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Curiosity has got me asking the question as to would it be possible to create a system of metal halides from one ballast with a rating higher that the needs of the lamps? i.e. 3 * 150 from a large ballast. Would this be possible? Thanks for your time Ben

Yes such a ballast could be made. It would cost much more than 3 individual ballasts would cost at present. Have a look at optic fibre lighting for another version of your idea. At about $2000 each they are merely a great idea. See http://www.nutrilifeproducts.com/whats_new.htm for a look at the next generation of lighting.

Now what has curiosity got you thinking?

:-) Scott

Can you please tell me if you can buy a conversion kit to make a 1000w metal halide balast into a 1000w h.p.s.

Sorry, the amperage and voltage output is not the same. You should get nearly as good results with a Metal Halide if you use one with added Reds.

Scott

Setting up lights

16 June 2003

I have 2 questions at this stage. 1) I’m thinking of a 400w HPS light system, however how is it installed? Would I need an electrician? Or into a power socket? Any instructions on how to install it yourself? 2) I have an area 0.6mx1mx1.5m, what type of reflector should I use? A large or small one for that small area? Thanks for your help; I'm hoping to get in touch with an order soon. Thanks, Jess. PS. The questions on your web page are VERY informative, good job on keeping them up to date and so informative! 

1/ 400Watt plugs into the wall. Normal home appliance. Too Easy!

2/ Use a small or medium adjustashade reflector small will give you less heat.

3/ Thanks for the support. Answered 32 Questions today and my eyes have gone square looking at the screen!

Will go home at 5 o'clock one day

Scott

Light reflectors designs
13 June 2003

I was thinking of setting up a 600 watt light with a homemade reflector, which will cover one square meter. My question is one on reflection. I wanted to use ordinary mirrors to make up the reflector, setting all the angles for even light over the area. Does the light need to be diffused, or will the plants be fine with all the reflections from the mirrors... 

Reflectors are VERY OVERRATED!!!!! Use any old horizontal unit, should be fine. If you wanted to make a perfect reflector, you would work out where the plant is, the distance and angles are easy to work out. Then the plant grows and the light is moved. SO think about making the whole growing area a reflective surface.

Mirrors, well I hate them! But they are 95% reflective - or are they???? In fact in the visible spectrum that plants use, the mirror is not much more effective than a white surface that diffuses the light - that is, doesn't provide a true reflecting but reflects in a general direction. Mirrors tend to produce hotspots than burn the plants if they are unfortunate enough to grow into that spot. Also the heat of the light is radiated around the growing area - which is a bad thing where we are in Queensland.

I use an M shaped reflective design, and always use white. 

Scott

Wardrobe setups
12 June 2003

Hi Scott,

I'm interested in buying a wardrobe set up.  I'm going to plant between 4 - 5 seeds.  What set up would best suit me?  I've been told I need fluros for the babies til they have say 3 sets of leaves and then they I'll need more light than a fluoro is capable of providing, and it all seems a little confusing, :).  As I am growing it in a wardrobe I have no way to ventilate at all, but I have also been told ventilation isn't all that necessary and that simply opening up the door will be enough ventilation.  Please suggest some set ups I should be looking at.

Hello

1/Plant seeds in Rockwool cubes or Perlite. Get them cold before you strike them as they need an increase in temperature first. Dry Tupperware container in the fridge for 3-5 days. Keep them form getting cold again by selecting an area at home that doesn't get cold.

2/ Id recommend a system that's simple first time. Perlite in Pots, hand watered until the saucers are full of nutrient, or a network system - see www.hydrocentre.com.au/network

3/fluros are ideal, or indirect light indoors is okay to begin them. Until they have 2-3 sets of leaves they have not many roots, and too much light dries them out, and the moisture they need to replace is difficult to keep up with when the roots are small. Later it is easy for a larger set of roots. Growing under a 400Watt is possible, just avoid too much heat and maybe get some shade cloth between the seedlings and the light.

4/ It is absolutely critical for you to understand this - Opening the doors is Bad!

Keep them closed, and have a fan sucking air out of the top of it to a window or into the ceiling, and have inlet vents down low (or another fan) drawing in air as long as the air being drawn in is fresh, not stale. If you have the fans going and open the doors that is also bad. Image a bottle of water, take the lid off. The water won't get fresh. Try pouring fresh water into it. It just overflows. You need to give plants food - Carbon Dioxide, and you need to get rid of the air once its had the carbon dioxide extracted and more air put back in. So in terms of our bottle, pump water into the bottom, or drain it out and pour fresh in the top, any way that keeps the bottle full of new water.

Plants without fresh air die. Wardrobes with open doors cause overheating of the plant because the air is not moving around the plant, and the air is getting hotter.

Have a think about these points, and try to find a way to get air in and out. Then let me know so I can help you further.

Scott

What's the best way to ventilate a room with no noise
11 Jun 2003

I am growing in a loft and it's hot and humid, yield is low and tops are stretching when close to the light. I think an extractor fan would be too noisy; there is some airflow in gaps in the felt under the tiles but not enough. Also how big should tanks be for 8 plants under a 400w? This questions page beats most I get on ask.com and nice one Scott for your patience and expertise. 

Thanks *bows*

You need to make sure you get the air changed over 10-20 times per hour to ensure fresh carbon dioxide for the plants, and more if heat is an issue.

A Fan can be noisy sure, and you have to live there too, and your neighbours need their sleep as well. Centripetal/centrifugal type fans look and sound like a jet engine. Avoid those. Tube Axial fans and ball bearing bathroom fans are fairly good, but you'll need to check them for noise levels first. Under 50dB in the specs is ok, under 40dB is great as a rule of thumb. From there you can reduce the noise further. You should look at using one that is fairly quiet, reduce the power with a normal light dimmer (not a fan speed control) and/or hang the fan to avoid noise transferring through the roof or walls through contact vibration, and/or insulate the fan. If the fan is normal then the motor is in the centre, and the blade spins pushing air past the motor, thus cooling the fan's motor. If you run an insulation slab, blankets, sound foam, etc around the fan without impeding the flow of air this will absorb a lot of sound. As for fan noise travelling down the ducting or out the window, try a sound absorbing material in the duct, but have the duct turn at that point. E.g. carpet the inside of the tube, just where it turns 90 degrees. The sound waves hit the carpet, and the air flows past. The wider the turn, the less effect on the rate of airflow.

There are some ideas. I am sure you could think of others. If your neighbours complain after you think its quiet.... put in an outside pond/fountain. The trickling water is all they'll hear, and it is so restful it might put them to sleep more easily than yelling over the fence,

Hope it goes well

Scott

Is reverse cycle air conditioning suitable???? 
19 June 2003 

Hello,

I have just set up my new room and it contains a reverse cycle air conditioner. So that I can regulate the temperature at a constant all year. But I have heard that this may not be so good for the plants as they dry the air out. If so, what can I do to over come this. It is the type of system that can change between heat and cool cycles automatically. I use a lot of lights and have a heat problem, but then when the lights go out, it gets too cold. So I thought that I could cure this problem with the automatic system.

What do you advise using??? 

We have a great deal of growers using Air conditioning.

Ok, airconditioners usually have a heat or cool function. Bigger units may do both, but for us mere domestic growers, we might have a problem looking for a dual function unit. I suggest you either use the air con as a heater, and use lots of fan power during the hot period, or use the air con to cool, and have fairly minimal fans overnight.

By that I would say, at least 15 minutes every 2 hours. The lights can heat up the room in the rest of the night period. Beware of the humidity going higher when the fans switch off. You may end up with mould on your plants if it’s bad. Use yourself as a guinea pig; move the TV in there and spend some time in there.

It is true that air-conditioners dry the air, and dry air on the plants may make plants dry out faster than they can replace the moisture from their roots.

The effect is that the leaves dry out. 

However, in a growroom, we don't appear to have that problem, as we set them up differently.

In a growroom we use the first 10 air changes per hour to provide necessary carbon dioxide from fresh air for the plants.

Without Air-conditioning, we would then use another 90-140 air changes per hour to avoid heat build up, and if heat does not build up, we reduce the time the fans are on or slow the fans to avoid drawing too much cool air into the room.

However with Air-conditioning, we can set a temperature using the temperature gauge instead of using lots of fans.

The practicality of this is, if you heat or cool the air, but exchange 10-20 air changes per hour you keep the air carbon dioxide laden, and stop the air from becoming much drier than normal outdoor conditions. If those conditions are already dry, well the air conditioner is not the problem. I live in Queensland, and as such we know about higher humidity, and air conditioners are fairly common, and don't cost a lot to run, usually depends on your level of fan power. The main thing is it dries the air, which increases out potential for growth rates.

The only time a real drying effect occurs here is when the conditioned air is blowing onto one section of your crop. It is beneficial to ensure a fan in the room causes the conditioned air to mix around, not be directed all at one poor defense-less plant.

Seems like common sense after a while. Why not sit in the room and see where it’s hot and cold, and do something to change it when you feel uncomfortable. After all, plants grow well in the same climate you grow well in.

Scott

powering a 70 watt HPS lamp
30 Jun 2003

I have a 70watt HPS lamp bulb but I don’t know what to use to light it up and get it working, do you have any suggestions? 

Hello there 

HPS lighting systems require a ballast choke and condenser - commonly put together in a single box called a ballast or control box.

You would need a 70 Watt HPS Ballast to work you light, and a lamp holder connected to it by a lead.

A reflector would also be necessary to keep the light directed at the plants.

A Hydroponic Store would be your best bet, and an electrical store might be able to help with some of it. Take the lamp with you if you want to ensure you don't get any problem equipment.

The only issue is that you will not have much light intensity. The light will keep a plant alive, but is unlikely to be bright enough to get any good growing, flowering or fruiting.

I'd recommend a 400Watt system, as a 400Watt is very popular and cheap, and a complete system will probably be cheaper than the whole 70watt accessories. I.e. a 70Watt system at my shop is $230, and not even in stock. We have piles of 400Watters and the sell for $160AUD

Hope that’s not too much bad news.

Let me know if Natasha or myself can help in any way.

Scott

How are ya mate! I have been told to come here if I had any questions :-) Only one for the time being :-) What EC would u recommend for veg stage and flowering stage? For a recirculating system. Thanks heaps mate :-) Also if u wouldn't mind. When u introduce new plants to your hydro setups what kinda increments do u use on nutrients to avoid shocking/burning em

Hello

Nutrient Strength is CF or EC and depends on many things

More air flow= more strength or you get stretching

More humidity= less strength because the transpiration rate is slower (For Transpiration read evaporation from leaves)

More temperature=less strength as the nutrients are not used at same rate as water in solution and nutrients will rise in strength causing over fertilisation / tip burn

Plants using more water because it is hotter or the humidity is drier and the nutrients are left behind affect the rate of mineral salt build up in media. Perlite or Rockwool or anything that can hold onto nutrients might have a nutrient salt build-up. If we flush it clean regularly then use normal to slightly weaker (CF=-2; EC=-0.2) or maybe use -6CF to -8CF and not flush. Depends on the level or build up. Are you a good grower and can tell or not? Symptoms often sluggish growth and leaf shape curled (Note: beginners should know these are symptoms of many things, and you need to have eliminated a lot of these other things first) If you can see this happening before tip burn gives it away then you know the flushing or reduction in nutrient strength is needed.

So where do I start. In free flowing NFT, Clay type systems where build up is low, Seedlings at 8-10CF (0.8 to 1.0EC) and grow at 18-24 CF. Stay there until flowering aggressively developing plants will take up to 24CF to 28 CF. The stronger you go the better flowering, sturdier stems and branches, heavier fruiting plants should be. Drawback is the weaker you go the faster the plants grow, the longer the distance between branches/nodes, the leafier, taller the plants will be. Flush (0CF to 8CF) plants for 2 days before harvest to remove excess fertiliser for taste. High CF grown plants could add a day of flushing. If flushing causes CF to rise then dump tank and restart. E.g. you flush with tap water at 2CF, come back in 5 hours and its 8CF, next 24 hours still 8-10CF. The flushing is no longer working. Use plain water again at 2CF, and it rises to 8CF again in a few hours. Best to flush and dump, flush and dump. (If you can do that every week or two see your crop go CRAZY!!!! Highly recommended. Better effect than superthrive or Nutriboost! - I usually only tell this to my full price paying customers - so welcome to the exclusive club)

I also have a page on CF and pH at http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/phcf/index.html

As for new plants, I often run no nutrients or up to 8Cf while introducing them - but sometimes I just don't worry too much, and give them a flush with water so their pot/root area gets a low dose of nutrient solutions.

Hope all that helps you

Scott

Hello how are you going. I have a rough idea of what I wanna do now. Hope you can help me with this as this is going to help me out a lot thanks. Just wondering what is an autopot ? Just someone said that they are good I just need to know are they good and what they do.

see autopot valves at http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/network/index.html  http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/automatic%20systems/index.html and http://autopot.com.au/ 

What are the different types of hydroponic systems EBB n Flow, Drip, NFT and any others. If someone can say the difference and also others I will be very thankful. 

Ebb and flow is a flooding and Draining system usually in a tray with expanded clay beads. Drip Systems are usually just nutrient trickled through pots of Expanded Clay beads. NFT is a channel where 1mm of nutrient flows slowly under the roots that lay exposed on the bottom of the channel. Most popular is Perlite in Pots with saucers, watered until moist.

What area of space do you have in mind ? Well I am hoping something about 1 1/2 Metres High. What are its dimensions (Width And Height). 1 1/2 Metres Height - 1 Meter Wide. What is your budget ? About 500 Aud dollars.

A HID Light kit (Metal Halide MH or High Pressure Sodium HPS). What do you suggest for a grow room that size growing say 4 plants max ?

