TheCapns Simple Hydroponics

EditorsNote:ThisismysummaryandreferenceofTheCapnssimplehydroponicsthread.Formoredetail
andgrowjournals,pleaseseetheoriginalthread.ItriedtopreserveallofTheCapnsoriginalwordsand
addednoneofmyowncommentary.AllofTheCapnsthreadsaremustread.Youshouldgoandread
throughallofthemfirstbeforeusingthisreferenceguide.

http://www.420magazine.com/forums/hydroponicgardening/190831howsimplehydroponics.html
http://www.420magazine.com/forums/hydroponicgardening/190198how10ozperplantperpetualindoors.html
http://www.420magazine.com/forums/vegetativecycle/190958howbendtopyourway1poundmonster.html
http://www.420magazine.com/forums/hydroponicgardening/191899livesterilewhyichooselive.html
http://www.420magazine.com/forums/hydroponicgardening/193337thecapnsultimatefloweringmachine.html
http://www.420magazine.com/forums/seedsclonesstrains/190068howclonerockwool.html
http://www.420magazine.com/forums/seedsclonesstrains/190073sexingmalefemaleplantswhyweclone.html

ChapterOneVegetativeGrowth(alsoknownasveg)

First,I'mgoingtogiveyouaquicktourofhowItakeaplant
fromseed(orclone)andgrowitthroughthevegetativestage.
Again,thisarticlewillshowyouoneofthesimplestwaysof
hydroponicgrowing,topfedrockwoolcubes(notblocks).

GrowyourseedorcloneinarockwoolblockI
prefertogetclonesstartedina3"block,seeds
inthesmallerblocks.Oncerootsstarttopoke
out,fillupanordinary$1nurserypotwith
growcubes.Soakthepotwiththegrocubesin
plainwater(forafewminutes)atphof5.55.8.
Itisnotnecessarytosoakthemlonger.Now,
stickyourrockwoolblockinit,asifyouwere
plantingindirt.

HereyoucanseeIplantedtheseedlinginthe
tinysquarepot,andnowI'mtransplantingtothe
6"netpot.SometimesIusethenetpotsbecause
whentherootsgrowoutthesides,theyairprune
themselves,causingnewrootstogrow.You
shouldtransplantupasizeafewtimes.Thisgets
anicerootsystemgrowing.Ifyougowitha
giantpotrightaway,rootstendtogrowtosides
andthencircle.

ThenImoveuptoaonegallonpot10dayslater:

Oncetheplantisaboutthesizeofthisone,youwillnoticerapidgrowth.Onenicethingabout
rockwool,isthatitishardtooverwaterit.Overwateringisacommonmistake,especially
withnewgrowers,androckwooltakestheguessworkoutofit.Thedisadvantage:Youneed
towatereveryday.Atthisstageofgrowth,Iwateronceaday,withtwocupsofwater,by
hand.

IuseGeneralHydroponicsnutrients.I'llshowyoumyrecipeforvegwhichisallIuseupuntil
thelastweekofveg

Tomakeupyourwater,Filla5gallonbucketwithwater,thenadd:
20mlofbotanicarecalmagplusorcalimagic
20mlflorablend
15mlfloragrow
10mlfloramicro
5mlflorabloom
Thisisabout25%ofthesuggesteddoseonthechart,andshouldputyourmixaround
600ppm@.5conversion.Aftermixing,checkthePH.Minelandsrightat5.8,butyoumay
haveto"adjust"yourPHslightly.

ChapterTwoFlowering

IfwewantBIGpilesofsmoke,wewantto"VEG"for810weeks.

Ourplantsarehugeandit'stimetoflowerthem.First,
weneedtotransplantourplanttothefinal,5.8gal
superootsairpot.

Wecanseesomecirclingofroots,butnottoobad.
LookatthosePEARLYWHITEROOTS!

Soaksomerockwoolcubesfor20minutes,inyour
nutrientsolutionatabout500PPM,withaPHof5.8,
andthenaddsometothebottomoftheairpot.You
candothiswithabsolutelynoshocktotheplant.

Ivebeenaskedaboutfungusgnatsinrockwool.I
haveneverhadthem,butrockwoolisalessinviting
mediumthandirtforpests.gnatslaytheireggsnear
thesurfaceofthegrowingmedium,soitisbestto
addalayerofhydrotonontopoftherockwoolcubes.
Thispreventsalgaefromgrowingontherockwool,
whichcouldbecomeahouseforfungusgnatstolay
eggs.

