Scenario420
New member
At what ratio do you mix all these together, and how long does it last before you need a new batch?
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Way 'back in the stone age' using this process was far more common than you might think.
At a beer-making supply store they sell a plastic device that fits into the top opening of a 5-gallon bottle. As the mixture in the bottle does its thing, the CO2 moves up through this little device (they cost about $5.00 or so) and you can see how active your mixture is. These devices are used to monitor the fermentation rates of the brew. Pretty simple device actually.
I used to use 5 lbs. of cheap sugar with 4.5 gallons of water. Then add about 1 tsp. of yeast. That's all you need to get it up and running. Assuming that the ambient temperature is around 70F then things should be moving nicely within 18 - 24 hours.
If you have a farm & feed store nearby and you can get your hands on the cheap livestock molasses you can use that though the aroma is definitely strong compared to regular sugar. Molasses has more complex sugars and breaks down more slowly. That may or may not be a good thing for your particular growing situation. Use about 1 quart per 4.5 gallons of water.
The molasses at the farm & feed stores should run you about $10.00 for 2.5 gallons. Don't waste your money on food-grade molasses at the grocery store.
HTH
CC
At a beer-making supply store they sell a plastic device that fits into the top opening of a 5-gallon bottle. As the mixture in the bottle does its thing, the CO2 moves up through this little device (they cost about $5.00 or so) and you can see how active your mixture is. These devices are used to monitor the fermentation rates of the brew. Pretty simple device actually.
I used to use 5 lbs. of cheap sugar with 4.5 gallons of water. Then add about 1 tsp. of yeast. That's all you need to get it up and running. Assuming that the ambient temperature is around 70F then things should be moving nicely within 18 - 24 hours.
If you have a farm & feed store nearby and you can get your hands on the cheap livestock molasses you can use that though the aroma is definitely strong compared to regular sugar. Molasses has more complex sugars and breaks down more slowly. That may or may not be a good thing for your particular growing situation. Use about 1 quart per 4.5 gallons of water.
The molasses at the farm & feed stores should run you about $10.00 for 2.5 gallons. Don't waste your money on food-grade molasses at the grocery store.
HTH
CC
of course mate, my apologies - I didnt mean to suggest sativas yeilded less, I just meant that in a commercial sense they take much much longer and so grams per units of electricity is much lower due to the extra weeks
back on topic - I posted a link to this product elsewhere... I was thinking it might be possible to use it to use in conjunction with a mist sprayer? (edit to elaborate) theres a few threads discussing the merits of using C02 in the root evironment and theres a school of thought that says its pointless, roots use O2 and leaves use C02 - others disagree but anyway- from this what I wonder is, how best to use C02 enriched water.... and my answer was to use it in your foliar feeds or in a misting fan so as to apply directly to the leaves and essentially negating the need for high PPM...thoughts anyone?
http://www.zooplus.nl/shop/vissen/techniek_aquarium/co2/verdere_producenten/71284
the details say its an alcohol yeast system with 3 dimensional passive reactor
http://www.zooplus.nl/shop/vissen/techniek_aquarium/co2/verdere_producenten/71284
the details say its an alcohol yeast system with 3 dimensional passive reactor
nice - my mate finishes his indies in 6 weeks - anyway, lets talk about cheap C02
(btw I think my mate is WRONG to finish in 6 weeks, but hes a cash grower and doesnt care fo end product - no cure time either and fast dried - I'm trying to get him to change ;-) )
P
purpledomgoddes
w/ all due respect, this thread is about cheap c02, maybe a little high-tech/low-tech debate, etc. - but not about the yield of a particular cultivar.
there will always be gardeners w/ bigger fruits+flowers, and pictures+personal accounts may/can be misleading.
to re-state what was said above, a gardener may have goals that place beauty, relaxation (in the garden), taste, flavor, etc. above the goal of yield.
extremely diffficult to accurately measure success when each garden may have different criteria for success.
the vegetable eater may be far more interested in the aesthetics of the cultivar (flavor/taste/aroma/etc.), than the amount available.
likewise, the gardener may abandon their yield-quest upon finding diners that request a color/aroma/flavor/other result from the veggies.
an example is the various cuts of beef taken from cattle. equal weight of ground beef and marbled t-bone steaks will have disproportionate values, quality, and demand.
