Still Getting Root Problems (dwc)

[Mickygreen]

Hi guys ,

I'm growing 2 plants from seed in dwc and can't seem to control this root problem I'm having?

List of grow tools & equipment
2x4x6 tent
Oxypot xL dwc unit 70L
250w mh
50w LED
hailea hc150a chiller
Temp controller
20 LPMairpump
7 LPM airpump
5 LPM airpump TOTAL 32 LPM
800 LPH waterpump inside the unit for the chiller
Silver bullet roots h202 4.6%
Calmag NO added N
Dutch master gold range grow

I'm sure I have no light leaks and I have been adding the h202 as instructed for disease control measures but' I still getting the twisting roots & fishy smell from the net pots?

Should remove the net pots and soak them in h202 for a few hours then put them back in the system?

Or should I just buy some benificial bacteria like orca & great white ?
Any advice would be great?

should I drop the waterline a few more inches maybe?

 

[DGP]

Roots don't look bad in the pics but your water level is high for the root development at this point. I try to keep my water level an inch or two above the bottom of the net but why your getting a bad smell I don't know. What is your water temp set at? How often do you change the water?

Are the nutes your using clear or do they have any color or dyes that would stain the roots? Any slime or biofilm showing up on surfaces like inside the buckets or on airlines etc?

Dee

 

[Mickygreen]

Roots don't look bad in the pics but your water level is high for the root development at this point. I try to keep my water level an inch or two above the bottom of the net but why your getting a bad smell I don't know. What is your water temp set at? How often do you change the water?

Are the nutes your using clear or do they have any color or dyes that would stain the roots? Any slime or biofilm showing up on surfaces like inside the buckets or on airlines etc?

Dee

I'm running a chiller with a temp controller that's set to 65f l/68f and it only comes on 4times a day for 5min total.
I'm running h202 with Dutch masters 1part grow nutrient (gold range one) these are clear nutes in the res.
Also running density calmag that doesn't seem to change the colour of the res water. No slime or build up of any bio film but a little salt build up on the airline that's not submerged.

There is a slight fish tank smell and some of the roots are tangling up? Not brittle not slimey? In fact there string
I did hAve light leak issues at first due to being a first time dwc grower I thought the company's who make the units would know to light proof the things lol
TREATMENT
I empty'ed the res , put both plants in a h202 solution for 1hour in separate buckets, cleaned every part if the res with bleach, then fresh water, really filled res to just under the net pot, used 50/50 tap &RO and dosed with a disease measurement of h202, let it run for 30min added 400ppm oof nutes , ph down to 5.5.

Things have got better but very low slow?
I just ordered 100ml of ORCA so for now I think I will empty the res ,refill with 100% RO ,200ppm calmag,200ppm nutes ph 5.6
Until the ORCA arives on Friday ' then do a full res change and add the ORCA?

WHAT YOU THINK MY STRATEGY SHOULD BE??

 

[madgrower]

I'm running a chiller with a temp controller that's set to 65f l/68f and it only comes on 4times a day for 5min total.
I'm running h202 with Dutch masters 1part grow nutrient (gold range one) these are clear nutes in the res.
Also running density calmag that doesn't seem to change the colour of the res water. No slime or build up of any bio film but a little salt build up on the airline that's not submerged.

There is a slight fish tank smell and some of the roots are tangling up? Not brittle not slimey? In fact there string
I did hAve light leak issues at first due to being a first time dwc grower I thought the company's who make the units would know to light proof the things lol
TREATMENT
I empty'ed the res , put both plants in a h202 solution for 1hour in separate buckets, cleaned every part if the res with bleach, then fresh water, really filled res to just under the net pot, used 50/50 tap &RO and dosed with a disease measurement of h202, let it run for 30min added 400ppm oof nutes , ph down to 5.5.

Things have got better but very low slow?
I just ordered 100ml of ORCA so for now I think I will empty the res ,refill with 100% RO ,200ppm calmag,200ppm nutes ph 5.6
Until the ORCA arives on Friday ' then do a full res change and add the ORCA?

WHAT YOU THINK MY STRATEGY SHOULD BE??

