Help with bubbleponics

I just built a bubbleponics and has been running for 48hrs. This morning i woke up and it was filled with foam so bad that the pump was barley working. What would cause this? Also the bottom of my plants are yellow greenish now (is that from transplanting?). My temp is about 75 degrees with 65% hum. [I] am using the same setup as stealth hydro sells but i made it myself. My lighting is 2 100 watt cfl and 2 leds. (2 leds are equal to one 400 hps so they claim). My plants were started in dirt pots outside and transplanted to hydroponic system 2 days ago. My water ph level is around 6.8-7.0. An i missing somthing or is my light bad or am i just doing it wrong. any help would be great. i have posted some pics of what i have going. thanks

how did you manage to get the soil away from the roots? did you do a lot of damage?

what is your res temp?

is water getting to your roots?

your pH is high. with hydro you want 5.5 to about 6.3 ( i think, i'm still in dirt).

fill out the troubleshooting form in my sig to get better help.


-shake

Quote:

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Originally Posted by headshake

how did you manage to get the soil away from the roots? did you do a lot of damage?

what is your res temp?

is water getting to your roots?

your pH is high. with hydro you want 5.5 to about 6.3 ( i think, i'm still in dirt).

fill out the troubleshooting form in my sig to get better help.


-shake

---

I took luke warm water a rinsed all the dirt off the best i could. I think it was a bad idea though. i did do some root damage but minimal i think. 3 plants were so twisted together that i had to plant them together. im just waiting to see which one of them is females.
I dont know never took it. What is a good temp?
Yes water is getting to the root system on all my plants
See i think thats my problem i have been getting mix review on ph levels an done some research and have gotten different answers too. I went with 6.8 because that was the most common. This is my first time on this fourm and im hoping it will help me out. i dont understand your truobleshooting fourm?

fill out the parts that are applicable to you on the form. that's what the little key with the C, E, H and stuff are at the top. the letters next to the questions correspond to the letters in the key. there is a new one in the works.

oh, you did some damage. what color are your roots? you had 3 plants in the same container? them being fused is exactly why it's ONE PLANT PER POT! even if they are all females they will fight over nutes and light. one or two will prosper and the other(s) will suffer. what if the good one is a male? hopefully it's lesson learned if this is the case.

i think 70F is the ideal(ish) temp for your res. like i said, i'm not a 'dro guy. i'm sure one of them will chime in.

i'm pretty sure 6.8 is a bit high for your pH. the ideal pH for soil is 6.3 (granted pH is strain dependent) and hydro is lower than this. how are you testing your pH?


-shake

Quote:

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Originally Posted by headshake

fill out the parts that are applicable to you on the form. that's what the little key with the C, E, H and stuff are at the top. the letters next to the questions correspond to the letters in the key. there is a new one in the works.

oh, you did some damage. what color are your roots? you had 3 plants in the same container? them being fused is exactly why it's ONE PLANT PER POT! even if they are all females they will fight over nutes and light. one or two will prosper and the other(s) will suffer. what if the good one is a male? hopefully it's lesson learned if this is the case.

i think 70F is the ideal(ish) temp for your res. like i said, i'm not a 'dro guy. i'm sure one of them will chime in.

i'm pretty sure 6.8 is a bit high for your pH. the ideal pH for soil is 6.3 (granted pH is strain dependent) and hydro is lower than this. how are you testing your pH?


-shake

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The root color is a creamy white, and i didnt intend for the 3 to grow together
but i put three seeds to a contaner thinking only 1 would grow but all 3 took off in the one pot so i keep them. out of 12 starters i keep the 6 healthest ones and it happen to be those three. i dont know what one if any are females only time will tell. I checked water temp and its 75 degrees so im good with that i think. Im using stealth hydro nuts the fire grow bloom product. i am using strips to test right now. Tommorrow im going to start some more seedlings just incase i lose all of the ones i have now. Its just there already 1month old and i dont want to restart. i thank you for your input.

you're welcome for the input.

i'm pretty sure that 75F is too high and this will lead to some root rot. do what you do though.


