No, I'm not using any air stones. I've read that air stones really don't add to the oxygenation of the water supply which is more dependent on agitation of the tub surface area as the water droplets hit the surface and colder water temperature carrying more oxygen. 20 Mule Team Borax is chemically identical to pH up in Hydro stores at a fraction of the cost. I do have hydro pH down albeit in powder form. I also think the drifting up of the nutrient ppms may be the settling of the nutrients in the tub?I might have missed something, but do you have an airstone in your res, Edge? I think your res is really big, so you probably need multiple air stones in there to make enough bubbles to oxygenate the water. Otherwise it looks like you're doing good. I can't guarantee that your plants will survive, but it's worth trying. You'd be amazed at some of the plants I've brought back from the dead, from root rot to dropping a light panel on one. Weeds are pretty resilient. Good luck, bud.
Ok, I don't know anything about 20 Mule Team Borax, but I'll take your word for that. But I think you got a bum steer about oxygenation of your res water. Droplets of water hitting the surface won't be enough. When you do DWC, the roots are going to hang down deep in the water. They'll need lots of oxygen deep in there. There's no way that the splashing on the surface will get much oxygen down where your roots will need it. So you really can't do DWC without an air pump and airstone(s). The good thing is that they aren't too expensive. I think I only paid $30 for mine at a pet store. Your plants will be much happier with more O2 in their root zones.No, I'm not using any air stones. I've read that air stones really don't add to the oxygenation of the water supply which is more dependent on agitation of the tub surface area as the water droplets hit the surface and colder water temperature carrying more oxygen. 20 Mule Team Borax is chemically identical to pH up in Hydro stores at a fraction of the cost. I do have hydro pH down albeit in powder form. I also think the drifting up of the nutrient ppms may be the settling of the nutrients in the tub?
Ok, I was just trying to think of everything I could that might help. It's possible that your method could work... I just haven't seen any growers attempt DWC without using an air pump somehow... so I'm still very skeptical. I hope you're not depending solely on that blog post for your information. A better source to put your money on would be a journal on this site by someone who uses the same technique successfully.I'm not only doing a DWC. My sprayers are oxygenating the water more than air stones ever could. I'm looking into a wave maker to stir up the nutrients and keeping the reservoir water moving...but I appreciate your input.
http://www.uk420.com/boards/index.php?showtopic=263773
Thanks for shedding light on this aeration issue, Scotch. I don't think I've heard of this before and I haven't personally seen any DWC grows that don't include an air pump. It's entirely possible that they exist and I just haven't seen them, though. (I'm not a big reader.) So a Waterfarm, a recirculating Hempy Bucket, an aeroponic system like Edge's and my system all cause some splashing on the surface of the res water, which apparently is very good. And an airstone adds to the oxygenation beyond what's caused by surface agitation? Is that what you were saying?Theres a huge misunderstanding, that I dont quite understand either, but oxygenating the solution can be as simple as a waterfall effect in NFT, depending on the EXTENT of aeration is where limitations come in. Edge is misting, at any size micron- I think thats pretty good O2'ing,
That being said, I still think a pump/stones in your res (or in recirc. or ebb/flow in your MAIN res) O2'ing things is important.
Anyways, I have read, and talked to shop owners, who are currently testing this, and they have said the science behind O2'ing is in the agitation of the SURFACE AREA of the Solution... where O2 releases from the bubbles created from stones/pumps and agitates under the surface, and usually under the roots.
They decided to test this with a standard water pump you would use for feed lines, stuck it on the side of the res/tote and created a kind of current that circulated the solution completely around, and across two airstones on the long sides of the Res. O2'ing on the way around. Seeing if results improve.
I tried it with an extra pump I had lying around and my temps went through the roof and said fuck it, my O2 is just fine..
NOW the huge debate comes in to whether which is more important: The Slash, or The Agitation.
Basically what it comes back to is implementing both methods (if not all of them- Topfeed, aero, dwc=badass) as best you can for your desgin..
Things are looking brighter Edge but I would keep that ppm low for now. <500, even under 300. I promise they wont shrivel up. ha
And they are not in the mood to be FIM'd, you want to wait to get past all this lockout.
Good luck.
I've done a ton of reading on various sites via google and the issue of oxygenation I believe, is summed up with emphasis on cooler water temperatures and agitation of the surface area. I keep the tub water cool by adding frozen water bottles daily. There is a school of though that air stones do very little to agitate the surface area of the tub water and possibly detrimental as they introduce pathogens into the water reservoir. In this thread, the grower measures DO and concludes that, "Airstones can act as sponges for airborne bacteria deliver by the air pump, this greatly increasing pathogen risk. I haven't changed my reservoir in 5 weeks now am certain with airstones I would not have got away with that". :
http://www.uk420.com/boards/index.php?showtopic=263773
Edge, I hope you don't follow _Tutu_'s example of not changing your reservoir for 5 weeks! Here's the sediment I got in my res after one week:
It depends on the size of your res to some extent. With a really big res you can probably get away with 2 weeks between changes, just topping up your nutes to a certain ppm level. But the really successful growers I've followed change it every week to get the crud out. We like to pamper our plants.
You're right, I wanted to change it a couple days earlier, but we had company staying over for xmas. I still have to hide my hobby from my stepdaughter in my state.I never go more than 10 days before I change my res. And I always use at least one air stone per 2-3 gallons of solution (based on the stones and pumps that I have/use).
When you get a bunch of caca at the bottom of your res, you know you should have changed it at least a few days before it appeared.
Your plant is looking mighty fine otherwise Dave. It looks to be enjoying life....
Funny how life goes in circles. When you were a kid you had to hide your stash from the adults. Now as an adult, you have to hide your stash from the kids, haha!You're right, I wanted to change it a couple days earlier, but we had company staying over for xmas. I still have to hide my hobby from my stepdaughter in my state.
LOL! I never thought of it that way, but you're right.Funny how life goes in circles. When you were a kid you had to hide your stash from the adults. Now as an adult, you have to hide your stash from the kids, haha!
It's that wonderful Area 51 light that made it grow so well! I never had a plant nearly as healthy and lush as this one. No more heat problems that I had to always fight when I used fluorescents. Leaves are perfect as far as I can tell. Even the inner leaves are nice and green. Hats off to the manufacturer....Your plant is looking mighty fine otherwise Dave. It looks to be enjoying life....
It's that wonderful Area 51 light that made it grow so well! I never had a plant nearly as healthy and lush as this one. No more heat problems that I had to always fight when I used fluorescents. Leaves are perfect as far as I can tell. Even the inner leaves are nice and green. Hats off to the manufacturer.