Just another DIY Aeroponics Hydroponics DWC (Deep Water Culture) Tutorial ALL I

N ONE!
Well, it's been about a year since I started this project (not my first, but my
first serious attempt at volume,) and you guys all had such awesome info for me,
I just want to give a little of it back, hopefully with a little value added!
For starters, lets go over my main flower room system. I run 10-11 plants in eac
h unit (11 seems to fit best with the size I've chosen,) but with smaller net po
ts, you could fit more. Just prune to fit! I only veg for a week, shooting for 1
oz. plants. This is due, in my case, to a pretty severe height restriction.
When new babies go into the flower room, they go into a 14 gal. "totes" containe
r. I set the sprayers to be at a level that is just above 5 gallons of water. Ma
kes for easy calculations. (20l) When the girls are about 3 weeks in flower, I s
witch the container out for an 18 gallon tote to give the roots a bit more room
to fall. These containers have to be, obviously, interchangeable with the lids,
or you'll have a bigger pain than you need.
So, parts-wise, I use the container, a few feet of 1/2" PVC pipe, elbows, tees,
endcaps, sprayers, a submersible pump, and the mesh pots of your choice.
Here are a few pics:
http://s1110.photobucket.com/albums/...view=slideshow
And a few shots (which, Mr. DEA man, I probably just downloaded!) of the units i
n action:
http://s1110.photobucket.com/albums/...ere/tutorial2/
I run 2 weeks propagation, 1 week veg, and 6-8 weeks in flower. Yield is 1oz per
plant, or 10-11 per container.
More later. Simple so far... any questions?
Be sure to clean out the burrs when you cut your PVC pipe pieces.
Here are the measurements I use for the cutting of the PVC:
1 x 1 1/2"
2 x 7"
2 x 3 1/4"
4 x 5 1/4"
Quick picture break:

Strain: Island Sweet Skunk

Propagation:
I've tried lots of systems (well, bubble clone, ez clone and rockwool) and here'
s what works without fail for me:
Medium:
Rapid Rooters (More recently I'm using Root Riot - both equally good.)
Nutrients:
Clonex
Jump Start
from Advanced Nutrients
(I had pretty good luck with just PH'd water -
5.8-6.5, but some were yellowing too far to
recover, so I added this stuff 2ml/L to a daily
foliar spray and I'm getting 100%)
Root zone temp: 71-72 degrees
Process: I don't prep my mother. I know I should, and have read lots of good ide
as, but I clone so often (perpetual harvest is my mantra) that it's just not pra
ctical. I just try to keep her healthy, and she keeps giving me plenty of clone
material.
I use a new razor blade (just to be sure - did tests against dirty blades and sc
issors with equal results) and cut the clone at a nice angle between 4 and 5 nod
es from the tip. I trim the fan leaves and try to leave 2 little sprout groups p
lus 2 trimmed fan leaves. All this VERY quickly, then I drop the clone into the
72 degree PH 6 <150ppm water to soak for 10 minutes or so. This makes it nice an
d turgid, and I never get any wilting.
While they soak, I drop my rooting media (which I poked out with my 1/8" poker)
in the water, get them good and soaked, then give about 2 brisk spins in the pil
lowcase centrifuge. This gives them just the right consistency. Moist, but not w
et.
That's it. A quick dip (about 1/2") in Clonex, and into the humidity dome. Keep
the dome closed for 2 days, then open the vents. I spray daily with the 2ml/L Ju
mpstart water. Less than 2 weeks and I've got roots.
More later...
Timer:
I have a timer turning on the pumps for 5 seconds every 20 minutes. This gives t
hem a good spray and lets them kinda dry out a little. I've been extending the o
ff-time, and expect to end up at a much longer off-time. The way it looks to me
is the more closer they get to drying out between sprays, the faster they grow.

Nutrients:
I try to use Advanced Nutrients pretty exclusively. I have had nothing but succe
ss, and my friends who buy their stuff at the LGS (Advanced isn't available much
around here) are all jealous of my output. It's not scientific, but I'm not mes
sing with it. (I had great results with Juicy Roots for propagation, but ran ou
t and Clonex works as well for me, if you're wondering why the divergence above.
)

So, I start em out at 4-500ppm for a week or two in veg using the 2-part SensiGr
ow, under T-5 lights (24h) about 2 inches from the top of the plants. When they
have plenty of roots at least a few inches long, I move them into the flower roo
m.
They start out with 6-700ppm SensiBloom (A&B) and after 2 weeks, I start to add
Big Bud. (I'm kind of letting them stretch just a little... I am trying to sort
of veg a little more in the flowering room, if you follow.)
Buds start to show up in earnest at around 3 weeks, and I start turning up the n
utes until they're running 12-1400 total by week 6. For weeks 5 and 6, I add Ove
rdrive (Ad.Nut., of course) to the mix.
By week 7, the pistils have started to turn orange, so I drop the nutes and star
t flushing with Clearex. (its cheap. I should be using Final Phase.)
I watch the trichomes, and when I think about half of them have ripened (turning
 amber) I cut the bitches down!
Next, my magic 3-day cure.
From a High Times video I saw.. This is a great way to cure fast.
Alternate from open-air to closed-jar
(times are approximate)
1. Open air - 24 hrs
2. In jar - 8 hrs
3. Open air - 16 hrs
4. In bag - 6 hrs
5. Open air - 12 hrs
Continue as necessary.
Just one addendum to that: I do my dry/curing in a power drying cabinet. This is
just a fan-ventilated box. I used a couple of kitchen cabinets that I had layin
g around. One has strings back and forth for hanging branches for the first day,
and one with screen shelves for subsequent drying sessions.