New to DWC!! Using organic nutes!! Any advice? WTF is this white foam too?

Antihero17

Member
I recently bought and setup my first DWC Bucket(5 Gal) and here is a lil break down of what I'm working with.
2x2x5 Grow Tent Very well vented and cooled
600W HPS Light(For Flowering)
4 other plants in Coco(About 75% Coco to 25% Perlite)
Medi-One Nutes( A one solution mix from start to flush) N-P-K 4-3-3 Has worked Very well so far for the plants I've had under my care their whole lives.
A COOL MIST HumidifierNO WATER VAPOR+COOL AIR (I recommend for those with heat issues on a Budget).
An oscillating Fan
Six inch ducting venting from hood to end of tent from there I used 12 Inch insulated Ducting running into an Evacuation unit on roof (A whirlybird :) :smile:

The DWC Bucket has;
A six inch airstone
An air pump that is said to be for a ten gal aqaurium
Clear tubing of course
A BLACK Bucket and with six inch net pot
Hydroton Medium
I get Distilled water at 5.5 PH and then I up it to 5.8
I'm running 420 PPM :-) in the DWC Bucket I'm really kinda unsure what to run that at so I'm letting my Girl let me know for now.
I'm changing the nutes every weekend with fresh water and nutes and top off when needed.
I add frozen water bottles when my water is out of range(above 80F really)

So really I'm trying to figure out what this white foam that forms SOMETIMES is. I've noticed it before in my res for my coco plants too once or twice but it was only small patches as this is a VERY foamy when I do see it in my DWC.
I'm not sure if it is Anaerobic or aerobic bacteria and if it's benificial or not. I've done a bunch of research onmy own but I feel like personal input is so much more helpful so please any input is apreciated and have a look at some of my other Vids I'm trying to put it in a Grow Journal soon.
:weed:But Good Luck and Good Grow:weed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIH6_RtHdU4&feature=player_detailpage
 

Antihero17

Member
just a lil more info I'm in day 15 of flowering and I run a consistant 70-80F and 30-50% humidity. I'm also curious to know what they might yield(though I DO UNDERSTAND THAT IT MAY A VERY SUBJECTIVE QUESTION AND VARIABLE ANSWER) It's just that under Arizona law I'm only allowed to possess 2 1/2 onces every two weeks and I may need to donate to a loca Co-op to make sure I'm ligit. So any estimates would be cool. And again thanks everybody.
 

Dalek Supreme

Well-Known Member
Personaly I would not go organic in dwc,but it can be done.You must keep res in 65*F range no matter what.I did a Grandmas Blackstrap molases only res last 2 wks and it was good bud but the res was a stanky slime o ranky with proper temps and light tight res.I cannot comment on added bennies for the baddies but General hydro lucas all thru the grow is ftw for me.
 

Antihero17

Member
thanks for the tip on the organics I'm really pretty fuzzy about that myself I think I'll hold off on going ahead with more organic deep water culture until I see how this one goes. thanks for the tip about the water temperature needing to be around 65 degrees fahrenheit I was thinking it could be a little bit higher so ill be doing what I can to lower it to around 65. thanks again for your input and advice good luck and good grow.
 
The foam definitely isn't anaerobic bacteria, if your DWC is boiling with air you're pumping in. Is the foam slimy and snot-like, or is it just wet? If it's snotty, it's probably bacteria. I suggest running H2O2 if you're doing inorganic DWC -- it won't harm anything and it acts as a prophylactic against bacterial infections and root rot.

I don't really think that running organics in DWC is a good idea. The environment is too unstable, and slight changes can throw the whole ecosystem out of whack -- which generally means the harmful bacteria can get an edge over the bennies, and get a foothold.

I personally think that sugar supplementation is pure snake oil in DWC. Plants don't take up sugars through their roots, and the only thing left for sugar in DWC to do is to act as a carbon source for bacteria and algae.
 

firsttimeARE

Well-Known Member
Molasses gots no place in your res.

Go to heisenbergs bene tea and run that, keep temps 68 or under. Ditch the organics.

I'm seeing slight foam in my dwc also, it doesn't smell so i'm not worried. I've had foam before in my flood table res and that was definitely something bad as it stank the whole room up like nasty aquarium and the water had this slimey nasty gunk throughout. The foam was very thick and abundant and was all there overnight.

I would relate your instance to organics and mine to putting mycos directly into res. I've learned better, so should you :lol:
 

Antihero17

Member
Thanks so Much Praxical Excercise and firsttimeARE:clap:. And I'm totally with you guys on this one as much as I do love organics it doesn't seem to have a place in my DWC(BUT BELIEVE I WON'T BE GIVING IT UP IN MY COCO)
So that being said what are some suggestions for DWC nutes I'm a lil strapped for cash til friday so she'll have to dea til then but WHAT SHOULD I USE?
And I'm with u on the H2O2 I used it in my organics once before in my feeding res and that wasn't smart cuz I later found that it eats my beneficial bacteria.
So again thanks guys I appreciate the feedback so much gentlemen and keep up on my first grow in my journal if you wanna throw some more tips to a NOOB.
 

Antihero17

Member
So I'm gonna go down to the grow shop tomorrow and get the supplies to brew up a nice tea. Here is the recipe found on the DWC sticky on the forum here. So the Aquashield I keep hearing about is in it so that'll be a bonus to have it around also. But how do I use it since I will be changing my base nutes also probably to the Lucas System/Formula I keep hearing good things about and it seemed good from what I read so either that or the general hydroponics grow Box that has.
(Thrive Grow, 1 16oz Bio - Thrive Bloom, 1 8oz Ca - Mg+, 1 8oz Bio - Root, 1 8oz Bio - Weed, 1 8oz Bio - Bud, 1 8oz Bio - Marine, 1 8oz Diamond Black)
TEA RECIPE
Aquashield ($12) The product composition consists of: Bacillus subtilis, Paenibacillus polymxa, Bacillus circulans, and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens. This gives you a base population of beneficial bacteria. (Aquashield can be replaced by any inoculation that contains bacillus bacteria.)

ZHO Powder ($10) The product composition consists of: Glomus intradices, Glomus aggregatum, Glomus etunicatum, Glomus mosseae, Trichoderma harzianum, and Trichoderma koningii. This gives you a base populartion of beneficial fungi. (ZHO can be replaced by any inoculation that contains myco fungi)

Ancient Forest EWC ($14) - Soil amendment provides a high diversity of microorganisms, including more than 35,000 species of bacteria and over 5,000 species of fungi. (AF can be replaced by any earth worm casting)

EDIT* Mycogrow soluble is the cheapest and most diverse inoculant we have found. It can replace everything here except the ancient forest.

So that's where I'm at right now but I'll be taking input til I go to the grow shop(SHOUT OUT to chris @ the grow shop in PHX,AZ) tomorrow and the tea will take a few days so please keep up with my hydro grow and as always GOOD LUCK AND GOOD GROW:weed:
 

Antihero17

Member
Yea man I'll be putting up a post with pics of the new system(lucas formula + fulvic acids is it). The plant pulled through aftet loosing 80 percent of it's roots. I'll post a pic tomorrow of all my progress as im busy pulling my bubblegum girls tonight. I'll be going all DWC next grow already got ALL the stuff for a 5 bucket(5 gal) grow. But any suggestions for a good bloom additive next grow. Thanks for all the help guys. And good luck n good grow.
 
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