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Anyone using IBA powder in the EZ Cloner? Care to share dosage?
Instructions
Preparing the Indole Butyric Acid start with dissolving the powder, diluting the dissolved IBA and then applying it to the plants.
Dissolving
Alcohol
IBA dissolves quite easily with 70% or better store bought rubbing alcohol (Isopropyl alcohol). Just combine 1 scoop of IBA powder with 0.5 teaspoon or less of alcohol and gently shake the container. In this case I used a white plastic cafeteria spoon, and half-full was about 2 ml. so very little alcohol is really needed; and the less you use the better. The powder should dissolve in a few minutes, generally less than 10. After the powder has dissolved then dilute it (instructions below).
Important: isopropyl alcohol is easy to get but if you try to mix something higher than 500 PPM some of the isopropyl alcohol & IBA will turn back into small flakes. This is because there is an upper limit on how much isopropyl alcohol & IBA mix the water can hold. Despite this limitation we like using isopropyl alcohol because most people already have it in their homes. But since the PPM will be lower you can just use the solution longer or more often.
Useful: We also used 99% methanol alcohol to dissolve the IBA powder. It worked just as well as the Isopropyl alcohol and we where able to create a 1000 PPM solution with. When using Isopropyl alcohol we could only create a 500 PPM solution.
Useful: In a later test we first dissolved on scoop. Once the first scoop was dissolved we were still able to dissolve a second scoop without using more isopropyl alcohol.
Ammonia
Ammonia can also be used to dissolve Indole Butyric Acid. Again, 1 scoop of powder was dissolved in less than half a spoon (the spoon was a standard white plastic cafeteria spoon that half full holds about 2 ml of ammonia).
Diluting
After dissolving the Indole Butyric Acid (instructions are above) add the dissolved Indole Butyric Acid to water - do not add the water to the dissolved Indole Butyric Acid. Also, pour it slowly while you stir the water. To determine how much water to use first determine what plants you will use the Indole Butyric Acid for and what PPM you will need. Normally, you can divide it in the categories below. As an example, 1 scoop of powder in about 4 ounces of water is 500 PPM.
Important: In one experiment we also tried to create a 1000 PPM solution but when we added the dissolved powder to water some flakes formed. This is because there is a limit to how much dissolved IBA water can hold and if you try to add more the extra IBA turns back into powder and alcohol flakes. In this particular case we used alcohol to dissolve the IBA powder. As a follow-up we will be testing different ideas.
Important: Instead of using a high PPM of IBA you can get just a good a result if you use a lower PPM for longer. Also, instead of using a high dosage once you can also use a lower dosage twice. An example might be that instead of using 1000 PPM for 10 seconds you could also use 500 PPM for 30 seconds, or use 500 PPM twice in two days.