Help and advice please first DWC Grow

Thc247

Well-Known Member
Hey RIU

Im wanting to try out DWC on my next run i have previous growing experience but not in dwc only soil

i have me 4 19l dwc buckets and im going to dedicate my 1.2x1.2 m budbox for dwc this time and keep my big flower room soil this run and iff im sold after this run il convert the big room also :D

ok here are my thoughts out loud ...

what nutrients / brands would be best to go for ?
which of my strains would work best in dwc ?

how many 19l buckets should i use under 1 600 w mh 4 veg an hps for flower ?


im very interested to run a dwc and a soil grow alongside each other and compare the final yield / weight / potency :D

these are my available strains royal cheese
cheese bomb
exodus cheese
danky doodle
bubbleicious
liberty haze
haze # 1

if i have missed anything i will add later

many thanks for any help in advance
 

Thc247

Well-Known Member
ive read all that and still havnt found the ansers im using hid and he is cfl
thanks anyways
 

Hydroburn

Well-Known Member
what nutrients / brands would be best to go for ?
Dyna-Gro Grow, Pro-Tekt, Bloom
or
General Hydroponics Flora series grow/micro/bloom

Aquashield or Pond-Zyme to keep away algae and slime (critical). Also make 100% sure buckets are light-proof (also critical).

Do not get anything with organics (FloraNova, General Organics, Fox Farms), including additives (except bennies) and ph up/down. If you go to a hydro store, don't assume the owner knows what he is talking about when it comes to dwc and root issues/products. What works wll in ebb n flo and nft might slime your plants in dwc... unless he has grown dwc, carefully weigh his advice.

which of my strains would work best in dwc ?
Just about any really... pick one you like.

how many 19l buckets should i use under 1 600 w mh 4 veg an hps for flower ?
depends on how long you veg and size of plants. Typically 3 - 6; you could always run 6 to begin with, and get rid of one or two later if needed.
 

Thc247

Well-Known Member
thamks for the advice

which of these are your fav plz ?
Dyna-Gro Grow, Pro-Tekt, Bloom
or
General Hydroponics Flora series grow/micro/bloom

many thanks for the info


Aquashield or Pond-Zyme to keep away algae and slime (critical). Also make 100% sure buckets are light-proof (also critical).

im going to go with 4 to start with will be getting nutrients this week and hopefully get it going by nxt weekend .

how long do u recomend vegging for ?
 

Thc247

Well-Known Member
hey there thinking of taking advice would it beefit getting the complete line ??

how much would this starter kit grow 1 2 plants ? 19l pots

General Hydroponics Flora Series Starter Kit


16 oz. Flora Micro; 16 oz. FloraGro; 16 oz. Flora Bloom; 8 oz. Flora Blend; 8 oz. Liquid KoolBloom; 4 oz. FloraKleen; 1 oz. Rapid Start; 1 oz. Floralicious Plus; 1 oz. pH Test Indicator.

or the performance pack

The FloraSeries Performance Pack combines all the advantages of the Flora Series in one reasonably priced nutrient system with everything gardeners need to grow from seed to bloom. RapidStart (1 oz) and FloraBlend (8 oz) stimulate root development. FloraGro, FloraMicro and FloraBloom (16 oz each) provide minerals necessary for productive growth and bloom stages, while Liquid KoolBloom (8 oz) and Floralicious Plus (1 oz) boost fruit and flower yield. FloraKleen (4 oz) and pH Test Indicator (1 oz) simplify maintenance to keep plants healthy and growing.




Dyna-Gro Grow, Pro-Tekt, Bloom
or
General Hydroponics Flora series grow/micro/bloom

Aquashield or Pond-Zyme to keep away algae and slime (critical). Also make 100% sure buckets are light-proof (also critical).

Do not get anything with organics (FloraNova, General Organics, Fox Farms), including additives (except bennies) and ph up/down. If you go to a hydro store, don't assume the owner knows what he is talking about when it comes to dwc and root issues/products. What works wll in ebb n flo and nft might slime your plants in dwc... unless he has grown dwc, carefully weigh his advice.


Just about any really... pick one you like.


depends on how long you veg and size of plants. Typically 3 - 6; you could always run 6 to begin with, and get rid of one or two later if needed.
 

esinohio

Well-Known Member
You should have enough in that starter kit to *maybe* make it through a complete grow with those four buckets. On the plus side you will have more than enough warning before you even run low so ordering more in time shouldn't be an issue.

If you decide on that kit be sure to NOT use that ph tester in there. Do yourself a favor and invest in a good PH meter. They sell combo meters that do Ph/Ppm/Temp that range in size and price. I'm sure a thread up here somewhere has loads of suggestions!

Second, It sounds confusing but the General Hydroponics (Some of the series) has instructions on the side of the bottles AND a feeding schedule listed on the website here : http://generalhydroponics.com/site/gh/docs/feeding_sched/GH-FloraSeries-DTW-Charts.pdf If I'm not mistaken the bottle instructions are for general use soil instructions and not really suited to Hydro. Use the site instructions or the reference card that is in the box!!!

If you use the entire series there is one potential gotcha, it's that FloraBlend. It's a vegan plant booster that is chalk full of plant material and such. Usually a recipe for root rot so tread lightly!!! I used it on my first runs and developed some slime quickly. Even running the beneficial microbes and proper temps didn't seem to keep the roots happy so I ditched it. I'm guessing that product is suited more to a ebb and flow setup or I'm missing something. It's really only used primarily during veg and my plants are monsters.. never run into size problems not using it. :) Sooner or later I'll shoot an email their way and see what the manufacturer has to say.

Good luck to you!!!
 

Thc247

Well-Known Member
thanks i already have a decent ph tester digital with aliberation fluid and a ppm meter do i need a ec meter ??
many thanks for advice was it just the flora blend that u ditched ?
 

NrthrnMichigan

Well-Known Member
Thc. Do you plan to do hydro for a while? If you plan on doing more than one grow I would recommend getting the quart or gallon size. Also...just get the 3 part series, micro, grow, bloom and add the liquid and dry kool bloom. I also use calmag and protekt. It's been cost effective for me to purchase the gallon jugs. Gh is working very well for me.

.02

"Doesn't matter how you grow"
 

esinohio

Well-Known Member
Yep, I just ditched the Flora Blend.

Since I'm changing out nutrients weekly and only top off with plain water between nutrient changes that ppm/ec meter really doesn't get used that much now BUT I'm not doing "special" formulas. I used it a lot initially to check how my ppm totals compared with what is shown on the feeding schedule chart to make sure things were dialed in correctly. I think that along with the ph information you can use ppm/ec information to diagnose some problems? For sure if you start to use other feeding schedules you will want to have that EC meter. See : https://www.rollitup.org/hydroponics-aeroponics/4387-lucas-formula.html
 

Thc247

Well-Known Member
yea if all goes well im going to switch both my grow sites to hydro

reason i as thinking of small bottles to get a feel for which i prefer

but yea does make sence getting more normally means you pay less .

Thc. Do you plan to do hydro for a while? If you plan on doing more than one grow I would recommend getting the quart or gallon size. Also...just get the 3 part series, micro, grow, bloom and add the liquid and dry kool bloom. I also use calmag and protekt. It's been cost effective for me to purchase the gallon jugs. Gh is working very well for me.

.02

"Doesn't matter how you grow"
 
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