-shake

[quote=headshake]you're welcome for the input.

i'm pretty sure that 75F is too high and this will lead to some root rot. do what you do though.


Well theni will lower the temp of my ressi. what do you mean do what i do? am i doing somthing wrong in my process? please tell

what i was saying is that you are gonna do what you are gonna do regardless of what i say. that's all. i'm not knocking you or anything.

like i said, i'm not a hydro guy. fill out the form and you will get better/more accurate answers.


-shake

sorry didnt mean anythign by it just trying to get some good info and seems noone wants to help me out. i do thank you though

so fill out the form if you need help!

the letters up top corrospond to a certain growing medium.

letters preceed the questions below, if the letter that corrosponds to your growing medium preceeds the question you answer that question. as it states, the "E"s are for everyone to answer.


-shake

Relax Brah. Your tank temp is OK.
As long as the water is clean and the light is excluded you can run as high as 90 F. in the res.
Maybe higher, ah dunno.
But I've run near 90 for 3 weeks and did not change out the water at all during bloom.
I use no preventative other than what's already in my tap water and have yet to see any problems, (3rd grow).
Course, that could just be luck.


H.S. is right about the PH.
You'll want to keep hydro at 5.2 - 5.8.
Don't have to be too ridgid about it, they benefit from a little PH "drift".

I see you are using Hydrotron clay pellets.
I'd advise you to start your res water at 5.2 because the H'tron will try to raise your PH constantly, even when properly conditioned.
You can use that fact to schedule PH adjustments and sweep the range where plants use all the basics well.

Shake is also right about your form filling.
It's a pain, but it's why you have not been "being served":D

Aloha,
Weezard

Aloha again.

Did some searching.
Found that you use well water.
That's a likely pythium source.

Not sure what to do about it but I'd guess that a water disinfectant and preventative in the original fill would help.


Tupenny Weeze

Thanks wizard, i have seen some of you post and you sound like you know what you talking about. What would cause a build up of foam in the res?
I just checked my ph and its down to 6.1 and still going down. i clean my system from all the foam and tonight its building up again and giving a stinky smell. do you know what that could be? also if i went and bought distilled water would that help? thanks

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bongtok4u

Thanks wizard, i have seen some of you post and you sound like you know what you talking about. What would cause a build up of foam in the res?
I just checked my ph and its down to 6.1 and still going down. i clean my system from all the foam and tonight its building up again and giving a stinky smell. do you know what that could be? also if i went and bought distilled water would that help? thanks

---

It is not supposed to smell bad kine stinky.:D

Brown foam sounds like mold/fungus.
Just scooping it out will not help.

You can try adding H2O2 ,(Hydrogen Peroxide), but mo' betta start with a new squeeky clean tub.
1/2 teaspoon of bleach per gallon of water will prevent bacteria and slime molds from getting a toe-hold.
Might even be able to use the well water, if you disinfect it first.

Sure, you can use distilled water.
Just gotta add some CalMag to it, (about 200ppm), then nutes, then check the PH.

Better luck,
Weezard

I see you are using Hydrotron clay pellets.
I'd advise you to start your res water at 5.2 because the H'tron will try to raise your PH constantly, even when properly conditioned.

Iâ??m so sure that Bongtok wanted to know more about conditioning Hydrotonâ?¦..that I (the good fellow that I am) asked it for him.
Bongtokâ?¦â?¦no need to thank meâ?¦..Iâ??m a giver.

Horsemanrocks.

I did a lot of reading, and the consensus was that Hydroton is inert and had no effect on Ph (other than Weeze, there was only one dissenter).

I ran a test w/ new hydroton (well rinsed) with tap water ph 7.12. I soaked the Hydroton for 36 hours. The water then phâ??ed at 8.62. I poured out the 8.62 (rinsed well) and replaced it again w/ 7.12. Iâ??ll try to remember to report again after a second soaking. I realize that in a situation where the solution has a much lesser contact with the Hydroton the ph raising aspect will be lessened. But something to be considered as â??part of the wholeâ?�.

I'd advise you to start your res water at 5.2 because the H'tron will try to raise your PH constantly, even when properly conditioned.

