TDubs tiny tent

[T_Dub]

keep it up Amigo and you will soon be smoking some home grown

Desperately needed too BigSur! I only grow once a year, so I’m excited for a new strain. I wish I had grown two different strains….I’ll be living on Blue Dream next year.

Looks like everything is coming along nicely T Dub. I can't wait until Big tells you to "Wait Two Weeks". Ha ha!

Thank you Pute . Yes, I will definitely need some advice at harvest time. Microscope is at the ready, and I’m more interested in quality than speed here.

if you want green , cal mag is your friend…just don’t overdo it

One teaspoon per gallon of CalMag. I use this one.

View attachment 310670

Thanks for the tip. I’ve been using CaliMagic….roughly 4ml per gallon for RO water and 2 ml per gallon for my tap water. My fertilizer has CalMag in it too. It really raises the ppm of my feed a lot, so I’m trying to find that sweet spot without overdoing it. I’ll probably bump that up a little…..thanks.

 

[user 60570]

you are on the right track Amigo , your diligence will pay off!

sorry about you only having one flavor , but hey , that Blue Dream is a good choice!…great weed!

like you , we only grow once a year so we try to make the most of it

we are lucky this year , we have 8 different flavors to harvest and we are chuffed at sampling them all

all the best

 

[T_Dub]

Quiet day today…not much to photograph yet. Buds are small and starting to stack. I’m hoping for more height.


Fed 2 gallons each of Mega Crop (4g/gallon), Bud Explosion and Sweet Candy (1g/gallon each). Added a little more Cal Mag than normal….4ml per gallon. Conditioned tap water to deactivate chloramines. Nutrients at 1100 ppm and 6.5 ph. Runoff at 1600ppm….. Needed to use more RO water (1.75 gallons) to keep ppm low….my tap water is 350 ppm with low calcium and magnesium numbers.

Plants grew almost an inch last night. Raised lamp and adjusted dimmer. Increased light intensity from 55,000 lux to 61,000 lux. This is as high as I plan to go with light intensity….12 inches above the canopy with a 320 watt cob fixture.



Here’s the water conditioner that I use for Choramines (chlorine and ammonia mix i believe). I could use a small amount if humic acid too which would benefit the plants and remove chloramines….I’m doing more research. This is safe for fish and aquarium plants. I’ve used it for years and it seemed to solve the water issues I experienced since moving to this state. It only takes a couple drops per gallon.


Here’s a recap of the limited growing advice I can offer to people…..lol. Have a great day!

 

[user 60570]

I love it!

 

[T_Dub]

Welcome to
2 Blue Dream in flower- week 3, day 5.

Unfortunately, I’m still learning so I don’t have much advice to offer. But if you see me making any mistakes, I’m open to suggestions and looking for new ideas. I will likely research all ideas to death too. Haha

Hi and Thanks for joining along. This is my first grow in this 2x4 tent….my impression so far is that I’m glad I decided to attempt a SCROG using this smaller tent. It seems significantly more efficient per square foot than my traditional “top it once, lollipop it and let it go” style. I miss the bigger tent space, but not the heat and humidity (I vent into my tent room unfortunately).

My first SCROG is proving very educational to me. Herbie’s says that a SCROG delivers up to 20% more. I can see it being potentially true. Using the light meter, I’m really impressed looking at the ability to maximize the available light since every cola is almost equally distant from the lights. Most are receiving 60,000lux. I rarely keep larf, and this really looks like it should significantly minimize it. I also like covering the entire 8’ footprint. I also appreciate the built in support system (trellis net) to hold up the colas.

HOWEVER (and there’s always a however) The one thing I truly miss about a traditional (non SCROG) grow is the ability to remove the plants from the tent for manicuring, photos and simple admiration of the structure of the plant itself. I’m undecided which technique i will use next time because I miss removing the plants from the tent that badly. The outcome of this harvest will also influence my decision for my next grow.

Today I’m noticing a significant difference in bud size between the two plants…..both are Blue Dreams but they are not clones. One I topped significantly more often (the smaller buds) on the left hand side of the screen. I think I might have topped too often in my attempt to fill the SCROG net. Measured smaller bud diameter at 1/4 inch and larger bud diameters at 3/8 inch. Merely an observation at this point….i can’t prove it actually caused it with one occurrence. It would seem logical though if the one plant is supporting more bud sites. In a SCROG, can one have too many bud sites?



