Post Your UC Problems Here!

[motherlode]

amquell eh? Im on a well - sounds like this would be very beneficial to me.

 

[RMCG]

amquell eh? Im on a well - sounds like this would be very beneficial to me.

Prime is another good product (and I think you dose less per gallon) so cheaper in the long run.

 

[Greenthumbnewb]

this thread rocks,it should be stickyD- to show everyone that it is not as easy as the Current Culture guys make it out to be, theres alot of awesome UC threads on here that people get to see, but people would probably like to know what kind of problems to expect as well

 

[BudGoggles]

Ive failed a couple times with the UC. Im sure it was user error on my part
BG

 

[JACKMAYOFFER]

A few things I can add... I have done many strains in the UC system and some do much better then others.I have had plants look perfecet in one system then the system next to them given the same nutes and same every thing just look like shit..I always tell every one to let there ph swing do not add ph up or down I like to add my nutes and the ph will be in the 4.0 range and 12 hrs later it will be 6.o and stay there for a week. If I where to add ph down or up it would not allow the nutes to swing...At the end of the day every system has problems. I have seen large grows this year completly destroyed by root aphids..At the end of the day I have done SOIL, COCO, ROCKWOOL and of course UC and my best run has been in plain Roots organic soil, To be fair it was only a 8 lighter so a much smaller scale..I will always grow using a UC system but my last run in the COCO room has me trying some new things:)..JACK

 

[skwirlgirl]

....^a chimp could grow in dirt....



I'd like to say that a few things that stifled my UC's grows were exactly what some have touched on. For one the water level. I was running it too high to begin with..even at the 'lip' they weren't diggin it.

My starts had awesome white mass roots but of course were still stuck in the net pots. I was literally drowning them by submerging their 'breather roots'. Once I lowered the water level an inch or so they would perk.

Second the whole thing about humidity and uptake...then add in a bit too much light. I was being impatient. My humidity was low and the roots hadn't 'developed' OR dipped enuf' into the water. I'd crank my fogger to high 60s low 70 RH but 'till the roots dipped they would stall.

I'd hit em' with 'full guns' 1000s (even at 6 feet above the canopy) right off and all they'd do is wilt.

Also ZONE instead of the chlorine I was experimenting with was the key. Chlorine is touchy..where ZONE is forgiving. Even with ZONE though I found I could mess with the final product. Cuttin down to 1/2 strength once they florished solved that

Once all the factors lined up...BAM it was game on and the system would kick'

 

[jimmyhoffa59]

Well there are some good folks around here willing to set me up and get me started again. I only created the thread so people could go to a central location to find issues that they COULD face in the UC without having to turn every page in all the different grow threads.

Jack you have done some amazing things and I think a lot of people looked at your two big UC grow threads and figured oh its going to blow up regardless.. well at least that is how I pictured myself. I know there are downfalls to every grow and sometimes you get the lucky ticket. I am going to just swallow my pride have my grow thread closed and strip the system down and start over with the new knowledge I have now. If it shits on me again I will throw a few extra strains in there and if failure keeps following me I will move to a different venture with my chin down low.

I could not appreciate everyones willingness to help another farmer out and this community in here is fucking AWESOME! THANK YOU!

If others have had issues, POST it in here.. we wanna know and help. I really do wish I could figure out what EXACTLY went wrong though.. its mindboggling to just be left in the dark you know?

 

[Loverocketer ~]

~ TOXIC TAP H20 MINERAL BUILDUP & SUBSEQUENT NUTRIENT LOCKOUT caused by failure to use RO Filtrated H2O allowing you to truly stabilize your nutrient base by churning out PURE H2O @ ( 0 ppm ) before you add supplements and or additives ie. CAL MAG/ ZONE, ROOT EXCEL. It's the only common denominator shared by those achieving UBER SUCCESS w/ the UC, such as myself- I might add; it's the dynamic you're missing. You need to START THERE!! All the troubleshooters have pieces of advice to offer, that may or may not be factors, but doin' this w/o RO FILTRATED H2O, is much like addin' an NRG DRINK, like say to horrible tastin' HARD H2O, such as well H2O to your plants you say you love - YOU WOULDN'T DRINK IT DOWN, SO WHY SHOULD YOU EXPECT ANYTHING LESS OF THEM?

 

[FatFreddysKat]

Loverocketer....my well water will blow your city or bottled water away anyday(JK dont really now what water you have)....who are you to say well water isnt acceptable to drink...maybe yours is nasty, but I know lots of hill people who wouldnt touch anything else !!!!Not trying to start a battle on water but dont assume just from your experience that well water is bad and RO water is the shit.I recommend to test your water before you use it and then you know what you got to work with , and if its off do something to better it for said operations or particular usage.
Also I have seen and heard of RO filtered water not being needed in every application, but in this case for Jimmy it is a wise option to consider to correct the mystery.
Ok enough of my juvenile behavior and back to helping get springs harvest in the ground....gotta love greenhouses in Cali!!!!

 

[Jalisco Kid]

I got to play with a UC last week at a friends shop. I think if you do not wrap them you are asking for trouble as you can see from this pic from the store. JK

 

[RMCG]

<RMCG scampers back to wrap top rim of 27 blue buckets>

 

[jimmyhoffa59]

Mine been wrapped up since day one. My tap water is only 90ppm. I need to cover the hydroton next run, use RO with UV sterilizer, Raise my humidity, Use a reservoir, premix my nutes and NOT use ph up and down. Drop all zymes. Not fuck with my plants when they are growing.

In the mean time I am just letting them go til they die or come back.