It seems that the WeeZard knew his stuff againâ?¦..gottaâ?? pay attention to experience!

As instructed,
Horsemanrocks.

"It seems that the WeeZard knew his stuff againâ?¦..gottaâ?? pay attention to experience!"

So?
What?
You thought I was just another "pretty typeface?:D
Some sweet, young, Font to be trifled with?:(
Humph, I say!

No worry brah.:)
Hermie did da same t'ing wit' coco vs' doit.:thumbsup:
Made me proud.

Nevah, evah, accept all of some kahunas pontifications as proven fact. - Weezard

"What's da matter kid, din't ya know that gurus are full of shit sometimes too?" - da levy

My best advice?

"Try sumpin yerself, an' see what happens." -To paraphrase Old Mac.

Aloha,
Instant Ralston

Weezeâ?¦I figured that you were out there lurkingâ?¦.you fit the profileâ?¦.definitely a lurker.
It appears that you subscribe to the â??if you give a man a fishâ?¦.you only feed him for a dayâ?� school. (how annoying is that!)
Another 26 hours in fresh 7.1 ph water and the Hydroton runoff phâ??ed even higher at 8.73 (I imagined that if would be somewhat lowerâ?¦.not higher). And after 48 hours still at 8.73

[attachment=o224769]

The rock and pool, is nice and cool, so juicy sweet.
Our only wish��. to catch a fish��so juicy sweet.


The thing that I havenâ??t learned is how to â??condition hydrotonâ?� (and from all appearancesâ?¦..youâ??re not gonnaâ?? tell me)â?¦..letâ??s try this:
1: Dose with Acid solution until the ph neutralizes
2: Switch to lava rock before I even get started
3: Suggestions?
It seems a little foolish to needlessly chase ph.

Fish for the poor?
Horsemanrocks.

Aloha, syncopated quadraped.

So, ya wants fish, does ya?

Want me to catch some fish for you?
A beeg Halibut, or maybe two
Go sit in da hot sun all day.
Den bringum home wit' out delay

Shall I scale, gut, and fry it as well?
Shall I dry it inna sun 'til dere's hardly any smell.
If I does all dat, your tail gonna wag?
Maybe mo' etta, you jus' read da bag.:D


Directions are usually written on da bag ya know.

Yeah, I unnerstan'
When dey ask me; "did you read da manual?"
My usual reply is; "Do I look like a sissy?"

So, jus' dis one time.
Here's da dish finner ya ordered;
Bon appetite!

"The thing that I havenâ??t learned is how to â??condition hydrotonâ?� (and from all appearancesâ?¦..youâ??re not gonnaâ?? tell me)â?¦..letâ??s try this:
1: Dose with Acid solution until the ph neutralizes

That's what they recommend.
Soak in PH 4.5 or so for 8 hours.
I did that for 8 hour.
Then 24 hours.
Then 3 days.
And no matter how much you rinse it, that superfine red powder is ubiquitous and never quite rinses clean.

2: Switch to lava rock before I even get started
.
Not a bad idea. Same thing I did.
Longstoryshort, nothin's perfect.

3: Suggestions?

(Fasten da seatbelt brah.:stoned:)

Then I stumbled upon coco.
Coco is very near perfect for my needs.
You can store it easily, it's sold in highly compressed "bricks".
Lightweight, PH neutral, excellent nute delivery system.
Looks like soil, smells like cocoa, works like hydro.

I grew peppers and tomatos in coco, foxfarm ocean forest, and DWC , as a test.
And was taken aback by their size and health vs the foxfarm.
The DWC was the clear winner, but coco was a close second.
The FF? Feh! I'll never use it again.
Still have the pictures if ya wanna see 'em.

It seems a little foolish to needlessly chase ph.

Agreed!
But, since he was already committed to 'tron I was just saying he should "make lemonade", yah?

You've seen my square peg DWCoco, rig.
(Mahalo fo' da busy mind comment.):)

Finessed it a bit.
Did not need that big a coco backup, so I dialed it down to a 4" pot with a few extra holes drilled in it.:cool:
The idea here is; if/when I forget to check the DWC water levels,
all is not lost, the coco will then be life support.
'tron is worthless as life support, so is lavarock.

