Snype's RDWC Construction Tutorial For 250 Watts - 7,600 Watts!

[ChemDoubleDs]

Day 7 and most of the cuts have root nubs forming primarily towards the bottom of the stem. Didn't have my phone handy so no picture available but I'll take one before transplanting. Pretty excited to see the growth that follows in the next week.

My lid finally arrived so I will be cutting holes tomorrow and setting up Veg A to see how it works. It seems easy enough but I've never done it before so it'll help to familiarize myself with the system. I read in Part 1 of the ChemDD grow thread that you take out the screen and risers from the drain fitting entirely. In doing so, I believe you are allowing water to drain while it is being pumped up, but the rate at which the inlets from the two pumps is far greater allowing the tray to fill to the designated level ( I think you mentioned this level being 1" up the net pot) until the pump turns off and the tray drains. And you fill the 20 gallon Rez with 16.5 gallons of water plus nutes to reach this level. Am I heading in the right direction about how you perform ebb and flow in Veg A?

Thanks for your help man. Really appreciate it.

 

[ChemDoubleDs]

Still waiting on the washers. They were supposed to be here today so I'm hoping I'll have them by Tuesday due to the holiday on Monday. Everything is cut and ready to assemble. Looks official.

 

[The Doktor]

Man do you hate to be wrong. Because you went to the most desperate measures to find some information to distort and try and spin it your way. So let me show you your whole problem with your wall-o-text.

"Final Notes:
The real story besides the Pondmaster Pumps being louder than Alita is the amount of pressure that Pondmaster Pumps need to achieve the L/min of air."

The real story is that ALL pumps produce heat. And just how much louder are these pumps? Your worst finding was a WHOPPING 6db. Did you know that the human ear cannot detect 6db? No, most people don't. See image for scale.

"Pondmaster pumps use much higher pressures which in return generates more heat. For those who don't know, pressure produces heat so the more pressure that a pump takes to perform, produces more heat."

Really? And what facts do you have to make that claim? Do you own a Danner as well as Alita? I do and I just went and took a temp reading on both with an IR thermometer as well as thermal imaging from a FLIR camera that I use for boating. The Danner is running at 78.6 degrees and the Alita is at 82 under the same operating environments. The temps in my containers is at a solid 65 degrees. And for those paying attention, it is cold air pressure that produces heat and does not apply in this situation as the pressures needed are measured in the hundreds of PPSI. Not 6. The heat from air pumps comes from the mechanics of the pump, not the pressure it is creating. Again, air pressure causes COLDER temps.

"This is why I'd rather use Alita Pumps as opposed to Danner Pondmasters because Alita pumps produce air with lower rated pressures which produce less heat."

I do not think you could be more wrong and do more to misinform the beginner growers that spouting off this very biased and incorrect information. But no, your ego cannot allow you to see that you are wrong and allow you to just man up and say someone else was right and/or that you learned something new. Nope, you had to call me a troll and that I didn't know what I was talking about. Well, the only one wrong here is you. And then to backpedal your way out of your wrong corner you claim that now your posts are for the broke grower and anyone using anything else is for big warehouse growers that have tons of money to throw at it. I got some other news for you. I don't grow in a warehouse and I only grow for myself.

 

[Snype]

Day 7 and most of the cuts have root nubs forming primarily towards the bottom of the stem. Didn't have my phone handy so no picture available but I'll take one before transplanting. Pretty excited to see the growth that follows in the next week.

My lid finally arrived so I will be cutting holes tomorrow and setting up Veg A to see how it works. It seems easy enough but I've never done it before so it'll help to familiarize myself with the system. I read in Part 1 of the ChemDD grow thread that you take out the screen and risers from the drain fitting entirely. In doing so, I believe you are allowing water to drain while it is being pumped up, but the rate at which the inlets from the two pumps is far greater allowing the tray to fill to the designated level ( I think you mentioned this level being 1" up the net pot) until the pump turns off and the tray drains. And you fill the 20 gallon Rez with 16.5 gallons of water plus nutes to reach this level. Am I heading in the right direction about how you perform ebb and flow in Veg A?

Thanks for your help man. Really appreciate it.

You can keep both screens in but you don't need the riser fitting if your pump / pumps fill faster than they drain. When you test out the system, you'll see if you need to use the screen or not if you need to constrict the water further. If you are going to use 2 pumps like myself, then you will need both screens or the water may shoot up in the sky.

The 20 Gallon rez is filled all the way to the top. It only holds 16.5 gallons when full.

When you flood the rez, you'll want the solution to hit about 0.5" above the pot. You will have to level the tray so that the water hits all the pots. I use shims to do this.

 

[ChemDoubleDs]

I guess I forgot to mention that I will be using two elemental 171 gph pumps. I cut out the holes for the two inlet fittings and I'll be keeping the screens on the fittings. I held off on cutting the outlet hole because I could not clearly see where it was located in your design. Do you position the outlet directly across the inlets in your systems?

