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K_SNAP
Psilocybe Fanaticus Apprentice


Registered: 04/17/11
Posts: 41
Loc: Satan's Asshole
Last seen: 12 years, 5 months
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Hard time with RH
#14506577 - 05/24/11 08:16 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Now I know my problem is mostly likely my hydrometer being digital but what else can I do to keep my RH up? You see my set up is a rubber made tote with 1/4 holes drilled every 3 inches on only 4 sides (not top and bottom), about a inch and a half of damp perlite and I have one of those tropic aire humidifiers going off 8 times a day for a half an hour hooked to a wand that's suctioned cupped to my lid. Now I noticed that when I fan and mist the humidity goes to where it's suppose to. Could my RH problem be because it's not getting much FAE due to the FC being in my closet, or what do you all think? Any advise from some trusted cultivators would be great. Thanks
-------------------- I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me. - Hunter S. Thompson-
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pyl91

Registered: 07/21/10
Posts: 384
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Last seen: 12 years, 6 months
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: K_SNAP]
#14506811 - 05/24/11 08:56 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Post pics of your setup. You don't need a humidifier for a SGFC (in fact, it's probably doing more harm than good and you're running it for too long for the type of container you have). You need more perlite, 1-1/2" is not enough. Get it up to 4-5" (this is why taller totes and wide mouth half-pint jars are important, you need to be sure you'll have enough clearance for your mushrooms to grow). I am assuming you're doing the PF Tek, right?
You need to drill holes in the top and bottom of your tote. The idea behind the SGFC is that it keeps the humidity up/evaporation by natural air currents running through the holes and whisking away the moisture from the damp perlite and carrying it around the cakes and eventually out of the container (hence misting). Fanning helps with this too.
The biggest pinning triggers are fresh air, evaporation (not RH) and light (nautral sunlight or as close as you can get is best. Regular incandescent bulbs are no good). The only reason why you really need to keep the RH up is because you don't want your cakes to dry out (mushrooms are 90% water by weight and need the moisture in the cake so that they can grow big and healthy. This is the reason for the dunk and roll).
In point form, this is what I would suggest you do for better results:
-Ditch the humidifier, it isn't helping. -Take your cakes out of your FC so that you can do the following: >Empty out the perlite that's in there and drill holes in the top and bottom of your FC, just like the sides are >Fill the tote with 4-5" of perlite because 1-1/2" is not enough >Put your whole tote in the bathtub or laundry tub and turn the shower head/tap on. Get that perlite really wet, mix it around. Let it drain for a bit so that when you pick it up, you don't get a stream of water coming from the bottom when you move it around >Raise the FC at least a couple of inches off the table/surface it's sitting on (don't keep it on the floor, preferably it should be kept near a window but out of direct sunlight) so that there can be proper airflow to the bottom holes. Laying paper towel or a towel down helps keep things clean when you mist, and perlite tends to escape the container no matter what you do >Put your cakes back in and close the top
-Open the window to the room for fresh outside air (if it's hot because it's summer time where you live, open the window at night when the air is cooler and you can keep the window closed during the day) -Mist and fan 4-7 times a day/as needed (you'll get to know when/how much with experience). Adjust the nozzle on your spray bottle to give the finest mist you reasonably can. Don't speay the cakes directly, hold the bottle above the FC by maybe about the length from your wrist to your elbow and spray into the container maybe 4 times. Just let the mist fall into the container. The way I do it is 1 spray per side. I make sure to get some on each wall of the FC, just a mist or small droplets. When the mist/droplets have evaporated, you can fan and mist again soon.
Follow that advice and hopefully you'll end up with something like this:

Good luck and ask if you need clarification.
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K_SNAP
Psilocybe Fanaticus Apprentice


Registered: 04/17/11
Posts: 41
Loc: Satan's Asshole
Last seen: 12 years, 5 months
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: pyl91]
#14507033 - 05/24/11 09:35 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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"I am assuming you're doing the PF Tek, right?"
Actually they are H Poo trays one cased and one not. Now as far as putting holes on the bottom, I set my FC on the floor in my closet and knowing that the floor is a good place for contams and it's not like air would get up in there in the first place so I don't really understand that concept. That also goes for holes in the top, I don't want shit falling into my FC right? Why aren't the holes in all the side good enough? As for the humidifier I knew that was a bunch of shit when my wife wanted to buy it. So I'll take that out and add more perlite and buy a new hygrometer and hopefully that will help. Anyone else have some advise?