Well, you asked.

Weeze

Directions are usually written on da bag ya know.

Yeah, I unnerstan'
When dey ask me; "did you read da manual?"
My usual reply is; "Do I look like a sissy?"

Okâ?¦.I get itâ?¦.Read!

Profit oriented folks that sell RO filters, say crap like that all the time.
That does not make it fact.

Okâ?¦.I get itâ?¦..Donâ??t believe what you read!

Nevah, evah, accept all of some kahunas pontifications as proven fact. â?? Weezard

Okâ?¦.I get itâ?¦..Donâ??t believe you!

Thanks soo muchâ?¦.that pretty much clears things up for me. No chance of goinâ?? wrong now.

Directions are usually written on da bag ya know.

Usually being the operative.
I wonâ??t be buying from that dollar store again!

Want me to catch some fish for you?
A beeg Halibut, or maybe two
Go sit in da hot sun all day.
Den bringum home wit' out delay

Shall I scale, gut, and fry it as well?
Shall I dry it inna sun 'til dere's hardly any smell.
If I does all dat, your tail gonna wag?
Maybe mo' etta, you jus' read da bag.

And if it had been on the bagâ?¦..My entire life would have been meaningless without this alluring verse. Forget daâ?? bag. Viva la poet!

2: Switch to lava rock before I even get started
.
Not a bad idea. Same thing I did.
Longstoryshort, nothin's perfect.

And you thought school was outâ?¦..Hahahaha.
And the shortcomings of lava rock are��.

Then I stumbled upon coco.
Coco is very near perfect for my needs.

I wonâ??t even ask until I read, read, and read some more. But when I do find itâ?¦.trust meâ?¦I wonâ??t believe it!


Rocksâ?¦.out!

Well, you won't be.
After this next exciting episode of;

Mary Wanna! Mary Wanna!

We're up to our hairy ears with lavarock here, brah.
Free for the taking!

But, like 'tron, it has no "holding capacity"
The drainage is near perfect.
For drip, drain to waste, E & F, it's useable.
But, for container growing, it's just not suitable.
Like 'tron, it takes up space better used, IMO, by more roots.

Coco's advantage?
Holds and serves nutes efficiently.
Is very difficult to overwater, and weighs almost nothing, dry.
So it easily holds 20X it's own weight of water.
Root infiltration is excellent.
When it's time to transplant, the rootball can be pulled from a container like a cork and dropped into a "cork" shaped hole in a larger container with no xplant shock at all!:cool:
Seriously, they don't even pout.:D

What turned me on to coco was a grower named Puffzter.
He's in a chair so weight was an issue.
Da bro grew some of the finest indoor buds ever, in coco.
If you can find his thread, he also created spreadsheets of his feeding schedule that are useful.

Well.
Will Mary Wanna wanna marry Gary?
Will Gary flee Mary, in a rubber boat, down the Estuary?
An' how 'bout dem Menehuni? Is dey ears all dat hairy?

For all da dirt on dirt what's not dirt.

Don't miss the next episode of MW! MW!

Beeg Aloha
Itty li'l 'zard.

Just when I think that youâ??re gonnaâ?? be a tough guyâ?¦..You open up that tiny little Wee Zard heart to help out a totally undeserving Newb. (occasionally we ask a specific questionâ?¦.to a specific person, because we want their opinionâ?¦.not consensus opinion)

We're up to our hairy ears with lavarock here, brah.
Free for the taking!

Hmmmâ?¦.let me see. Plane ticket to the islands, airport parking, rental car, baggage fees for all that lava, meals, tips, bail for the illegal â??liftingâ?� of the lava, attorney, return for court, fines, costs of being incarcerated, costs of therapy for jailhouse abuses.
------------------------or--------------------------
Trip to the city to da dePot
Hmmm,
Guess Iâ??d better start shopping for the plane ticket! Iâ??m a sucker for â??free stuffâ?�.