 

[Snype]

I guess I forgot to mention that I will be using two elemental 171 gph pumps. I cut out the holes for the two inlet fittings and I'll be keeping the screens on the fittings. I held off on cutting the outlet hole because I could not clearly see where it was located in your design. Do you position the outlet directly across the inlets in your systems?

The outlet holes are the inlet holes. When the pump turns off, the water drains through the pumps from gravity. Don't cut anymore holes.

I'm glad that it's going well.

 

[ChemDoubleDs]

Okay that's what I thought initially but when I saw the post that mentioned removing the screens and riders I got confused. I got it now. Glad I didn't cut that third hole. The holes are cut in the lid so I'm ready to go once the girls are nice and rooted.

I'm hoping to transplant into 5" net pots next weekend. Gonna swap the air pump I'm using in the Cloner which is rated at 7.8 Lpm for one of the General Hydro Dual Diaphragm at 20 Lpm. Can't hurt, right?

I am gonna be purchasing a CO2 tank and regulator for use in the flowering room which is 10'x13'. In the past I have just taken advantage of fresh air intake from outside, especially during the winter. I'm looking for the biggest possible yield from now on though so I'm gonna make the investment. Are your smaller rooms similar in size? And if so, can you suggest a setting for the regulator or a typical duration you set your timers to have the tank expelling CO2?

 

[Snype]

Okay that's what I thought initially but when I saw the post that mentioned removing the screens and riders I got confused. I got it now. Glad I didn't cut that third hole. The holes are cut in the lid so I'm ready to go once the girls are nice and rooted.

I'm hoping to transplant into 5" net pots next weekend. Gonna swap the air pump I'm using in the Cloner which is rated at 7.8 Lpm for one of the General Hydro Dual Diaphragm at 20 Lpm. Can't hurt, right?

I am gonna be purchasing a CO2 tank and regulator for use in the flowering room which is 10'x13'. In the past I have just taken advantage of fresh air intake from outside, especially during the winter. I'm looking for the biggest possible yield from now on though so I'm gonna make the investment. Are your smaller rooms similar in size? And if so, can you suggest a setting for the regulator or a typical duration you set your timers to have the tank expelling CO2?

As far as the air pump it will really depend on temperatures. If it gets too hot, it could cause problems depending on water quality. You'll know what's best for your personal grow from what you see and then you'll adapt the right methods for you.

My room sizes are pretty similar to yours. That room would be able to squeeze in 4,000 watts and 2 systems if you ever wanted to. As far as a setting for your regulator, I give CO2 at the same rate that I'm feeding the plants. My plants never go over 1100 PPM so that's the highest that I go and it's only for a week or 2 at most. I don't think your plants will handle 1100 PPM but if you listened to the way that I nute and keep the good data you will know as well. I'd think your plants would be maxing out at 900 for nutes and CO2 at most. That's just an estimated guess. Your data is going to tell you everything that you need to know. Make sure to listen to it. It's all about knowing the data before top off and after top off. That data will tell you exactly what to do. Change out the system every 10 days then you will be able to trust all your data. Don't use Kool Bloom. Just use the Micro and Bloom at the rate of 1 part Micro to 2 parts Bloom. That's for RDWC though.

In VEG you can use 1 part Micro to 1.5 parts Bloom. I made lots of changes so I want to make sure you have the new formulas.

 

[ChemDoubleDs]

My water hasn't gotten any higher than 77F so that shouldn't be an issue. I really don't know the quality of my water, tastes good to me though. I would have to get it analyzed.

I read in another thread that you want to observe the rate at which your plants eat up your nutes and look for them to eat at about 20 ppm per day. Or in other words, an average of 20 ppm per day over, say, a 3 day span. I'm sure it'll be more clear to me once I'm collecting data as opposed to just trying to figure it out in my head. I'm thinking that if they are eating the amount that you are giving them faster than 20 ppm per day, you want to raise your ppm after top off higher than what you had previously given them.

Just kind of thinking out loud here. I'll make sure to pay attention to the daily logs. I have a bit of time to do more reading before anything really gets going so I'll go back and make some notes.

 

[Snype]

My water hasn't gotten any higher than 77F so that shouldn't be an issue. I really don't know the quality of my water, tastes good to me though. I would have to get it analyzed.

I read in another thread that you want to observe the rate at which your plants eat up your nutes and look for them to eat at about 20 ppm per day. Or in other words, an average of 20 ppm per day over, say, a 3 day span. I'm sure it'll be more clear to me once I'm collecting data as opposed to just trying to figure it out in my head. I'm thinking that if they are eating the amount that you are giving them faster than 20 ppm per day, you want to raise your ppm after top off higher than what you had previously given them.

Just kind of thinking out loud here. I'll make sure to pay attention to the daily logs. I have a bit of time to do more reading before anything really gets going so I'll go back and make some notes.

Basically if the PPM of the system (before you top off) is higher than 24 hours before (after top off) then you using too high of a PPM. You basically want the numbers to read exactly the same. Then when you top off the numbers will go down and that's what they basically ate. After that you'll add back nutrients at the same rates.