50+psi/quasi-fog aero folks or pre-mix organic+water-only folks will both produce superior vegetables+fruits. either system neglected will have potentially harmful issues. when both mastered, will be enjoyed by all.
the point is to master your own particular art+science and enjoy the results. if yield is your barometer, enjoy your yield, but other gardeners of comparable skill+dedication, may have separate-but-equal goals of color, fragrance, taste, terrior, etc. afterall, the goals of the gardener are subjective.
yield, flavor, taste, stature, resonance, etc. are all desirable traits+degrees of perfection to strive for. each gardener selects their own hierarchy of desired results.
many vegetable diners would prefer an aromatic, tasty, colorful and visually pleasing meal than simply a big meal w/ less expression of the above qualities. all relative.
Philosophelon
Member
I feel the same way about employing Jesus' magic prayer breath, which, I can tell you, I've used to great effect.
Granted I may not have a controlled test, but I have faith.
SacredBreh
Member
Ok... stopped reading two pages in......
Ok... stopped reading two pages in......
Just found this thread and after reading a couple pages.... had to jump in... I have used the yeast/sugar method for years now. I have a cap-3 CO2 monitor that set me back about 4 bills if I remember right... that I monitor my rooms CO2 in. My room is small 32 in x 59in and has constant air flow with a passive inake and a 6in can fan out. My room runs 1300-2300 on the monitor if I change my CO2 reservoir every week. It is a 35 gallon stock yard white container that has a large screw on lid and a 1 in out spout at the bottom. I drilled a hole in the lid and connected a 3/8 tube to the top. I dump in 25lb of sugar and some yeast...... maybe 1/4 to 1/2 cup. The container is encased in that silver bubble insulation you can tack up on walls. I have a tile square on the carpet that I place a heating pad on.... and on this I set the container. I put the heating pad on a timer so that it kicks on about 2 hrs before light on and then ever 2 hrs until about 3 hours until lights out. This helps since the yeast are much more productive and active in the warmer times. Of course this is all outside the room. I have two hoses connected to a directional flow valve. During lights on the CO2 goes to the hose that is placed in the passive intake to the flower room. During dark time, I turn the valve to go to another hose that goes to the veg/mother/clone room. Out of the top of the main container lid the hose travels to a 1/2 gallon clear container lid into the bottom of the secondary container. I put about an 1 in of H2O in this container. Then I put another hose through the lid but only just through the top so it is well above the water. As the CO2 is made.... it goes into the main outlet hose in the main container lid... then travels through the tube and bubbles through the 1 in of water..... then enters the second hose near the top of the secondary container and travels to the directional valve.... then to which ever room it is turned too.
The secondary container serves 2 purposes...1 to catch any overactive foaming or condensation from the main tube (too much yeast or other avoidable issues) and 2nd gives me an audible and visual guage to see how active the culture is..... and when to change. All is placed on a dolly so I can move it.
I have pics and can post if anyone interested or wants to see.....
Peace
Ok... stopped reading two pages in......
Just found this thread and after reading a couple pages.... had to jump in... I have used the yeast/sugar method for years now. I have a cap-3 CO2 monitor that set me back about 4 bills if I remember right... that I monitor my rooms CO2 in. My room is small 32 in x 59in and has constant air flow with a passive inake and a 6in can fan out. My room runs 1300-2300 on the monitor if I change my CO2 reservoir every week. It is a 35 gallon stock yard white container that has a large screw on lid and a 1 in out spout at the bottom. I drilled a hole in the lid and connected a 3/8 tube to the top. I dump in 25lb of sugar and some yeast...... maybe 1/4 to 1/2 cup. The container is encased in that silver bubble insulation you can tack up on walls. I have a tile square on the carpet that I place a heating pad on.... and on this I set the container. I put the heating pad on a timer so that it kicks on about 2 hrs before light on and then ever 2 hrs until about 3 hours until lights out. This helps since the yeast are much more productive and active in the warmer times. Of course this is all outside the room. I have two hoses connected to a directional flow valve. During lights on the CO2 goes to the hose that is placed in the passive intake to the flower room. During dark time, I turn the valve to go to another hose that goes to the veg/mother/clone room. Out of the top of the main container lid the hose travels to a 1/2 gallon clear container lid into the bottom of the secondary container. I put about an 1 in of H2O in this container. Then I put another hose through the lid but only just through the top so it is well above the water. As the CO2 is made.... it goes into the main outlet hose in the main container lid... then travels through the tube and bubbles through the 1 in of water..... then enters the second hose near the top of the secondary container and travels to the directional valve.... then to which ever room it is turned too.