But, like 'tron, it has no "holding capacity"
The drainage is near perfect.
For drip, drain to waste, E & F, it's useable.
But, for container growing, it's just not suitable.
Like 'tron, it takes up space better used, IMO, by more roots.

Lava may not hold, but neither does Hydroton (in comparison to Coco). My recirc DWC with bubblers would end up the same w/ either. Only a bubbler failure early on would leave me S.O.L. and thatâ??s the same either way. Lava only seems the better choiceâ?¦..Gonnaâ?? do it, would be prudent!
Anybody ever heard of coco in a netpotâ?¦.not me, (so far). Sounds soggy.

Bongtok, Your absence relieves any guilt of a thread hijack, I hope that you got what you needed.

What turned me on to coco was a grower named Puffzter.
He's in a chair so weight was an issue.
Da bro grew some of the finest indoor buds ever, in coco.
If you can find his thread, he also created spreadsheets of his feeding schedule that are useful.

Been reading Puffzterâ?¦.he has a lot of posts, with loads of replies. The spreadsheet is no longer activeâ?¦..Iâ??m reading, Iâ??m readingâ?¦..and I donâ??t believe a word of it!

Will Mary Wanna wanna marry Gary?
Will Gary flee Mary, in a rubber boat, down the Estuary?
An' how 'bout dem Menehuni? Is dey ears all dat hairy?

Thanks for the wisdomâ?¦..itâ??s really only secondary thoughâ?¦.Truthfully, Iâ??m just in it for the verse.

Rocksâ?¦.out!


P.S. I have no idea what =P, :P, and =D stand for. Is it a European thingâ?¦..or what! If you knowâ?¦.Iâ??m all ears.

"Anybody ever heard of coco in a netpotâ?¦.not me, (so far). Sounds soggy.
"
Au contraire mon frere
Heard of it,
do it alla time,
not soggy.

I guess you are only in it fo' da verse.
Don't seem like you been payin' attention, brah.:D

When I firs' started onna threads, I wanted to he'p evah body.
Soon realized that parroting what I'd read, without trying it personally, was not really helping.
Could not avoid the fact that a lot of the conventional "knowledge" I found here was pure horse exhaust.
And, is endlessly regurgitated.

All I'm saying is, just 'cause it's written down, don't make it fact.
Accept all kine ideas, but test them for validity.
Or;
Trust in the lord, but, tie up your camel.
Etc.

Ya see.
I'm just another bozo here.
Ignorant and under-edumacated
So, all I have to offer, of any value, is experience, born of experiment.

Anything else, folks can, and should, look up from reliable sources.
Fer instance;
Linda Chalker-Scott

(Thanks Rusty).

My advice to you?
Dump the 'tron.
Screw the lava-rock.
Bag the water pump and timer.

Simplify!

Ask yerself, what yer growin' for.
Give it just what it needs.
No less, no more.
Water.
Nutes.
Air.
Light.
(An' a way to keep it out of sight.)

A'ight?

Weeze,
(da 'zard of purple light.):D

Could not avoid the fact that a lot of the conventional "knowledge" I found here was pure horse exhaust.

I think that weâ??re beginning to make progress.

My advice to you?
Dump the 'tron.
Screw the lava-rock.
Bag the water pump and timer.

â??tronâ?¦..no longer a consideration
lava-rockâ?¦.still a considerationâ?¦..more talk needed.
No timer
Bag the pumpâ?¦..not gonna happen. The pump, controller, and res allow me the freedom to go away. Maybe to go to the islands to collect â??freeâ?� lava rockâ?¦.to run off with a younger woman named Libidaâ?¦â?¦or god forbid, to work.
Buckets top off automatically, so a back up has less to think about. (y yo también)

Coco is very near perfect for my needs.

My thought is that you have latitude to guarantee â??attendanceâ?� more than I do.


As to coco:
Okâ?¦.not soggy, ph sounds reasonable, but will coco support a plant.
I went over your â??ventions in your album another time. The â??net potâ?� is pretty tall. Was that for support issues. And where is the plant base in relation to the pot. (my 6â?� netpots are 4 ½â?� bottom to the rim)
Gonna use the pumpâ?¦..would coco fallout foul the filters and pump?