The other problem that you are going to have is I think you said you got the Blue Lab Guardian. I hope not because that meter sucks. It does the PPM in rates of 50 or 100. It doesn't do it in 10's. I like to work in 10's or less. If you work with higher numbers, it'll be much harder to get an idea of what rates to feed the plants.

Also, you should always assume that your pH meter is wrong and don't blindly trust what it tells you. Make sure you have some sort of standard to check it every day. Like your tap water. If you know that your tap water is always a certain pH, check that your meter is always working correctly before you start recording data. It will save you loads of future problems.

I really do like Blue Lab meters but I just don't like them all combined in 1 unit. I like the pens best and they are not that expensive. Something like $100 each. The Blue Lab pH pen is the best that i've had out of all the other ones that I tried.

 

[ChemDoubleDs]

Okay I see what you are saying as far as feeding goes. I am using the Blue Lab Combo Meter. It reads in 10's. If I have a little extra money before transplanting I will try to buy a Blue Lab pH pen because I can already see that it is way easier than the replaceable pH probe that attaches to the Combo Meter. Broke one the first day. Good point about keeping the probe calibrated. I'll make sure that it's compared to my tap water each time before I use it.

 

[Snype]

Okay I see what you are saying as far as feeding goes. I am using the Blue Lab Combo Meter. It reads in 10's. If I have a little extra money before transplanting I will try to buy a Blue Lab pH pen because I can already see that it is way easier than the replaceable pH probe that attaches to the Combo Meter. Broke one the first day. Good point about keeping the probe calibrated. I'll make sure that it's compared to my tap water each time before I use it.

Glad you see what I'm saying. Most times I feel people have no idea what I'm talking about but it's all really so simple. RDWC is so much easier than soil.

 

[ChemDoubleDs]

Yeah I was a little intimidated at first to make the switch from soil but I've been going through your logs for a while now and I think I understand the feeding method you follow. It really does seem simple. Just respond to what the data says. It makes perfect sense why you want the pre top off and previous post top off to be equal. That would mean your plants are eating at a sufficient rate as water is removed from the system. Correct me if I'm wrong

 

[Snype]

Yeah I was a little intimidated at first to make the switch from soil but I've been going through your logs for a while now and I think I understand the feeding method you follow. It really does seem simple. Just respond to what the data says. It makes perfect sense why you want the pre top off and previous post top off to be equal. That would mean your plants are eating at a sufficient rate as water is removed from the system. Correct me if I'm wrong

Yeah that's pretty much it. The thing is if you check the data before you top off and it reads higher than the day before, you may be overfeeding and you may lose your flavors and send the pH out of line.

I like my pH to be at 6.0. I find when the pH goes below 5.8 that they don't really eat much so keep that in mind. Some growers like to have swings from 5.2 to 6.2 but I personally never had good results trying those types of techniques.

Just remember when you add anything to the system to keep the system running and don't take your readings for about 10-15 minutes to allow it to mix throughout the system properly.

 

[salgado]

Snype here are some pics of what I was talking about Canopy temp 78-80, PH 5.7 - 5.9, ppm 650, RH 49-52% light is about 15 inches above plants.

 

[salgado]

these are entering 3rd week of veg today

 

[Meison]

Hey Snype, I found out that allowing the ph to swing isn't bad but doesn't give the best results.

After using the system for 35 days I have noticed that after I put my home made nuts in the ph drops to 6 for flowering feeding and 6,3 for veg feeding.

I used to ph 5.5 always and now I'm leaving it at 5.8-6 and its going a lot better. Most times we have Ca/Mg def in flower due to ph lock out. After using higher ph that problem went away!

Only way to find the way is to have data records! Always learning stuff from my notes

Thanks Snype, your RDWC guide is the best!

 

[salgado]

Any ideas whats wrong with my plants???

 

[Snype]

Any ideas whats wrong with my plants???

If you want help you will have to provide many more details:

1. How much solution is in the system?

2. What are you using for nutrients? List exactly how much of each bottle that you put into the system?

3. What lights are you using?

4. What is the size of your air pump or make and model number?

5. What is the PPM or EC of the system now? If you are using PPM, what scale does your meter use?

6. What was the PPM of the system 24 hours before?

7. Is your PPM going up, down or staying the same every day?

8. If you are using bleach, can you take a picture of the bottle and tell me how much you use and how often?

9. Can you take a picture of the roots?

 

[salgado]

Snype my Canopy temp 78-80, PH 5.7 - 5.9, ppm 500, RH 49-52% light is about 15 inches above plants, The pump is Active aqua commercial pump 110 slm, 600 watt MH light. I have a stone in each bucket and two in the res... I started the veg process with Lucas but since have switched to the GH Adv. DWC schedule. Right now Im running the nuts at approx. 500 ppm... Im about to get a good EC meter so I can be more exact. I have had a hard time gauging ppm going up or down because Ive been frustrated fucking with it too much. However, I have it at 500 right now and Im letting them chill for a few days. Do you have any ideas based on the photos. The plants look like a little old man getting older... Hope this helps.