I've read a lot but not the whole thing so I'm gonna cheat and ask a question.. I'm gonna start using tea.. I have a ebb n flow 5 gallon buckets with air stones in every bucket and always keeps around 3 gallons per bucket.. 55 gallon Rez. So initially I fill 55 gallon rez and add 55 cups of tea.. Then I flood sytem and then drain.. I probably got 25 gallons in rez upon draining.. I then top off rez with more water add more nutes.. How much tea do I add to the rez after topping off? Half the water already will have tea in it... Thanks in advance for answers..
Since you are introducing a constant flow of live Bens and not feeding them, they die and just produce more fertilizer in the water. OK.
But we want root heath. So we feed a batch, add that and feed another. So without trying to understand where 1/'2 of your water went in flood and drain, I'll say the task for me is the constant production and introduction. It doesn't really matter how much.
It matter if you have a lava housing or some place for the Bens to live, or they will live on your airstones. That's OK. They will move to the root crowns when those are available. So, a lot of variables to ask if 55 cups is enough and do you need to add another 20 cups or something.
Getting the root in the water and living is the process. I'm, at first, inoculating the root cubes, and use the lava rocks that I sweetened up with a little molasses, so they don't glom on the airstones so much. So, if your roots are good, you have enough. But, you almost can't have too many because they don't live but for a few days. While they live they also produce auxins, growth regulators, these particular auxins are root stimulants. So, they are at once, creating a consortium (it's called) of Bens that, as an ecosystem, is not conducive to the slime and also stimulate root growth.
For me the task is to figure a way to have a constant supply. So, by constant, I mean twice a week I add half of what I brew that week.
So, how will you do something like that for 55 gals?
I think farmers never stop learning and I come from a family of farmers and they all agree.
