Welcome back everyone. So glad you’ve decided to hang out for a while. Thank you for welcoming me with such kind words. I enjoyed the comments and feedback regarding my Propagation Cabinet post. You folks have made me feel welcome here.
In this post I’d like to share with you the bloom chamber and main hydro system.
3 years ago I retired from the landscape design profession. Moved from Oregon to Colorado and watched the pandemic engulf the world. I used the Covid relief funds provided by the US government and also my new home State of Colorado to build this dream home grow facility.
I renovated a 8’ X 12’ bare bones shed constructed in 1965. It was a major job: electricity and plumbing ran 65’ from the house, and installed insulation and sheetrock before I could even start building the grow. The propagation cabinet is in the “shop” area of the shed. The shop space has a deep sink, work bench and hydroponic equipment along with supply pantry. Seamless vinyl floor is easy to keep clean. The bloom chamber is a 4’ x 8’ area. Two sliding panels separate the shop area from the bloom chamber.
I use 4 Spider Farmer 1000s over a SCROG measuring 4’ x 4.5’. I can work the plants from 3 different sides of the SCROG trellis.
Also I can sit on my rolling seat with my knees under the trellis, saves my injured knees and back.
There are 2 plant sites under the SCROG. Usual harvest yield from the 2 plants is 28-34 ounces of flower.
The climate control is complex. There is a wall mount air conditioner for hot Colorado summers and a small oil fill radiator space heater for cold season. I have a 6” exhaust system that begins with a carbon filter, in-line turbo fan moving air through flexible ductwork that is also insulated. The outside vent is mounted low to prevent any neighbors from seeing possible steam exhausting in cold winter. The 4 ninety degree turns silent the exhaust. Fresh air through a 4” louvered intake.
The exhaust is controlled by a 2 stage thermostat. There is a day setting and when lights go off a sensor senses darkness and a night setting will operate the exhaust.
The humidity is reduced when the exhaust is running to expel heat, a dehumidifier kicks in when the exhaust is off. The dehumidifier drains to outside the shed.
Above, on the ceiling I mounted a steel grid. This allows me to precisely place hardware to hang pulleys for adjusting the height of the lights and other equipment. The exhaust system is mounted to the grid also. After harvest I will lower the lights and hang 2 rods from the grid to dry the flowers.
The hydroponic system is a modified Dutch bucket on continuous recirculating nutrient feed, 24/7.
#3 Air-Pots filled with hydroton. The Air-Pot sits in a bucket with drain fitting to return nutrient back to the reservoir via lower pipe on the wall.
The 17 gallon tote is my reservoir, 10 gallons of nutrient is my standard. The pump delivers nutrient through a pipe mounted on the wall and runs to each of the 2 plants sites. Flow is controlled via a valve at each plant site. A nutrient film flows into the container bathing the pellets with nutrient and pulling fresh air down between the pellets. It’s an oxygen and nutrient rich root environment.
In the reservoir is the nutrient pump, sensors for automated pH up and down, dosing tubes delivering pH up and down. Most of the time it’s operating in up mode. Also I keep the sensor of my hand held pH meter in the reservoir to verify the accuracy of the pH dosing system. One last thing in there is an aquarium turbo circulating pump. It’s a small propeller that maintains a current keeping the solution in the reservoir homogeneous.
Another one last thing in the reservoir. During peak growth the 2 plants can transpire up to 4 gallons a day. I have a float valve to maintain 10 gallon level in the reservoir. Next to the reservoir is a 10 gallon fresh water tank plumbed to the float valve. I also have a tap where I can add another tank of fresh water and go away in the rv for 8-14 days, depending on what phase the garden is in.
When I started the current grow with Topanga Cookies I started using Jacks Nutrient “City Limits”. City Limits is formulated to perform with most tap water. My tap water has 170ppm, 7.1pH. Up until the switch to Jacks I had used Botanicare Kind line and program. Jacks is a dry powder, so no water is shipped. I like that. I’m still using 4 Botanicare products:
Pure Blend Tea
SilicaBlast
Hydrogaurd
Rhizo Blast
Here’s my mixes:
Moms, rooted cuttings, early veg (propagation cabinet)
5 gallons H2O
10 gms Jack’s15-5-20 “Tap”
10 Rhizo
20 Tea
20 Silica
10 Hydro
5 Epsom Salt
488ppm 5.9pH
New BT dunk
Solution replaced 2-3 weeks
Veg in bloom chamber
10 gallons H2O
49 gms 15-5-20 “Tap”
20 ml Rhizo Blast
40 Tea
40 Slica Blast
20 Hydrogaurd
19 gms epson salt
BY dunk
750ppm 6.0pH
Early Bloom
10 gallons H2O
42gms 10-30-20 Bloom
20 ml Rhizo Blast
40 ml Tea
40 ml Slica Blast
20 ml Hydrogaurd
19 gms epson salt
BT dunk
623ppm 6.0pH
Mid Bloom week 4-8
10 gallons H2O
60 gms 10-30-20 Bloom
20 ml Rhizo Blast (thru week 6)
40 ml Tea
40 ml Slica Blast
20 ml Hydrogaurd
19 gms epson salt
Dunk
830ppm 5.9pH
Late Bloom week 9-10
10 gallons H2O
60 gms 7-15-30 Finish Bloom
0 ml Rhizo Blast
40 ml Tea
40 ml Slica Blast
20 ml Hydrogaurd
19 gms epson salt
Dunk
830ppm 5.9pH
Flush +- Week 11
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Hope that you have enjoyed the tour of my grow. I’ll be back soon. I plan on harvesting in a week or so. I’ll show you the harvest.
