I am buying a COLISEUM.. What else will i need?

[itsaplant]

bro with 3000 invested
i think with some time and love and some reading on these pages you could build something alot more effective alot cheaper
i dont know how much room you have or dealing with but 600 for res is pretty steep
you can build and insulate a8/8 room for 200 other 200 for shelves
discount hydro has 1000 watts for 200
check the diy section
just a thought i dont want you to think i know what yer doing cause like i said i dont know yer situation
check cmks set up now thats sick and way easy to build and you could do yer coliseium like that
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=111647

 

[00420]

Large Mod Basic Unit /150 sites. Buy the mini's u will think me later
Coliseum Reservoir (2 sides). ...5 gallon buckets are cheaper and easyer to clean
EcoPlus Elite Water Pump - 1500gph. Buy the high psi (230?)
EcoPlus 6" Centrifugal Fan 440 cfm. Go with a 8"
Big Blue Air Ball Ozone Generator. Scruber will do the job
Can 50 Carbon Filter - 38 Special. I love mine
IGS-11 Cycle Timer I never used mine

600 HPS. Go 2-1k's + cooltube if u wanna stay with 600's buy 3
E-Z Link Chain. I split romex n pull the wire's out n use them
G.H. Floranova....... a all u need
water chiller is only needed if u run aero same with net cups and hydroton

I bet u can get it up and a first harvest under $3500

 

[resin_lung]

Nothing really went wrong. actually 1001 things went wrong before i worked all the bugs out (and there are alot of f'kin bugs in that system). I basically didn't need to use it anymore. I got a place with more floor space.the colisium is great if
1. you dont have space.
2. you really know what your doing
3. you have alot of free time
4. you have nothing better to do with your time.
I would have to agree with billy_big_bud. This is a very difficult system to make work for you. and you have to MAKE it work for you. it is by no mean a set it and forget it kind of thing. constant monitoring is needed. lots of modifications are needed. were you planning on running it aeroponically? line pressure is an issue. you need lots.you get less clogs at the misters but with more line press you get more leaks more blow outs. Are you expecting to get 2 grams per watt. good luck. its possible but not likely. untill you dial it in with the right strain i guess. like that guy soquik? I got more like 1.4 grams per watt. after i dialed it in. prolly could of done better but sheesh. lota work. I can beat it with ebb and flow tables. with alot less work and stress. It comes down to floor space with the coli. if you got the floor space, FUCK the coli. if you don't have floor space then I believe the coli CANT be beat. but be ready to stress out. I'm not even talking about plant numbers. just the system. the plant numbers is a whole other story. sorry to ramble but theres alot to that sys.

 

[Dank Sinatra]

6" x 25' - Silver Jacket Insulated Duct
EA 1 $37.95 $37.95

Where abouts did you find this at that price? i am going to need to grab that too.

 

[00420]

resin_lung do you have the large or the mini's?
i only had prob with this system when running aero.... witch i will never do again...... try drain to waste with it
my next grow will be a side by side 32 1 gallon ebb n flow buckets in a 4 x 8 vs coli 6 x 6 with 60 plants {2 60site's) 2k each room.. sound fair? i been wanting to do this and just have not had the floor space to do both..... but my new house has plenty...

Where abouts did you find this at that price? i am going to need to grab that too.

if i remember right thats the same price home depot has it for....


this is how i ran mine

if you look at the bottem of the lights it runs under the coli then to the back of the a/c to vent that hot air all off the same fan......

 

[resin_lung]

i have the 300 site mini. i ran it aero. I ran it for a little over a year. i agree that i would have had way less prob if i filled it with medium. about your grow. if your doing a side by side comparison, no I dont think its fair. but go for it. not enuff coli grows on this site. would help a few people if there were more. to make it fair i think you would need to run 2 4 x 8 tables and add wattage to the tables. unless you veg the table way longer to make up for the diff. and you would still have to prob add wattage. a comparison is a tough thing. the coli use floor space and light so well that it would be tough to beat. you would have to add up all the headaches of the coli vs the ease of the tables. all subject to opinion. love the coli. and your plants look great. cant wait to see the grow. good luck amigo.

 

[00420]

each 60 site = 1 4 x 8 in grow space {or really close to} but with less light this is why i like it so much

for a side by side i would like to keep the lighting the same as well as floor space & nute's/ if i where to bump the #'s on the ebb n flow to 32 per light? i have all ways seen 16 plants per light do the best in ebb n flow but i have never really growen in trays i allways used buckets but i have seen alot of trays ...

and dont think im trying to be n ass your one of the only ones with a coli to pick on your brain... hahha..

 

[resin_lung]

I don't think your trying to be an ass. Your right about there not being anybody on this site with colis ( or not that many anyway). It is nice to be able to swap ideas about this type of system. as far as your grow, I thought you were gonna run a 300 site unit and 1 table! a 60 site and a x8 would deff be a better comparison. keep me posted! PEACE

 

[noone88]

It seems like messing with Perlite is a hassle, both with inhalation and the subsequent clean up.

It's hard to tell from the instruction manuals and the pictures on the Arista website, the drip feed system feeds from the top row and the nutrient water will trickle down to the lower levels and then eventually into the reservoir, correct?

Wouldn't it be better/easier to use cups of hydroton or even jam in grodan rockwool blocks into the openings and drip feed that way?

 

[konstantgrdnr]

For medium try using a product called fytocell. I have a two tier 75 per tier 150 total sites.