Pro mix

 

[DGP]

UK don't know what orca is. I am not a,big fan of adding lots of stufc

I'm running a chiller with a temp controller that's set to 65f l/68f and it only comes on 4times a day for 5min total.
I'm running h202 with Dutch masters 1part grow nutrient (gold range one) these are clear nutes in the res.
Also running density calmag that doesn't seem to change the colour of the res water. No slime or build up of any bio film but a little salt build up on the airline that's not submerged.

There is a slight fish tank smell and some of the roots are tangling up? Not brittle not slimey? In fact there string
I did hAve light leak issues at first due to being a first time dwc grower I thought the company's who make the units would know to light proof the things lol
TREATMENT
I empty'ed the res , put both plants in a h202 solution for 1hour in separate buckets, cleaned every part if the res with bleach, then fresh water, really filled res to just under the net pot, used 50/50 tap &RO and dosed with a disease measurement of h202, let it run for 30min added 400ppm oof nutes , ph down to 5.5.

Things have got better but very low slow?
I just ordered 100ml of ORCA so for now I think I will empty the res ,refill with 100% RO ,200ppm calmag,200ppm nutes ph 5.6
Until the ORCA arives on Friday ' then do a full res change and add the ORCA?

WHAT YOU THINK MY STRATEGY SHOULD BE??

I don't know what orca,is but not a big fan of additives and adding lots of stuff to reservoir. I like simple, I just use Jack's hydro pro with calcium nitrate and epsom (3-2-1gr/gal). Only additive I use is food grade H202 when needed.

Not sure what you should do next.....

Dee

 

[Mickygreen]

Well ' I went and done a full res clean & changed from h202 to the orca and I have to say I'm not sure what to think going on my readings,

My ph keeps jumping from 5.6 where I set it , to 7.0 in 24 hours ?

Ppm/ec is slowly moving down so that's normal

Water level is decreasing slowly also

The plants are showing signs if calcium Def + N Def due to the flush in between switching from sterile to bacteria res, but are growing all the same?

Roots look like shit! Res smells a little funky too? I have what seems to be a slime build up also on the root's and they look worst than before if I'm honest

Here is what they look like this morning

 

[Mickygreen]

It's been 5 days since introducing the benefitial bacteria aka orca to my res along with 1tspn blackstrap molasses to feed the beneficials

I noticed the roots turned brown? Possibly because of the molasses but possibly something else?

Both plants have a calcium Def but are growing OK

Root shots from thus morning..

Plant shots at day 29

 

[Nugg]

I'm running a chiller with a temp controller that's set to 65f l/68f and it only comes on 4times a day for 5min total.
I'm running h202 with Dutch masters 1part grow nutrient (gold range one) these are clear nutes in the res.
Also running density calmag that doesn't seem to change the colour of the res water. No slime or build up of any bio film but a little salt build up on the airline that's not submerged.

There is a slight fish tank smell and some of the roots are tangling up? Not brittle not slimey? In fact there string
I did hAve light leak issues at first due to being a first time dwc grower I thought the company's who make the units would know to light proof the things lol
TREATMENT
I empty'ed the res , put both plants in a h202 solution for 1hour in separate buckets, cleaned every part if the res with bleach, then fresh water, really filled res to just under the net pot, used 50/50 tap &RO and dosed with a disease measurement of h202, let it run for 30min added 400ppm oof nutes , ph down to 5.5.

Things have got better but very low slow?
I just ordered 100ml of ORCA so for now I think I will empty the res ,refill with 100% RO ,200ppm calmag,200ppm nutes ph 5.6
Until the ORCA arives on Friday ' then do a full res change and add the ORCA?

WHAT YOU THINK MY STRATEGY SHOULD BE??

No h202..use hydro guard.thats stopped my problems

 

[Mickygreen]

Well ' it's been a couple weeks now using the orca and I must say, at the beginning I was sceptical but now I'm sure this stuff works.

About to trim the girls ready for flower

Topped both plants several times and feeding them at 700ppm
300ppm calmag
400ppm veg nutes
Ph set at 5.6 drift to 6.2
Adding 2.5ml orca every 4th day

 

[DGP]

Looks good, like they made a full recovery. Flip em and let us know how it all turns out.

