DWC Issues

[Erryl.Flynn]

So I checked the pH this evening, roughly 24 H. after adding the compost tea, and the pH went from 6.02 to 6.05! Typically in this timeframe the pH would have decreased to ~5.5-5.7. This is the most stable it is been since flipping to flower. It's too early to tell so I'll have to keep an eye on it and make sure it remains stabilized - but I'm definitely optimistic. Thanks everyone for the suggestions!

 

[Erryl.Flynn]

pH is at 6.15 today. Seems like the microbes are really helping neutralize the pH swings.

 

[Jimbot23]

Good deal man. Keep us posted on how it's going if you can. I'm still on the fence about whether to stick with dwc.

 

[Erryl.Flynn]

Good deal man. Keep us posted on how it's going if you can. I'm still on the fence about whether to stick with dwc.

Will do. I'm trying out a side-by-side coco grow with some free seeds sent by Nirvana. I'm going to crop my first DWC plant in ~4 weeks or so and will keep this post updated with the yield, etc. Seems like DWC is pretty hit or miss. Some of my plants are thriving while others seem to be a bit stunted. I'm kind of on the fence as well. I noticed you live in CO. Whereabouts do you live? I'm in FoCo so if you're close maybe we could link up and discuss growing sometime.

 

[Jimbot23]

I'm down for that.

My dwc run was 4 plants. Two of them majorly outgrew the other two. Not what I expected, thought they would've grown pretty evenly with dwc.

 

[Jimbot23]

Hmm, not seeing a pm option on here. Any ideas?

 

[potty1]

I think you need 50 posts to pm.

 

[Erryl.Flynn]

The exact same thing happened with my DWC grow. One plant is dominating while the other two are definitely a bit stunted. It's interesting - initially, I used grow stones in lieu of hydroton in the two plants that aren't growing too well and noticed severe growth issues pretty quickly. I found out that the grow stones are processed with silica, and thus are very alkaline. I ended up pulling out as many of the grow stones as possible and replaced them with hydroton and they immediately perked up, although they have not caught up to the plant that never had the grow stones introduced. Just a little caveat for anyone out there considering using grow stones instead of hydroton.

 

[deepwaterdude]

The exact same thing happened with my DWC grow. One plant is dominating while the other two are definitely a bit stunted. It's interesting - initially, I used grow stones in lieu of hydroton in the two plants that aren't growing too well and noticed severe growth issues pretty quickly. I found out that the grow stones are processed with silica, and thus are very alkaline. I ended up pulling out as many of the grow stones as possible and replaced them with hydroton and they immediately perked up, although they have not caught up to the plant that never had the grow stones introduced. Just a little caveat for anyone out there considering using grow stones instead of hydroton.

I've got a girl in growstones, and it's true that upon water changes, I expect her soup to rise from 5.5 to 6.5 after circulating through them a few times. I have to pH down at the beginning of the res change, then after that it's stable. But, I've never had thicker stems in any other medium, so as long as you can control the pH moderately, I think the silica is worth it I've had to cover the medium with dark plastic to keep light from penetrating to the roots, however.