root advice needed

so this is like my third grow, second hydro grow. so this time i decided do two dwc in rubbermaid tubs, instead of the one tub. i did have quite a few light leaks into both tubs which is now corrected. problem is i have algae of root rot. im not sure how to tell them apart or if they are even different things. all i know is there is brown/ black shit on some parts of the roots. also i had quite a bit of light leak in my last grow but no root problems. i think because i am now using the two aquarium pumps http://www.walmart.com/ip/Tetra-Whisper-Air-Pump-1-ct/10291813 on two 20g tubs instead of one 20g tub might be the real problem. let me know your thoughts or questions.
more importantly to correct this problem i have dumped about 100ml of h202 (like the simple shit you dump on your cuts... is this the right stuff??) in both res's. my water is 13 days old. so im going to do a res change tonight but i want to have a plan to help these babies out. will the problem correct itself now that the light problem is taken care of? or is more air a must? any questions or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. also im on a budget so keep that in mind?

yeah those tetra walmart airpumps are horrible....i had to return one myself... i had a 30 gallon pump going to a 3 gallon tote and that was barely enough to push it...you want as much air being pumped in there as you can manage...and if you fixed your light leak problems...then it must be a heat issue...might want to consider putting some frozen water bottles in your tub....i tried keeping my res temps around 65-68....heat is going to be your biggest enemy here....so i would get a better pump for each res...and get your res temps down...then that should handle most of your issues

my res temps are usually around 70. what happens if there is not enough air? and what should i do during this res change to try and clean up those roots?

DJ is spot on here, i would start with checking res temps as that is cheaper, make sure you are def not going above 75, 72 would be better. But more air never hurts, Spend as much as you can afford on the air pump.

bustinJs said:

my res temps are usually around 70. what happens if there is not enough air? and what should i do during this res change to try and clean up those roots?

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so far what your doing is fine...you can get a aquarium thermometer at walmart for fairly cheap...not the best..but good for a budget grow.then if you go with the h202 and get the res temps down...it should clear right up for you.maybe check ebay for air pumps...walmarts pumps are not good at all...and all the pet stores really charge way to much for their stuff...i got mine off ebay was a 30 gallon dual pump...powerful as hell...was like $8

What nutes are you using? The substance could be many things. To help rules things out, you must follow proper res maintenance.

No light in res
water temps around 68f
at least 1wt per gallon air pump
No organic material in res

How is your PH behaving? Are your roots growing?


As for the H202, what you are using is inferior. It's weak and has chemicals in it to help keep it stable. Ideally you will want food grade h202, 28% or higher, which costs about $15 a bottle. You will then need to research proper dilution. But at this point we can't yet determine that h202 is a good idea for you.

View attachment 1357467my babies roots look like this but with more roots that are white and patches that are darker than the pic here. im using gh micro/bloom nutes. the roots appear to be growing as well as the plants themselves. without looking at the roots you would have no idea there was anything wrong. im going to be doing a res change here in the next couple hours. my plan is to allow the roots to soak in a water and h202 solution (i plan to make it fairly strong since i got the wrong h202), then refill the res's and nute. the babies are almost 12inches tall so i was thinking i would switch to flower but im afraid i should wait till i have this root problem under control before i flower.
anything else i might try during the change? should i go ahead and set up the nutes to transition to flower, or stick with veg till this is fixed? even though the plant looks unaffected, what are the effects of this root rot.
it seems the problem comes from light and heat. but in my last grow i had terrible light leak and and what i assume to be the same res temps( which i discovered are high...around 78-80) the only thing different is the amount of air, which is now cut in half. i feel like this is the problem... but i dont really understand the role of the oxygenated water (i thought plants need C02 not O2).
any help is appreciated... and thanks to all those who have already offered their advice.
sorry if im rambling...im stoned as shit...thanks

Well your roots are not the worst i've seen, by far. I really don't think you have root rot at this point. It's hard to say from the pic, is there any slick or slimy stuff on the roots? What do the roots/water smell like? Most of the discoloration could be from the GH Micro. I think you can look forward to a fairly speedy recovery.

The nutes you are using are just fine. My advice is keep them in veg until you see some serious root production. If you are at this point still seeing new shoots and white growth, that is a very good sign. If you want to see vigorous root growth and not have to worry about your res temps, forget sterilizing agents and try making the microbe tea I outline in this thread. Don't be intimidated, it's an easy process and I promise good things.

Roots of a plant do indeed use oxygen. They will suffocate and drown in Co2. In addition, the bad stuff that grows in your water loves a Co2 environment and has a hard time surviving in oxygenated water. The good microbes are the opposite. So when we oxygenate the water we are not only giving the roots what they want, but making a home that discourages disease. Water can only hold so much oxygen, and cold water will hold slightly more, but all that is necessary is to replace the dissolved oxygen faster than it's depleted, which is accomplished by having 1wt air pump per gallon, or more.

one more question when you say 1wt per gallon. you mean watt right?

oh and thanks so much for the help. good to know im not doomed. plus rep seriously thanks.

bustinJs said:

one more question when you say 1wt per gallon. you mean watt right?

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Yes, so if you have a 5 gallon res, you want at bare minimum a 5 watt air pump. That is a guideline more than a hard fact. I like this air pump, bit it is a bit noisy.