A 400Watt HPS Agro type covers a 1mx1m area well.

Fans. Do I need a fan in the bottom to let the air in and one at top letting air out is that right or .. ?

Best to have one in bottom and one out at top

Pots Or Buckets system or Top and Bottom system. What do you think is best Top n Bottom system looks neater and easier, but buckets I have got told are better what do you think ?

Not sure what that is. Use http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/satellite/index.html  is ideal

Some Seeds. Well I will get them when I get my setup going good, money has to go towards the system first. Your Medium. Most likely I will use Rockwool if I am using a top n bottom system or if I am using buckets I would use those pebbles - Canna Coco etc ?

Avoid Rockwool - only for experienced growers. In fact, I don't even use it.

Gauges What gauges do I need e.g. - PH and TDS.

Neither - unless you want to.

Pump. What is the best pumps to use and what wattage etc ?

Try Atman, and look for enough flow and head height. Of course I can recommend one to suit your system

Heater. What is the best heater to use and what heat etc ?

Do you need one? Why?

Reflective Material. What is the best reflective material to use ?

White plastic is best. Don't use silver types as it traps heat. Using paint only works if you have time to let the fumes dissipate. i.e. months.

Carbon Filter Should I make my own or buy one for around $400 to purify the air ?

I prefer Ozone than Carbon filters as they neutralize the smell everywhere not just the ducted exhausted air. It means the hallway doesn't smell like plants.

How much wattage do I need per square foot ? As I need to know.

Minimum 400w for 1mx1m, 600W 1.5mx1.5m

Have Fun!

Scott

mate grab a seat lol

Here is what I've got, 1 built in closet with 400hps sontagro white/black plastic lined, ceiling fan in to roof sucking direct in to roof area, flood and drain stacker unit, hydroton medium, osc fan blowing on the plants, a truncheon, ph testing fluid(dropper type), For the nutes im using a happy medium brand grow (made by a shop in browns plains), In this I use Dutch master MAX (the old type before they made one for flower and one for grow), hydrogen peroxide as per instructions on bottle (I brought it to sterilse the stones and decided I might as well keep using it) I will be changing the nutrients to Dutch Master advance (ive read its THE best you can buy (opinions plz)), Iam NEW to growing so brand names info is appreciated, I brought Xtreame flower with potash for the one at my mates place in flower. although what potash does is a mystery. Also what the heck does the Max actually do??(supplier said its the same as superthrive??)

Problem i have now is I want something in flower and something in grow and clones happening all at the same time, but im a poor prick and cant afford much- I have a second flood and drain stacker boxes coming soon- I had to ship my flowering plant off to a mates who had a 600watt setup, so as soon as its finished I will get the boxes and pump back, I will coming down to meet you and buy a light based on your suggestion here,

The current closet is full ceiling height so I will keep that as the flowering room, I have a snake tank (metal mesh on the roof, sliding front doors and venting at the bottom) otherwise a 4 foot fish tank- In this I have a light that I brought that is a compact 28watt fluro in a hood with glass under the light, that is designed to grow aquarium plants, so Iam thinking to keep this as the place for fresh clones to go into, when they are 1st taken as I can controll humity and temp, as this fluro puts off heat, What I need to work out is what to do now- ie should i make a 3rd area and have a motherplant or just keep cloning from the flowering plant? Can I veg under the fluro? or should I get another HPS for vegging?? I have a portable wardrbe type thing that I can modify, or a freind suggested picking up a non-working fridge and mounting a light inside of it and venting etc??? whats my best option here??? If i have an area just for vegging is HPS my best option? I have brought some strains from BigW :) but Ive stuffed up big time, I have them at different stages 2 are 1 foot tall and in the closet with full nutes, 2 are 1/2 the size and should be in 1/2 strength but full hasnt hurt them, and then I have clones that have just rooted?? Am i rooted or what? the biggest ones are going to be damn big if I wait for the smallest ones to veg and then flower?? should i put them together when I would normally flower the biggest ones and then just flower them, Ie hardly any veg.

those plastic stackers that im using for flood and drain hold about 50ltres and are about the length of a single built in wardrobe, but small enough to get them in and out ok, How many plants can I put in of different breeds?? there will be four types is this too small for 4 flowered animals, Ive read about sog and scrog but it doesnt make sense so im just letting them grow. do u sell a frame for scrogging?

Lastly shit your probably asleep by now, Thise is inside my house, for some reason I keep getting these fat little caterpillars they appear from no where (they just appear on 1/2 a leave after they have eaten the other 1/2, I squash em but they keep coming back, I spray with neem, and it helps but then they come back lol, whats the best to piss these off??

My nutrients have me stumped too, I made the mix at about 1600PPM and its increasing everyday even though I have added more water than I started with??? weird or common? I assume they are not eating it for some reason but they are growing fast!, what should my nute strength be using MAX?? The shop I got it from said 1680ppm grow, 1820 flower, if A+B= 1400ppm,

Lastly then I will leave you alone- Smell factor in a small closet are, I looked at ozone but was told its too small of an area, he suggested this gel stuff but said I can also use these block things?? thoughts on thi mate??

Iam gonna come down soon and check ya shop out, how do i get there from XXX??

thanks for taking the time to help me setup, I hope I get all my questions answered but understand your a busy man, especially with that puppy, (whew Iam getting a puppy soon so im gonna know all about it too lol)

cheers

Dutch Master is a good nutrient. Opinion is Powergro is a better yielder. Potash is stored in the plant to increase weight overall. Max may have vitamins and all the fancy metabolites that Dutch master pioneered. Yes similar to Superthrive and Nutriboost. I prefer Nutriboost for the 1-NAA that swells plant tissues. Snake tank is fine for plants. Metal adds zinc, iron, copper etc, so keep it out of the nutrients. Temp of 25 degrees is ideal

A flowering plant will take 8 weeks to finish avg. If you take cuttings at 2 weeks into flowering, they take 2 weeks to root. You can then put them into the system or delay them under fluros Main system, they'll be short and far from the light, but okay. Under fluros (use ACTIVA172 from Sylvania 98% colour rendition) they'll grow really slowly until the system is finished. 4 weeks is maximum under fluros unless some sunlight available. Plants may stretch a little.

Plants in system seem to be fine. The tall ones may block to light so bend them back and maybe tilt the light so you get it shining down and sideways, putting the tall plants beside the light, and the shortest under the light. Just ideas. if reflectivity is high, the plants should be fine. shorter plants may stretch a little but that's okay. You can control the stretching with Bonza bud height regulator.

If you mean producing a carpeting effect with a netting just screw it into the cupboard or get an aluminum frame made off me ($5 per meter and $2.50 per corner) Use Dipel on the caterpillars. Its a bacteria that only affects grubs, and it makes them get a stomach ache so they can't eat. They starve to death. The bacteria stays there. Totally ineffective on any other pest or human

Plant nutrient strength is about osmotic pressure, not the actual amount plants eat. The water usage is greater than nutrient salts so nutrient strength should rise overall. If adding water still gives a higher reading then some salts have built up in the system/media and you should flush the system with water until the water ppm is close to whatever water is normally in your area.

Nutrient strength is as high as you can go without burning the tips or getting leaf turns for best yield. For fastest growth, use half that. Use more if high airflow, less if high humidity, go stronger if too tall, weaker if too short and so on...

So I start with a CF of 10, go to 20-24 for grow and 24-28 for flowering. in ppm check your calibration solution for comparison. If dividing the ppm on the calibration with the CF of the calibration gives you 65, (or whatever) multiply my CF's by 65 (or whatever)

Smell issues, Ozone is best, blocks are just as effective as Glenn 20 Spray etc from supermarkets. 

From North - drive south on M1 to Nerang Broadbeach exit. Go towards the Coast /broadbeach for about 500 meters. Turn Right into Lawrence Drive at first traffic lights ("Campbells cash and carry") and then look for us on the left at number 39 - Shop 17. Our sign says Hydroponics - Gold Coast Garden Supplies. We are opposite Simply Hydro so you can get twice the Hydro in one street.

As for sending me long questions....

v

v

v

There is a long answer for you

Scott 

I was after prices on your indoor Kits for a cupboard. I saw one for $450, with accessories. Can you please email me what kits you have available. 

Hello http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/wardrobe/index.html is a guide on types of systems you can make up.

So here we go. Recommend a 400Watt light $160 Does up to 1mx1m, costs 4c per hour to run, produces some heat so exhaust or air conditioning necessary. Small clip on fan to keep air moving is good. Read http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/gardeningunderlites/index.htm and http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/400kits/index.html 

Two fans, one drawing in fresh air, and one removing the air from the wardrobe into the ceiling or outdoors. 140 cu.mtr computer fans $40 each or better 600cu.mtr fans $50 each are necessary. Plants will run out of air in 5-10 minutes. Make sure the air being fed to them is fresh. Make sure the air that is hot and stale is removed. Forget about achieving anything else except this, or failure is certain. Plants grow best at the same temperature and humidity as you feel comfortable in, so check it out. If you lock the house up all day, how does it feel if you were inside a wardrobe all day?

I think a network kit with 2-3 plants is ideal. around $100 http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/network/index.html That would be pretty fool proof. The other systems that work well are aeroponics $145 http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/aeroponics/index.html or just Perlite in pots with saucers - water with nutrients until moist.

Nutrients are $25 per pack ($60 for bigger packs) and are available in a grow stage or a bloom stage pack. http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/additives/index.htm is a guide to more things you can provide if you want to.

So do you have a wardrobe ready? Sizes?

Scott

Scott , mate - I have seen your cloning setup and it looks the goods , but the almighty dollar is a little strapped and am leaning towards compact fluros rather than tubes - but would prefer finding a 100 or 250 watt unit rather than running multiple 40 watt lights - do you sell these? what is your opinion on this lighting ? I have heard a lot of good things in regards these lights being perfect for the seedling / veg stage ? But would like your say on the matter.

The types of propagation lighting are

Fluro - Cool White - good enough for seed raising and cuttings, but when the plants start to grow, they need to be moved to a better light source or they will be hungry for light, get thin and stretched and unhappy. Ok for plants with some indirect sunlight fillling in the gaps in the spectrum. Plants need to be as close as possible without touching. Max the white reflective surfaces. (Silver may reflect heat - not a problem in all cases) 

Fluro - Full Spectrum - Activa 172 (98% CRI colour rendition index) and similar lamps, good for actual growing as well as propagation. same distancing and reflection. 

Fluro - Grolux - Designed for aquarium plants, the colours are strange, rate like a cool white. Very good for butchers to make meat look more appealing. 

Compact fluros - Warm type - worse than cool white. Use reflector. 

Compact Fluros - cool/neutral type - like the cool white. Use reflector. 

Colour corrected incandescent - Incandescent produce light from a glowing filament. They are hot and their spectrum is red and yellow. A Blue coated incandescent of the colour corrected or daylight type is better, but still gives off heat. Use if light AND heat are required for a cheap solution to seed raising and cuttings. 

Metal Halides come in 400W upwards mainly, too hot and too bright, good for growing, poor flowering. A 68Watt kit at $200 is about the maximum for propagation. Anything brighter would need some shade cloth as protection. 

Agro type High Pressure Sodium - HPS with added blues - Good growing and flowering lamp, small wattages hard to find.

As always the best way to spread light is to use lots of little lights up close, than one bright source and spread it as the light diminishes the further you get from the source. Propagating close to a bright lamp tortures cuttings/seedlings, while those on the outside starve for light. NASA is working on a plant lighting system that uses a wall/ceiling of very small lights like LED lights you have to indicate an appliance is switched on. They believe they can grow plants right up next to the wall/ceiling and have better light spread with less power consumed.

Does this answer your question?

Scott

How's are things mate? I was on the internet looking for a Hydro kit and came across your website. I am new to the game so the wardrobe kit looks great for me. One thing I ask - is the wardrobe itself large enough to have 2-4 full grown plants in it? If not is it possible to have the products installed into another wardrobe?

Another thing is that I live in Melbourne. What would it cost to have it all sent over here? 

G'day, I'd suggest looking for a good wardrobe down there and I can help you fit it out. Anything that big is expensive to freight and I'd rather see you buy something locally that you like. The main things are being lightproof and able to have an inlet fan down low, and an exhaust fan up high. Generally any 1200x500x2000h mm cupboard will give you the same yield with 2 or 4 tomato plants. A bigger area lit up may yield higher. The way plants bush up to fill the lighted area and slow when they run out of light, the results are more related to the lighted area than the number of plants.

Why not investigate a couple of second hand stores and get back to me with some dimensions. We can go from there...

Thanks for the enquiry

Scott

Good afternoon, I am wanting to build an indoor growroom, 2m x 2m thinking of using a 600w HPS dual spectrum kit???? Would you have any better suggestions for such a space??? Also please include prices, availability and transport costs to xxxxxxx including 150/250 micron panda or other reflective plastics with width price and any other you may think of.  Thank you for your time

Hello,

A 600 Watt covers 1.5meters x 1.5 meters. You can reduce the size of the room with Panda film if you like.

600 Watters start at $220 for a small adjustashade and $240 for a large shade. The light would qualify as a parcel and all parcels are free freight to most areas over $50, sender is "R Andrew" and otherwise unmarked. 3 meter wide Panda film is $6 per meter off the roll, or $9 for the extra thick. No freight cost if the total order is over $50 and fits into a box/parcel.

Hope that helps,

We have lots of information we can send you, as well as the information pages at www.hydrocentre.com.au Try also the Question Pages, as growers provide insight into the challenges to running systems.

Have fun

Scott

hi there I'm enquiring about pricing and your north Sydney pick-up address and info for the advanced model of the wardrobe system without a cupboard shown on your site. 

