Cloudy Res Water? Please Help

[GrowW33D]

Attempting to setup a Floraflex 8 plant system, I bought a 32gal black trashcan for my reservoir, rigged up all the pvc and tubing to the manifold, pump, etc.. First time trying it was yesterday, I previously was using a smaller 6gal water container to mix water & nutes, so I used that to get the water mix right and then poured it into my reservoir, twice (12gal). The pump is suctioned at the bottom, and I have valves to change the direction of the flow; to the plants, or just pushing the water around in the trashcan. I waited for the water to mix a bit, feeling satisfied with what I built, then I used 9 gallons to water the girls..... then about 2 hours later the water wasnt clear anymore, its grey & cloudy and looks like there's oil pooling on the top of the water.

At the moment there is NO air being pumped through the water, it is just being pushed by a water pump in a circle. I think I've read organic nutrients or possibly no air could be causing cloudy oily water. But I dont know how because before this res, the 6gal container would sit with a cap on, no air or movement for probably 5/6 days, water just fine. Water temperature stays around 68-70. I need advice , any help is very much appreciated, never used a res to water, always hand water.

Nutrient:
Botanicare Pure Blend Pro Grow (12tbsp)

 

[Mark Gordan Smith]

I'm going to ask what must seem like a few daft questions, I might learn something here...

The tub is new? Did you thoroughly wash it out before use? Same goes for the pump and pipes.
Do you water to run-off?....does the run-off run back to the tub?

I'm trying to visualize your set up!
I think I'm missing something?

 

[GrowW33D]

Tub is new and washed, didnt wash the pump or pipes, definitely should of now that I think of it. And the runoff is not collected.

 

[1ne eye]

Drain and start fresh, see if it makes a difference.

 

[Mark Gordan Smith]

As 1ne eye states but also clean pipes and pump. Pump as a test into a clean bucket too.
Thinking that the trash container surface could be harboring some chemical used in the manufacture, might take a while to leach or dry out.

I'm not qualified to answer the PH up/down anomaly, sorry.

 

[GrowW33D]

Thank you to the both of you! When I drained the res into a bucket, the water doesnt look oily just has that cloudy white look to it.

What the trashcan looked like after most the water was emptied

Gonna scrub it down real good and run a bunch of water through it to rinse it all out. Bottom of the can looks chalky.

 

[BooMtoLate]

My res has that white film on it as well, although I don’t have the oily looking stuff on top. Could be from the nutes?

 

[TurboBucket]

As mentioned it sounds like outside contamination. I did the same thing as you and had the same issues. Emptied and scrubbed the rez then cycled 10% hydrogen peroxide for an hour. Now I use hydrogen peroxide to clean and sterilize my Rez every 4-6 weeks. With water temps pushing 70 your going to get dirty sooner.

One thing I've noticed the big rez will always smell worse than the little one did. Not sure why, I'm assuming just because it's a larger quantity. Even the day after you wash it they get a little smell back, most likely could be solved by using RO water versus well water, but it just adds one more cost. Plant oils in water can create a cloudy/pearly appearance I ran botanicare when I started but never used it in a Rez so I can't say for sure how it normally behaves.

 

[GrowW33D]

I saved a small cup of the cloudy white water to ph test and it tested out at 8.5 or higher . After giving the res a thorough clean and rinse, I filled it with just water, no nutes or ph down. I let it sit for 2 days and the water is still clear. So I emptied the clear water and the trashcan isnt dirty at all. While cleaning the cloudy water out, there was brown residue on the bottom and pump, I assumed was from the nutrients.

 

[BooMtoLate]

8.5 ph holy Batman that’s crazy

 

[GrowW33D]

8.5 ph holy Batman that’s crazy

Right!? Super frustrating, I will probably go back to using the lil 6 gallon until I can find a fix.

 

[BooMtoLate]

You should wash everything fill it up with water add your nutes and ph it. If it’s a high ph then add 1ml of ph down per gallon of water. So mine for example is a 45 l res. So I added around 10ml of ph down and let it sit for 20 mins and retest.

 

[BooMtoLate]

I’m thinking your issue was not cleaning everything, could have bin all kinds of stuff in trash can and pipes. What your tap water ph?

 

[BooMtoLate]

You should wash everything fill it up with water add your nutes and ph it. If it’s a high ph then add 1ml of ph down per gallon of water. So mine for example is a 45 l res. So I added around 10ml of ph down and let it sit for 20 mins and retest.

