Hello!

I was wondering if you had ever found the cause to this?! I am running 2, 120 spot Ez Cloners, and I am running into the same problem from over the weekend. After taking a closer look, I realized that someone had left the timer on 24/7, instead of the 15 minutes on and 15 minutes off. I believe this to be the cause, however, I am wondering how this will effect the clones health. Should I start over with different cuttings, or can the clones withstand this?

Welcome to hydroponics, the both of you.

The basics are this...keep your water pHed, oxygenated, and moving. This is kind of like telling someone to look at VPD without telling them the nuance behind VPD calculations, but your pH and O2 sat in your water is going to be entirely dependent on your water temp. Your nutrient absorption is going to be dependent on your pH.

So it all plays together. If you water isn't cool, properly pHed, containing the correct nutrients, being oxygenated, and moving sufficiently...you get this. Now, a little HOCl will go a long way in preventing this, but you're on a fool's errand until you fix your temps in your cloner.

Short answer - not enough water consistently/or changes, pump shifting the water temp to too warm, snot increases, plants stress, adv. roots do not come out. When I fugg up and get snot, it is usually an emergency to snip a cutting off whatever I want to keep (my aeroponic cloner is just a holding spot for mother snips) then a deep clean my system, with something like CannaGuard-Pro or high quality HOCl (not made in my home, just sayin).

Hopefully someone who've experienced this chimes in. I've never had this problem with clones.

Formally speaking, from a textbook I was an editor on:

Aero-Cloning Protocol
The procedure is organised in five modules:

I. Equipment sanitisation & reservoir recipe
II. Mother-plant preparation (pre-cut)
III. Excision technique-exact cut geometry & handling
IV. Aerocloner loading & early-rooting care
V. Hardening-off & transplant

────────────────────────────────────────
I. EQUIPMENT SANITISATION & RESERVOIR SET-UP
────────────────────────────────────────

Disassemble the aerocloner: lid, neoprene collars, pump, sprayers.

Wash every part in hot tap water + non-detergent lab soap; rinse.

Soak 20 min in 2 % v/v sodium hypochlorite (≈ 1:25 household bleach).

Rinse twice with RO water, then final rinse with 70 % iso-propyl alcohol; air-dry.

Re-assemble; fill reservoir with the following rooting solution:

• RO or de-ionised water ………………… 100 %
• pH ……………………………………… 5.8 ± 0.1 (use 70 % phosphoric acid)
• EC ……………………………………… 0.3 mS cm⁻¹ (≈ 150 ppm)
• Dissolved O₂ ………………………… ≥ 8 mg L⁻¹ (achieved by ½-inch air-stone or venturi pump)
• Additives (per litre):
– Kelp extract (0-0-1) ……… 0.5 mL
– B-vitamin complex ………… 0.25 mL
– 0.02 % H₂O₂ (food-grade) … 0.2 mL (keeps bioburden low)

NOTE: No base nutrients yet; nitrate suppresses early root initiation.

Turn pump on, verify 360° spray pattern; water temp should stabilise at 20–22 °C.

────────────────────────────────────────
II. MOTHER-PLANT PREPARATION (48 h BEFORE CUTTING)
────────────────────────────────────────

Select branches with internode diameter 3–5 mm, fully turgid, free of pests.
Irrigate mothers with plain pH-adjusted water 24 h pre-cut to flush excess nitrogen (reduces leaching & stem rot).
Dim overhead light to 400 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹ PAR for last night to maximise carbohydrate reserves.

────────────────────────────────────────
III. EXACT CUTTING TECHNIQUE
────────────────────────────────────────

A. Tools (sterile)
• Surgical scalpels #11 or fresh single-edge razor blades
• Fine scissors for leaf trimming
• 70 % IPA spray & flame source (pass blade through flame after IPA)
• Hormone: 0.3 % IBA gel (e.g., Clonex) or 2 g L⁻¹ IBA quick-dip

B. Excision sequence (one cutting at a time; total dwell time in air 45 s)

Step 1 – Primary severance
• Identify a branch tip with 2–3 fully expanded leaves and one developing node.
• Make a FIRST CUT 15 cm below the apex using scissors-this is a rough cut to detach the shoot, minimising mother stress.

Step 2 – Immediate hydration
• Place the excised shoot into a beaker of chilled, aerated RO water (pH 6).

Step 3 – Final basal cut (critical geometry)
• On a sterile glass plate, retrieve the shoot and, under water (submerged method: prevents xylem cavitation), make the FINAL CUT:
– Angle … 45 °
– Position … 3–4 mm below a node (node tissue contains more meristem).
– Length left under node … 8–10 mm.
• Optionally shave a 3 mm strip of outer cortex on one side (exposes cambium-boosts root initials).

Step 4 – Leaf trim
• Retain two full leaves; clip their blades to 35–40 % of original area (lowers transpiration; preserves photosynthate).

Step 5 – Hormone application
• Blot stem gently on sterile gauze.
• Dip 15 mm of the base into IBA gel for 5 s OR 2 s in liquid IBA, then tap off excess.

Total time from water to collar ≤ 30 s.

────────────────────────────────────────
IV. AEROCLONER LOADING & EARLY CARE
────────────────────────────────────────

Insert stem through a labelled neoprene collar; ensure ≥ 40 mm of stem hangs below lid.

Maintain spacing ≥ 5 cm between collars for uniform spray.

