For germination under a 36w CFL tube light should I use peet pellets or the soil I will be using in the big pots after transplant? It is Happy Frog by Fox Farm.
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I have not used either, but I can assure you there is someone who has on here, but in the meantime. 
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@Wolffe41. A lot of folks use the expandable peat pellets without issue.
Me included. Just remove the netting when transplanting and you should be good. 
And welcome to ilgm. 
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Thanks everyone for the help and welcome! Sounds like I can do either with good results. Can’t wait to start. First grow probably starting sometime in the next two weeks.
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Coast of Maine has an excellent seedling mix called sprout island blend. Have had nothing but fantastic results using that product. And it’s omri certified to boot.
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Welcome to the forum!! Glad to have you here, make sure to @Dbpooper or others when you start your grow so we can follow along if you decide to start a grow journal!! We all like to help out and trade ideas and grow tips and of course we all love the bud porn 
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Use the Fox & Farm and mix in some worm castings, they love it and it wont make your soil so hot
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Some of the new growers make the pellets too wet. I prefer rapid rooters personally. I soak them in nutrient solution of 200 ppm then get the party started. @CoyoteCody
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I have only so far done directly in my final container or this time was in solo cups in coco.
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Thanks everyone. Will definitely try to keep some updates coming as it comes along. Can’t wait! Oh also some background. Using a 4x4 tent with Spider Farm SF2000. Northern Lights auto flower and going to shoot for 2-3 plants with scrog method training. In case anyone was wondering.
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Maybe look deeper into scrog on autos. I personally can’t really get a good scrog on autos because you can’t keep them in veg until your screen is full. I like LST method on these for best grow. No topping, no pruning on autos or your yields will suffer in my short experience. Someone on here has done it though and I’m sure can guide you through an auto scrog if you go that way. Welcome and happy growing. These 3 are LST method.
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Thanks @TokerGuy. I will do some research but maybe LST is the way to go. Plants looking good BTW.
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Someone posted this to me here once and I used it on the second two plants up front. Def a difference in growth with this simple guide.
LIFECYCLE OF AN AUTO
A common question I see is when to switch autos from veg to bloom. Many people are
under the impression that as soon as they see the first flowers it’s time to switch. Perhaps a
little explanation of the life cycle of autos will help to clarify this.
Weeks 1 - 3. Once you’ve started your seeds and they break the surface of the soil, they
are in their seedling stage. The first set of leaves to appear will usually single fingered,
followed by a second set that may still be single fingered or perhaps 3 fingered. Once that
second set appears growth will start to accelerate as the new leaves provide more
photosynthesis. This process will continue, more new leaves, faster growth. Depending on
the type of soil in use, mild vegetative nutes can be introduced at week 2. By week 3 most
plants will start to show their sex. Males will start to produce pollen sacks and females will
display pistils.
Weeks 4 - 6. The plants are now entering a pre flowering stage. During this time the plants
should exhibit explosive growth, often as much as a new set of nodes and 1" vertical growth
a day. This is the time when they will gain most of their vertical height. Many people make
the mistake of switching from vegetative to flowering nutrients at this point, assuming that
since they see flowers it must be the proper time. This is incorrect. If the switch to flowering
nutes is made at this time the vertical growth will stop and the plant will put it’s energy into
producing buds. If you need to keep your plants small, or want them to finish earlier, they by
all means switch nutes at this point. But if you want to get the most out of your plants
continue feeding vegetative nutes until you see the vertical growth slow and stop.
Depending on the strain that will usually be sometime during week 5 or 6.
Weeks 7 - 9. By now vertical growth has stopped and the switch to flowering nutrients has
been made. The buds will start to fill out and put on weight, becoming hard and tight. Pistols
will start to change from white to brown, orange, red, etc. By now the plants will also have
developed a strong smell. Toward the end of this phase the large primary and smaller
secondary fan leaves will begin to turn yellow. This is an indication that the plant is moving
toward the end of it’s life.
Weeks 10 - 11. At this time flowering nutes should be discontinued and only plain pHed
water fed to flush the remaining nutrients from the soil and improve the taste. Yellowing of
the fan leaves will continue as the plant draws the stored energy from them. Eventually they
will die and fall off. By the time that the smaller leaves that come from out of the buds will
also start to turn yellow. Then it’s time to harvest.
I know that many of you are thinking that the seed bank said the plants will finish in 8-9
weeks, so why are you saying they take 10-11? The claims made by the seed banks are
somewhat deceptive. If you switch to flowering nutes at week 3 or 4 the plants can finish inthe times the seed banks say but they will remain small and not reach their full potential
yield. Years of growing by myself and others has shown that autos do best if you follow this
time line.
Of course, there will always be variations depending on the strain, the environment,
nutrients, etc. This information is meant to only serve as a general guideline.
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Awesome guide. Thanks @TokerGuy
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So I am underway with first grow now. Need some advice. Put 5 Northern Light auto seeds into small clear cups with distilled water on Wednesday. All 5 were floaters. As of now 51 hours later they are all still floating and none have cracked. Added a few drops of hydrogen peroxide about 3 hours ago. I know ILGM states 24 to 72 hours so am I just being impatient? Cups are in a cabinet to keep dark. It’s cold here so my temps are probably between 70 during the day down to 64 or so at night. I bought a heating pad for a small seedling tray/dome that I planned on using once tails came out with rapid rooters. Should I use that heat mat now under the cups of water?
Just keep poking at the seed until they sink. They’ll still sprout, just sometimes they need a little help getting wet. @Wolffe41