I have a built in which measures 2200mm high x 600mm deep x 1000mm wide, is this a good size for your system? will it fit and would the exhaust fans possibly be too strong for this small an area? 

Does the inlet fan have to suck fresh air from outside of my roof or can it take it from inside my roof, and if it does need fresh air would you possibly be able to give me a tip or suggestion as to how to do it properly so I don't have a gaping hole in my roof tiles? thanks for your time.

All Good Questions.

I have family in the Nursery trade based in Middle Dural. Can give you more information if interested.

Size is not a problem. If you want an easy gravity system (network system www.hydrocentre.com.au/network ) then you would get 2 or 3 large plants or about 6 small plants in there. 

If using an Aeroponics System www.hydrocentre.com.au/aeroponics a 6 pot crate system is 450x 650 plus a small tank as shown in the wardrobe systems (note: Click for the wardrobes new and old brochures)

For that size area I would recommend either 2 x $40 120mm computer fans 120cu.meters per hour as an inlet and an outlet or better...

2x $50 250mm continuous ball bearing type 600cu.mtr/hour ceiling fans (with or without ducting collars for 250mm flex ducting) one inlet and one outlet

Air inside your roof might be fresh or not? Climb up and spend 10 minutes up there. If you feel comfortable, then the plants will have no problem with that air. If its stuffy, stale, dirty, or hot, then maybe the plants will feel the same. They tend to flourish in the same climate you and I feel comfortable in. In a wardrobe, they tested the CO2 after plants were placed into the wardrobe, and they used up all their Carbon Dioxide in about 5 minutes, then the plants stopped. Considering that the heat from the light needs to be eliminated as well, the overall effect is that the air needs to be changed with fresh 20-25degree air 60 times per hour if no aircon used. 100-200 times if above 25 degrees. (and I think that if I don't emphasize these figures you might think you can fudge them. Typical successful growers may change the air in a room every 10 to 20 seconds.)

Gaping holes in roof tiles, are the main cause of rain in the roof area. Geeze I have a sense of humour... ahem.... Try the vents under the eaves, or a whirlybird thing, or vents at the end of the house fascias, or exhaust back into an area like a patio (just a vent) or into an open garage etc.... Mostly the tiles will vent themselves, so no real problem for a smaller type operation like this.

Simple Warning - I can type long answers - sorry...... :))

Let me know what your next questions are.....

thanks for your reply. it gave great insight. Which system of the ones you mentioned, in your opinion is the best- most efficient, easiest, best yields... I'm ready to buy as soon as I've picked the system. how should I go about cutting 2 clean holes in my roof? thanks man.

Network is the Easiest, and simplest and yields excellent every time. The Other systems are for people who want to play with themselves or their plants. 

Cutting clean holes - Avoid the studs/beams in the ceiling. Consider making the hole the same size as a vent (closing one) or light fitting you can install when the growing is over. 

If Gyprock, Trace a nice line, use a blade out of a hacksaw. Don't cut all the way to the line, just 5-10 mm from it. Use the hacksaw blade, a Stanley knife or sandpaper to trim close up to the line you drew. Nice clean hole. 

If hole is to be hidden, try venting through the roof inside the built in wardrobes if you have them. Fixing the unobtrusive hole later requires much less painting and skill

Good Luck. 

Scott

message leave message in here interested in 400w HPS light kit can I purchase via internet and how much? thank you 

G'day - Thanks for the email

Yes we freight everywhere 

Currently our Mail Order price for a 400Watt is $170 delivered East Coast. 

Elsewhere in Aust $185 

Pickup special is $150 on Gold Coast Only. 

Payment can be by Credit Card, phoned thru, SMS'ed or faxed (don't email credit card details.) Other method is payment into our National Bank Account at a national branch or an Australia Post branch Shipping by Australia Post from "R Andrew" unmarked parcel, care of post office or to your address 

COD is available but Australia post charges apply. Approx $20-$30 on top of our price of $150

Have you any questions about growing under lights I can help with? Probably the Questions section of the website can help without specifics.

Catch you later

Scott

Hi there, is your 423 watt HPS grow system on Ebay. I was just wondering how big the reflector is? also is the ballast pre-assembles and is the kit ready to go when plugged in? cheers 

G'day We have reflectors that will fit in small areas, or larger reflectors. As a general guide a smaller reflector is brighter as a larger reflector requires light to travel further and be dissipated.

Do you have a restricted area for the reflector?

The ballast is in a box ready to plug in the reflector, and screw in the lamp. Ready to go like any appliance.

Only need some basic add ons to run. Inlet fan, exhaust fan (continuous running) Reflective White plastic to keep the light on the plant and also to make the light approach the plants from the side to allow the plants to bush up. Need some chain to hang it up (cheap at $1.50 per meter), and a good timer, either $35 (15amp)or $55 (30 amp) Remember 10 amp timers off the shelf will fail because these lights are fairly hard on timers. They will cause damage to your day length sometimes extending the crop by weeks.

Anything you like we can do - try www.hydrocentre.com.au for more information or just give me an email/phone call

Scott 

 I'm thinking of starting up a setup but I'm not sure what wattage of lights I'll need for the size room. The specs read 1.7m x 1.1m x 1.8m. Is there any type of general rule you should stick to to measure how much light is too much light?

Hello 

A 400Watt will do up to 1mx1m, and be fine down to about half that, but it would begin to get a bit hot. 

A 600Watt will do up to 1.5x1.5m.

You must have at least 10 air changes per hour if cool (under 20-25 degrees all the time) You must have 100-200 Air changes per hour if temp rises above 25 degrees Work out the number of cubic meters and that will give you the capacity of fans required for inlet and outlet.

Our lights come with ballast, lamp and reflector. You might need some chain to hang it up, and it does not come with a timer. One that will not fail is $55. any timer will work for a while, then the large starting and stopping spark, cheap timers will jam in the on position.

Panda (black and white) reflective film is $6 per 3x1meter (roll is 3 meters wide)

Hope that helps

Scott

I live out of town so any questions that can get answered over the net is a great help.
I was actually wondering if you could give me some plans of what to buy just to help me out. I do not want to spend to much. I wanted a system that can support about 10 herbs or Veggies. I will be buying a 400 w HPS Light for now, I was planning on having a 80 litre reservoir with a pump going up and watering the plants via a timer. I am not sure what the plants should be in, and I am also unsure on the nutrients that would be needed (for herbs)  I was just going to use a standard fan that was set also by a  timer for fresh air, co2 and I heard that it strengthens the stem. That's all I really know, but I am still unsure on everything that I will need to buy. 
So, if you guys are able to help me out somehow by just saying, what kind of stuff I should buy, with out going over around $250 - $300.  Its not much, but its a start. I would like to buy it all at once, and it says that you have HPS on sale. So just if you guys just name the products I will need, including all the little things like piping and the connectors and such, and how much you can sell them to me. because I only wanted to make one trip up there because I am a fair way out of town. THANKS HEAPS

Have a look at the 400Watt systems package deals to get more ideas.
If price is important, try hand watering in Perlite.
This is very cheap. A 300mm Pot, saucer and Perlite would be $9.50 each so
10 would be $95
You fill up the saucer with nutrients ($25) and its all very easy.
A 400W light is $150 at the moment,
light timer is $55
and an inlet fan and exhaust fan at $50 each
is necessary to run 24 hours per day.
Some flexible ducting might be helpful as well.
Reflective plastic (white one side, black on the other) is $6 per 3mx1meter
and comes from a 3 meters wide roll.
It would all add up very quickly.

For pumping the Satellite system would be ideal but out of the price range.

Maybe you could give me your thoughts on this so far.

Scott

Hello, I want to have a go at hydro in a closet, I have 400 watt HPS, flood drain system, looking for 2-3 plants, I'm all setup and ready to go, but is there anyone in Gold Coast/Brisbane area that can help me out with seed or clones?? also is it ok to keep cloning off an adult clone, i.e. when this crop gets big I clone off them for the next plants.

If the clone is from an adult, yes sounds pretty good and safe. Having a plant separate and growing it for a couple of years, hacking at it every 6 weeks etc, causes a lot of cumulative stress.

Later > ok, cool so you have veggie seeds for sale, what kind? I am thinking to try out some vegetables first, Also how much to provide me with, 1x 400watt HPS bulb (as spare) grow nutrients, electronic testers and timers, reflective material to line wardrobe.

Yates seeds cover most vegetables. Why not look at the rack in the supermarket. 

A 400 W Phillips lamp is on special for $55 Nutrients, Powergro is most popular at $25 nutrient tester - good one - Truncheon $135 pH waterproof tester, with serviceable and replaceable probe, 12/24 month warranty, general best quality, $115 with test solution Plastic white reflective is $6 per 3x1meter off a 3meter wide roll. Hope that helps Scott 

Later Again> Ok I picked up everything I needed local, but I have tomatoes growing to see if I don't kill them, they were put in 2 days ago and have already started to turn yellow, I done everything that I should have EXCEPT for maybe one thing, I made up a nutrient mix at 1/2 the strength as they are only about 2 -3 inches tall, but I also added a thing called Super Thrive original, on the back it said to put 1/4 teaspoon per 4 litres so I did, THEN I was told I only needed one cap per hydro unit which holds about 37 litres???? have I stuffed up already and should I throw away the nutrient mix and start again?? I used almost a full 30ml bottle, and someone says it should last me ages???

HELP please, also how much do you sell super thrive for?? is there any other products I should be using apart from super thrive and grow nutrients???

Ok Seeds or seedlings. 

If seeds, then they take 3-10 days, so assume seedlings. When we plant seedlings we wash all the soil off to give us nice clean roots. Then we water them with half strength nutrient. If you want to use the entire bottle of super thrive it wouldn't hurt them. Yellowing is usually telling you the roots are too wet. All they need is a little light, not too much or it will be too hot, nice temp you would be comfortable in, and moist to dry media with half strength nutrients Super thrive is not fertilizer, so the plants won't become over fertilized from over use. Imagine you drank too much berocca - vitamins - and all you would do is feel good. I use 1 drop per litre (about 1ml per 30litres), and up to 10 drops per litre (about 1ml per 3 litres) for high doses. 

Hope that helps. 

Scott

I have just sprouted my seeds by soaking them in cotton wool buds. and I haven't yet purchased my growing medium. I am actually a bit confused as it is my first time with hydroponics. Now I understand the lighting and watering and all that, I just don't understand exactly what the plants grow in. (is it a bucket with wool or what size rock wool do you use) just stuff like that. So if you could tell me what size buckets or rock wool or what ever you need for the actual plant to grow in. That would be muchly, appreciated, and I will buy it when I am coming in to buy my HPS light. Thanks

Hello
Can I make the first suggestion to never use cotton wool.
Never.
Get some Perlite, Rockwool cubes, even dirt would be better.

Why not have a look at the products page at www.hydrocentre.com.au and you will find all the ways of growing that are popular.
They are not the only ways, there are 100's more but to tell you which is the right one is impossible.
Some are easy some are hard
some are designed for low maintenance, some for everyday.
Have a look and give me another email when you've got some ideas and I will be able to help with some directions

Have a great day

Scott

Is it recommended to re-use the soil 1st or 2nd time around after the first crop? Any thoughts? Thanks

Don't re-use soil. Any problems start compounding, and is a waste of your investment. Try hydroponic media like Perlite instead

If thinking of re-using growing media remember, remove all dead root matter, rinse (remove old nutrients and salts) and sterilize (kill any pathogens).

Scott

I have a fan hooked up to my light and if the fan turns off I want the light to turn off as well

Just so we all understand the question, the fan should run all the time; separate to the light timer and light hours. Airflow when the light is off is more critical because of the drop in air temperature causes moisture to condense on the walls, plants etc; especially if ventilation is not provided.

If the fan was to fail however, how would we stop the light from cooking the plants? If the fan trips the circuit breaker, and the light is on the same circuit, then the lights will go out. There are fans that have internal overheating circuit which turns off the fan in the event that the blades get jammed, or the motor seizes. This would not trip the circuit breaker. Other events might cause ventilation to fail without the circuit breaker tripping like the blades falling off or slipping without turning and the motor still running. So this is not a true solution.

A relay would be a good idea, and I do understand how it would be a good idea, but it assumes that the power will fail and the relay will turn off light power. 

Overall it won't become a failsafe. The only safe way I would say is to run two separate exhaust fans, as well as a fan circulating air, so all 3 would have to fail before heat would completely overwhelm the plants.

Keep the lights and fans on the same circuit. If the electricity fails in some way, the lights are off anyway. If I think of anything else I'll update this later.

Scott

I just bought SUPERBUD, a product of Dutch Master. The instruction said: Apply Superbud within the first 2 weeks of "reducing light cycle" Can u explain what does it mean "reducing light cycle"

Scott responds

Yes Superbud can be used in many ways. Some people use it when the light cycle is changed, and the product will initiate fast, and intense flowering/fruiting. It is important if using this method to grow the plant to a decent size as the plant will grow no bigger (1 inch at most!!!)
Most people wait until flowering and when the flowers/fruit are fully formed. Then there is no decrease in yield because the plant is already the right size. The intensity of flowering then improves yields.

Scott

In the same given area, what is the difference, in terms of the yield factor, between 2X 600W HPS and 1X 1000W HPS? Will I produced an equal amount of yield using 2X 600W compare to 1X 1000W HPS light.? Thanks

Well lots of variance here. I generally believe you will get marginally more with a 1000W if the room is 20-25 degrees than a 600 Watt light. If it is over 30 degrees, then a 600Watt will generally do better. Humidity would play a factor too. Stress from heat and high humidity will likely cause the plant to under perform, and lose any brightness benefit.