Addrockwoolcubesallaroundtheplant,andthentapthesidesofthecontainer,tomakesure
thecubesarepackedallaroundtherootball.

Nowthefunpart!
Buildingourflowering
system.Beforeputting
yourplantintoflower,
checkoutBendandTop
yourwaytoa1pound
monster.Isyourplant
REALLYreadytoflower?
ManytimesIhave
floweredaplanttoo
early,andthen
disappointedwiththe
yield.Ittakes2months
tofloweraplant,whynot
vegforthesameamount
oftime?Adifferenceof
twoweekscouldliterally
beadifferenceof45
ouncesofbudintheend.

We'vebeen"topfeedtowaste"invegetativegrowthforabouttwomonths.Whenusing
Rockwoolduringflowering,IhavefounditisTOOwastefulto"topfeeddraintowaste".The
plantsaresothirsty,weneedtowaterthemfrequently,soIwillshowyouhowtosetupa
recirculatingsystem"recirculatingtopfeed".Youwillhavesometypeofreservoirwithanair
stoneinit,asmallwaterpumponatimer,andyou'llneedtobuildalittledripringlikethis:

Youonlyneeda185gphwaterpump,somepvcpipe,some1/2hose(don'tuseclearhose),
andacouple10gallontotes.Theconceptiseasy,andthepictureexplainsitall.The10gal
totethattheplantsitsin,justcollectsthewaterandfunnelsitbacktothe10galtotesitting
onthefloor.


Youprobablyhavepumpsandtoteslayingaroundthehouse,andyoucangetcreative,and
useanycombinationyoulike,aslongasyoufollowthesamebasicprinciple.Theadvantages
ofthesesystems:

1. Allowyoutoleavethemforuptoaweekatatime.

2. Immunetopoweroutages.Powercanbeoutforseveralhoursatatimeandroots
wontdryup.

3. DWCcomparableresults,withlesschanceforrootrot.

4. Whencomparedtodirt,thereislesschancewithrockwoolattractingpests.Rockwoolis
CLEAN.Priceissameashighqualitydirt.

5. Simpletosetup,almostimpossibletooverwater,easytoflush...needIgoon???

Ifyouchoosetosetupasystemlikethis,hereareafewrulesofthumb.

1. Lightproofyourreservoir.Ifthereservoirwatergetslight,itcouldgrowalgaeor
anaerobicbacteria,causingrootrot.

2. Putanairstoneinthereservoir.Thewatershouldbeaerated(pronounced"airated",
not"aireeeated").Ifyouareusingbeneficialbacteria,itwilldieifthewaterisnot
aerated.Wedon'tneedaTONofair,justabasicflowofairwilldo,topreventthe
waterfromgrowinganyanaerobicbacteria.

3. Itisimportantalloftherockwoolgetssaturatedduringirrigation.Adjustyourpipe
properlytoensuregoodpenetration.ohyeah!TheCapnlikesgoodpenetration!

4. Irrigationtimes.Getacheap15minon,15minofftimer.Ifyouareusingstraight
growcubes,Iwouldstartwith34xaday,15minuteseachtime.Ifyouareusinga
mixofhydrotonandgrowcubes,Iwouldstartwith6timesaday.Afterirrigating,wait
30minutesandthenliftyourpotslightlytoseehowheavyitis.Then,comebackina
fewhourslater.Ifyounoticeadifference,upthefrequency.Thebeautyabout
rockwoolcubes,isthatitisdifficulttooverwater.Butwedowanttolettherootsget
plentyofoxygen.

5. Aswithanysystem,keepyourtimersandplugsupoffthefloor.Wedon'twantyou
gettingelectrocuted.

ChapterThree:WaterQuality,PPM,andpH

Icouldwriteabookonthis,butI'mnochemist,soitwouldbeallwrong.MypointisI'llneed
tokeepitbasichereandtellyouwhatyouneedtoknowtogrow.

Let'sstartwithequipment.Hearmenow
andbelievemelater.Ifyouwantresultslike
youseeinthepictureshere,youneedaPH
andaPPM/ECmeter.Iuseameterthat
stayspluggedinallthetime.Thedifference
betweenagoodmeterandapoormeteris...
agoodmeterstayscalibratedandgives
consistentreadings.Iboughta$20phpen
fromchinaandthrewitawayafterthefirst
fewtimesIusedit.Youdon'tneedtospend
$500,butdon'tbuycrapeither.Thisone
goesfor$150.

