Oldsmokey Goes Hydro

oldsmokey said:
I am most likely going to use silica. Was trying to get some potassium silicate to make my own. It seems to be hard to find in Canada or I haven't had any luck yet. Can order from the USA but now shipping makes it pricey. If I use Megacrop I might go without ad it has silica. Have you used this stuff it's almost 1/3 the cost of rino skin.
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My option is once you have everything dialed in its easy. Like Stilted said you can set it up for a week or more even. I like to be checking thing every day. Also thing happen a alot quicker. Your not waiting a couple of watering to see changes if you change things like nute dosage or ph. On the same token deficiencies can show up quicker. I like being in control of all aspects of the grow. Not relying on mediums to buffer the ph or tying to guess what's in the soil and what to add.
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If you can find a product that is derived from monosilicic acid you're best off. The products that come from Potassium Silicate aren't very bioavailable to plants when added to roots conventionally. Kinda crazy considering the vast majority use Potassium. Its too bad, because most of it is pretty cheap.

I guess the issue is actually the size of the molecule, its too big... sounds silly, I know. Tecnnically, the molecules arrive at the plant in long chains. Monosilicic acide is one at a time. But, there IS some hope for Potassium Silicate. If used as a foliar feed it works OK. Not as effective as monosilicate, but much better than if root fed.



ROSIE! thats her name.... i was looking through my thread for the our dog conversation but I think it was on Phantom's. I could not remember her name to save my ass... but i smoke pot
 
HashFart said:
I'm just curious how much more work is put into it compared to coco or promix , what an awesome answer I'm considering trying hydro myself
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I've never used either Promix or coco, so I really couldn't give you solid answer. Other than catastrophic failure from water monsters (slime, sludge, crud, the usual suspects) pH issues are what most folks have a hard time with. Your house water, nutrients and concentration can all add to wandering pH... my favorite element, Silica can be a real problem with pH if you use the wrong kind. Armor Si will give you a pH of 11 if mixed wrong.

Hydro is great. There are a lot more ways to blow it, but its worth it in my book. Big plants, huge harvests, hero pictures, its fun.
 
Stltoed said:
Armor Si will give you a pH of 11 if mixed wrong.
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To be clear, I wasn't recommending Armor Si, just pointing out the huge disparity in silica numbers!
 
Mr. Krip said:
As long as the res is big enough to keep the plants wet and maintain stable PH, a week should be no problem with hydro.
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You can add an autofill valve. My system is a little under 50 gallons, 2 pots, my res is 27gallons, I couldn't leave it for too long before having issue without this item. My concentration would be downright sticky in a week without it... gotta have access to water
 
oldsmokey said:
Lol don't hate the silica :laughtwo:
Rosie is still in her bed only got out to eat last night. I carried her outside to go to the bathroom she didn't go at all just went back to the door and ran straight to her bed. She's not happy but will be fine.

My wife has not been feeling well since Friday. We went to a clinic on Saturday that was a waste of time. Yesterday went to see her doctor she has vertigo and is off work for a week at least. She has a big exam on Saturday work related that she is trying to postpone. So I'm Doctor Smokey this week taking care of my two girls.
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Damn.
 
InTheShed said:
To be clear, I wasn't recommending Armor Si, just pointing out the huge disparity in silica numbers!
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Oh, I wasn't calling you out Shed. I was just pointing out the pH problems with Armor Si. Sorry man.
 
Stltoed said:
Oh, I wasn't calling you out Shed. I was just pointing out the pH problems with Armor Si. Sorry man.
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No worries Stl! I know that Si can be a pH problem for hydro folks.
 
Well-made soil doesn't need to be pH adjusted because the buffers they include.
 
Yes. The roots don't care what the pH of your water is. They just care what the pH of the substrate is, and the makeup of the nitrogen nutrients.

Check out this post here for some metered proof!
 
InTheShed said:
Yes. The roots don't care what the pH of your water is. They just care what the pH of the substrate is, and the makeup of the nitrogen nutrients.

Check out this post here for some metered proof!
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But the plant might care if the solution killed all the bacteria, fungus, and physically damaged the roots. 11 is awfully high considering the scale only goes to 14, which will burn the shit out of your skin. And then doing it again next week?
 