Photoperiod: 18 h light / 6 h dark; PPFD 100–120 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹ (T5 or LED).

Air-temp 24 °C day / 22 °C night; reservoir 20–22 °C; RH 80–90 %.

Pump cycle: continuous or 1 min ON / 1 min OFF (avoid stagnant droplets).

Daily checks:
• Top up RO water to original level; re-balance pH 5.7–5.9.
• Replace 20 % of solution every 48 h; full change Day 6.
• Inspect collars for slime; wipe lid underside with 50 ppm hypochlorite cloth.
• Remove any yellowing leaves (ethylene source).

Expected timeline (Cannabis):
• Day 3–4 …… callus ring visible
• Day 5–7 …… root initials (1–2 mm)
• Day 8–10 … 3–5 adventitious roots, 1 cm long
• Day 11–14 … ready to transplant (roots ≥ 4 cm, lateral branching)

If roots are 8 cm and entangling, transplant immediately; prolonged aero-culture causes brittle roots.

────────────────────────────────────────
V. HARDEN-OFF & TRANSPLANT
────────────────────────────────────────

Prepare substrate (rock-wool cube, peat plug or coco mix) pre-soaked with 0.5 mS cm⁻¹ starter nutrient, pH 5.8.
Transfer cutting; gently guide roots downward-do not bend.
Dome RH 95 % for 24 h, then crack vents gradually to 60 % over 4 days.
First feed at 0.8 mS cm⁻¹, 24 h post-transplant; increase to production EC by Day 7.
Light: raise to 250 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹ by Day 5 to trigger vegetative surge.

────────────────────────────────────────
CRITICAL CONTROL POINTS & TROUBLESHOOTING
────────────────────────────────────────

• Stem rot / grey slime → verify water temp 23 °C, H₂O₂ 0.02 %, spray nozzles free.
• No roots by Day 10 → pH drifted high? IBA expired? Replace solution, check TDS.
• Leaf wilt in first 48 h → RH too low; mist underside, lower PPFD temporarily.
• Browning root tips → salts accumulating; full reservoir change, confirm EC ≤ 0.4 mS cm⁻¹ until roots 2 cm.

ATLien415 said:

Welcome to hydroponics, the both of you.

The basics are this...keep your water pHed, oxygenated, and moving. This is kind of like telling someone to look at VPD without telling them the nuance behind VPD calculations, but your pH and O2 sat in your water is going to be entirely dependent on your water temp. Your nutrient absorption is going to be dependent on your pH.

So it all plays together. If you water isn't cool, properly pHed, containing the correct nutrients, being oxygenated, and moving sufficiently...you get this. Now, a little HOCl will go a long way in preventing this, but you're on a fool's errand until you fix your temps in your cloner.

Short answer - not enough water consistently/or changes, pump shifting the water temp to too warm, snot increases, plants stress, adv. roots do not come out. When I fugg up and get snot, it is usually an emergency to snip a cutting off whatever I want to keep (my aeroponic cloner is just a holding spot for mother snips) then a deep clean my system, with something like CannaGuard-Pro or high quality HOCl (not made in my home, just sayin).

Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips.

ATLien415 said:

Welcome to hydroponics, the both of you.

The basics are this...keep your water pHed, oxygenated, and moving. This is kind of like telling someone to look at VPD without telling them the nuance behind VPD calculations, but your pH and O2 sat in your water is going to be entirely dependent on your water temp. Your nutrient absorption is going to be dependent on your pH.

So it all plays together. If you water isn't cool, properly pHed, containing the correct nutrients, being oxygenated, and moving sufficiently...you get this. Now, a little HOCl will go a long way in preventing this, but you're on a fool's errand until you fix your temps in your cloner.

Short answer - not enough water consistently/or changes, pump shifting the water temp to too warm, snot increases, plants stress, adv. roots do not come out. When I fugg up and get snot, it is usually an emergency to snip a cutting off whatever I want to keep (my aeroponic cloner is just a holding spot for mother snips) then a deep clean my system, with something like CannaGuard-Pro or high quality HOCl (not made in my home, just sayin).

Click to expand...

Thank you for your quick response! Do we know what this snot is? Is it bacteria, or just the clone trying to protect itself?

We have been having a temperature problem, so I am looking into a chiller or moving the location of our cloner to a cooler room.

You may be able to get a small chiller for an aquarium, manually cooling it down by adding water and/or ice packs is a stopgap option but will quickly accumulate hours of work in the room. Chillers are kind of expensive these days due to the ice bath craze, just know for an aerocloner that is constantly running with the pump with like 64 sites, you'd need like 1/25th of a horsepower or less. You're stuck with a TEC or a compressor-driven device, really is no other option and both have drawbacks to being in a grow room. TECs are inefficient, often janky/cheapo, and require controls and configuring for this use case. Compressor-driven devices are (this is not a well known fact yet, sadly, but will be in the coming years) literally a hellscape inducing mechanism for trichome heads. If you want to rupture trichome head cuticles that were perfectly fine as quick as possible without physically smashing your flower for funsies, then compressor devices are your golden goose. As with anything, an optimisation problem.

The slime is essentially a bacterial accumulation, with fungal/mold components as well. It is a sign that the microbiome in the system has turned, from the good stuff winning to the funky stuff winning. Think of this type of response like an algal bloom due to temps or a die off due to O2 sat (from temps as well).