DIY aeroponic cloner questions

[Whitehotdog]

Hi guys
I made myself a aeroponic cloner or thats what i think they call them .
Old propergator with lid , small water pump sprays water onto roots via pcv tube and garden plant sprinkers .
But my question is do i leave spray going 24/7 or not and would a heat mat help ?as some higher end retail cloners seem to have this feature
Thanks

 

[Weaselcracker]

A common problem with them is that the pump heats up the water too much. For that reason people often put them on a timer to come on intermittently. Generally temps on the lower side - around low to mid 70s, are better as it slows down the slime growth/rot that tends to be an issue with these cloners.
Other than the temperature issue you can run it either way.

 

[Whitehotdog]

Thanks for the quick response as always weaselcracker
So im guessing if the pump heats the water and i ran 30 min on/off cycle i would not need a heat pad !

 

[Weaselcracker]

I haven’t heard of anyone using a heat pad with an aerocloner. I suppose since the pump tends to warm the water like that.
If you have a waterproof thermometer- that would be a good thing to have in this case.

Try to control that temperature and set the timer accordingly. I wouldn’t do 30 on/30 off. More like a minute or two on, and 10 or 20 minutes off. Really the pump doesn’t need to be on much at all. Probably no more than a minute or two once or twice in an hour. But you can use it to set the temperature if things need warming.
I’ve had a lot of trouble getting results with an aerocloner. I made a DIY version and don’t think I ever got roots out of that thing. Then I bought one a couple years ago and I’ve had very limited success with this one too. The roots tend to get slime issues.

However I recently bought some Z7 which has helped my cloning rates hugely in general. I’m gonna try one more run with the aero thingy, with some Z7 this time, and see how that goes.

 

[Marzbadrock]

The slime is from being too warm. I had issues with mine until I ran a airstone and run pump 15 minute on 15 minute off 24/7. After I got water temp down I've had 99% success rate for years. But get aerocloner figured out n they are the best!

 

[Weaselcracker]

It seemed to me that even with low temps the aerocloner is more susceptible to slime. At least it has been for me but I don’t exactly have hospital level cleanliness and my grow room is border to a super mouldy rainforest climate full of slimy things. I think the beneficials, as in something like the Z7, are key to solving that problem if it happens to you.

 

[Marzbadrock]

Yeah I forget about environmental differences. Once in awhile hit 30% humidity n maybe 82° in my realm.

 

[CannaFish]

bump!
is there is any reason to pH the water in a diy aero cloner?
I think my tap is pretty high.
I can use RO.