I defoliated one last time since I think week 3 may be my last opportunity. Not an aggressive defoliation, but enough to improve airflow around the colas. I’m planning to read up on defoliation again today to better understand the ideal frequency and benefits (beyond airflow). I’m definitely getting more light to some of the shorter colas too. I’ve seen examples of people darn near stripping their plants, but I’m unwilling to take that risk. Here’s the before and after.



Feeding today included 4 gallons between two plants. Included MegaCrop at 3g/gallon, Bud Explosion and Sweet Candy at 1g/gallon. Nutrients were at 6.5 ph, 1050 ppm. Runoff water was at 1500 ppm which is a huge improvement. I was almost at 2100 ppm runoff last week, so it has improved a lot. I’ll continue to feed 3.5-4 gallons per feeding for plenty of runoff and the ppm issue will take care of itself.

I’m paying close attention to Vapor Pressure Deficit with this grow. I’ve been running around 1.3-1.4 VPD with lights on. 1.15 VPD with lights off. Average humidity around 60%. Average temperature around 77. Trying to get the environment automated to avoid major swings, and the only missing part is a heater for the grow tent at night. I’ll be ok with this grow, but if I grow again in January/February a heater really would be helpful. Of course, with a 2x4 footprint, where the hell am I going to put a heater?
.

Also adding an Agromax Pure UV bulb to the mix next week since I already own a 2’ T5 fixture. Supposedly a VERY small exposure to UVA/UVB can have a positive impact on trichome density. I only plan to run it for short minute increments while the tent is closed as UV exposure is dangerous to skin and eyes. We’ll see how this works. I’ll have to pay very close attention to the leaves during this trial, and work my way up slowly. I think they recommend hanging it at 2’ above the plants, in which case my LED would block it. I don’t think UV reflects off the walls, so I will have to explore alternative setups.

Anyway….if you see me messing anything up, please jump in or in. Always looking to improve.

 

[user 60570]

can’t have to many bud sites

yes you will need a heater for the winter when lights are off , or maybe in the daytime depending on the temps all around

otherwise your plants look healthy and happy

 

[T_Dub]

Good Morning,
I woke up early to install the new AC Infinity controller 69 Pro before the lights turned on but after my 12 hours of darkness. I figured I’d do a quick write up for anyone interested. At under 100 dollars, I wanted it as a gimmick at first. I’m seeing a real benefit to it now that I’ve played with it more.

Three versions of this controller. Bluetooth, Wifi and Pro (both Bluetooth and Wifi). The company upgraded me from the “wifi only” version to the Pro for free…thanks ACI! All look similar and use the same app.

The Controller 69 manages 4 ports currently with plans to offer “splitters” for more devices in the future. Once I plugged in the Controller and connected it to my Bluetooth, I was able to complete the remainder of the programming with the iPhone app in about 10 minutes. I’m an idiot with technology, so I’m pleased. The controller itself is relatively intimidating when I tried to study how to program it….but the process using the iPhone app made it simple.

Picture of Controller


I’m controlling my ACI T6 in-line fan on Port 1 and my Timber LED on port 2. I will add the ACI humidifier to Port 3 and either an oil-filled heater or a UV light to Port 4. Some LEDs can be dimmed by the app using special connectors (R11?) that aren’t available on my old LED. So my LED is only an on/off option which is fine with me. I believe the dimmable option allows the controller to adjust lighting to target a desirable VPD….a very cool option but something I don’t plan to do.

I need to play with the settings more, but Im learning that the ability to fine tune the fan settings for more gradual increases is providing a more stable VPD so far, especially when venting such a small space. I’m away from the house today, but I should be able to monitor and make adjustments from anywhere.

A few examples of the Home Screen, options screen for fan control. My fan is set to always run at a speed of 1….and to start raising the fan speed once the temperature exceeds 78 degrees.



Plenty of data for those who like to see history




For anyone setting this up, the biggest tip I’ve picked up is to go to “settings”, “ports” and choose your inline fan. That allows you to set up transition temperatures. It’s defaulted to 0, which means your fan is running on/off. In my photo below, I’ve scaled it at 2 degrees. The fan will increase by 1 setting for every 2 degrees over my set temperature. Really stabilizes the tent temperature so far.