Stltoed said:
Are you gonna use Silica? If yes, which one?
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What do you think of this 99% SiO2 prooduct?

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I used 1/8 tsp in 10 gallons early on and the leaves were kinda wonky (31 days from seed)...


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but the stem and branches were really thick (31 days from seed)...

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I backed off to 1/8tsp per 30 gallons and they seem ok now (35 days from seed)...

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I see the dosing from other Si products vary a lot, I think I need to do the math and figure out a comparative dose with this product.
 
Stltoed said:
But the plant might care if the solution killed all the bacteria, fungus, and physically damaged the roots. 11 is awfully high considering the scale only goes to 14, which will burn the shit out of your skin. And then doing it again next week?
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If you're not growing in LOS, then bacteria and fungus in your medium is not something you're concerned with. Of course, if you are in LOS you're not adding Si to your water. I doubt that adding water with Si to your plants will destroy the roots, even if that water is at 11. Soil buffers pH.
 
Brian420pm said:
What do you think of this 99% SiO2 prooduct?

Screenshot_1.jpg





I used 1/8 tsp in 10 gallons early on and the leaves were kinda wonky (31 days from seed)...


0906201412.jpg



but the stem and branches were really thick (31 days from seed)...

0906201412a.jpg



I backed off to 1/8tsp per 30 gallons and they seem ok now (35 days from seed)...

0910201715a.jpg


I see the dosing from other Si products vary a lot, I think I need to do the math and figure out a comparative dose with this product.
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The dosages do very quite a bit. I would say the reason for that is its not going to work as well as a monosilicate product so they need larger doses. My Silica additive dose is .5ml per gallon. A lot of the Potassium Silicate products arent stabilized, and have issues like a short shelf life, so if the product has been sitting around who knows what the dosage should be.
 
Stltoed said:
Ok Smokey... the most important question that can be asked in this situation. Are you gonna use Silica? If yes, which one?
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Do you use Si? I have tried it in hydroponics but didn’t notice any difference in the plants, so I gave up fighting the silicate globules that take 24 hrs to disperse.
 
Stltoed said:
You can add an autofill valve. My system is a little under 50 gallons, 2 pots, my res is 27gallons, I couldn't leave it for too long before having issue without this item. My concentration would be downright sticky in a week without it... gotta have access to water
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That helps but the res still needs to be big enough so that when it autofills it doesn't throw the PH off, unless you somehow have it autofilling with PH adjusted H2O ;)
 
Dusted said:
Do you use Si? I have tried it in hydroponics but didn’t notice any difference in the plants, so I gave up fighting the silicate globules that take 24 hrs to disperse.
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I do use Si. And I'm a hydro guy. Ive used a few different Si products including Silica Blast from Botanicare. I like the company. They seem to have honest products at an earthbound price. Their Silica seemed no different. Cheap and easy but made from Potassium Silicate. It never gave the astounding results Fasilitor or Power Si gave... these are both monosilicic acid products. I now know its due to the type of Silica being used.

Silicate globules, sounds like a punk band " Ladies and gentlemen... The Silicate Globules!" I hear they are playing the Troubador this weekend.

Fasilitor comes as a gell. I had to mix it up in a seperate container in a gallon of water to break it up a bit. Again this is a monosilicic acid product and is stabilized with Boron and Manganese. If your product was derived from Potassium i would say was sort of coming apart and the solids are falling out of suspension. In hydro as long as it doesnt smoke your pump motor you're probably safe on a plant level, but you aren't going to see the benefits if Silica. It sounds to me like your Silica was no bueno

Silica is a different kind of additive. It can be temperamental, it takes a little practice and I would recommend reading up on its benefits and possible negatives. Dont give up on it. Its worth getting to know.
 
The Phantom said:
TPS Silica Gold for hydro works well for me, no globs, no waiting 24 hrs to add nutes, and no crazy pH swings. It does have a high initial pH right out of the bottle but I've been able to add my nutes right to it without waiting and after pHing 12-24 hrs after a water change I've never had to correct a pH drift. Plus it's cheap as hell.
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Whats happening P? Are you and Zohan still cool? How's your dog?
 
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