issue Root damage, Wet soil and Lighting. Recent transplant.

[THeGAME101]

Ok, I think I hit a snag or two..
This will just be one plant as they are all showing the same symptoms(?)
When I transplanted a week ago, I tore some roots that were bound around the bottom of the pots they were in. They still had a decent cluster, but I lost some of the longer ones. This how they look now. Notice the leaf curl throughout the plant..

At first, I thought the leaf curl was due to my grow light being too intense, so I backed it off 24inches. Its a Spider Farmer SF300. I lowered the light to about 22inches and used my phone app to take light readings. I know its not accurate, but its in the ball park.
LUX - 5534
PPFD - 83
DLI - 4.3
I no longer think its the grow light, I could probably bring it down to 12inches.
LUX -11025
PPFD - 204
DLI - 10.5

Next problem the buckets I planted them in still havent dried from the initial watering. hydrometer say wet. Indoor temp steady 70 - 74deg. humidity of 40 - 43. So if it is a combo of too wet and damaged roots Im in kinda a bad spot because they are already stressed. I guess I could dig out the soil around the plant and replace with dry? I do hit them with a fan a few times a day for an hour or so, and a small humidifier. Ive been spreading out the leaves that are curled a bit every day as well.

So what does it look like to you guys? Should I just let them go until the soil dries out? Is it plant feeding frenzy that I cant accommodate due to wet soil and should I try foliar feeding to get nutrients to the plant while the soil dries to supplement root growth? Do I just have a crap grow light? Its within the return window. I could get a Vivosun VS1000E or VS1000 that has a dimmer. Something under $100 as this is a hobby. Recommend! Ive got cherry tomatos and banana peppers on the way!

This weekend is the start of warmer nights so I was hoping to have them outside full time in a few weeks. They have been going out on days over 65deg. and they have gotten full sun, but it hasnt been steady..
Thanks bunch!

 

[CaneDog]

Hey man. Nothing I see/hear worries me much. I suspect they'll grow out of the curl with a little time. The weather's going to be coming around soon anyway and once you get them outside into the natural sun and elements it cures most of those minor issues. There's a lot of volume in those deep 5g buckets and you do want to be careful about getting them too wet until the roots fill them out a bit more. When I do my transplants, especially the bigger ones, I use a trowel to mix the soil with water in a/the bucket getting it only a little damp and that works really well for me. Your plan of letting them continue to dry out seems fine and as the wet clears up the roots will start pushing down harder and they should perk up.

As far as the lights go, I don't think there's anything wrong with what you have, but I do like the spec's on the VS's better. I haven't used either, but the VS seem a lot like mine - HLG 100 Rspec - and pack more punch (and draw more power) then the SF's.

Anyhow, the weather is coming around and I think you'll be happy with how those guys do once they're established outside. It's been a slow start to the season with this sucky weather patch, but I still think it's going to be a good one!

 

[THeGAME101]

Looks like advice from this and other forums say nothing much wrong and let it ride. That what Im going to do..
Thanks to all!