Chasing the PH pony....

[Tead]

I seem to be having significant PH issues.
No matter what I do, I just can't keep the PH down.
As a typical example, my PH was at 5.9 last night at 7pm. Overnight, it went from 5.9 to 7.1
I'm constantly adjusting the PH down... usually a couple times a day.
It's not that I mind adding PH down to the water, it's just that it seems way out of control.
I've tried a couple of flushes. I've used Flora Shield to "flush" any leftovers.

Thoughts? Comments?

Cheers




Details....
6(ish) gal working res on a top drip system. Very small.

Lighting is LED and CF.
Temps are running around 80 in the cabinet during the day, and about 70 at night.
2 airstones in the bottom of the tank.
Using Ionic Bloom and Awesome Blossom for neuts.
Using Earth Juice Natural Down to adjust PH.
Starting with RO water at ~200 TDS and a PH in the upper 7's

Current grow journal at Bagseed Grow - TD Hydro under LED's

 

[Damagoman]

hydro

A couple tips that could help you till a hydro Dude shows:
What is pH?

seems nutes affect it(ph) alot:
Nutes - What To Use & How To Use Them - Tutorial

 

[Ms.Fox]

LMAO! I love the title of this thread! Is it possible you have too many plants for the size of the reservoir?

 

[Tead]

AjaniVengeant... thnaks for your reply. I do have a VERY light layer of algea. The only reason I know it's there is the slipperyness on the inside of the tank. It's barely visible and slightly brownish. Seems like a natural combo of neutrients and water to me. My tank is completely covered, so no light gets in.

Ms. Fox, I was chatting with McBudz about the issue on my grow thread . McBudz suggests, like yourself, that my issues are related to my tank size (6 gal). and that I should be running 5-6 gal / plant. Right now, I'm running 8 plants in a 6 gal res.
I'm tenatively planning on getting another pump, tank (aka plastic garbage tub), float valve, and some tubing to set up a 2nd res that actively curculates thru the growing res.
Does that seem like a decent plan? How do you feel about the 5-6 gal/plant config?

Thanks all !!!

 

[Tead]

pitviper... out of curiosity, how many plants were your trying to grow in you 7 gallon res? I'm trying to understand if what I'm experiencing are normal considering my res size.

Thanks!

 

[Tead]

Thanks Pitviper. Sounds like I'm in a similar situation.
I'm either going to have to go with an auto feed system, or a larger res... or, of course, live with lots of daily adjustments.

Thanks for the input.

 

[Tead]

I think I might go with an ebb/flow system in the near future.
They seem much less prone to any failure and I can easily "remote" the res tank.
I'm subject to occasional extended power outages (can you say hurricane?), and with an ebb and flow system, it would seem to me that I could easily cycle the water manually.
It's mys suspicion that an ebb and flow setup with a 40 gal res will solve most of my ph issues and make a much more reliable and stable installation.

Cheers

 

[Tead]

Are you planning to complete growing your new clones in the smaller system, or do you plan on moving them to the ebb/grow to complete the grow?

I'm thinking I can easily convert my top drip system to an ebb and flow system. I can use some of the same basic parts with the addition of some hoses and what not.

For the next grow, I'll add a 40 gal external res. Set up the existing pump to run the large res water into the small res once a day. I'm going to fill the net pots with loose rockwool... this will retain water really well.

Cheers!

 

[Tead]

Vent all you want baby... I learn more with every comment no matter the tone.
Today's lesson for the first time grower..... get an extra pump and tubing. The pumps seem to be fairly cheaply made.

I've read on another site about a grower using loose rock wool for a growing medium. It retains allot of water, and he/she only cycles his ebb and flow system once a day!
I suffer from allot of extended power outages (hurricanes are your friend!), and I'm very attacted to this system because it would be really easy to run manually... just grab a buck and dump some water from the res into the flood tray.

Sorry to turn a ph thread into a grow system design thread.

Cheers!

 

[Racefan]

5 gallons of solution per plant for hydro is the rule of thumb. The smaller the reservoir the more you'll chase the ph. The algea might be affecting your ph as well. Cover the reservoir from light. Some nutrients contain buffers which help to stabalize PH. A nutrient change might be better.

 

[Tead]

Thanks for the info Racefan
I think I have a handle on the ph now. It's just a matter of being aggressive with the ph adjustment. I'm planning to implement a larger res in my next grow.

Cheers!