Get rid of “The Slime” aka “Brown Slime Algae” aka “Cyanobacteria” forever!

[Nondual]

Got most of that.except 'Phyllosphere' leaves?

For the sake of discussion the phyllosphere is the surface of a plant and not even close to being sterile. I've worked with some health products in the past where the original cultures came from above and below ground plant surfaces which includes the leaves, stems and roots.

 

[Herborizer]

I use quality/new gloves each time I enter my garden. If you buy them in bulk they are cheap.

When cloning, I soak the whole clone in water with some pool shock added to them. Basically, I sterilize the whole cutting. Yes, the cuttings are full of bacteria.

 

[SeaMaiden]

Nondual, aren't many species of bacteria able to go into a reproductive mode that allows them to become airborne? I can see that as a possibility with cyano.

 

[Nondual]

Nondual, aren't many species of bacteria able to go into a reproductive mode that allows them to become airborne? I can see that as a possibility with cyano.

Honestly that I couldn't say as not much experience there. In the work I've done haven't seen any such instances that I'm aware of. For sure it seems some can go into a dormant state, say like letting something totally dry out, then the problem returns once the system is rehydrated. That's what appears is happening with some peeps and their cloners. Maybe there's some buildup somewhere which retains some moisture allowing the species to survive even though you think its dry.

IME something like Hygrozyme is better than bleach or H2O2 to dissolve any buildup. That's what I used to use in my hydro setup before bleaching after each cycle. Probably could have gone with some cheap industrial enzyme product but was mainly experimenting at that time.

I've seen material with high plate counts drop significantly once dried but always retains some bacterial activity even after a few years even at 3% moisture levels. In that instance you could probably culture what's in there and for sure if the material was rehydrated you'd have an explosion in activity. I'm talking down around 2,500 CFU/gm (coliforms) of material. It's always there and somehow they find a way to survive.

I still feel bacteria and cyanobacteria should be separated but I don't have a Ph.D.

 

[SeaMaiden]

Aye, someone recently shared a paper with me that essentially rewrites what is 'known' about nitrifying bacteria and which species are responsible for what oxidation. Archaea are now known to be responsible for a huge proportion of the nitrification that occurs in the ocean, likely freshwater bodies as well, or, at least it wouldn't surprise me.

However, all that said, it's still an old antibiotic that can clear out cyano. As for antimicrobial agents, sterilizers, etc, I am not a huge fan of Cl or H2O2 for the aforementioned purposes, much prefer quats compounds, chlorhexidine, or even strong isopropyl alcohol. Wait... is this the right forum to mention these things?

 

[Nondual]

Aye, someone recently shared a paper with me that essentially rewrites what is 'known' about nitrifying bacteria and which species are responsible for what oxidation. Archaea are now known to be responsible for a huge proportion of the nitrification that occurs in the ocean, likely freshwater bodies as well, or, at least it wouldn't surprise me.

My understanding is that while Archaea are a smaller portion of the microbial population they are responsible for more overall activity. I still wonder how Archaea would respond to antibiotics. A quick looksee indicates they're pretty resistant and not surprising considering the environments they sometimes live and actually thrive in.

 

[Ckali559]

gonna get buy some today, ill post how it goes over the next few days!!!

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Not trying to be off-topic here, but is there a way to stop or prevent from getting an infection in the first place ?

I always use a carbon filter on any water I will use for growing or whatelse, but is that really effective at blocking these things from entering your grow rooms ?

Once you've cleaned everything... you'll need to only use R/O water from that point on.

This issue is too large to pass through the membrane....

Stay Safe!

 

[angel4us]

i went through the blue green algee 'aka hydro herpes ......my research on this website led me to beleive that once infected there is virtually no way to rid a building of the spores unless you use major pool shock everywhere ...so everytime u try to start up you will get slimmed BUT my research here also led me to a product called by dutch masters called zone which when used from beginning of grow will eliminate the slime....

 

[SeaMaiden]

Something tells me that erythromycin is a lot less expensive. Plus, because of what it is, you're not calling more attention to yourself by using yet another hydro shop-only product. Again, the erythromycin Tx is proven to be effective in the presence of living organisms.

 

[Herborizer]

What I don't get about this antibiotic treatment, is if you get the bacteria from the water, and you use the antibiotic without plants to treat your cloner. Won't using the same water once you have plants in there, without the antibiotic, just bring the bacteria back? Since its in the water?

To me it seems the source of the problem needs to be solved,the water.

 

[Crusader Rabbit]

Again, the erythromycin Tx is proven to be effective in the presence of living organisms.

Erythromicin is an antibacterial which is most effective against gram-positive bacteria. It is less effective against gram-negative bacteria. It is not listed as having any effect upon fungal pathogens.

 

[Herborizer]

Would a UV sterilizer installed on my RO kill the bacteria in my water? Thus the source?

 

[Crusader Rabbit]

Would a UV sterilizer installed on my RO kill the bacteria in my water? Thus the source?

It would definitely knock them down significantly. Their effectiveness is determined by the intensity of UV output and the flow through time of the water. Seems that there will always be a few that scoot through the gauntlet alive. Where I've seen them used is in recirculating systems where the sterilizer can continuously take its toll upon unwanted microflora. Maybe a powerful sterilizer at low flow would do it? It would be an investment $$$ up front just to find out if it works.

I recently purchased several small aquarium UV sterilizers for my aerocloners. They may have reduced my mortalities somewhat but not anywhere enough to justify the expense. These do have a limited bulb life. My problem has been mushy stems and is likely to be a fungal pathogen such as Pythium.

 

[SeaMaiden]

Erythromicin is an antibacterial which is most effective against gram-positive bacteria. It is less effective against gram-negative bacteria. It is not listed as having any effect upon fungal pathogens.

Nor does it have an effect on invertebrates (what I meant when I was referring to living organisms).

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Would a UV sterilizer installed on my RO kill the bacteria in my water? Thus the source?

It's my understanding that these beasts are stopped by the filter as they're so large in size.

Then again... I pulled all of my water for grows in bad areas from R/O vending machines that had UV in them.

Stay Safe!

 

[Phillthy]

i found this thread very informative and helpful. we need to get this stickied.

 

[Ultra Current]

i found this thread very informative and helpful. we need to get this stickied.

This thread is so new that and there is not enough data from many growers here yet. Time will change that and people will see the value of this thread. In my opinion this is information is huge and when more growers start posting their results, i will be surprised if this is not a sticky one day. Personally i want to see more results before this is stickied if my data shows to be true to the majority of growers who try this.

 

[TheGreenReaper]

There is a part of this I dont understand, or maybe I do and want a different answer than reality:

My water has the brown slime issue. If I inoculate (for sake of a better term) my Rez's with the antibiotic, short of using R/O, wont I will be re-introducing this stuff every time I refill the rez? This is where I don't see the "get rid of it forever" part...I don't want to put antibiotics in my Rez every time like its Silica or something, and certainly not actively feeding it to the girls with it in there. Is there no choice outside of R/O?

 

[Ultra Current]

There is a part of this I dont understand, or maybe I do and want a different answer than reality:

My water has the brown slime issue. If I inoculate (for sake of a better term) my Rez's with the antibiotic, short of using R/O, wont I will be re-introducing this stuff every time I refill the rez? This is where I don't see the "get rid of it forever" part...I don't want to put antibiotics in my Rez every time like its Silica or something, and certainly not actively feeding it to the girls with it in there. Is there no choice outside of R/O?

Well if you're going to put contaminated water back into your system then the erythromycin is pointless. If yoir water is that bad maybe you should invest in a UV Sterilizer.