If you think of 1000 Watts going into a light system and 140,000 lumens (if ideal) coming out is equal to 140 lumens per watt, and a 600Watt at 90,000 lumens is 150 lumens per watt, the 600Watt is more efficient in producing light. Where does the excess energy go? into heat! So a 1000Watt is a more efficient heater than the 600Watt.

As a comparison, a 1000Watt Metal Halide puts out between 100,000 and 125,000 lumens which is 100-125 lumens per watt and is a more efficient heater again.

Pity about the light output.  

The advantage with 1000 Watt lights is that 4 feet from the light is 1/16th the light output. (according to Gardening Indoors by George Van Patten) and a 1000Watt HPS would be 8750 lumens in theory. As plants respond to 1000-5000lumens, there is more than maximum light available at 4ft. A 600 Watt at 4 ft is 5600 lumens, so still enough.

At 5ft from the lamp, a 1000Watt is now 1/25th of 140,000 lumens - or 5600 lumens - still above the 5000 max lumens. Great! But a 600Watt is down to 3600, so is not at maximum anymore.

If your plants are within the 4-5 feet mark from the lamp a 600watt should produce similar results to a 1000Watt. If the plants are 6feet away we are getting a distinct advantage with a 1000Watt. But then there is time....

To grow short plants under a 600W and turn them over quickly (more crops per year) should give you a better long term yield (Queensland concept) than a 1000Watt where to get any advantage you have to grow them bigger, and that means longer. Your yield is up per plant, but not per light, because the time period is greater, and less crops per year can be grown (South Australian Concept). This is fine if you are limited to so many plants. 

This is not to be confused with the European idea of 400Watts and put cuttings straight to flowering (many more crops per year) but the yield is offset by lots of work. The plants are finishing every few weeks, and its a hard job keeping enough mother/donor plants alive to service the euro concept.

So generally a 600W is close to or equal to a 1000W, and 2x600's should produce nearly twice what a 1000Watt alone does. I would put one light per 1mx1m to 1.5mx1.5m - and never more than this. 

Scott

we have a 400 watt. ballast it has 84 d or o fp auto type 1-400 w s-51 H.P.S. la input 120/208/240/277v @4.2/2.3/2.1/1.8 amps 60hz type 4 r l both written backwards sola electric cat.#79-40-19705 48mfd 270v min that is what is written on it I NEED A WIRE DIAGRAM OF IT ALL FROM PLUG IN TO LIGHT PLEASE?

Scott: Sorry - Can't help you there. Recommend you ask an electrician to wire it up for you. Simple problem is someone needs to be looking at it, and check all the components to advise how it goes together. All ballasts are not the same wiring diagram.

Scott

Should I switch to a blooming plant food as soon as I switch to a 12/12 light cycle? What is available to me is Schultz Expert Bloom Plus 10-60-10. Is this plant food acceptable for hydroponics? It contains chelated iron, manganese and zinc not all of the micros I know. Should I also add the hydro plant food I use for vegetative stage which does contain all the micro nutrients? Thanks from a newbie

Scott Responds:

Its a bit difficult to say when to change to a bloom nutrient. When changing the light hours we suggest keeping the vegetative (high nitrogen) as we usually observe stretching if we go straight to bloom (higher phosphorus, potassium, but less nitrogen).

Since the plant does not instantly change its nutritional requirements and takes around a week to start to change, I would suggest changing to bloom when the flower buds first begin their formation, or around a week after the hours are changed. By keeping up the nitrogen, the growth is not stretched, and we match what the plant wants nutritionally.

Shultz does not appear to be a Hydroponic solution - although I am not familiar with it. I went to their site and there is not much information on its content there. http://www.schultz.com/bloomplus.htm What a nutrient must have is Calcium in Calcium Nitrate format, and should be in a separate pack in the case of a power like this product. (A+B solution) It also screams out warning at me that it claims to have the highest phosphorus level of major brands, and that is only useful in soil.

In Australia our fertilizers have to list components as a total analysis, either W/V (weight per volume), or ppm (parts per million). This is excellent for us because it makes it easier for the Hydroponic Companies. In America they still use NPK (Nitrogen to Phosphorus to Potassium ratio) and we still use this to discuss ratios in soil mixes.

The problem is that in soil, particularly acid soils, phosphorus is very insoluble, like a rock. A plant needs a lot of it to be present in order to suck enough out of the soil. In Hydroponics, we use pure minerals, in the correct pH range, and phosphorus becomes a minor element to something like Nitrogen. (I can feel the steam rising in the horticulturalists heads now) If we use NPK ratios the bigger the ratio the more customers think is better. So in USA they don't put 1:6:1, or 2:12:2, they put 10:60:10, and next year their competitors will bring out a 15000:90000:15000 and so it goes.

Its all an NPK of 1:6:1, and a hydroponic bloom solution might be best listed as 4:1:8, quite a different P level and the Nitrogen as Nitrate is more soluble than the Ammonium form used in many soil fertilizers. So a soil fertilizer is best used with ammonium N that gives the higher number to sell more product. The reasons for ammonium is that it is cheaper, breaks down in soil so it has  long life. Nitrates are the broken down form of ammonium, used because the Hydroponic solution has no way to break it down, it must be ready to use, and this makes solutions a little more expensive that chook (chicken) poo! If they used the best fertilizer components then you could use it for Hydroponics and the NPK ratio would be useless, when in fact it will never be a representation of how nutritionally useful the fertilizer is as a whole.

I like the fact you picked up on chelates, which are a better form of minor elements like iron. Iron Sulphate is fairly hard to pick up in a solution, but when its bonded organically as a chelate, it is more available. This is a good thing in soil too. 

If all the micro elements are not there that plant will get none. No way you can use such a product as a nutrient. Micro and minor elements control processes that allow plants to access major elements, and it just gets really complicated when you go down the soil fertilizer design area. Everyone has a different idea, and they all think they are right.

So what do you do. Call your nearest Hydroponic supplier and get some real hydroponic solution. Just like we might survive on french fries as our only source of food, the plant may get something out of a soil solution. It won't be balanced, and the plant will be sick long before harvest. What a waste of time and effort that would be.

Scott 

Thanks for the input, Scott. Assuming I do downgrade to a 600W or 400W (which would you recommend?), what sort of ventilation setup would you suggest so I'd still be able to run the light enclosed in the 2x3 foot area without going over 85F? I greatly appreciate all your advice.

Scott responds;

In that area you will need around 120 air changes per hour, which means that in around 30 seconds fresh air is drawn in, heated by the light and vented. In 30 seconds, not a lot of heating will happen. In fact you might keep an eye on inlet temperatures, to ensure that the incoming air is never so cold that you chill the plants too much.

Work out your height x length x width and you will have cubic feet/meters and then find a fan that will do 120 times that cubic capacity per hour. If your squirrel fan is not enough (find out its capacity from retailer/manufacturer) add a second fan.

Good luck

Scott

I'm running a 1000Watt HPS in a room that is 2 x 3 feet. Obviously, enclosed it gets quite hot. I'm using a squirrel fan to air cool the lights, but it just doesn't seem to do the job. Any suggestions on how to cool the light and still be able to keep it enclosed would be most appreciated. Thanks

Scott responds:

The light is in too small an area. 600x900mm is way too small. 1mx1m would need air conditioners. You really will find it counterproductive to use too much light.

If you do get the room cool, the radiant heat (think contact heat) from the lamp will still make the plants hot. As it is, I believe a 400Watt would actually give you higher yields because of the area.

Sometimes a sheet of glass installed between the plants and the light will enable you to run a separate fan above the glass for the heat of the light. I believe it will all be a waste of time.

At least trade it in for a 600Watt or move to a larger area.

Scott (and sorry - must be honest)

The heat will be generated by 4 x 600w ballasts. The walls and ceiling are insulated, however I am still concerned with this heat (area mentioned). I realize extensive air exchange is extremely important, regardless of temperatures. I am also curious as to how a well built ventilation system would assist in temperature control??

Of course, I will be ordering from your wonderful company, however after looking at your different fans listed on your web site, you don't include the wattage required for your fans.

Thanks again for your help.

Scott responds

Air circulation should be 10-15 air changes per hour for fresh air if using air-conditioning or cold climate (temp never gets over 25 degrees). Don't install big fans if using air-conditioning as they suck all your cold air out and air-conditioning won't be working at all. (timers and dimmers can be used to reduce volumes of big fans, but just as cheap to go to a smaller fan.

Use at least 60-100 air changes per hour without air conditioning in a hot environment. This should ensure that lights do not heat up the air much beyond the intake temperature. Some growers say 200 air changes are best per hour ( That is around 3 air changes per minute) So if your incoming air is 30 degrees, then with air taking say, 1 minute to come in, circulate and leave the room, it might heat up to 35 degrees. Therefore if you double the airflow, it might only rise by half that amount.

CRITICAL CARE: I understand you get 5-6 days of heat extremes. On 40 degree days in your area the plants will wilt without air-conditioning. You should turn on a fluro or house light in the room, and have it come on and off at normal times to ensure the day length is the same and turn the 600 watt lights off. This is like a cloudy humid day, but they won't or shouldn't wilt. Keeping temperatures below 30 degrees is fairly important.

Your room is 2.5x2.5x3m so your cubic volume is 18.75

Fans are rated by their cubic volume. http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/ventilation/index.html  has the info.

Wattage for fans is minimal 10W standard to 80Watts for very big fans. Just let me know what fans your thinking of and I'll get the wattages for you.

On a final point about heat. If you can locate ballasts and tanks outside of the growroom then heat will be reduced. Attaching ducting to reflectors to suck air off the bulb will make a very big difference and you will be able to put the lights closer and get better yields too. Hope that helps Keep in touch 

Scott

my room is 3.4m x2.6mx2.4m high, can u please work out the time with flow rate set at 8lt. I have a book but it is in pound per sq ft. & cubic ft. cheers south ozzie grower great site love it

Yes, well this is time for the maths. You need to have 1500ppm of CO2 to get a bonus in growth. There should be 300-350 in the air, and their will be some leakage in the room, and short of buying an infra red tester (Around $900 Aust) we better do some calculations based on 1500-300=1200ppm

The injector should be in litres per minute, so if we want to add 1500 parts per 1 million parts of air in the room, we will need to know how many litres to add, so we need to know how many litres of air are in the room. 

1 litre is 10cm x 10cm x 10cm or 1000cubic centimeters, or 1000cc

your room is 340x260x240 in cm = 21216000cc

1000cc=1litre so the room is 21,216litres

so what is 1200parts per million

21216 divided by 1 million multiplied by 1200 = 25.5 litres

By injecting that into that size room, the ppm should be right.

The injector is set to do 5 litres per minute for 5 minutes, or 25litres for 1 minute - what ever to get 25 litres

If you are NOT USING THE ENTIRE AREA!!!!! then close in the area you are using with white panda plastic curtains and recalculate.

Make sure that you exhaust all the CO2 out before any reinjection. Try 100 air changes to be sure.

Scott 

About how many cuttings/clones at a time can be taken from a donor plant/mother plant? Is there a percentage of growing tips that can be taken all at the same time without killing the donor plant/mom?

You can cut the plant back for a lot of reasons and the plant comes back stronger. The parent needs to have some leaves on it to get energy to get growing again. 

If you are trying to avoid stress so you can cut cuttings from it again and again later on, maybe avoid taking too much, say 1/4 (25%) of the total plant mass in one session. Sometimes it is safer to use a cutting/clone and grow it back to replace the mother plant to avoid the cumulative stress and heavy wooded effect of old plants.

It is unlikely you will kill a plant by pruning it heavily, but stress and infections could kill a plant in 5% of cases if you were unlucky/particularly vicious. 

Remember one simple unbreakable rule for plant growing: If you had a sick child and didn't take them to the doctor, and they die, they call it murder. If you plant gets sick and you don't contact someone and it dies....you murdered it! So if the plant doesn't look perfect, call me, email me, send smoke signals, do something! 

It really stuns me how many people say to me, my plant died. My response is, When did it get sick, I don't remember hearing from you, how can you learn how to solve that problem without calling me.

And off my soapbox, sorry about that. Had one of those frustrating days. Don't mean to take it out on anyone. Hope that top information helps...Happy Cloning! Have a great day!

Scott with his clones

Recycled plastic crate for a system controller/brain? How bad is it to use the fish bins. Just pulled a bad crop; would this cause that. 

Also does recycled plastic brains cause high pH levels

Scott responds;

Recycled plastics can be anywhere between normal to toxic. Growers I know have used them and had no problems, used the same crate a crop later and had everything drop dead. An example is when a grower sent just a corner cut from a tank away to a laboratory, the first thing that the laboratory report said was "don't handle that crate with your bare hands". Apart from Arsenic at deadly levels, it had lots of other toxins, the worst being lead. 

The fillers used also break down. Do you remember the taste of water you get from a hose on a hot day. Plastic and terrible. If you recycled water through that hose over an over the plastic taste would get much stronger. 

Its not worth the risk. The first indication that there is a problem is the pH goes out most of the time, and you can't work out why.

Don't confuse this with reground plastic containers, where new (never used) plastic containers are ground into bits and re melted into something else. These are usually fine.

Scott 

thanks heaps for your advise on this, now another quick one please, I have two 400watt halogen lights, what is the right dimension room I should be using for these lights an how many plants should I have in there? Also, in the first growing stages, i was using one light for 18hrs, an in bloom was using 2 lights on 12 hrs. Is it better to use both during the grow stages or can u get by with just one? Thanks heaps once again.

Scott responds

Light types for Hydroponics are Metal Halide and High Pressure Sodium. (Halogens are no good) If you mean 400W Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium then the area covered is 1 meter x 1 meter.

If you have plants that are or will be 300mm across, then you can put one plant per 300mmx300mm. 
If the plant is or will be 500mm across then 500mmx500mm. Plants should not compete for light. The plants will be smaller when growing and can be closer together. They will still need good lighting, so once the plants are too big to be covered by one light, you will need to use both.