-------------------- I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me. - Hunter S. Thompson-
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pyl91

Registered: 07/21/10
Posts: 384
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Last seen: 12 years, 6 months
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: pyl91]
#14507102 - 05/24/11 09:50 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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I wouldn't worry about the hygrometer, it isn't really necessary.
I also wouldn't worry about "shit" (dust?) falling into your FC. It's unlikely that you'll get contams after your substrate is fully colonized.
The holes in the sides aren't good enough because you aren't letting all of the moisture evaporate from the perlite. I don't think that trays are ideal for SGFCs though. I've done what you have before and if you let mist fall into the trays it will still work well. Just mist and fan more often because edges of the trays are sheltering the exposed substrate.
Anyways, good luck.
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Spector
Just Disappeared

Registered: 05/13/11
Posts: 167
Loc: A Scientific Location....
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: K_SNAP]
#14507130 - 05/24/11 10:00 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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you dont need that light lol looks like you have a window in that room? thats a tropic humidifier for a Crab terrarium lol i wouldnt rely on that with its, what 1/4" tube? to supply enought humidity. just hand mist.
also, why do you have an air stone in there if you have quarter inch holes every where?
Great effort but keep it simple man. either way your myc looks like its colonizing fine
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RogerRabbit
Bans for Pleasure



Registered: 03/26/03
Posts: 42,214
Loc: Seattle
Last seen: 11 months, 4 days
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: K_SNAP]
#14507165 - 05/24/11 10:06 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
K_SNAP said: Any advise from some trusted cultivators would be great. Thanks
Start by following the tek and you'll have 95% or greater humidity.
Disregard advise to get rid of the light. It's necessary for peak performance. Make sure you have a 6500K cfl lamp in it, not an incandescent light bulb. The light will work better from the side, and move it out an inch or two from the tub to prevent heat buildup. RR
-------------------- Download Let's Grow Mushrooms semper in excretia sumus solim profundum variat "I've never had a failed experiment. I've only discovered 10,000 methods which do not work." Thomas Edison
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K_SNAP
Psilocybe Fanaticus Apprentice


Registered: 04/17/11
Posts: 41
Loc: Satan's Asshole
Last seen: 12 years, 5 months
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: Spector]
#14507211 - 05/24/11 10:14 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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Quote:
Spector said: you dont need that light lol looks like you have a window in that room?
also, why do you have an air stone in there if you have quarter inch holes every where?
No window it's actually in a closet, I think the other light your seeing is the actual light for the closet. As for the stone I was hoping that it would help FAE, but your right the holes are good enough. So what other FC teks are good to fruit trays? To fix this one I guess what I'll do now is take out all the air crap like the humidifier and stone, add more perlite and add some holes in the top. When I'm done I'll take some pictures of it and see if anyone else can give me some advice. Thanks
-------------------- I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me. - Hunter S. Thompson-
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Spector
Just Disappeared

Registered: 05/13/11
Posts: 167
Loc: A Scientific Location....
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: K_SNAP]
#14507311 - 05/24/11 10:32 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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yea deff. the air stone and humidifier maybe pushing all your perlite moisture out. i know with Shotguns your not supposed to have a direct breeze pointed to it.
Really tho, im not sure how good a shotgun terrarium would work in a closed closet in your situation. ?? but im sure iv read it doesnt always work out very good.
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K_SNAP
Psilocybe Fanaticus Apprentice


Registered: 04/17/11
Posts: 41
Loc: Satan's Asshole
Last seen: 12 years, 5 months
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Re: Hard time with RH [Re: Spector]
#14516012 - 05/26/11 03:39 PM (12 years, 8 months ago) |
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So I've changed some crap around. First I bought a top of the line 45 dollar diamond crown hygrometer from a cigar shop. I got rid of the air stone and tropic aire humidifier. But what I did add because my system is in the closet is a pump hooked to a small air stone in a small jar of water, I guess it's a bubblier. So now the RH is at 99% all the time unless I'm fanning. So when should I start seeing some knots and pins?
-------------------- I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me. - Hunter S. Thompson-
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