 

[jimmyhoffa59]

A few things I can add... I have done many strains in the UC system and some do much better then others.I have had plants look perfecet in one system then the system next to them given the same nutes and same every thing just look like shit..I always tell every one to let there ph swing do not add ph up or down I like to add my nutes and the ph will be in the 4.0 range and 12 hrs later it will be 6.o and stay there for a week. If I where to add ph down or up it would not allow the nutes to swing...At the end of the day every system has problems. I have seen large grows this year completly destroyed by root aphids..At the end of the day I have done SOIL, COCO, ROCKWOOL and of course UC and my best run has been in plain Roots organic soil, To be fair it was only a 8 lighter so a much smaller scale..I will always grow using a UC system but my last run in the COCO room has me trying some new things:)..JACK

The ph swing your talking about goes beyond everything I thought your supposed to do.. Can you please elaborate for me on why or is that just what works for you? I am just confused because it contradicts what is typically the norm on here. Your grows speak for themselves but I need intel why..Thanks

 

[Onespark]

Well I do not blame the UC, I blame myself for being retarded. I only got a couple grows before this one anyways in dirt and then aero. I will not give up on the system just yet but damn.. I gotta figure out what is going so wrong. The crap with the ph and epicenter feeding stuff.. ya it really should not matter with good plants.. I know they WERE good plants.. I am just lost and need help to recover.

I am growing in UC and I disagree that ph and epicenter feeding being a negative is "crap". I learned fast to veg them with a top drip or flood table until the root mass is well established before dropping them in the UC. Anytime nutrients or ph adjustment was added to the epicenter it messed things up fast. Once a nice top off res was added and PH kept 5.8 at all times problems started going away. Zone is the key for me. Sterile system. Have not had the brown algae since (crosses fingers). I agree that well established plants can take some of this abuse but why risk it? Your plants looked too small to be taking any of that abuse and still be able to get some momentum going. Just my opinion. Im learning too and I have killed an entire UC run with brown algae and PH drift. I cleaned my system five times with Physan 20 after the brown stuff and am rocking so far. I think you can do this just keep that thing clean, run zone, and get big roots before you drop them in the system. Last piece of advice... grow some plants in soil in your other room just in case LOL... Good luck amigo!

 

[FatFreddysKat]

Apparently I got real lucky with my setup and grow not having any issues except of my own doing.....I just hope I can be lucky enough again, but Im not going to chance anything and will have ladies backing it up anyway in other mediums.

 

[f1ydave]

The ph swing your talking about goes beyond everything I thought your supposed to do.. Can you please elaborate for me on why or is that just what works for you? I am just confused because it contradicts what is typically the norm on here. Your grows speak for themselves but I need intel why..Thanks

Mine been wrapped up since day one. My tap water is only 90ppm. I need to cover the hydroton next run, use RO with UV sterilizer, Raise my humidity, Use a reservoir, premix my nutes and NOT use ph up and down. Drop all zymes. Not fuck with my plants when they are growing.

In the mean time I am just letting them go til they die or come back.

Bring it down to 0 ppm, we run well water and it took about 2 months for everything to clog the RO Unit. Had to change out the pre-filter, sediment and both membranes (Hydrologic 200). Next run we will be adding a small boy for a cheaper pre-filter and UV. The membranes run $83 each retail, paid $68 at our local store. The pre-filters are $10-$20, we will just buy a case of those for the small boy.

 

[Loverocketer ~]

You heard it from me first, but to hear it from F1ydave has made you feel better, huh?

good fortune ~

 

[motherlode]

You heard it from me first, but to hear it from F1ydave has made you feel better, huh?

good fortune ~

yeah because your the only person running uc using RO water - get over yourself - this isnt the only thread detailing his issue

get a new attitude or find a new place to hang out and give advice

end of rant

 

[motherlode]

~ TOXIC TAP H20 MINERAL BUILDUP & SUBSEQUENT NUTRIENT LOCKOUT caused by failure to use RO Filtrated H2O allowing you to truly stabilize your nutrient base by churning out PURE H2O @ ( 0 ppm ) before you add supplements and or additives ie. CAL MAG/ ZONE, ROOT EXCEL. It's the only common denominator shared by those achieving UBER SUCCESS w/ the UC, such as myself- I might add; it's the dynamic you're missing. You need to START THERE!! All the troubleshooters have pieces of advice to offer, that may or may not be factors, but doin' this w/o RO FILTRATED H2O, is much like addin' an NRG DRINK, like say to horrible tastin' HARD H2O, such as well H2O to your plants you say you love - YOU WOULDN'T DRINK IT DOWN, SO WHY SHOULD YOU EXPECT ANYTHING LESS OF THEM?

but on the 18 of nov you posted this...

New to this site, new this trend of cultivation. Jus' purchased my current culture bucket system (6), and ready to rock this little central cali town. My question is why do i see most accomplished cultivators using this system, wrapping the buckets with the metallic tape? Please provide the answer, as i'm about to pull the trigger with this system, this weekend. Thank you for your time & patience beforehand

so in those two months you gained UBER status and became a UC expert in your 6 xl


awesome - you rock! I mean you UBER rock

how does that go again guys? pics or it didnt happen

 

[babyhughie586]

hoffa im very sorry to hear that your plants took a turn for the worse... i believe i had the same exact problem check out my page i gave detailed instructions on how i made it better and turned things around.. the problems with adding the nutes straight to the epicenter is not your problem it was your water level when the roots were still young... undercurrent should really make a drip system because i had to hand water mine for 2 weeks because i used rapid rooters and didnt have a aeroponic cloner like most people use with this system... i hope my analysis on my page can help you out