Overall, I’m very impressed that they built such a simple tool for small gardeners. If I had a larger tent, I’d be anxiously awaiting their release of splitters to control a few more fans at once. But a great start. I don’t work for ACI and I did not receive anything for this….just my initial observation.

 

[user 60570]

Good Morning,
I woke up early to install the new AC Infinity controller 69 Pro before the lights turned on but after my 12 hours of darkness. I figured I’d do a quick write up for anyone interested. At under 100 dollars, I wanted it as a gimmick at first. I’m seeing a real benefit to it now that I’ve played with it more.

Three versions of this controller. Bluetooth, Wifi and Pro (both Bluetooth and Wifi). The company upgraded me from the “wifi only” version to the Pro for free…thanks ACI! All look similar and use the same app.

The Controller 69 manages 4 ports currently with plans to offer “splitters” for more devices in the future. Once I plugged in the Controller and connected it to my Bluetooth, I was able to complete the remainder of the programming with the iPhone app in about 10 minutes. I’m an idiot with technology, so I’m pleased. The controller itself is relatively intimidating when I tried to study how to program it….but the process using the iPhone app made it simple.

Picture of Controller
View attachment 311003

I’m controlling my ACI T6 in-line fan on Port 1 and my Timber LED on port 2. I will add the ACI humidifier to Port 3 and either an oil-filled heater or a UV light to Port 4. Some LEDs can be dimmed by the app using special connectors (R11?) that aren’t available on my old LED. So my LED is only an on/off option which is fine with me. I believe the dimmable option allows the controller to adjust lighting to target a desirable VPD….a very cool option but something I don’t plan to do.

I need to play with the settings more, but Im learning that the ability to fine tune the fan settings for more gradual increases is providing a more stable VPD so far, especially when venting such a small space. I’m away from the house today, but I should be able to monitor and make adjustments from anywhere.

A few examples of the Home Screen, options screen for fan control. My fan is set to always run at a speed of 1….and to start raising the fan speed once the temperature exceeds 78 degrees.

View attachment 310996View attachment 310998View attachment 310997

Plenty of data for those who like to see history

View attachment 311002View attachment 311001View attachment 311000


For anyone setting this up, the biggest tip I’ve picked up is to go to “settings”, “ports” and choose your inline fan. That allows you to set up transition temperatures. It’s defaulted to 0, which means your fan is running on/off. In my photo below, I’ve scaled it at 2 degrees. The fan will increase by 1 setting for every 2 degrees over my set temperature. Really stabilizes the tent temperature so far.
View attachment 310999

Overall, I’m very impressed that they built such a simple tool for small gardeners. If I had a larger tent, I’d be anxiously awaiting their release of splitters to control a few more fans at once. But a great start. I don’t work for ACI and I did not receive anything for this….just my initial observation.

awesome review Mang!

thanks!

 

[T_Dub]

awesome review Mang!

thanks!

Thanks BigSur!

Your harvest is looking phenomenal by the way. I don’t have the option for outdoor, but I would love to try that. All with GH Micro and GH Bloom too, huh? You have me rethinking the nutrients for my next grow. I’m indecisive.

 

[T_Dub]

Another quiet morning early in the garden. Feeding, inspecting and manicuring is the highlight of my day.

Sunday was the start of Week 4 of flower. Buds seem relatively small but are starting to stack. I wont have a shot at Bud of the Month with these unless they pick up some serious mass. I started counting flowering weeks at the flip to 12/12, so maybe there’s more time for vertical growth.



Canopy is relatively flat, but I think I see a lot of potential larf down low where I missed cleanup. For my first SCROG, I’m please thst I learned a lot. But I think I will remove more of the lower branches next time. That will help with airflow too through my thick canopy,

I’m running 12 inches below the LED. Meter is indicating 62,000 lux. This is the closest that I’ve ever run the lamp to the canopy and the plants seem to be responding well to the higher intensity. I was under the impression that 18 inches was the recommended distance to the plants.


Today I fed 4 gallons to my 5 gallon fabric pots and sucked up 1.25 gallons of runoff…..they were thirsty holding over 1.25 gallons per container. The feed was 950ppm and consisted of MegaCrop (3g/gallon), Bud Explosion and Sweet Candy at 1g/gallon. Ph to 6.5. Runoff was at 1500 ppm, so I’m definitely flushing out salts with my updated 4 gallon approach. 3.5 gallons just wasn’t proving enough runoff to flush out salts.

