Hey Cap, Or Anyone Who Knows: Root Pack In Aero

[localhero]

I run low pressure recirculating aero boxes for one of my rooms. This means zero microbes or I get clogged filters and bio slime buildup. Ive tried aqua shield, slime everywhere and almost burned a pump, same when using my brewed tea. To keep the slime out and filters relatively clear means I have to use h202 or bobs watermax in my res. While splitting up stalks after last harvest I noticed a hollow brown center on some plants with small black dots that had given me issues the entire run, aswell as browning / browned roots which I never see in these boxes. It would really be great if I could use ogbiowar in my res to combat root issues. Am I just dreaming or am I stuck with a sterile root zone?

stats:
low pressure aero: 4'x4'x2' aero boxes with sprinklers inside on 24hr spray drain to res and recirculate. one air pump per box to add oxygen to root zone. one chiller per res. 4 to 6 plants per box in 6 inch net pots filled with hydroton.

nutes: heavy 16 throughout, never over 1000ppm. ro water. calmag. protekt silica. bloombastic. h202 or bobs watermax.

 

[Capulator]

you can try just one cup per 5 gallons of solution. That should not gunk up anything as long as you strain the tea first.

 

[localhero]

Thanks Cap for the fast response! So if I am correct then it would be 50ml of root pack mixed in a 2.5 gallon tea for 200 gallons of res. Putting the 50 ml of root pack straight into the reservoir would not be concentrated enough without a brewing process?

 

[localhero]

The reason I ask is because any leftover molasses from the brewing process runs the risk of causing a bacterial slime boom in these aero systems. unless theres some kind of slime eating benny that can be used. like I said though, when i used aqua shield which is supposed to take care of that, it clogged everything worse. regardless, using any microbe life without any sterilizing agents in the reservoir im gonna have to find a natural solution, as the aeroponic action of my systems act almost like a tea brewer.

 

[Aligee]

try Extreme Gardening Azos (Azospirillum brasilense) it will combat your slime issues! :D

 

[localhero]

thanks aligee! if thats the ticket to combat the slime and bio film build up, I'm all over it. There's azos in the nute mix but cap doesn't recommend using nute for aero due to the carbon drain mycos have in pure Hydro. If azospirillum isn't a contributor to that, It would be great to add it in the root pack or separately for us very few pure Hydro guys ;)

 

[Capulator]

I had no idea that Azospirillum was good for slime... Where did you read that @Aligee?

@localhero you can mix 1 teaspoon root pack with 5mL molasses and add this to 20 gallons of nute solution. That should be a low enough dose to help prevent brown slime. Apply to plants as soon as they are rooted to establish a colony of trichoderma on the root system. You may dunk fully rooted cuttings in to full concentrate tea, but if you use an aero cloner then add it as you would the aero system.

 

[Aligee]

I had no idea that Azospirillum was good for slime... Where did you read that @Aligee?

@localhero you can mix 1 teaspoon root pack with 5mL molasses and add this to 20 gallons of nute solution. That should be a low enough dose to help prevent brown slime. Apply to plants as soon as they are rooted to establish a colony of trichoderma on the root system. You may dunk fully rooted cuttings in to full concentrate tea, but if you use an aero cloner then add it as you would the aero system.

First hand experience! not from reading!