High shanker65,
the cap'n asked me to pass on a message, so here it is:
"Tell him not to add molasses to the reservoir in hydro. Only use it in the tea to feed the army of microbes.. Sugary products in hydro could cause a slime outbreak."
s1ingblade
Live or Sterile? Why I choose Live
- Thread starter TheCapn
- Start date
High shanker65,
the cap'n asked me to pass on a message, so here it is:
"Tell him not to add molasses to the reservoir in hydro. Only use it in the tea to feed the army of microbes.. Sugary products in hydro could cause a slime outbreak."
s1ingblade
shanker65
New Member
Thanks Sling/Cap.
I also did a bit of reading and came to the conclusion that molasses is not a good thing to have in my reservoir.
Couple Q's.
1. If adding molasses to a reservoir is bad then how come it is ok to hand water it at the base of the plant? Won't it just end up getting rinsed out and recirculated during the next irrigation?
2. Any Experience adding ZHO into Heisenberg Tea? Supposedly it will cause pH swings in a recirculating system.... Is it the same as molasses in that it's ok to hand water it over the base of the plant with the tea? I don't see how they can't end up in the reservoirs if they are applied.
Thanks a bunch.
Peace!
I also did a bit of reading and came to the conclusion that molasses is not a good thing to have in my reservoir.
Couple Q's.
1. If adding molasses to a reservoir is bad then how come it is ok to hand water it at the base of the plant? Won't it just end up getting rinsed out and recirculated during the next irrigation?
2. Any Experience adding ZHO into Heisenberg Tea? Supposedly it will cause pH swings in a recirculating system.... Is it the same as molasses in that it's ok to hand water it over the base of the plant with the tea? I don't see how they can't end up in the reservoirs if they are applied.
Thanks a bunch.
Peace!
- Thread starter
- #63
Good Questions, Shank.
Again, adding any sugary / carb products to a hydroponic system could trigger a slime outbreak, as it could provide too much food for bacteria. There is always good and BAD bacteria in your system, so we want to try to starve all bacteria in the system. This is why we keep making more tea every week.
1. When you brew your tea, you are breeding an army of mycrobes. As the beneficial bacteria "wake up" from the ancient forest, it feeds off the molasses in the bucket. So in theory, most of the molasses is already consumed in the bucket, before you add the "bennies" to the base of the root mass.
2. ZHO is another form of beneficial bacteria. Think of it as a "poor man's great white". I used to use a pinch of it in my tea, along with the great white. I never noticed any PH swings. It is cheap enough to give it a try if you want. I mostly use the ZHO when I am planting my garden outdoors. I mix it in to the potting soil. The best tea is the most diverse tea. The mycogrow from fungi dot com is great too.
Hope that helps explain things!
shanker65
New Member
Explained things very well! Thanks for the help. Good to know about the molasses being mostly consumed prior to the tea being added to the plants. I have a bit of ZHO here so I'll probably use a bit at a time and see how it works. Take it easy dude. I'll be reading your journal thing that you recently posted later tonight.
shanker65
New Member
Cool Video Journal!
I'd like to pick up a couple of those yellow drip rings that you have there.... Can't seem to find them locally though.
Keep up the awesome growing and hope you smash that record you were going for. Looking good! (Sorry for a useless post)
I'd like to pick up a couple of those yellow drip rings that you have there.... Can't seem to find them locally though.
Keep up the awesome growing and hope you smash that record you were going for. Looking good! (Sorry for a useless post)
shanker65
New Member
Update:
I hand watered in some ZHO a few days ago and no signs of pH swings. Plants look pretty nice! I Like your idea of applying it during transplants or in the nutrient solution that we use to pre-soak our rockwool cubes.
I hand watered in some ZHO a few days ago and no signs of pH swings. Plants look pretty nice! I Like your idea of applying it during transplants or in the nutrient solution that we use to pre-soak our rockwool cubes.
- Thread starter
- #67
Cool Video Journal!
I'd like to pick up a couple of those yellow drip rings that you have there.... Can't seem to find them locally though.
They are the "hydro halo". You can get them on ebay.
Good to know. Thanks for the feedback. This will help others. I like the ZHO. It's not as diverse as the great white but still VERY good stuff and 1/4 the price.
TrysHard
New Member
This information is a big help to me. I have been completely emptying my main reservoir when I change nutrients. Following this procedure will make things a lot simpler for me. Do you do this even when you are changing the nutrient profile for different stages of growth? When I completely empty my main reservoir I have to make sure the pump is primed again or it make not work.
shanker65
New Member
<----------- Hates that pumps need to stay primed.
- Thread starter
- #70
If you're changing ALL of the water, that's fine. But you're wasting nutrients. The only time I change ALL of the water, is if I feel a plant has a deficiency. I can't remember the last time I did that. And if I think a plant DOES have a deficiency, I don't change my recipe, I don't try to correct it. I just start with a fresh batch of nutrients. The exception to this is if you consistently have a strain that shows deficiencies... in this case, you may need to adjust your recipe.
>>>When I completely empty my main reservoir I have to make sure the pump is primed again
Your pump intake is probably pointed down. Make sure it is sideways and you shouldn't have the problem. If it loses prime, you could ruin a crop.
TrysHard
New Member
Thanks for the info, and I'll turn that pump sideways.
shanker65
New Member
Whats the PPM of your tea usually come out to Cap? I'm going to be pre-soaking some rockwool cubes to start a few seeds soon.... I'm just curious. 
- Thread starter
- #73
Whats the PPM of your tea usually come out to Cap? I'm going to be pre-soaking some rockwool cubes to start a few seeds soon.... I'm just curious.
Very low. Around 50ppm. Be sure you use distilled or RO water. Check my blog entry on starting seeds. Using that method, I'm 100% germ rate for the last ~3 dozen seeds.
shanker65
New Member
Thanks for the quick reply Cap... I'll definitely re-read the germinating article a couple times as I prepare the cubes for some seeds.
Take it easy and hope you have a good week!
- Chris.
Take it easy and hope you have a good week!
- Chris.
shanker65
New Member
Alright; I took a good look at the seed germination thread again. What a well thought out post that one was.
I'll also be doing a few clones at the same time;
- Can I use the same low ppm tea mixture for preparing starter cubes for both seeds and un-rooted clones?
I'll also be doing a few clones at the same time;
- Can I use the same low ppm tea mixture for preparing starter cubes for both seeds and un-rooted clones?
- Thread starter
- #76
For seeds, yes. For clones, you can add the tea, but follow the clone recipe.
shanker65
New Member
Gotcha..... Seeds = Tea.... Clones = Small amount of Veg. Nutrients + Small amount of Tea.
TrysHard
New Member
Hey Cap'n, a member is having some problems with his Rockwool grow. I'm don't have enough experience to help, but I thought of you immediately. If you have a moment could you check out his post. I've linked it below.
Needs Help
Needs Help
shanker65
New Member
Hey Capn,
If your main 5gallon bucket of tea is like 6 days old; Would it be ok to ad a fresh 1ml/L of AquaSheild before applying?
Thanks!
If your main 5gallon bucket of tea is like 6 days old; Would it be ok to ad a fresh 1ml/L of AquaSheild before applying?
Thanks!
- Thread starter
- #80
I wouldn't. Throw it away. Just add some aqua shield to the water you are irrigating with.