Scott

Scott Responds

Lighting requires higher quality timers as normal Australian 10 amp timers just stick in the on position.
When a light starts it is a spark many times greater than its wattage, and the contacts weld together.

A 10 amp timer with 15 amp contactor with dial mechanical clock is $35 and can handle one 400W or 600W light. The clock is German and very reliable.
This is a JBL 10 amp timer with a 30 amp timer with digital interface, and a battery backup, is $50 and can handle up to 1000Watt of lighting (2x400W is ok, 600W+400W is ok)
A 15 amp timer (different plug) with Inductive load contactor (like factory machinery) 4 10 amp lighting outlets can handle 2400W if used with a normal power outlet or 3600W if used with a 15 amp supply.
Hope all that helps

Scott

I have found these insects congregating around the water inlets and grow wool and are not sure what they are or how to get rid of them. Any help would be appreciated thanks.

Response by Scott

Yep, 3 products, 1 is guardian, it is a 24 hour insecticide, so mix it up and apply it. There will be no trace in 24 hours. 2nd product is a Drench that is really Sheep dip. Its the most toxic stuff in the world, as it even kills ticks! You put it in your root zone and then flush it after an hour or two. And you pray your plants don't suck much up. The root bugs roughly amount to thousands of species of local insect most of which haven't even got a name. The main thing is not all eat your roots. Kill them anyway with Guardian. Those bugs that do eat your roots are killed by guardian, except a few super bugs that seem to be half bug half kryptonite proof! Use the dip, or toss the plants when they die. Either way, use guardian, then if they are still moving get something stronger.

If Guardian doesn't work, Customers have told me that Diazamin at 1ml/10litres (3 drops per litre) watered into the root system for 24 hours then flushed (24 hours only) kills the bugs. If you leave it longer it makes many plants sick, however, some customers report 2ml/10litres works. might be different types of plants.

Hi Scott, A recurring nightmare in the form of spider mites are a concern. Predators, Sprays, Fumigation???? I would appreciate your help with this one mate!

Scott Responds

Holy Spider-mites Batman!!!!

Little Buggers are immune to a lot of things since Dicofol and other chemicals mutated them years back. They are NOT a natural bug. We created these super bugs. The eggs are impervious to most sprays, so spraying twice a day for weeks might be required to beat their breeding program. I have found only one thing you can use, that kills them with one spray and kills their eggs as well, with only a 3 day withholding period.

The product is Vertimec, and costs about $200 per litre. (1litre makes 1000litres) It is NOT available from Garden Centres, and is a Commercial Spray, for farmers only. You can get it from Agricultural suppliers.

If you want some I have it in stock and can be encouraged to lend you some as a sample if you are in store. I cannot send out samples.

Predators are a long term solution that will cost a lot, because the numbers of mites to predators have to have a balance to keep the predators alive. As a result often they wipe themselves out by eating all the mites, and then the mites come back. Some people have good results with them, but its harder than a spray. 

In between crops try bombing the room with a cockroach and flea bomb. Clean any Hydroponic system and remove before bombing.

Good Luck,

Scott

Simulating solar energy

Wednesday, 05 February 2003

I am currently doing research at the University of Southern Queensland for my honours in engineering. I was considering using one of you 400 or 600 watt lighting systems for my experiments to simulate solar energy. Do you have any information on the radiation emitted by your lamps and/or its similarity to solar radiation. Could you also provide the current prices for these systems complete with ballast and large starwing reflector.

Scott responds

I believe you need a fairly bright light with similar light spectrum and intensity to sunlight. Firstly, our lights DO NOT simulate sunlight. They are designed to match the requirements for chlorophyll which are red frequencies, as well as some blue frequencies.

The light intensity will be well below the intensity of sunlight (a 400W would be at least 1/20^th of the output of sunlight) and may not provide any measurable solar activity. You are welcome to take a solar cell to us (or one of the Hydroponic stores nearer to you) and test the actual current produced first. I feel it is unlikely to be of use.

Failing that I can speak to my engineer (Fairly well described as high tech guru) who can work out more for you.

The cost of a 400W at the moment is $179, and a 600 Watt is $279.

Hope that helps.

Scott 

Signs of flowering during Vegetative cycle.
Saturday, 01 February 2003

Hi - I have signs of flowering in my grow room even though it is on a 24 hr cycle - using 5 x 20 watt fluorescents for vegetative cycle. These are from seed or clones of plants that have always been in growth cycle-yet small signs of flowering appear all over plant. Flowering takes place in a separate room using HPS. Any ideas appreciated. John

Scott responds

Well that’s not good news. Usually plants will flower

1. when the cycle has at least 12 hours of darkness,

2. when they are under stress, or

3. if their age is so old they can’t help but try to reproduce themselves

I think that many people are under the misconception that 24 hour lighting is beneficial.

The problem stems from the plants inability to determine night length. Because plants count dark hours, no light hours, if you don’t give them any night, then they cannot determine what stage of growth they should be in. The resultant stress usually creates problems such as poor performance, hermaphrodites  (both sex flowers) and other problems. If you put the lighting on 18 hours and off for 6 hours this should make the plants go vegetative again.

Its not the case with fluros, which are low light intensity, but with 400W or more HID lighting systems, there is some research showing that beyond 15 hours in a 24 hour period has no benefit in yield. However, changing from a 24 hour day to a 48 hour day and only providing a 6 hour dark period in this cycle may increase yield. The plant does not know how long a day is, and extra lumens can be used during a long cycle. Timing for this type of system is more complicated and usually requires digital timers.

Plants undergoing stress, such as poor ventilation or lighting environment or sickness could flower, as well as if the cuttings/clones are clones of a clone of a clone etc, and has some build up of cutting and growing stresses. Plants that get very old will tend to flower as well, but fairly poor in its attempt.

Hope that helps.

Scott 

if a plant turns male, is there anyway of turning it back?

Female hormone sprays like 'Bud Wise' can make Hermaphrodites (both sexes) keep only their female flowers and reject their male flowers, which shrivel up and disappear. There are femising products such as 'Feminiser', 'la femme', and others for increasing female-ness. These are sprayed during growth, before flowers appear. Neither of these treatments affect the genetics, and so a cutting/clone from these plants will be hermaphrodites as well, and require a Budwise treatment every time.

If a 100% male plant appears, save its pollen for crossing with good female plants. There is no way of changing a male into a female.

Maleness in flowers are more prone to occur when a plant is stressed, or poor ventilation results in plants needing to pollinate themselves.

Hope that helps.

Scott 

Hello again, Scott u are a true legend for tips an know how!! I just wanted to know if it were possible, what's the best way to rejuvenate, a plant an get it into the grow stage again?? Can you actually do this??!!

Scott types: Prune the plant as it will grow much bigger and maybe stretch from the change. Then just turn back the hours of light to 18 hours, and the plant will return to growth. If you are going to re-flower, don't do it straight away, wait for 3-4 weeks. The plant can stress out if the seasons are changing all the time.
I have a product which will be able to give you a second crop without turning the hours back, by tricking the plant into believing its back in early flowering stage, and will be exciting if we can determine correct dosage strengths and where toxicity lies. Will let everyone know in time.

Scott 

Do you need a separate ballast for each globe?? i.e. MH and HPS? I take it you cannot use the same setup for both globes??

Scott:-
Standard Metal Halides run in Metal Halide ballasts, and High Pressure Sodiums for High Pressure Sodiums, however.........
We stock Retrofit Metal Halide (MH) Globes for 400Watt High Pressure Sodium (HPS) Ballasts and 600Watt HPS ballasts. These MH retros run in MH ballasts as well and are built differently to standard lamps, with much broader/better growing spectrums. We recommend these. They are also popular for large Aquariums.
A 350W HPS retro lamp works in a 400w MH ballast. Some 880W HPS are available for 1000W MH ballasts. HPS for MH usually have significant life loss, as little as 6 months use before replacement. As a result, they are an option, but not what we would recommend because of the cost of replacement over a new HPS system.

So it wasn't a silly question at all. 

Scott 

How much yield difference would occur if I tried to add CO2 gas into the room? (bottle form)

Scott responds;

Experience says that growth rate increases around 10-20% and yield boost is around the same if you do it right. Because of the speed of growth, the harvest is usually early and everybody is happy in theory.

In practice, most people do lots of tests, get the CO2 too low to make any difference, or even too low as to slow growth, get the room too hot, so the plants which were growing fast, get sick really fast!!!!!!, or they poison them with too much CO2.

Most people kill a crop at some point. For example. One of my crops going well, 4 inches a day, moving light 3 times per day, CO2 going off at hottest time, another fans system comes on to keep temperatures down, everything nice. Then a little bit of root rot come in. (I should have turned off the CO2 then) the plants were a little unhappy when I noticed it. I added some Hydroshield and adjusted the watering times to let the system get dryer. This would usually solve the problem.  At the accelerated rate of growth, the plants could not get their sick roots working at the rate of growth. They were dead within 12 hours (next morning). What a waste of 7 weeks of lighting, CO2, nutrients and my time.

CO2 requires common sense and a perfect system. Here's the sure way to increase yield. Increase the lighted area of a growroom, and put in more plants. apart from that I know that additives can help increase yield in the same given area, however, CO2 can either help or kill or slow your crops. Be careful.

All of this applies to CO2 in greenhouses too.

Scott 

In relation to heat and light output only, I can't decide whether to use 2 x 600w or 1 x 1000w????? Also, I have been told that 1000w HPS or MH will be OK for growing and flowering, simply because of the amount of light generated. Is this correct?

Response by Scott

2 x 600's will be cooler and should yield nearly twice as much if you use them to cover nearly twice the area (1.5x1.5mtr each!) of a 1000 (1.6x1.6mtr by itself)

My decision is based upon Queensland heat. Try and run lights through the nighttime. I like 8pm to 8am for a 12 hour cycle because you can see the plants after 8pm, and still see them before I get up and go to work. 

Also remember that over the years, I have found growers who start lights around 6-7pm at night blow their timers up. That is the time when ovens are running, TV's and lighting is going on in the neighbourhood and the most voltage spikes and brownouts occur. By 8pm most of this has died down, and timers seem to last a lot longer.

Metal Halides are great for healthy growth. The percentage of light in the red band is enough for flowering in Metal Halides only if the light is bright enough. So a 1000 Watt will, and a 400W won't (or takes a while). The Metal Halide makes a nice lighting system, and plants look good under it. So many lights have been enhanced to help flowering. We use a Sylvania Supergro but Sunmaster and others produce a Halide light with boosted reds. Might be an option, but as lighting systems are generally discounted heavily, anything out of the ordinary costs much more to buy. Our 1000W systems come with Supergro lamps as standard.

Anyway, its easiest to buy what everyone buys because it generally works and there is no need to reinvent the wheel. I sell almost entirely 400's and 600's. For yield per square meter the 400's win. For yield per light the 600's win in Summer. For yield per light in winter or in air-conditioning the 1000's just beat the 600's and use more power. For yield per watt the 400's and 600's win over the 1000's.

Scott 

Tuesday, 14 January 2003 03:14 PM

Of how much benefit is it to feed foliage by spraying it with nutrient solution? How often should I do it ( if at all!)?

Scott Responds

Great Question!

Technical answer: 

Most Broad acre crops in agriculture are sprayed by overhead sprinklers and sometimes by air. The reason is that the researchers find yields are much higher if you can hit the leaves, and the runoff fall into the soil. How much, they say up to 25%. So my opinion is yes, and it is justifiable with that research, however you must keep in mind, the figure includes the runoff, which doesn't benefit the hydroponic system like soil.

I think you will see a benefit from foliar spraying, and if you do;

• you must avoid spraying when humidity is very high as mould can develop
• you must avoid spraying if droplets appear on the leaves. Droplets sitting on the leaves can act like small magnifying glasses, magnifying light on the leaf and burning the leaf tissue. Spray just before sunset/lights out, or use a wetting agent to aid uptake and stop droplets forming on the leaves
• Just make a side note that oil based insecticides like pyrethrum will burn because of light and oil, and a wetting agent wont help. Spray just before dark to avoid burning

You can buy foliar sprays or you can make one.

Making a foliar spray;

• strength - use your normal nutrients. 1/4 nutrient strength of lower. If usually it is 5ml per litre try 1ml per litre. 
• frequency - 2-3 times per week in dry environment, once per week if hot and humid, and discontinue if any mould/mildew
• Add a drop of vitamins like Nutriboost or superthive
• Use a wetting agent, or a 1-2 drops of dishwashing detergent (must no have lemon or other scents - these are oils!!!)
• You can replace the nutrients with an additive test - say someone at a store tells you this yaks toe extract is fantastic, use some on a leaf or two as a foliar spray before putting it all in the tank, and subjecting your entire crop to your experiments.

  Scott 
  

about how much will it cost to get a fluorescent tube 18 inches for my system and how many watts do I need for a size of a 20 gallon fish tank?

Scott responds

A fluorescent is very interesting to grow with. The plants leaves need to be within 4cm  to 20 cm from the lamp, and they will grow fairly slowly. The tubes may need to be placed upright to get any height. Fluorescents are ideal for seedlings and clone because they do not give off light that is hot as that would dry-out young plants with underdeveloped root systems.

The area a fluorescent will cover is dependant on the intensity you want. The closer the better, so if you draw a line about 20cm from the tube, that's about the absolute limit, unless you have some indirect sunlight to boost the light levels.

18Watt tubes are $12.50 for an Activa grow lamp and are around 2foot / 60cm long and are excellent for propagation and suitable for growing.

36Watt tubes are $19.50 for an Activa grow lamp and are around 4 foot / 120cm long.