Dee

 

[Mickygreen]

Forgot to mention I upgraded my 2x4 light setup to a bigger cooltube & bulb,

I had a 250w mh in a mini cool tube to start with , then the girls were starting to get light hungry in the middle of the plant with light foliage and limp leafs.

I installed a bigger cool tube that's able to hold a 600w hps/mh and installed a duel spectrum hps,
I have got a sunmasters super deluxe 95'000 lumen bulb for after the first 10 days of 12/12

I know normally when growers hit the first stag of flower they use the mh but I haven't got a bigger mh bulb than 250w so I thought go with the duel spectrum with some blue in it for a short time then switch to the flowering bulb?

I'm doing a big trimming session today and 1 more round of topping before adding a scrogg net

I'm also curious about feeding the orca with something like AN carboload OR photosynthesis plus?

Any advice on.....
FEEDING THE MICROBES?
FLOWERING NUTRIENTS?
BOOSTER FOR FLOWER?
5" EXTRACTOR FAN FOR MY 5" COOLTUBE & 600HPS?

ANY ADVICE WOULD BE GREATLY WELCOMED

 

[ellelle]

I'm having a problem with root rot, specifically when i add nutrients (biobizz grow) into aeroponic reservoir. After a few hours of circulation in intervals, the roots begin to go very dark, the darkest at the top where the roots are just coming out of the net pot, almost black. And if I leave it overnight the roots become thin very quickly and their growth is stopped. This happened once, and I washed off all the darkness I could because a lot of it was just build up of nutrients because biobizz is particularly thick, but still some darkness remained. I figure the build up was stopping the roots from receiving oxygen. The roots started to grow at a good pace again, but the plant itself was growing bushy but very little in height and is still doing the same. I know this can be because the roots need to establish themselves before the energy shoots up, causing the plant to grow tall, however its been a while and still no substantial height changes. Its as if the roots (which are hanging freely in their own container, not in reservoir) will never fully establish themselves.

For the second time, I added the smallest amount of biobizz a week later and again the roots became weak and dark. Its strange how severe the damage is in such a short time. I thought the organic nutrients would be good for the plant. Does anybody know why this is happening and what I can do about it? I don't want to use nutrients that aren't organic.

Other than the biobizz i've used biosys instant microbe tea which is supposedly great for the roots and it seems to do the job. It does cause the water to go brown and die the roots, but they seem healthy. Maybe I just need different nutrients.

Aeroponics is hard work as it seems to be the least talked about of any growing system.

 

[MelonFarmer]

I'm growing in DWC for the first time, also using Orca, also having troubles with PH. I correct it to 5.5-6 daily with citric acid and it climbs back to 7 in 24 hours. Mine gets worse everyday 7.1 the next day, then 7.2 etc, sometimes getting as high as 8.1 until I change my res and start again at 7. I wonder if the microbial life from the orca is affecting the ph. Did yours get worse over time like mine? Why do you say you are sure it works? Do the roots look better or was it just because the plants are happy?
My roots look worse than yours but the plants look happy.

Thanks

 

[DGP]

I'm having a problem with root rot, specifically when i add nutrients (biobizz grow) into aeroponic reservoir. After a few hours of circulation in intervals, the roots begin to go very dark, the darkest at the top where the roots are just coming out of the net pot, almost black. And if I leave it overnight the roots become thin very quickly and their growth is stopped. This happened once, and I washed off all the darkness I could because a lot of it was just build up of nutrients because biobizz is particularly thick, but still some darkness remained. I figure the build up was stopping the roots from receiving oxygen. The roots started to grow at a good pace again, but the plant itself was growing bushy but very little in height and is still doing the same. I know this can be because the roots need to establish themselves before the energy shoots up, causing the plant to grow tall, however its been a while and still no substantial height changes. Its as if the roots (which are hanging freely in their own container, not in reservoir) will never fully establish themselves.