I should add my ph started at 6.8 and it’s sitting at 5.8 now. So the higher the ph the more ph down you will have to add. Start slow and test and add more as needed.

 

[TurboBucket]

I saved a small cup of the cloudy white water to ph test and it tested out at 8.5 or higher . After giving the res a thorough clean and rinse, I filled it with just water, no nutes or ph down. I let it sit for 2 days and the water is still clear. So I emptied the clear water and the trashcan isnt dirty at all. While cleaning the cloudy water out, there was brown residue on the bottom and pump, I assumed was from the nutrients.

What's your water source? 8.5 is freaking nasty. It's either borderline unsafe to drink or contaminated. Some of the stuff used in manufacturing processes can be pretty harsh stuff. Seems like everything isn't clean yet.

You've also got PVC glue and primer below the water line so it could be coming from those depending on what you used.

 

[GrowW33D]

Im using well water, I can drink it straight from faucet im getting it out of. The pH starts at around 6.8-7.0 and I use pH down until its around 5.9-6.2.

I mix everything in a 6gal container and test pH to make sure its all correct before adding it to the res.

Add Botanicare 6 tablespoon (1 per gal)
Mix , puts pH at 7
Add pH down 1 teaspoon
Mix, puts pH at 6.8
Add pH down 1 teaspoon
Mix, puts pH at 6.5-6.6
Add pH down 1 teaspoon
Mix, puts pH at 5.9-6.2 (close to 6)

Also should mention im testing the pH with pH drops. So im testing samples of water each time its mixed, instead of the whole container.

The 8.5 pH reading was from the cloudy white water, a couple days after it had been in the res. When originally filling the 12 gallon reservoir, the pH was correct, filled it up, had it running for 2 hours and it was all cloudy white and had lil oily spots on the surface.

Thank you to everyone who is giving me advice, I really am clueless what's causing this. Never had ANY problems with the 6 gallon. Only difference is its never exposed to air, its sealed with a good lid.

I used Oatey regular clear pvc cement and same brand purple primer. Instructions said its good for use after 2 hour cure, I waited 48 hours.

Stuck thinking its the nutrients reacting with something in the plastic, which would be a total loss.

 

[TurboBucket]

Don't get too discouraged. This is a pretty normal problem for all hydro growers. Especially when you start changing things. I've fought it and several good buddies on here have too.

If your well water is good to drink your good to go.

I'm not sure if you have but you didn't mention it. So I'll suggest it again, hydrogen peroxide is great for killing off the nasty stuff and not hurting your plants. That's what I use to sanitize my reservoir and my aero cloners.

I mix it pretty hot, I try for about 10% by volume. (Make sure you wear gloves when handling the concentrated stuff.) I disconnect the pump from the rest of the plumbing and let it pump into the rez. I usually let it circulate for an hour sometimes two.

Dump the water, pull the pump scrub it all down good and circulate clean water for awhile. Dump, reassemble, and refill.

 

[GrowW33D]

Mixed up some nutrient water to feed the plants and took a sample in a small cup. After 5 days without a lid, the water is cloudy and has the same oily film.

Tested the pH of the cup and its reading 8.5 again, so I just started reading around through similar posts and stumbled upon a couple posts about the organic nutrients again.

"Might also be precipitates from reaction between hard water and the nutrients. You might want to get a ppm meter to see where your source water stands. If you can't get RO water, distilled works as well."

"Hard water is basically water containing a high mineral count. Groundwater often percolates through limestone where it picks up calcium and magnesium deposits. ... If your home gets water from a well, you most likely have hard water."

Gonna check out the water softener and see if it needs salt when I get home. Just running through all the possibilities, Ive cleaned the res like 3 times now The main confusion and what pisses me off, is the 6 gallon container is PERFECTLY FINE, while the 12 gallon res just keeps wasting time and nutrients.

 

[GrowW33D]

The water softener is fine

 

[TurboBucket]

Softened water is discouraged. It contains extra salt to make it less hard. Your generally better off with hard water unless it's so nasty you can't drink it. If you can drink it, it's fine for your plants.

Your leaving water to stagnate for five days and your surprised the organic nutrients are starting to decay? You should be using a waterfall Rez to keep everything aerated. Don't use air pumps as commonly suggested they will cause pH shifts and raise the water temp faster than a small water pump does.

Have you thoroughly cleaned the 12 gal Rez with some form of detergent?

The botanicare stuff always left an oily residue in the jugs if I let it sit out. In the refrigerator it didn't do it so bad.

If six gallons is so perfect why not use a Texas Controller with two six gallon buckets.