The only way I know how to do it lol.

Massive air powered by the venerable ET-100 and 10 Sweetwater airstones. ( 2 per bucket)
I used two stones because last year my roots had engulfed my single airstone. I had to cut it out of the root ball.
I have a 3/4" line running from the pump to my hot-tub pvc air manifold. 3/8 lines from manifold to the buckets and then 2 - 1/4 lines to the stones.

Said air manifold. It is 1" PVC so I plugged it on one end, and put a 3/4 barb on the other. I plugged 1 of the outlets.

The insulated duct made a HUGE difference in sound. I am running mesh until it starts to stink, and then I will slap the carbon filter on it.

Headband OG has always been my favorite. Now I get to grow it.

5BY5LEC said:

The insulated duct made a HUGE difference in sound. I am running mesh until it starts to stink, and then I will slap the carbon filter on it.
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Get a new fan if you wanna cut down sound. those are thee most annoying pieces of crap fans ever. I've used 3 different ones like that and now I've upgraded to a less centrifugal design to the more axial style.

Yeah, I went around and around about whether or not to buy an AC Infinity Fan this grow. I decided this would work but next grow I am def getting an axial/mixed flow fan. My buddy has a hyperfan and man, is that thing quiet. Thanks for the tip.

5BY5LEC said:

Yeah, I went around and around about whether or not to buy an AC Infinity Fan this grow. I decided this would work but next grow I am def getting an axial/mixed flow fan. My buddy has a hyperfan and man, is that thing quiet. Thanks for the tip.

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There's a red and black one under many different brand names. Some models come with a controller on the cord and some don't, but it's the beat fan I've ever used. AC infinity is a rip off. Good fan but too much$$.

I will have to check that one out!

So yeah. I tried 4 headband seeds and three of them died but not from damping off or something like that. I figured out I was a fool and did not cover the hole in the rooter enough so that the root did not get exposed to light, wind, ect. My RH is very low, like around 30%.
One survived, and I put three new Jack Herrer Fems's from Seedsman in there because it was what I had.

Once I soaked the seed, I covered the hole with a corner I had cut from the rooter. Each of the 3 JH's sprouted this big fuzzy-looking root and did much better than my first run.
They all pretty much look the same now. See how I crossed out Headband on the lid and wrote Jack Herrer hahaha. It happens.
This was a few days ago.

EPIC FAIL
So, its been almost a month.....
Long story short......Since my last grow was so successful I feel I did not learn some important things. This can be evidenced by the complete and total failure of my grow this year in several aspects.
1. Bennies worked well for me last year, but not this year. After about a week or so my shit was slimed to hell. I mean slime on the buckets, slime on the stones, inside the pipes...everything. It was bad. Real fucking bad. I wish I got some pictures.
2. I used my rapid rooters from last year (stored sealed in the fridge). All my seedlings damped off. I replaced them with four other seeds and all but one of those damped off too.
So about June 25th I shut it down.

Back to the drawing board. Failure means learning so I chalked it all up to inexperience and started over, changing what I think needs to be changed in how I do things.

1. Bleach the shit out of the system. 3/4 cup bleach per 1 gal and ran it for awhile.
2. Obtain a starter tray/dome and some 1.5" rockwool cubes. Learn the proper way to handle rockwool.
3. Figure out how to run a sterile res. I bought some pool shock and at 1g/gal makes a stock solution of 200ppm, similar to uc roots and clear res.
4. Use hydroton instead of grow rocks.

Pool shock is the shit, and rockwool is my new best friend. Much easier for me than using rooters.
Have to say I am doing much better this time!!!

5BY5LEC said:

EPIC FAIL
So, its been almost a month.....
Long story short......Since my last grow was so successful I feel I did not learn some important things. This can be evidenced by the complete and total failure of my grow this year in several aspects.
1. Bennies worked well for me last year, but not this year. After about a week or so my shit was slimed to hell. I mean slime on the buckets, slime on the stones, inside the pipes...everything. It was bad. Real fucking bad. I wish I got some pictures.
2. I used my rapid rooters from last year (stored sealed in the fridge). All my seedlings damped off. I replaced them with four other seeds and all but one of those damped off too.
So about June 25th I shut it down.

Back to the drawing board. Failure means learning so I chalked it all up to inexperience and started over, changing what I think needs to be changed in how I do things.

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Step 1. Use a chiller like I've said a hundred times.

5BY5LEC said:

1. Bleach the shit out of the system. 3/4 cup bleach per 1 gal and ran it for awhile.
2. Obtain a starter tray/dome and some 1.5" rockwool cubes. Learn the proper way to handle rockwool.
3. Figure out how to run a sterile res. I bought some pool shock and at 1g/gal makes a stock solution of 200ppm, similar to uc roots and clear res.
4. Use hydroton instead of grow rocks.

Pool shock is the shit, and rockwool is my new best friend. Much easier for me than using rooters.
Have to say I am doing much better this time!!!

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Don't even need rock wool. Just sprout your seeds til the tails an inch or so long and throw them in the Aero cloner, carefully placed in the collars, for a week til they get some roots then transplant directly into netpot and fill with hydroton. Get the roots to come through the bottom Before filing though.

I have a chiller. I think the problem is whatever is in my tap water. Pool shock is working great and keeping my PH much more stable than I am used to. Still working on installing a permanent RO that my wife can also use for drinking water. 2ppm FAC seems to not be a problem for the plants. I even soaked the rockwool in a 2ppm FAC mix and about 200ppm of nutrients. Kept the shit away. I also soaked the seeds in a weak peroxide solution this time around.

I might try that next round. The 1.5" rockwool actually worked pretty well. I just soaked it, put the seeds in and didnt water them again until they were light. That was about 5 days.
I have been thinking about a mini dwc type thing to grow them in before I transplant. Anyway.

This one is a week old since germinating (June 29), and two days into the system. The new growth at the top was not there before I transplanted. They all pretty much look the same. None of the problems of last time so far.

I’m interested in setting up a 2 bucket RDWC system do you mind if I ask a few basic questions about RDWC?

Smokexbreak said:

I’m interested in setting up a 2 bucket RDWC system do you mind if I ask a few basic questions about RDWC?

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Not at all man. I will tell ya what I know. My next setup will be a two-tote with a 20-gal can as a res.

They seem to have survived the transplant well enough. I guess just patience for now.
I am running about 100ppm of just GH three part. That's about 1/2ml of each part to 1 gal for me.
When the sucker leaves yellow I will bump it to 250 the next week and 300 the next. My last grow topped at about 650ppms so I am going to work my way there.

BTW. I add about .5gram of pool shock (.5g in 20 gal will give 3-5ppm FC.) to my water first to sterilize it. This keeps my PH nailed at whatever I set it at for whatever reason.
Maybe this is normal, but last year I fought PH swing like a SOB using hydroguard and orca so it's nice to see it so stable.
If you ask my wife about the takeaway last year, she will tell you I always was bitching about PH.

Anyway, on to the plants. Doubled new growth since yesterday. I guess they like HClO. My LEC is at the roof of the tent.
PH 5.8
PPM 100

Same plant as yesterday. I learned that if I can keep up the new growth everyday I am ok.