2foot propagation only lamps are $4 and 4 foot are $6, and are similar but do not have the brightness or colour spectrum of the professional grow tubes.

For better growth use a Metal halide or a High Pressure sodium lighting system, such as a 68Watt clone light $199, or a 400Watt SON T from Phillips which is $180-$200 at time of writing.

http://www.hydrocentre.com.au/gardeningunderlites/index.htm

See ya soon.

Scott 

1st x grower: What type of reaction do plants display with < or > distance over what I've researched is the optimal 450mm (400w HPS in .6 m sq cab). Really hot in there as well - lights on av. 36C - off 29C. Unknown seed. The plants are slow & seem too stressed, particularly stretching. Not fat & comfortable.

Response by Scott

Heat causes stretching, and/or yellowing and/or leaf shape changes. 

Overall I believe you need to consider how the plants feel. Because of the heat, they are stretching. 

The optimal light level is as close as you can get without the plants entering the heat bloom under the light. If you could get them into the lamp that would be great, if you could keep them cool. 

The heat bloom will be different in different rooms. The basic advice is to move more air through the room from the coolest place you can. e.g. if the air comes in at 29 degrees, and heats up to 36 degrees, then moving the air through the area twice as fast should reduce the heating of the air, to approximately 32-33 degrees. Maybe triple the air moved would help. It is true in summer that lights should be higher than in winter also. 

A fan onto the plant helps, and keeping the nutrient strength down to around 18-22CF when very hot helps keep the water in the plant. Stretching is caused by heat as I said, but also nutrients being very low in strength, so keep an eye on that. 

Slow growth is caused by many things, and too strong a nutrient often is the cause, maybe because the plants use more water and leave the nutrient to get stronger, or the water evaporates leaving nutrient stronger in the media/tank/system.

Hope that helps, let me know if it doesn't

Scott

I was wondering how much a wardrobe system with no system, just a wardrobe (cupboard) with ventilation and a 400 watt HPS light would cost.

Response by Scott

A wardrobe is a very intense environment, with high reflectivity and produces very high yields. The problem is that most people do not understand you can create a more efficient ventilation system for a wardrobe*, and yet they don't.

(*than most room sized operations.)

The best wardrobes are made from melamine, which is a white plastic layer attached to the chipboard. (don't use craftwood or similar glue based wood substitutes as the heat from the light will cause the glue to leak formaldehyde into the air and poison your plants)  Melamine is best as it is very reflective and easy to clean. 

We have a cabinet maker who manufactures quality cabinets out of all solid materials. An example of a 90cmx40cmx2mtr wardrobe is around AUD$330 from us, and can be cheaper from the discount hardware chains, as long as you don't mind the back being made from very thin flexible board. A wardrobe system must not leak air very much or the ventilation will not work. The exhaust fan will draw air from around the doors, and the inlet fan will blow out the cracks, and the plants will not get any fresh air in the middle.

Ventilation has 3 points. 

The air coming in must be fresh and not had the Carbon dioxide depleted by other plants, and also not be so hot or cold as to harm the plants. This means an Inlet fan is required.

The air inside must be sucked out to remove heat, and allow room for new carbon dioxide fresher air. This means an Exhaust fan.

The air must go into the vegetation, though and over the leaves. Just putting air into the room is not enough, as air will tend to go over the plants, as it will take the easiest lint to the exhaust fan. If you con deflect air from the inlet fan, or aim the inlet fan towards the plants, you may not need a circulation fan.

So if you had

400Watt HPS Son T Agro lighting system $180
Wardrobe    $330
2 fans@$40= $80

Total $590

I would usually recommend a two pot automatic autopot system for this type of environment at $99, or a handwatered system for around $50

Happy Growing
Scott

Hello there, could someone please help. I have a normal bedroom roughly 9x9x8 feet in size and am considering establishing a hydro setup. I am pretty confident with most facets however I am totally confused about how to go about ensuring sufficient ventilation to the room.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Response by Scott

Yes ventilation is like a black art, not as much facts and designs, but more looking and feeling it out. Here are some guidelines

1. Inlet fan and exhaust fan. Make sure you have air flowing into and out of your system. Make sure your fans suck in as much air as the other is blowing out, or you will find the rated air movement capabilities are reduced.

2. Air Quantity. Carbon Dioxide is what they breathe. So work off 10 air-changes in the room minimum to keep them breathing - even if using air-conditioners. More air-changes will be required to keep temperature under control. 

You work this out by fan capacity and room size. If your room is 1m x 1m x 2meter, this would be 1x1x2=2 cubic meters. If a fan is rated at 600 cubic meters per hour. this would remove the air from a 2 cubic meter room 300 times every hour.

3. Temperature control. 

TOO HOT: If you are not using air-conditioning, and the air temperature is getting hotter than the ideal 25 degrees with the light on, then you will need to use more air ventiation to keep the room cool. Use 100 airchanges for a moderately warm room, and 200-400 airchanges to keep a hot room under control. The theory of this is that if the air comes in at 25 degrees and heats up to 30 degrees by the time it exits, then if the air is sped up, and changed twice as fast, then it should only heat up by half as much. It follows that if you double the air changes again, then it can only heat up half as much again, but it will never be cooler than the incoming air. If your incoming air is 35 degrees or something you will have to bring in air that is fresh, but cooler, from another room, window or anywhere cooler. 

Remember cool air sinks, hot air rises. Remove hot air up near the ceiling, and draw in cool air near the floor. It helps also that Carbon Dioxide sinks to the floor too, and is best (most densely concentrated) the lower you go to the floor.

TOO COLD: So if the air outside is cool, say 10 degrees, then the fans should only be on minimal because the light will only raise the temperature by 5 to10 degrees. So some people might have their fans on a timer during the night or during winter to keep the room from getting to cold, to adjust the fan to only bring in the minimum of 10-30 air-changes during that period. So if a fan is 4 times what you need, try 15 minutes per hour on a timer to refresh the room without cooling it down and freezing the plants. It is true that plants can survive cold without adjusting fan cycles, but generally they don't look too healthy. 

Remember that if the room is not ventilated at all during the artificial night, mould occurs all over the plants. This is due to the lights going off, and the temperature dropping enough that moisture from the air begins to cool. This cool moist air is high humidity, and is what mould loves, If the ventilation continues the moist air is drawn out and the temperature equalizes at a more suitable humidity. The first hour is the most critical to remove this moist air, then less important through the rest of the night.

4. Circulation. Imagine you are a little breeze of air, you get thrust into a room, bashed up against some plants. You want to go out the exhaust fan. Because you are lazy, you take the easiest route. Not through the leaves, but over the plants and around them, then out the exhaust. This will take the heat out, but leave the plants still gasping for breath. You notice plants on the outside doing better than the centre. This is due to the plants not getting fresh carbon dioxide to breathe. Carbon Dioxide will improve your growth and yields more than any additive, so never take it for granted. Use a oscillating pedestal fan to blow the air into the leaves of all the plants. No need to blow them over, but get air to the plants.

5. Dead spots - As in circulation, if there are areas where the plants are not performing, they may be in a dead spot where more air is required. Aim pedestal fans at these areas.

6. Windows and insulation. It never ceases to amaze me that people take no notice of a room before they set it up. It may face the midday sun, and heat up like an oven. This is not a good room. Is the house insulated. If you grow in a room that is tiled it may be cooler than a carpeted room. Take these things into account, and adjust the ventilation accordingly. Maybe reconsider that hot room. If unsure, ask a successful Hydroponic store. (Ask them how many years they've been in Hydroponics, and as a guide, I have been doing this since 1989, around 13 years. I have heard a lot more things and solved a few more things than someone with 3 years experience.)

Hope that helps and wasn't too longwinded. I tend to overdo it rather than be too brief and miss the point. - Scott

i am a new grower and is thinking of buying a not to expensive set i have no idea how to grow using hydro and any help would be great

Response by Scott
If growing indoors, you will need to set that up first. Like outside you need to get a light and fresh air for the plants. Try reading this gardening indoors guide
Perlite is very inexpensive, and you water it until it is moist like you would with soil. THe difference is we put nutrient into the water when we use perlite. There are heaps of systems you can use. Try this guide here
I would like to help, so we can take these two steps, and then discuss it some more.

Response: 
Hello I understand you are looking for a fan that will keep the area ventilated, as well as keeping it cool. a 1.5 cubic meter area needs 10-20 airchanges for carbon dioxide which is 15-30 cubic meters per hour. This would be fine if inlet temperature is under 22 degrees If the inlet air is 30 degrees then we need around 60 to 200 airchanges per hour which is 90 to 300 cubic meters per hour. The ducted exhaust fan 150mm is rated at 600 cubic meters per hour. So that should be fine, will you use a open vent for inlet or the ideal way, using another fan of similar size for an inlet fan. If it is just open, then make sure you put the pedestal fan near or infront of it, keep it low for lower temperatures, but avoid close to wet or shady vegetation which can contribute to mould in your growroom. Starting seeds should fairly easy. We have a seedmix, which is just perlite and vermiculite, or you can use rockwool cubes. Plant the seeds around twice their diameter deep into the mix or the cube, water with water or very weak nutrient until moist. When the mix/cube is drying out do it again. Hope that helps. Let me know when they come up, and we will feed them half strength nutrients until they have 2-3 sets of leaves and the plants have begun to grow in size. Scott :-)

I would like to know, have you any info on the sulfur lamp? You know that thingy NASA designed to light up where they build rockets.

Reply 

We had some sulphur lamps in and it was a big deal around 1996-97 but it never took off. Son T agro averages 130 lumens per watt, the sulphur lamps produce 65 to135 lumens per watt I had one for a while, it had a really green light output (weird), and may not be a great spectrum for the power consumption. The bulb should last indefinitely, however the magnatron that provides the microwave energy spins at 10 times per second and may fail at any time up to 24 months when it would have failed. The higher UV may prove to damage plants and especially it can reduce pollination in some plants. Overall it is experimental technology, they don't know why it works because it was discovered by accident and they still don't know how to fix the spectrum, or change the output. I think it is worth pursuing on a NASA level, but personally, it is probably a waste of money for growing until the spectrum can be modified for agriculture. Hope my opinion isn't worth lining the bird cage. 

Cheers Scott

Answer 
Second-hand lighting systems are in any condition they come in, and may need a new lamp soon, or not, you just don't know. So it is probably a good idea if you really are strapped for cash however, new is best because buying a new lamp for a second hand system works out at about the same price. It's really up to you. - Scott

Does anyone know if the sunmaster warm deluxe metal halide is as good as they say they are for flowering?

Response by Scott [moderator]

No reports that I know of. The sales brochures claim a lot, but I generally ignore that until I see some results. Advertising is not necessarily fact and can stretch the truth, even warp, break, and reinvent it sometimes....lol.

I think that adding reds to a metal halide is good for adding energy to plant growth, but Metal Halide output is not as high (per watt) as High Pressure Sodium. If you wanted to make a lamp for agriculture, I think performance is the primary aim, so I will wait for performance.

I can tell you that I understand that Sunmaster is made by Venture lighting, who also made Agrosun lamps, under a exclusive marketing contract to a company (Hydrofarm I think)in the US. I have used these, and they are very hot. Only time I have seen Powdercoating burn through on a reflector. Happened in the store I was working in. Somehow to get the added reds they must have overheated the whole thing.

Apart from that Sunmaster have had explosive disintingration of their 1100Watt Warm Delux lamps, so stay clear of these. Sample lamps were given to Tweed Heads Hydroponics and Ace Hydroponics in Palm Beach and apparently these both exploded in their stores very soon after ignition, and sent glass all over the showroom. Last year I sold only 12 of these lamps, and I warned the buyers about this, but nothing happened to them. Maybe it was an isolated situation. Or maybe it is fixed now. Americans have great experience with 110V and sometimes 240Volt can require a rethink.

So there's all the info I have. I have been agressively marketed to by most of the distributors in Australia, so I am sure some stores will promote the Sunmaster lamps with the hope that it is more difficult to compare competitors prices with traditional HPS lighting packages that most stores discount heavily.

I really don't have enough REAL INFORMATION to say anything but the information I have written here. I hope that it explains a little about why I am wary about this brand.

If you want to try them, please let me know what your experiences are like. I am interested if someone has a comparative heat output, being critical in summer. You want the intensity of the lamp as close to the tops of the plants as possible, but not at the expense of overheating the plants or burning them.

Keep the responses coming. Someone else must have an opinion on this topic!

Thanks Scott

Response #2

using 1000w halide and 600w so far no problem plants beautiful but have noticed the ballast gets bloody hot ,sunmasters seem good to me

I have just started out in the hydro world and have made a wardrobe size room. I have a 4inch fan extracting air but I cant seem to get the temp of the room down below 100 degrees and the humidity is very low. I haven't put my plants in the room yet because of this problem can any give me any advise on what to do to lower the temp. etc etc

Re: 400w to big for 2x2 room August 8 2002 at 11:14 AM Scott Scott

Response to 400w to big for 2x2 room

Good on you for getting started.

A 400 Watt is only recommended to do 1mtr x 1m, but if you mean 2footx 2foot, then 0.6m x 0.6m should be excellent light levels

A 4 inch fan would be enough for a cool climate, probably need two or three for a hot climate.

To get the temperature down try running some ventilation ducting, or some sort of tubing from just beside the light fitting where the heat is being generated, and put the other end very close to the fan so 50% to 70% of the fan power is directed to removing the heat from the lamp area. Avoid using any tubing that is flammable like cardboard (like doh! Sorry have to say it to be safe huh!)

If it is dry, a fan on an open tank of water will cool a little, and a fan on a fountain even better. This works through evaporation, so won't work if the humidity is high and , would make mould a problem. In low humidity it should be fine.