Lights on Environment is at 78 degrees, 57 percent humidity and 1.44 VPD.

Lights off environment has been 68 degrees, 54 percent humidity, 1 VPD.

 

[RosterMan]

Nice Grow

 

[RosterMan]

How do they smell when you rub their stems

 

[T_Dub]

How do they smell when you rub their stems

Thanks Rosterman. Still a relatively subtle aroma when I touch the stems. Seeing some trichomes on the sugar leaves forming too. I do have to cover up the intake vents in my bedroom HVAC while the tent is open or else the house will have a nice aroma to it too. Lol.

 

[Hippie420]

In my grow room, I always lowered the temps during flower on the theory that the plants would be thinking winter's coming and bulk up to be ready to make seeds even though they weren't pollinated. Seemed to work.

I also had four fans in the room, each pointing left but cantered a bit. I was still smoking cigarettes at the time and took a puff outside the room and blew the smoke in to see what the wind pattern was like. Looked like a mini tornado.

 

[T_Dub]

Studying up on DLI….Daily Light Integral. Apparently cannabis needs a minimum of 38-65 DLI to Flower properly and I’ve likely been shorting my plants in flower. My LED is usually 18 inches above the canopy, but I’ve lowered it this time with the use of an LED light meter to fine tune the distance. It’s providing 61,000 lux worth of lighting and I’m seeing that I could give them more light.

This is a good read
https://growlightmeter.com/lighting-requirements-of-cannabis-over-the-full-grow-cycle/
After using a calculator,
lux to ppfd converter. (61,000 lux in my tent equals 978 ppfd)

Convert Lux to PPFD - Online Calculator | Waveform Lighting​

Online calculator to convert illuminance (lux) to PPFD (micromoles per second per meter squared).
www.waveformlighting.com

978 PPFD for 12 hours is 42.25 DLI.

Daily Light Integral (DLI) Calculator | Waveform Lighting​

With a PPFD input value and total hours of use per day, Daily Light Integral (DLI) values can be calculated using our online calculator.
www.waveformlighting.com

My LED is now 12 inches above the canopy at 100% power, Thats 6 inches lower than I normally ran my LED, so my DLI was historically sub par. I look forward to evaluating this crop versus previous to see if there is a noticeable difference.

Just when you think you’re starting to figure out growing, they start throwing acronyms like VPD and DLI around….lol.

No watering today, Sometimes you just need to leave them alone and let them grow.

 

[T_Dub]

I’m now in week 5 of flower and I’m anxious to see how much larger these Blue Dream colas will get. I look around this site and see so many beautiful large colas….these seem relatively small. Next 2-3 weeks should be eventful. I’m not sure what drives large colas other than strain. I’m trying to maximize lighting and nutrients during this swelling stage hoping that it will result in larger colas. I have historically grown “average” weed at best and I’m trying to get better.

So far my transition to MegaCrop seems to be going smoothly. I can’t say that I am able to find any noticeable difference between the GH nutes I ran, but let’s see how the flowering finishes out. I’ve never really noticed differences between nutrient lines I’ve tried since I’m not that experienced.

Today I fed 4 gallons of nutrients and vacuumed off 2 gallons of runoff. Feed was 1100 ppm and 6.5 ph. Runoff was 1500 ppm. I’m seeing some purple stems…..could either be sunburn or a slight deficiency. I fed 4g/gallon of MegaCrop and 1g/gallon of Bud Explosion.

Can’t wait to harvest…..it’s going to be difficult to show restraint. I have a Cheap microscope on order for trichome reviews in a few weeks.

 

[oldfogey8]

I am not happy with the smaller colas I get but most of the big buds I see other folks growing(indoors at least) are when people clear out the lower third or more of the undergrowth(everything under the netting in a SCROG). I always fear I will screw up with defoliating and lower bud removal but I am getting more comfortable doing so. My recent outdoor grow in a container, I didn’t care about harming the plants in that container so I removed more undergrowth than normal and sure enough, the energy has been focused on the higher up colas. At 5 weeks in flower I think it is not a good idea to defoliate/prune heavily but maybe on your next grow give it a try on a plant or two to see how it works for you. One day I envision having the 6-8 colas on one plant lollipopped with all of them being fattys. The flip side is I don’t care if I have small buds since I grow for me, my family and friends so massive, free buds are not necessarily a deal breaker to those getting free smaller buds.