PPM:Appm/ECmeter,measurestheelectricalconductivityinthewater.Youcan'tmeasure
howmuchnitrogenorpotassium,calcium,etcisinthewatereasily,butwecanmeasurethe
conductivity,and"estimate"thepartspermillionofnutrients.Whenyoureadthenutrient
calculatorfromthenutrientwebsite,theppmcouldbeata.5conversionora.7,ordifferent
yet.Sopayattention.Forexample,mymeterisbasedonthe500scale.SowhenMymeter
reads750ppm,theECis750/500=1.5EC.Asplantsgetbigger,andthrudifferentstagesof
growth,yournutrientrecipewillchange,andyouwilluseahigherPPMinflower,thanyouwill
duringvegetativegrowth.

PH:phisthemeasureofacidity,oralkalinityinthewater.Nutrientsareabletobedrawnup
bytheplantinhydroponics,inaPHof5.5to6.5(somebetterthanothers).Typically,in
hydroponics,mostpeopleagree5.8istheoptimal.Ishootfor5.9,soifIdriftonewayor
another,I'mstillinrange.Inhydro,youwillkeepthatrangeof5.5to6.5fortheentiregrow.
YOUWILLNEEDtobuybothPHUPandPHDOWN.ThesearechemicalsweusetoadjustPH.
Stonerssay,"..youneedtoPHyourwater"."PH"isnotaverb.

Itisnearlyimpossibleto"guess"atppmandPH.Don'ttryitinhydroponics.YoucangetaPH
meterforaround$50andappmmeterforaround$20onebay.Ifyoucan'taffordthat,thisis
notagoodhobbyforyou.

ROwater:ReverseOsmosiswaterismorepurethantapwater.Mytapwaterhasastarting
ppmof300!Ifthisyourcase,youneedtoadd300tothetopofwhatevernutrientsyoumix
up.So,ifyouwantappmof500,yousetitto800,andassumethat300ppmofitisgarbage.
Irantapwaterforalongtime,anditwasfine.Itisokifyousetitoutwithanairstoneinit
overnight.Thiswillhelpdissipatethechlorineinit.Chlorinekillsbeneficialbacteria(moreon
thislater).Aftersometime,IboughtanROunit.Ican'tsayInoticebettergrowth,butitis
convenient,andmyPHswingslesswithit.

Herearemyrecipesforthedifferentstagesofgrowth.Ialwaysstartwithabout4gallonsof
waterina5gallonbucket,thenIcanaddwatertodilutetotheppmIdesire.

RemembertheserecipesarePER5GALLONSofwater,notpergallon.

VegetativeGrowth(untiloneweekbeforeflower)500ppm:
Filla5galbucketwithwater,thenadd:
20mlCalmagplus,orcalimagic
20mlflorablend
5mlflorabloom
10mlfloramicro
15mlfloragrow
5mlrapidstart(optional)
5mlliquidseaweed(optional)

ForROOTEDclones,Idilutethismixdowntoabout300ppmuntilIseenewatleasttwonew
setsofleaves.DONOTuseANYnutrientsonacloneuntilyouseeagoodrootsystemorat
leastalittlenewgrowth.OnceIseesubstantialgrowth,Igoaheadandusethisat500ppm.I
usethisthroughoutvegetativegrowth,upuntilaweekbeforegoingtoflower.

TransitionalStage(oneweekbeforeandtwoweeksintoflower)700ppm:
Filla5galbucketwithwater,thenadd:
20mlCalmagplus,orcalimagic
20mlflorablend
15mlflorabloom
15mlfloramicro
15mlfloragrow

FullFlowering(3rdweekofflower,untilflush)800ppm:
Filla5galbucketwithwater,thenadd:
20mlCalmagplus,orcalimagic
20mlflorablend
60mlflorabloom
40mlfloramicro
10mlfloragrow
Note,Ihavetakenthisratioashighas1400byaddingmorebloomandmicro,butitdoesn't
maketheplantsgrowfaster.

BloomBoosters
IuseGHkoolbloomtotakethisfrom800ppmto900or1000ppminweeks6to8.Youcan
experimentwithdifferentbloomboosters.Iwouldn'tuseany"ripening"agent,oranything
sugaryorgooeyuntilweeks7and8.Thereasonforthisisyouriskfeedingthebadbacteriain
yourres,andthiscouldleadtoacaseofpythiumorrootrot.Personally,Idon'tuseanything
beyondthekoolbloom.Idon'tuse"floralicious"forthesamereason.