For the second time, I added the smallest amount of biobizz a week later and again the roots became weak and dark. Its strange how severe the damage is in such a short time. I thought the organic nutrients would be good for the plant. Does anybody know why this is happening and what I can do about it? I don't want to use nutrients that aren't organic.

Other than the biobizz i've used biosys instant microbe tea which is supposedly great for the roots and it seems to do the job. It does cause the water to go brown and die the roots, but they seem healthy. Maybe I just need different nutrients.

Aeroponics is hard work as it seems to be the least talked about of any growing system.

Organic nutrients are typically not compatible with hydro although there are some people experimenting with it. You need to go to nutrients that are just salts like General Hydro Flora series (I don't recommend this one but it is an example) or Mega or Jack's hydro. The Biobizz will just make your water supply into a giant bacteria farm. Not familiar with biobizz but I am assuming it is an organic type nutrient system.

Dee

 

[DGP]

I'm growing in DWC for the first time, also using Orca, also having troubles with PH. I correct it to 5.5-6 daily with citric acid and it climbs back to 7 in 24 hours. Mine gets worse everyday 7.1 the next day, then 7.2 etc, sometimes getting as high as 8.1 until I change my res and start again at 7. I wonder if the microbial life from the orca is affecting the ph. Did yours get worse over time like mine? Why do you say you are sure it works? Do the roots look better or was it just because the plants are happy?
My roots look worse than yours but the plants look happy.

Thanks

Commercial PH down formulations have buffers and are designed to help the ph stabilize. If you use citric acid for example to lower PH or if you use say baking soda to increase PH it will change the PH but it typically wont stabilize. Try some PH down and see if it helps your PH stay more consistent.

Dee

 

[MelonFarmer]

Commercial PH down formulations have buffers and are designed to help the ph stabilize. If you use citric acid for example to lower PH or if you use say baking soda to increase PH it will change the PH but it typically wont stabilize. Try some PH down and see if it helps your PH stay more consistent.

Dee

It is labled PH Down and I got it at a hydro store but it says it's just citric acid. What should I be using? Phosphoric acid?

 

[Mickygreen]

Hello all,

Well' the root rot problems dissspeared as soon as I used together the orca & great white at half recomended dose, 5 days after using in at my res change all seemed OK.

I noticed tip burn and dark green leaf's so I backed off the nutrients from 900 ppm
To 750/800 ppm

I'm running the 400w hps with a 55w draw led to cover the smaller plant where the hps is unable to penetrate , I also have a 1ft 6500k 26w t5 strip thrown in for a little blue in the mix also.

My plants grew a lot taller than I expected ' actually they grew 4x there veg size by week 5 bloom , my cooltube is strapped to the roof if my tent , I have 10" from top cola to the light lol
Thinks are holding out though I flipped the lights and 6-7days late I notice flowers starting to form.

The next 18 days the girls went into overdrive and grew 1-2 inch everyday to day 18 when stretching stopped but vertical growth was still happening very slowly.

My girls are comming along nice now at week 5&1/2
Ppm 760
Ph 5.8

 

[MelonFarmer]

Hello all,

Well' the root rot problems dissspeared as soon as I used together the orca & great white at half recomended dose, 5 days after using in at my res change all seemed OK.

I noticed tip burn and dark green leaf's so I backed off the nutrients from 900 ppm
To 750/800 ppm

I'm running the 400w hps with a 55w draw led to cover the smaller plant where the hps is unable to penetrate , I also have a 1ft 6500k 26w t5 strip thrown in for a little blue in the mix also.

My plants grew a lot taller than I expected ' actually they grew 4x there veg size by week 5 bloom , my cooltube is strapped to the roof if my tent , I have 10" from top cola to the light lol
Thinks are holding out though I flipped the lights and 6-7days late I notice flowers starting to form.

The next 18 days the girls went into overdrive and grew 1-2 inch everyday to day 18 when stretching stopped but vertical growth was still happening very slowly.

My girls are comming along nice now at week 5&1/2
Ppm 760
Ph 5.8View attachment 803975 View attachment 803976 View attachment 803977 View attachment 803978

Nice!

What's the idea behind using Great White and Orca together? I thought they were the same thing.

Cheers