 

[punx777]

Im with them- more light. While your at it I'd go a mixflo fan rather than a centrifugal. When you have odour problems, which you will even with the ozone, your guna need a fan that'll push a carbon filter

I disagree. You probably have all you need for that. Ozone sounds crazy i never use more than a carbon filter but all power too ya for havin that much cash money

 

[noone88]

I found this which explains how the nutrients flows:

http://www.growverticalgardens.com/files/Coli_Plantsgrowvertical.pdf

The mini-coliseum seems to be more ideal due more equal distribution of the nutrient solution.

I think the main key for vertical grow is that you need a strain that clones reliably and quickly. I use an EZ cloner and my kush strains have a 15-20% success ratio, while others have 90%+ success. And also you need a strain that doesn't stretch.

What strains are people using for coliseum grows?

 

[Mr.Jones]

I found this which explains how the nutrients flows:

http://www.growverticalgardens.com/files/Coli_Plantsgrowvertical.pdf

The mini-coliseum seems to be more ideal due more equal distribution of the nutrient solution.

I think the main key for vertical grow is that you need a strain that clones reliably and quickly. I use an EZ cloner and my kush strains have a 15-20% success ratio, while others have 90%+ success. And also you need a strain that doesn't stretch.

What strains are people using for coliseum grows?

from what ive read and heard many people are using indica dominat strains like afghani ... other people told me the best strain to run is chronic - so you can transfer that and say: big bud, critical mass , pot of gold ... all those should be possible too

 

[noone88]

Other issue is ease-of-cloning. I can't imagine doing 300 cuts by hand, especially if you're doing a perpetual coliseum grow. It would almost necessitate the use of an aero/bubble cloner (ez cloner, power cloner). Not all strains clone as easily. Sure, if you're cloning 10 at a time and you're not necessarily on a time schedule, you can wait 21 days for roots to pop out. But for someone like me, efficiency and effective use of time is important.

Does anyone have personal experience with an indica-dominant strain that clones easily.

I have a strain called Pure Gold (indica dominant) which clones very easily. Pop in the ez cloner, see white nubs in 5 days, healthy roots in 10 days.

Any other suggestions?

 

[resin_lung]

hey konstant, have you used the fytocell stuff yet? i was givin abunch by a freind a thought it would work in a coli. how is it. how did it work?

 

[konstantgrdnr]

Yes it will kick ass, but there are three things that must be done that are really easy, a lot of people overlook.

First the medium must be thoroughly soaked and PH balanced out to begin with.

Second the medium must be grated, it must be fine so that the roots can weave within the medium.

The third thing is you can mix perlite into the medium. this stretches out your fytocell and creates a good balance.

Fytocell has a tendency to to fall into the reservoir due to it's fine consistency, putting rock wool flock in the bottom 1 inch can keep the medium from going into the reservoir.

What fytocell will give you is a great buffer especially when the coliseum can go dry very quick. Though the biggest benefit would be when you are done all the medium can be put into one garbage bag weighing about 5 pounds dry and thrown away it is bio-degradable and you don't have to worry about cleaning just wash down the unit and refill . I can't tell you how much this will ease your grow.

Their is a thread on Roll it up by ALB-fuct using it in his ebb-n-flow one of the best threads. on the net.

 

[noone88]

I saw the Coliseum today and was brainstorming with the shop guy. He said one of his customers filled his Coliseum with rockwool grow cubes sitting on a bed of hydroton. Instead of using net cups, he buried his rooted clone deep inside the grow site, which allows the plant to grow an extra few inches.

Suretogrow loose fill seems to be a good fit for this as well.

The main problem, as stated before in this thread, is dealing with the watering. The mini-coliseum is most preferred. You have to find a balance between underwatering the top row and overwatering the bottom row.

Lastly, skip the reservoir that comes optional with the unit until they redesign it. You can buy a reservoir drain kit that will drain into a separate 70 gallon reservoir that doesn't sit under the coliseum. That will make cleanup a billion times easier.

 

[smalltymer]

I found this which explains how the nutrients flows:

http://www.growverticalgardens.com/files/Coli_Plantsgrowvertical.pdf

The mini-coliseum seems to be more ideal due more equal distribution of the nutrient solution.

I think the main key for vertical grow is that you need a strain that clones reliably and quickly. I use an EZ cloner and my kush strains have a 15-20% success ratio, while others have 90%+ success. And also you need a strain that doesn't stretch.

What strains are people using for coliseum grows?

so does this mean the the whole inside of the coli has to be filled wit media? this sounds like it could be a pain in the ass come harvest. why couldnt you do net pots with media?

 

[noone88]

I had the same discussion with my guy. It's meant to be filled completely with media.

I'm thinking you can probably use net cups in each grow site and usedrip lines into each grow site.

The con is that the roots will grow out of control and eventually clog each channel.

I think that's why they advise you to fill it with media, so the roots can grow within the media and form a strong root structure.

 

[smalltymer]

I had the same discussion with my guy. It's meant to be filled completely with media.

I'm thinking you can probably use net cups in each grow site and usedrip lines into each grow site.

The con is that the roots will grow out of control and eventually clog each channel.

I think that's why they advise you to fill it with media, so the roots can grow within the media and form a strong root structure.

how is the unit feed with water when you first get it? what happens to the roots when you go the aeroponic route? i was really thinking about picking one of these up but have the whole thing filled with media sounds like a pain.