ChapterFour:WhatWouldJorgeSay?

Iwantedtotalkaboutafewthingsthataren'treallyrelatedto"simplehydroponics"butare
thingsweshouldallkeepinmindatanypointinyourgrow.SometimesweKNOWwehavea
probleminthegrowroom,butweignoreit,andhopeforthebest.I'mguiltyofittoo.Before
youspendmoneyonco2,superbloomboosters,orthelatestgadget,makesureour"basics"
arecoveredfirst.OnethingIhavelearned,itdoesn'tmatterhowmuchmoneyyouthrowat
it,youcan't"force"healthyplants!

Keepyourppmunder800thefirst5weeksofflower,andunder1000weeks68.
Morenutrientsdoesmoreharmthangood.Withmosthydrosystems,ppmwontbeanywhere
nearwhatthevendorsaysonthebottle.Whenunsure,youcanusuallyfollowtheRATIOS.For
example,ifthenutrientcalculatorsays10ml/galofmicroand15ml/galofbloom,thatisa23
partratio.Sostartwithsomethinglike4ml/galmicro,and6ml/galbloom.

WhatwouldJorgesay?
BeforeyouspendmoneyonCO2,fancycontrollers,oradditives,makesureyourbasicsare
covered.Askyourself,"IfJorgeCervantessawmygrowrightnow,whatwouldhesay?"

1. Ismygrowroomclean?AmIinvitingpestsbyprovidingaplaceforbugstonest?How
longhasthatbagofdeadfanleavesbeensittingthere?
2. What'sthetempintheroom,andinthewater?Ifyourairtempsareover80,do
whateverittakestogetthemdown.Putballastsoutsideroom.Aircoolyourlights.
Increaseyourexhaustfansize.Watertempsover75?Thismethodissomewhat
forgivingforwatertemps,butyoustillwanttokeepthemaslowaspossible.Putyour
reservoirdirectlyonconcretefloortokeepitcooler.Locateairpumpsoutsideofroom
sotheypumpcoolerairintotheres.Makesurereservoirsarenotgettinglight.Paint
themwhite.
3. Don'tletdirty$hitgetintoyourreservoirs.Noleavesrottinginres,don'tuseadirty
cup(oryourdirtyhands)toscoopwateroutofres,usenewairstonesinsteadofused
ones,rinsemeterprobesinh2o2/watersolutionwhengoingfromrestores.
4. Isyourflowerroomlightproof?Itmayhavebeenlastweek,butisitstill?Youmay
haveinadvertentlychangedsomethingandlightcouldbeleakingin.Whenstanding
insideit,youshouldn'tbeabletoseeANYlight.
5. Arerootsgettingenoughoxygen?Makesurenorootsaresittinginstagnantwater.
Doesyourmediumdrainwell?Forhighyields,floodtherootzonewithnutrientsas
frequentaspossible.

Startsmallbutthinkbig
Whenbuying/upgradingequipment,startsmall,butthinkbig.WhatImeanbythatis....for
example,insteadofbuying2,400wattlightswithcheapiehoods,justbuyONE600wlight,
withanice6"large,aircooledhood.Itisdifficulttokeepyourroomcoolwithoutanaircooled
hood.Lightdirectlyaffectsyield.Don'tskimphere.NOIMPULSEpurchasesatthegrowstore!


Minimizethechanceforhumanerror
Minimizethechanceforhumanerror,andaftermakingachange,checkitrepeatedlyseveral
daysafteryoumakethatchange.Forexample,let'ssayyouhaveanoutletinyourgrowroom
whereyourirrigationtimerisplugged.Youunplugthetimer,soyoucanpluginsomething
elsetemporarily...thenforgetaboutit,andleaveyourplantsunwateredfordays.Oryou
adjustadripline,walkaway,anditpopsoutandplantdoesn'tgetwateredwhileyouareon
vacationinlasvegas(me).TOOMANYTIMESIhavemadethesemistakesanditcanendup
indisaster,orafloodedfloor,etc.OnceIsetmylighttimerto"on"andleftmyflowerlights
onfor2daysstraight!

Don'tfloweryourplantuntilitisready
Floweringaplantfromseedtooearlycouldcauseittoproducemaleflowers,pollinatingyour
crop.Remember,increasingvegetativegrowthstage,exponentiallyincreasesfinalyield.What
Imeanbythisis...doubleyourvegtime,couldtripleyouryield.