Air stones clogging

[fhydro]

Hi everybody,
i've been growing hydroponic for a while now, and i'm facing a serious problem. The air stones clog very fast, so i've got to change them often, and if i don't notice that they are clogged, my air pomps are damaged, and sometimes dead.
Do someone know why air stones clog quite fast, is there a way to avoid this problem, and what can be the problem in the air pomp and is there a way to fix it ?
many important questions.
Thanks
Fhydro

fhydro Reviewed by fhydro on 11-06-2006. Air stones clogging Hi everybody, i've been growing hydroponic for a while now, and i'm facing a serious problem. The air stones clog very fast, so i've got to change them often, and if i don't notice that they are clogged, my air pomps are damaged, and sometimes dead. Do someone know why air stones clog quite fast, is there a way to avoid this problem, and what can be the problem in the air pomp and is there a way to fix it ? many important questions. Thanks Fhydro Rating: 5

[turtle420]

ERmm....
Do your air pumps have the little filters in their intakes?
Do you smoke in your grow room?
Is your grow room overly dusty?
Did you file your 1986 IRS Tax Forms? The WD-75.b-4A?

Do your air pumps run 24/7?

Peace

[Zandor]

Just swap them out each time you change the nutrients and you will have no problem. It's micro or one of the other nutrients that does not break down all the way. LIke B1 or Thrive Alive made from seaweed that is in the water but does not break down that much so it will clog the stones. You just change them out the soak the ones you take out with something like florakleen with air running through them and that will clean them but not leave behind any thing bad for the next time you use them.

Hope that helped.

turtle you crack me up dude .... lol

[xcrispi]

theres some cool air stone type deals out now called bubble wands. they dont clog up like normal air stones . cpl. bux more but well worth it .
peace

[fhydro]

Ok thanks,
Zandor, do you think that instead of florakleen i can use vinegar and run the stones into it to wash them out ?
Other question, Have you got a way to get rid of fongus on the walls (that go after in the water because of the air pomp) ?
Fhydro

[Racerx]

I use hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), a bristle brush, and boiling hot water to clean my stones. I boil em, scrub em, douse them, and then run air through em for awhile in a H2O2 solution. Micro can definitely clog em.

For getting scrum off the walls, use a water and H2O2 solution. When I did hydro, I cleaned every week. The bubble wands dont clog as easily but they seem to have larger bubbles. However they seem nice considering they wont crack or break or keep stuff inside of them.

[fhydro]

Thanks for advice, racerx
Fhydro

[Specialist]

If you soak them in kaboom or some sort of solvent and then wash them off well they should unclog.