The simplest answer is always to increase fan size, or balance the fans on the inlet and outlet, so fans work efficiently.

If the air temp coming in is say 25 degrees celcius and the lamp heats the air, by say 5 degrees, then in theory moving the air twice as fast through the area should bring more 25 degree air in. The Lamp may only increase temp by 2 or 3 degrees, and so on.

Make sure you keep the tops of the plants cool with a small clip on or desk fan, and they may tolerate a higher temp if you keep the water up to them.

The best thing is to climb into the room, and read a magazine or something, and if you get out feeling worn out or with a headache, then that's how the plants will feel. They grow well in the climatic conditions you and I feel comfortable in.

Good luck, and let me know how it goes.

Scott

Would a 250w high pressure sodium give of enough light for an area of 900cm by 60cm in a closet? P.S I would like good results,I can use 400w,but 250w would be better on the power bill.

Response

Yep you are right to think about a 400Watt. As a guide a 250Watt will do about one plant in about 450x450mm. I know that the 900 cupboard can be done, but the yield will be down and parts of the area may stretch for lack of light. If you look at a 400Watt I think you will be much happier with the results. 2.5c per hour versus 4c per hour may not be much over a 12 week bill at 12 hours per day, saving $15 over the bill. I think the results will be worth the extra power. Have a think, but let me know either way, as 250W has a few tricks like tying down and perhaps dropping the lamp into the centre, protected with chicken wire. Keep the fan on the lamp though.

Cya

Scott

So what's the go with the different lamps? I've been using lucagro for years. Why have I been hearing about Metal Halides? 

Response #1

Use the Lucagrow. Don't stuff around with halides

Response by Scott

You can use a Metal Halide if its 1000Watt. Under 1000Watt the metal halide lamps don't have enough red to work well in flowering.

If you read the Phillips specs, they show through experiments that Red light spectrums give a plant high energy, however the absence of blue causes the plant to be unhealthy.

The experiments also show that Blue light spectrums give very healthy stunted (height) plants and the absence of Reds cause the growth be very slow and the plant to have insufficient energy to flower well.

So To get a plant to grow with plenty of energy and plenty of short healthy growth, you need to achieve a balance for the plants to perform.

As the main goal of a lighting manufacturer is to get maximum flowers/fruiting, they tend to look for higher red than blue, but enough blue to produce healthy standard height

The High Pressure Sodium lamp was used as a basis for the 400Watt and blues were added to make a horticultural spectrum. The output of the 400 halide is lower and even if reds are added the result is still lower output than the Sodium system.

In 600Watt the results are better because of higher output and larger area. Again sodiums reign.

In 1000Watts both the HPS and MH lamps are so bright that even a small percentage of reds or blues are bright enough to provide that end of the spectrum. In terms of useful spectrum the 1000Watt Lucagro or similar agricultural lamp would be the higher output and produce the best.

The choice of wattage is really up to you. It may be heat, area, yield, or other reasons that make you choose a wattage.

As a general rule, 2 x 400's beat 1x1000 and use less electricity to do it.

2x 600's beat 2 400's and use the same as a 1000 approx after wastage and start current etc.

A 600 watt in airconditioning beats almost anything without an air-con if you are in a Queensland summer. Especially no headaches with humidity. Many considerations! Shall I go on forever?

I could..... Scott

Response #2

So what do you say about mother plant rooms?

Response to #2 by Scott

Use Either Metal Halide or High Pressure Sodium for mother plants. Metal Halide: Slower shorter growth. May be harder to take cuttings from as the nodes may be too close together. High Pressure sodium: If it grows too well, you may have to trim the plant down at times. Having too much material to take cuttings from, what a drama (not!)

Scott;)

I had a question about reading specs on an american site. Specifically that the EYE lights are 33% better than the SonTagros...but the grower asked if all lamps are similar

The facts according to my experts are that High Pressure Sodium's produce huge amounts of red light,and to add blue they add gases like xenon adding this Gas reduces the lamp performance, but makes better light spectrum. So in a way, there are many possible spectrums and intensities, as they can do this with other components in the lamp too. EYE are made in Japan, who are technically superior and expensive (YEN to Dollar exchange) They use a different ballast and put the igniters in the lamp not in the box, so you throw out the igniters with the lamp e.g. lamp price of over $100 for 400Watt vs Son T Agro $65

Asking about Lucagros Hungarian lamp from General Electric. More blue than Son T Agro however a small increase in output 4-5% in 600Watt are superior to Son T Plus by about 10,000 lux and the Son T has no added blue in their 600W lamp

Asked about my suggestions 400W son T, 600 Watt GE lucagro, 1000Watt use an airconditioner and Supergrow metal halide or lucagro HPS

Is there a quantifiable difference or is just technical preferences

To answer this, they created PAR watts, to measure the Plants Absorption Rating. they determined an average plant's useful spectrum and measured it. You can get PAR ratings for all lamps, but I haven't gone thru them lately, Venture are advertising they have made a breakthrough in PAR watts to actual watts of a lamp I am testing these at the moment, but surprise surprise they are about 30% more expensive.

It has always been frustrating to me that there are similar lamps on the market At the end of the day, a new lamp of any type will beat almost all the most expensive lamps once they are 3 months old anyway. So getting a reasonable lamp, and changing every 6-8 months will work better than all the other stuff.

Plus keep it simple. If it works don't stuff around too much. A test of other equipment is warrented, but don't plant to risk your whole crop on untested new equipment. Using two products side by side is the only real way for a small budget test of equipment.

Have a great one, love the hard questions! Scott

Optimal temperature is 25-27 degrees but we live in a country that is often over these optimal ranges. If somebody has any ideas on how to keep the temperatures down in grow rooms over summer it would be appreciated.

have thought of using air conditioning but i think that would be too expensive and noisy.

any help would be great.

happy growing.

cooling September 17 2001 at 11:37 AM Scott Scott

Response to Temperature Control

if humidity is low enough, an evaporative cooler may help, but beware it increases humidity and can contribute to moulds if the cooler isn't sterilized with a non chlorine sterilizer. Having a bubbler in the tank, like a fountain will cool nutrient. If very humid, may have to add a fan to make evaporation happen. Watch nutrient strength and humidity generated.

Putting lights behind a sheet of glass, and evacuating air around lamp separately may keep growing zone cooler. Avoid silver reflectors or walls that trap and reflect heat. Use white surfaces when temperature is difficult.

diluting the heat helps. If using a fan at say 600m3/hour and the air comes in at 29 degrees and leaves at 35 degrees, try dilution with more air, say 3000m3/hour fan comes in at 29 degrees but now may be only 32 degrees leaving

airconditioning works, but best if you reduce exhaust, insulate room to keep cool in, and even add co2 gas from cylinders. Maybe too complicated.

how about running light cycle during nights to reduce the temperature increase

Remember the building you are in makes a difference. If the house receives western sun to that wall, it is usually hotter than southern rooms (SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE- reverse that in Northern Hemisphere) Insulation, roof colour and lots of other things can be tried, even if its just bringing the air in from the coolest side of the house.

I could keep going.... If you need more ideas give me an e-mail at scott@hydrocentre.com.au

cya Scott:-)

Hi everyone, I'm really new to hydroponics, but really keen to get into it. Only problem is I'm not really financially able to buy the top of the line equipment. I'm trying to grow chilly plants. I've bought a 500Watt flood lamp from the hardware, and I've got it hoisted about 5 feet away from the seedlings. The flood lamp uses halogen globes. Will this lamp do the job or does it lack some sort of light spectrums or something. Please let me know whether I'm wasting my time or if it's worth a try.

lamps no good June 2 2001 at 1:06 PM hello

Response to Lighting Queries

hallogens are wrong try metal halide or high pressure sodium or even coolwhite fluro tubes for your seedlings

hallogen will not grow healthy plants

are 1000 watters better than 600 watters?

lites November 22 2000 at 12:52 PM none of your biznez

Response to lights

Use 1000's Anything else is a waste of time I have tried both

1000's are crap December 8 2000 at 11:29 AM flowerman

Response to lites

pretty ignorant - 600's don't burn the crap out of my room I'd say 600's only way to go and use 400's if your a beginner cause thats a lot easier unless you know what your doing it might be different outside of queensland but thats what i found

flowerman

scientific lighting April 21 2001 at 10:42 AM lightman

Response to lights

It is more the type/height of plant. short medium or tall plants are dealt with differently Tall plants can be bent over or laid down to make shorter plants a 400 grows about 1mx1m andabout 2ft to 3ft plants, and will yield for arguments sake, out of a 0 to 100% of possible yield with a plant of about a 100% return a 600 does about 1.2m to 1.5m width/length - and grows up to 3-4ft plants and usually gets about a 125% to 150% return a 1000W Metal Halide Supergro (Ive used these lamps)are 25% brighter than normal 1000's, still only covers 1.5-1.6m length/width grows 4 ft plants and yields about 150% return

so in some cases two of the 400w on laid down plants, will give a 200% return, compared to a tall system, 1000W light with a 150% return. Some plants are too monsterous and need a 600W or 1000W. some rooms (most) get really hot with 1000W and a 600W will give a better yield cause the plants are better.

I now use 400s for vegetative, 600's for flowering, and duct air directly from the reflector to get the lights closer and more intense. Horizontal refectors get you closer to the plant tops.

Don't like 1000W sodium prices, and they are probably just a wank. bigger is only better if you know what to do with them. In most cases i can beat a 1000w with two 400's and have better ventilation because of it

lightman

Trying to find the lumen output for 250 watt hps, 400 watt hps & 600 watt hps, Phillips son-t or sylvania globes preferably.

values coming April 2 2001 at 11:13 AM scott scott

Response to light output

getting exact numbers for you 400W averages around 50,000 (initial)lumens 600W averages 90,000 1000W metal halides around 100,000 1000W super gros - 125,000 1000W Lucagrow around 150,000

will advise further Scott

phillips link April 2 2001 at 11:23 AM scott scott

Response to values coming

http://www.eur.lighting.philips.com/horti/prescrip.shtml Scott

Anybody find airconditioning detrimental to plants? I believe that since it dries the air and cools the room, it should be worthwhile. Since airconditioners only cost from $450 I was wondering if anyone could tell us how much extra it cost. Im also interested in how much more yield came from a dry cool growroom?

see ya 'round the shop Scott

air-con October 10 2000 at 10:38 AM anonimus

Response to airconditioning

I use air con and find its a little bit more expensive in summer but in winter its really not working hard I dont like splitsystems its better to use the wall mounting ones they can be set to vent with outside air and thats better than closing up the room sometimes the water level goes down quickso i check it as often as i can

whats a good temperature for growing under lights?

25-30 degrees October 7 2000 at 12:13 PM Scott Scott

Response to temperature

25 to 30 degrees has always produced good plants 20 to 25 is really nice, but difficult most of the year.

try growing at a temperature that you feel comfortable at. The plants grow in the same kind of environment as you, and respond to temperature and humidity changes like you do.

Although they can adjust to reasonable extremes, like you, they do get more tired and stressed that way. try not to have the growroom really breezy and airy one day, then closed up agin the next. It gives the plants that Monday morning feeling after a nice weekend.

see how you go, and call me on (07) 5527 4155 if you want to chat.

Cheers Scott

how long do lamps last?

Lamps last April 1 2000 at 1:56 PM Scott Scott

Response to lamp

HPS lamps will burn for 1 to 5 years After about 8 months you should be looking at your plants for signs that they are slowing down. Once lamps reach 12 months, the plants are usually not even growing fast anymore - and you'd be amazed at the increase in growth. You can get a higher yield by replacing lamps every second crop - say 6 months. The light intensity is still high then.

lamps April 7 2000 at 2:10 PM greg

Response to lamp

I have been growing for 4 years and me and my mates have tried using lamps for 4 crops (12 months). Found it better to replace after 3 crops and best if replaced every 2 crops. Seriously better weight and growth on first crop off a new lamp - worth a couple of bucks to change up often

Is there a way to do cloning without 2 lights?

cloning April 1 2000 at 1:58 PM Scott Scott

Response to clone room

you really need a 12 hour light, a 18 hour light and a flurobay. so that's three. You can get away with using the 18 hour light and shading the clones (simulating the lower level of light from fluros) Be careful not to cook them with the heat from the light though. Clones can be tender until they have roots.

My 1000 hps,(bulb is new), goes on for 2 min., then just shuts down. what could be wrong?

light failure - loading? March 13 2000 at 11:30 AM scott scott

Response to light failure

Could be a few things Is there a lot of load on the same circuit? Is the ballast relatively new/reliable?

Faulty light March 13 2000 at 5:48 PM Side-show BOB

Response to light failure - loading?

Ballast most likely fitted with atco ignitor some of these have 2 minute timer that turns off the ballast if the globe does not start in that time ( this ignitor was designed for street lighting).how ever these have a high failure rate Fault sound typical for this type of unit. Usualy requires a replcement ignitor only (suggest ignitor without delay ) PS check globe size and type are correct for the control gear Side-show BOB

I was wondering if anyone can help me. My plants are going pale and not really growing very quickly. I am using a Hydroponic channel and a 400 watt lighting system. What could be going wrong? System problems September 21 1999 at 1:43 PM Scott Scott

Response to System Problems

Sounds like we want to fix this system problem immediately.

Can you tell me how your system works. If it is trickle fed from the top then you should have a slight fall on the channel, and about 1/2 litre to 3/4 litre running down the channels. The roots should be touching the nutrient , but not submerged. Check you have freash nutrient, and a good brand. I suggest making up a fresh batch of nutrient will help if the plants are going pale. nutrient usually should be changed every week to two weeks depending on reservoir size.

Keep the light at least a foot over the plants. Check by placing your hand where the top of the plants are, and see if that is too hot. If it is - raise the light to two feet

Make sure the groing area is not stuffy - and has plenty of ventilation. As a guide - if it's stale to your own nose, then it's not too good for plants.