My advice to you?
Dump the 'tron.
Screw the lava-rock.
Bag the water pump and timer.

Itâ??s gotta frost an experienced guyâ??s butt when he offers up good advice to a newbâ?¦..and it goes ignored.
WeeZard, your experience, and patience do not go un-appreciated. Thank you, Sir.

(a moment for a rant:
I see numerous posts when the responder doesnâ??t even address the subject matterâ?¦.I can only guess, for the purpose of increasing their own post count, or for pimping their own thread. I always respect the time and effort that â??those who truly teachâ?� put in).

Libida.....are you out there?
Horseexhaustâ?¦.out!

Gonna use the pumpâ?¦..would coco fallout foul the filters and pump?

Probably.
Though it's too soft to grind the impeller on the pump.

Not so for 'tron, with the endless red dust, and mini-cinders from lava rock will stop a pump dead.
Rinse the bejeesus outa dat L.rock, brah.
Nothin's perfect.

"Itâ??s gotta frost an experienced guyâ??s butt when he offers up good advice to a newbâ?¦..and it goes ignored."

Nope. Not at all.:)

No, "you betta b'lieve it!"
Mo', "take it, or leave it."
Offerings n edicts,
dey be different guys.
W'en 'em take it an use it?
An 'member from whosit.
An' give up some rep?
Well den, dat's beeg surprise!:D

Da weeze

Not so for 'tron, with the endless red dust, and mini-cinders from lava rock will stop a pump dead.
Rinse the bejeesus outa dat L.rock, brah.

I bet that you had a real good laugh after posting thatâ?¦..give a newb an impossible task and thenâ?¦.well, just enjoy.

[attachment=o226225]

Itâ??s never gonna be clean. I mean that if you pick it up in a handfulâ?¦.that alone creates enough abrasion to create more dust.
It doesnâ??t seem to float, so with luck very little will leave the bucket. (the pump is also very minimal)
Ok, first line of defense. (yeah I knowâ?¦the screen is way too coarse)

[attachment=o226226]

Second line of defenseâ?¦..raised the pump off the floor of the controller

[attachment=o226227]

Third line of defenseâ?¦..800 micron filter surrounding the pump.

[attachment=o226228]

Fourth line of defence��.backup pump.

[attachment=o226229]

Last line of defenseâ?¦.doing a little praying.


Go ahead��have a good laugh��you earned it!
Next time maybe we can just stick to â??What is the sound of one hand clappingâ?�â?¦.you know, an easy one.

Horsemanâ?¦..still rockinâ?? and a washinâ??.

"Go ahead��have a good laugh��you earned it!

True dat!
Been dere, did dat, done!
You have no idea!
But you will.:D

Next time maybe we can just stick to â??What is the sound of one hand clappingâ?�â?¦.you know, an easy one.

Shoe!
<Balances one sandal atop his head and walks away>

Horsemanâ?¦..still rockinâ?? and a washinâ??."

Wash on, rockin' 'orse, wash on.

When the dust settles, <snicker>, you will have an excellent filtration system all ready for your switch to coco. :)
(You will get very tired of chasing the PH back down with the 'tron.)
'course, by then you will know that the water pump isn't even necessary.:cool:

Lizards gotta have some fun or da color changer goes all gray.
Aloha,
Wee, tiny, li'l 'zard

And I always thought that I was just here for my own entertainment.

HMR

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Horsemanrocks

And I always thought that I was just here for my own entertainment.

HMR

---

"And I have always thought that the world was un-kind, cheese and onions!" - Stig McNasty

No reason ya can't do both, yah?:D

Dat's what frens is for.:joint1:

Weeze

Weezard: Do u kno der country of der 700 islands?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bonniesicker

Weezard: Do u kno der country of der 700 islands?

---

Howzit off da east coast, den?

Nevah been, but I hear it's excellent.:cool:
Closest I got was Montserrat.

Watched an eclipse from Antigua once cause Montserrat was closed for vulcanism.:D

Why do you ask?

Aloha, Weezard