 

[T_Dub]

After discussing some ways to process edibles in another post, SubmarineGirl recommended that I try using a coffee filter on my Magic Butter Machine tincture. It’s a nasty tasting product made with Everclear….so it burns and tastes like crap at the same time.

Filtered 1.5 small jars of tincture thru paper coffee filters and discovered a LOT of sediment. Hopefully it tastes better with the filtered tincture. One more jar to filter….




As far as the tent goes, my aroma is still pretty subtle. I saw someone recommend Botanicare Sweet and it reminded me that I had found a recipe for Sweet and a recipe for Terpinator on another website. So with all credit to 420circuit’s 2013 post (on another site), here’s the recipe I’m planning to use. I’m keeping this recipe posted here so I can find it again.

Formula to make 1 Gallon of Sweet

1 Teaspoon (4.3 grams) Cane Sugar
9 Tablespoons (151 grams) Epsom Salt (100% Magnesium Sulfate)
Add Cane Sugar and Epsom Salt to 4 cups of water and heat, stirring until completely dissolved. Allow to cool.
Pour solution into a 1 gallon container and add water until it makes 1 gallon. Shake until mixed.
Shake well before using.


And the recipe for Terpinator courtesy of Dr. Who on another site
SO then 378.5 grams (volumetric math) of that Potassium sulfate powder from Amazon into 1 gallon of water for the 10% solution.
Add the 1.5 tsp of Dark brown Sugar for the carbs. Mix well till everything is dissolved and jug it!

FEED CHART
(DO NOT mix with Silica - this causes a chemical reaction - precipitation)

STARTING Week 3&4 !
4-ml in 1 gallon of your feed

At week 5&6
6-ml in 1 gallon of your feed

At week 7 till harvest
8-ml in 1 gallon of your feed

"Rock Resinator" and the "Terpinator" formula's and they use an 8% solution and a 4 % solution respectively! This is a 10% solution.

 

[T_Dub]

Welcome to the end of Week 5 of flower. I can’t tell you how excited I am to harvest. I only grew once per year now due to heat and humidity here, and due to medical issues I was unable to harvest last year. So I’ve been smoking 2 year old cannabis for a while. Fortunately, I had the common sense to use a vacuum sealer, mason jars and Bovedas to preserve the buds back then….but you can understand my excitement. This new smaller tent should allow me to grow year-round…..at least I hope so.

It’s a quiet Saturday morning in the garden and I’m fine-tuning my equipment choices. I admit that I am a huge sucker for gadgets associated with any hobby. So please bear with me…I have poor impulse control at the online grow shops for novelty items.

I’m experimenting with a new side lighting system from AC Infinity that I found interesting. It allows me to attach 4 magnetic LED strips to the poles and fabric sides of the tent using magnetic bars on the back of the fabric. This is the 11 inch version that I thought would help get some light around the shadier edges of my canopy. I like it, and I just ordered another 16” set for the back of the tent. My plan is to have the 11 inch LEDs on the poles vertically and the 16” LEDs on the canvas horizontally to provide more lighting to the middle and lower portions of the canopy. I doubt that I will be able to install with the plants in place, but I’ll be ready for my next SCROG. I plan to get the light meter out today and see how much additional lux this is adding to the sides of the tent.

With that said, I have learned to love and appreciate SCROG. I think I will yield more out of this 8 square feet tent (2x4) than I did out of half my 25 square foot tent (5x5) just due to the benefits of SCROG. I only ran 4 plants in my 5x5 though…but my yield per plan should be considerably larger.

I plan to run the new LEDs at a reduced intensity until I see how the plants respond. I started at level 6.

Ordered a new AC Controller 69 Pro too. I’m very impressed with the programmability and the app, but with only 4 ports (and no available splitters yet) the one controller isn’t enough to run a grow tent….even a small one like mine. I need 3 ports for lighting alone, 1 for the inline fan, 3 for the oscillating fans, 1 for the humidifier and 1 for a heater. I give it two thumbs up , but the biggest weakness is the lack of ports right now.