Are you using town/tap water to make your nutrients?

Is it really cold or Hot?

What brand of nutrient are you using?

Please give me as much information as possible, and I'll fix your problems and try to maximise your growth rates.

If plants really getting sick - email me direct, or call me on Australian telephone (07) 5527 4155 international use access code +617 5527 4155

Hope plants look better soon!

Scott

Lots of new lamps being released...

a new 600watt HPS agricultural lamp from Sylvania

400watt agro buddy to run as a metal halide retrofit in SonT400 Watt lighting systems - for growing and getting shorter more compact vegetation

a new high quality 423 Watter out of Germany - replacing the Phillips Son T Agro 423 Watt made in Belgium. More soon

Scott

lamps September 11 1999 at 12:50 PM net grower

Response to New HID lamps

Are these retros hps lamps or halides?

lamps September 16 1999 at 7:38 PM Scott Scott

Response to lamps

the 400W Metal Halide lamp runs in 400 Watt Metal Halide and High pressure sodium Control equipment. The new Agro Master is a High pressure sodium and will be released in 423W initially, with a 600W to come.

Also available is the Sunmaster Metal Halides with a Warm spectrum (meaning more reds) Proabably not worth the extra money over an HPS lamp as yet. If I get any feedback saying that they are worth it, then I'll retract that. Overall, Metal Halides are great for growing, and the extra red is really needed for growth, and the agricultural spectrum HPS lamps are nearly as good for growth, and much better to flower.

I would like feedback on any unusual lamps, or anything on the above lamps too... Scott

error! September 16 1999 at 7:42 PM Scott Scott

Response to lamps

I said extra reds in metal halides are really needed for growth. I meant to say extra reds are not really needed for growing. sorry should proof read my typing before hitting respond eh!

Scott

New product - growth spectrum fluorescent in compact fluro format. 20Watt equivalent to 100W incandescent. Can be used for side lighting / hanging inside dense foliage / for clones and seedlings / some say that you can grow small plants under them. Probably could grow some herbs etc if some light from a window every day - indirect lighting from sun plus fluro should be enough. Cheers, Scott.

Hey guys what's the go with flushing???????

Response #1

I put fresh water in and run that for a week. That is before the harvest time.

response #2 October 29 2002

flushing is one of the most important points of growing indoors .u just quite simply<using an automatic system>connect ya hose up to ya brain and pump it as u normally would but with fresh water and not nutrient the stems of plants have tiny little straws that go up them like veins without flushing it builds up in the veins and u wont have 100% healthy plant or plants and when u flush 30 hrs after u shoul dsee the difference in the look of ur plants and the growth they get during the next week u have to at least flush em every week especially during flowering stage. also flushing can stop root rot.have u ever seen ur roots and there brown they have root rot unhealthy roots smaller yield

should I pull my plants if there is mould forming? My crop is about 7 weeks now and about 50% ready Has anyone done this?

Response #1

If you leave them too long they go really light and don't carry any yield. When its close, I'd prefer not to gamble. When I had mould and didn't really know my yield was really low, but I could have had a bad crop because it was me and my brothers first go at it.

Response #2 October 29 2002

its obvious that uve pulled ya plants up now but in ya next crop u might want to suss out ya humidity level inya room and the ventilation cause i might have the room too hot for the fan ur using <inlet fan> or are u using co2 cause that can cause mould at times too bad sir souns like the culpret in ur room

Answers: 

The small unit will do about 1 light area, and there are none available in Australia for another 2-3 weeks The larger unit will do up to about 12 lights and are in stock now

Safety is governed by simple detection by smell or by the tingling sensation in the corners of your eyes, throat and after a while chest as well. If you detect these and stay in the area the ozone will dry out these areas, and start oxidising them, by which time you would find it hard to breathe without coughing etc. I have not encoutered anyone who has run the ozone units for hours with no ventilation and then done this, but that is why there are safety disclaimers on the units. They use low levels of ozone in Hospitals to sterile air, and I believe that no harm will come to anyone within 80% of normal intelligence.

In a small system, either would work, the larger unit I could put a money back guarentee on it! Always do the job properly to avoid disappointment. Cheers Scott

HEY SCOTT AWESOME SITE BRO, JUST A LEARNER SO THESE QUESTIONS MIGHT SOUND DUMB, WE HAVE FOUR PLANTS WITH FIVE TUBS ONE FOR EACH PLANT AND THE RESERVOIR WE HAVE A HEATER AND AN AERATOR IN THE RESERVOIR WE HAVE FOUND WHEN THE PUMP GOES ON THE OTHER TUBS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN HEATED COOL THE WATER DOWN TO WELL BELOW 25 C AND I WAS THINKING SO THE ROOTS HAVE ACCESS TO OXYGEN ALL DAY AND NIGHT SHOULDN'T WE HAVE AERATORS AND HEATERS IN EACH TUB SO THE HEAT REMAINS CONSTANT ON THE ROOTS AT 25 C MY SHOP MAN SEEMS A BIT CLUELESS TO ME / ONE MORE QUESTION WE ARE GOING TO PLACE A NET ABOVE OUR PLANTS AT WHAT HEIGHT SHOULD THE NET BE PLACED AND SHOULD OUR PLANTS BE TIPPED TO CREATE MORE LEADS OR LEFT ALONE .I COULD ASK A MILLION QUESTIONS BUT IM SURE EVERYTHING IS SWEET. THANKS MAN

Response

G'day 
Heaters:- It is critical when temperature of rootzone drops below 18 degrees and nutrients stop being as soluble. If your tank is at 25 degrees, and the nutrient coming back from the other tubs causes the temperature to drop, what we need to look at is the root zone temperature. Bury a thermometer into the media (Is it Clay or Rockwool?) and see if it hits 18 degrees or lower, then up the heating, or as you say, add heaters to every tub. (I assume/believe you have a nutrient tub under each growing tub in this case.) Carpet or foam underneath the tubs may keep your heat in the tubs. If the air is warm, pumping air into the tubs will equalise the air/water temperatures a bit. Lots of possibilities, $55 heat pads under the tanks/tubs are another option.

Netting:- It really is what you prefer, and to me, would depend on how fast they grow. I'd say that if they are going to grow to 2 meters in the time it takes to grow, and you want them to stay around 1 meter, you'd have to keep the net less than 1 meter. As they grow you wind them under the net, but at the end you let them grow a little from the net to the light. If they are not growing fast, then you can set your net to be closer to the height you want them, because they wont stretch very much higher from the net. If they do grow fast you need it lower to accomodate all the growing it will take. I honestly take a punt most times and I am usually right when I choose it as a guestimate. Hope that helps. Scott

AERATOR, PRUNNING September 18 2002 at 9:29 PM BANJO

BRO THANKS FOR RESPONDING, JUST A FEW MORE QUESTIONS, THE PLANTS AT PRESENT ARE A FOOT HIGH THEY ARE THE BUSHIEST LITTLE BANGERS I'VE SEEN BUT I USUALLY GROW OUTDOOR NOT HYDRO THEY HAVE MASSIVE SHADE LEAVES SHOULD THEY BE PRUNED AT ALL IF SO HOW SHOULD I GO ABOUT DOING THAT. SHOULD I PUT AERATORS IN EACH TUB AND YES I AM USING ROCKWOOL, I'M ALSO USING SUNMASTERS AND HAVE FOUND NO PROBLEMS SEEM EXCELLENT (1000WATT HALIDE AND 600WATT HPS). BEFORE THEY GET TO THE NET SHOULD I TIP TO GET MORE LEADS OR JUST LET THEM DO THERE OWN THING CAUSE THERE LOOKING PRETTY HEALTHY AND BUSHED UP. THANKS FOR THAT LAST PIECE OF INGENIOUS INFO TALK TO YA SOON

Response

Pruning does not help the plant because removing one leaf removes one of the plants energy producers. It may be helpful if one plant is unable to get light because another plant is shading it, but this is more to help other plants, not the donor plant itself. Aerators can help. Having the crate system raised so all the nutrient drains out of the crates to a lower main tank also helps. One tank instead of several connected will get more aeration because it has more access to air and less heating problems. One tank means less nutrients too, and that can be an advantage as well as a disadvantage when dumping and changing nutrients. I know which a store is more likely to recommend. The one that sells more nutrients!!! Problem with raising as system is it may require you to consider the additional height. Something about a milk crate high should do if the plants do not force the light to be raised too high. However the system you use aerates very well because the draining out of rockwool is like lots of little waterfalls. If the water falling is noisy, then its well aerated. Glad to hear about the Sunmasters, I believe the lamps are quality, but I am still wary about the 1100W because of explosions (they call it non-passive failure in engineering...lol) Netting should cause more lateral growth, so tipping is not generally required. Use a growth regulator like bonza bud to slow plant growth and make the plants bushier. Less chance of stress from a spray than from excessive tipping. Happy growing! 
Scott

Ok.....is there anything that can be done about attacks of mould. Into flowering stage - could be high humidity and have opened things up put in extra fan etc. Under 1000 light using Canna. Tried BiCarb spray - 1 tab to 5 ltrs.

Any other ideas...?

Thanks

Mould problems January 7 2002 at 10:36 AM Scott Scott

Response to rot/mould

Mould is a real problem, if you are prone to it, it really gets into everything. Mould comes as a spore that lands somewhere moist, and grows from there consuming any plant mater that comes along. Usually worst in summer when there is heat and humidity. In its early stages most fungicides will keep it under control. Once established it is difficult to kill. If we look at the causes we can usually have a better chance of control. If there are spores in the air you draw in, perhaps drawing your air from a new intake point (perhaps away from the ground where spores might be lying, or on another side of the building) will stop the problem. Usually people who get mould, get it often, and most people don't get mould and never seem to. So you need to do something. Spores can be killed by ozone, but its difficult to build up enough ozone to kill the spores totally. Its a good by product that mould spores are reduced. Less humidity is good too. Dehumidifying crystals like damp rid often make a difference, dehumidifiers $600+ are great, but an airconditioner is best. Failing that, have so much air movement lots of air changed in the room and extracted, and lots of fans into the plant foliage to dry up the moistness on the leaves, flowers and fruit. Hope that helps, but call me for specifics for your room. Scott (07) 5527 4155

anyone know how to get rid of little worms in roots and in middle of trunk

worm killer November 14 2001 at 10:07 AM scott scott

Response to worms in root system

Use Guardian - 1litre = $20 use 6ml per 10litres of nutrients. Tried lots of drenches, either nothing or a sick plant Tried systemic pesticides with poor success Tried pouring pesticides and pyrethrum and diazamin and hydrogen peroxide and then rinsing the roots with fresh water. Very hard to get a balance between killing bugs/worm and also killing the plant. Some have tried neem oil, moderate success reported, but I hate neem in the tank because the oil destroyed one of my pH meter probes. Oil does that... Anyhow, if you have any problems getting guardian let me know, and if anyone has a report of success with any other product I'd like to know....

Scott

they are 2 weeks old and hanging in well...they are left fully open to the air permanently now...I checked today but they still have no roots to speak of...maybe very slightly...other than that they are hanging in fine...what do I do now ???

watch October 17 2001 at 7:20 PM scott scott

Response to what to do with my clones ?

Clones will start to grow when they have enough roots and want more. Give them some nutrients by foliar spraying a quarter strength solution on their leaves, or a normal clone nutrient, and when they start doing something, you'll notice the roots will be too. You can transfer then, but watch out for excessive light or heat over first 2 days. Remember that gardening may be scientific, but you still have to use a bit of common sense and adjust for whatever happens. Let me know how it goes SCOTT

washing clay balls August 9 2001 at 11:02 AM peter

I've got some clay balls and want to wash them so I can use them again. What works the best?

Peter

depends on.... August 13 2001 at 3:53 PM Scott Scott

Response to washing clay balls

washing the clay balls before reusing is important

If you have had any sick plants growing in the clay previously, then some of the problem may still be in the clay balls. It's best to throw them out if this is the case. Usually this won't apply because your plants will have produced a great crop.

If reusing the clay balls, then the idea is to remember there are some old root particles, old nutrient and general tap-water nasties that have been in them, so rinse well.

Other options include Bleach - do a dilute bleach and rinse very very very well. will kill bugs. Any trace of bleach will burn roots and/or lock up nutrients, so rinse rinse rinse!

Hydroshield - Use in nutrient solution while plants are growing to kill any nasties. (6% H2O2 with silver particles)

Pythoff - Monochloramine. Very effective - use as with hydroshield but Never with hydroshield as they will kill each other first. (two tough guys in the same room)

Hydrogen peroxide in nutrient solution

That's an overview. Let me know what you want to do and I can tell you more about that technique

Scott

Washing options September 6 2001 at 10:48 AM Scott Scott

Response to washing clay balls

You must remove all old root material by rinsing. Since the balls will float mostly, use a large bucket and scoop off the clean balls.

Bleach - If you use a capful of bleach to every 50-100 litres, you will need to rinse the balls, around 7 times to get it out. If you plants have sluggish growth, or burnt roots, you didn't get all the bleach out. Use a double dose of Hydroshield to neutralize the bleach residue.

Hydroshield - This sterilized the media and water on contact. Use normal strength unless a problem then double or triple the dose until improvement.

"Phythoff" - For problems after poor rinsing. This is Monochloromine witch you keep at 80ppm with test strips. Very good for sterilizing, but could reduce dissolved oxygen at the root zone.

Usually I rinse several times with water, and always use Hydroshield. Its important to dissolve and wash away any residue from nutrients too. Use water and a dissolved salts meter to check that there are no more nutrients leaching out of the media

Any more idea? - be interested in hearing

Scott