We sterilize everything, paint or wrap the buckets to keep the light out, mix perfect nutrients and presto five days later there is a slime starting to discolor the normally perfect white roots. Like it or not, algae is the ever present bane of the hydroponic grower. I have read a thousand different ways of correcting the problem and the best advice is to be diligent and take these few important steps to help you along the way.
Look at your reservoirs daily, make sure the pH is within acceptable ranges, top off with clean water if necessary and be ready to act at the first sign of trouble. There are three methods I have found that work best for my crops and you should add them to your maintenance schedules.
Always clean your tank, air hoses and aerator with a mild bleach and soap solution with each water change, do not take shortcuts or it will come back and bite you later. Do not skip this step.
As a preventative step prior to filling the reservoir, the first step I take is purchasing food grade hydrogen peroxide which comes in 35% strength solution which is diluted to 3% by using an 11-1 ratio, 11 parts clean RO water to 1 part H2O2. Plant roots love oxygen and adding the 3% dilution to your reservoir adds extra oxygen and this helps keep water clean and algae at bay.
Every other reservoir change I use FloraKleen for removing built up salts on the roots and growing media. Keeping your plants and roots healthy and water clean is the most important step in have a clean and rewarding growing experience.
Once algae is present in your tank or on your roots, its too late for H2O2. It's time to bring in the heavy hitters, billions of healthy microbes are added to the tank which use the algae as food and work to clean your tank and roots. The microbe tea is brewed for a day or two and then added to your reservoir at each tank change and every three days. This tea is a popular seller at the local farmers markets and keeps for about 7 days.
Happy growing and remember cleanliness is next to .......
Look at your reservoirs daily, make sure the pH is within acceptable ranges, top off with clean water if necessary and be ready to act at the first sign of trouble. There are three methods I have found that work best for my crops and you should add them to your maintenance schedules.
Always clean your tank, air hoses and aerator with a mild bleach and soap solution with each water change, do not take shortcuts or it will come back and bite you later. Do not skip this step.
As a preventative step prior to filling the reservoir, the first step I take is purchasing food grade hydrogen peroxide which comes in 35% strength solution which is diluted to 3% by using an 11-1 ratio, 11 parts clean RO water to 1 part H2O2. Plant roots love oxygen and adding the 3% dilution to your reservoir adds extra oxygen and this helps keep water clean and algae at bay.
Every other reservoir change I use FloraKleen for removing built up salts on the roots and growing media. Keeping your plants and roots healthy and water clean is the most important step in have a clean and rewarding growing experience.
Once algae is present in your tank or on your roots, its too late for H2O2. It's time to bring in the heavy hitters, billions of healthy microbes are added to the tank which use the algae as food and work to clean your tank and roots. The microbe tea is brewed for a day or two and then added to your reservoir at each tank change and every three days. This tea is a popular seller at the local farmers markets and keeps for about 7 days.
Happy growing and remember cleanliness is next to .......
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