Last piece of the puzzle….i purchased some Agromax Tru UV bulbs to give the plants some exposure to UVA and UVB. I have a T5 fixture already, so it’s not a huge investment. It’s supposed to increase trichome development significantly when run a few short periods per day. I will install a lamp 2 feet above the canopy and run it for 15 minutes 3x per day. I’ll slowly increase to 20 minutes 4x per day. The only downside is that my LED will be below the T5 and blocking some of the UV rays. Anyone have any UV experience?

Also attaching my week in review for my environment. My fan is set to increase exhaust speed when the tent exceeds 76 degrees or 52% humidity. My temps have reached as high as 80 this week and as low as 67. I will lower the temp and humidity settings each week. Humidity went as high as 63 (night time) and low of 35% daytime (tent open during watering). A lot of fluctuation between day and night, but my fluctuation during lights on are minimal. The Controller is holding VPD, temp and humidity steady.

Have a great weekend! Week 6 starts tomorrow.

 

[SubmarineGirl]

Welcome to the end of Week 5 of flower. I can’t tell you how excited I am to harvest. I only grew once per year now due to heat and humidity here, and due to medical issues I was unable to harvest last year. So I’ve been smoking 2 year old cannabis for a while. Fortunately, I had the common sense to use a vacuum sealer, mason jars and Bovedas to preserve the buds back then….but you can understand my excitement. This new smaller tent should allow me to grow year-round…..at least I hope so.

It’s a quiet Saturday morning in the garden and I’m fine-tuning my equipment choices. I admit that I am a huge sucker for gadgets associated with any hobby. So please bear with me…I have poor impulse control at the online grow shops for novelty items.

I’m experimenting with a new side lighting system from AC Infinity that I found interesting. It allows me to attach 4 magnetic LED strips to the poles and fabric sides of the tent using magnetic bars on the back of the fabric. This is the 11 inch version that I thought would help get some light around the shadier edges of my canopy. I like it, and I just ordered another 16” set for the back of the tent. My plan is to have the 11 inch LEDs on the poles vertically and the 16” LEDs on the canvas horizontally to provide more lighting to the middle and lower portions of the canopy. I doubt that I will be able to install with the plants in place, but I’ll be ready for my next SCROG. I plan to get the light meter out today and see how much additional lux this is adding to the sides of the tent.

With that said, I have learned to love and appreciate SCROG. I think I will yield more out of this 8 square feet tent (2x4) than I did out of half my 25 square foot tent (5x5) just due to the benefits of SCROG. I only ran 4 plants in my 5x5 though…but my yield per plan should be considerably larger.

I plan to run the new LEDs at a reduced intensity until I see how the plants respond. I started at level 6.

Ordered a new AC Controller 69 Pro too. I’m very impressed with the programmability and the app, but with only 4 ports (and no available splitters yet) the one controller isn’t enough to run a grow tent….even a small one like mine. I need 3 ports for lighting alone, 1 for the inline fan, 3 for the oscillating fans, 1 for the humidifier and 1 for a heater. I give it two thumbs up , but the biggest weakness is the lack of ports right now.

Last piece of the puzzle….i purchased some Agromax Tru UV bulbs to give the plants some exposure to UVA and UVB. I have a T5 fixture already, so it’s not a huge investment. It’s supposed to increase trichome development significantly when run a few short periods per day. I will install a lamp 2 feet above the canopy and run it for 15 minutes 3x per day. I’ll slowly increase to 20 minutes 4x per day. The only downside is that my LED will be below the T5 and blocking some of the UV rays. Anyone have any UV experience?

Also attaching my week in review for my environment. My fan is set to increase exhaust speed when the tent exceeds 76 degrees or 52% humidity. My temps have reached as high as 80 this week and as low as 67. I will lower the temp and humidity settings each week. Humidity went as high as 63 (night time) and low of 35% daytime (tent open during watering). A lot of fluctuation between day and night, but my fluctuation during lights on are minimal. The Controller is holding VPD, temp and humidity steady.

Have a great weekend! Week 6 starts tomorrow.
View attachment 312270


View attachment 312268View attachment 312269

I like your side lights Tdub good luck with your grow. I be watching. Your scrog looks great.