The secondary container serves 2 purposes...1 to catch any overactive foaming or condensation from the main tube (too much yeast or other avoidable issues) and 2nd gives me an audible and visual guage to see how active the culture is..... and when to change. All is placed on a dolly so I can move it.
I have pics and can post if anyone interested or wants to see.....
Peace
jack DA reaper
Member
2 fucking funny ,,,,LOL right when i started reading I was like DIs aint co2 dis pruno.......LOL and its side effect co2......
P
purpledomgoddes
would be nice to see pics.
have a similar set-up. both hosed in from 5 gal bucket, stepped down to 1/8 air hose directly over/in plants.
and underneath 18" fan blowing vertically (up) in room, have several half-gallon juice jugs. these jugs provide a drink every week. once kicker is established, will flip juice to liquor in under 7 days. can pour out juice, leave kicker in, and refill jug w/ juice.
dont really use yeast. kicker is made out of the following:
hand full of rice
raw potato
raisins
apple core
grapefruit core
sugar @ 1 pound per gal per 5-7 days.
sugar substitutes:
bar b que sauce
peppermint candy/or other candy like jolly rancher, now later, etc.
breakfast syrup
skittles (works very well+gives taste, etc)
ketchup
honey
can make liqueurs, etc, if stored in correct containers w/ right flavorings, etc.
dont post pics, so pics of set up may be helpful to other gardeners interested in method.
thx for the input sacred breh. enjoy your garden!
nibirubian
Member
i know this is a cheap co2 thread but as i scrolled down i saw several recipes for pruno and one for good ol' moonshine... please correct me if im wrong, and if so how can i make a decent drinkable product in the mean time?
......
sprinkling 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda & 1/4 teaspoon of yeast onto surface of mix weekly may increase release of c02.
Badgermonkey
Member
Tiny cows, while intriguing as an addition to the bite-size snack food market, would not likely solve the CO2 problem:
Cows produce methane, not CO2
They are herbivores
I wonder how much CO2 spider mites produce?
Cows produce methane, not CO2
They are herbivores
I wonder how much CO2 spider mites produce?
B
bipotato
One time my tank ran out (middle of the night, no one open, not even dry ice) in a sealed room, dropped from 1500ppm to damned near 0. As an emergency I needed to raise this level back to at least ambient. Tried yeast & sugar, tried vinegar & baking soda. The yeast & sugar method produced so little CO2, it was pretty negligible. The vinegar & baking soda produced more faster, but still not anywhere near enough.
Simply staying in the room and sitting would maintain about 300-400ppm. Jogging in place (trust me, I was desperate), I could get it close to 1000ppm but obviously I couldn't do this forever and maintain it. Should have called a buddy and have him bring all his dogs over and let them hang out 'til lights-out.
TrueGangsta148
Member
this is definately not true. I used to have an expensive digital ppm co2 monitor and generator. when the generator or tanked co2 would run out, the monitor would still be on. with maximum fresh air intake, the room would run at around 240. the air coming in was around 300-320, and the plants would suck it out constantly. without ventilation, the air would be max 250 at night, and within 30 minutes of the lights coming on they would have the co2 sucked down to less than 150 ppm. if i would be in there working, pruning, trimming, puffing etc, i would notice around 50+ ambient rise in ppm after around 20-30 min, and if i closed the door well and sealed it up and hung out for over an hour, i could get the ppm up 100 more than it was when i entered. this was a room that was about 12x10x9. even when the overall room exhaust wasnt on, the light exhaust was and it had leaks so this room wasnt airtight.
S
sparkjumper
I concurr considering approx 40,000PPM is what normal breath is.Funkbreath's even higher lol!Seriously I spend a couple hours in the flower room every third or fourth day and I can see the co2 rise quite a bit by just breathing.The secret is not to get it to a certain level like 1500PPM or 1000PPM,the secret is having no more than a 2-300PPM fluctuation and that high level.Thats what controllers do.My setpoint is 1500PPM at 1450PPM it kicks on and kicks back off at setpoint(1500PPM).The level will continue to rise for a couple minutes after it clicks of at 1500PPM and usually reaches about 1650PPM before it starts the slow drop back down to 1450 where it will kick in again.1650-1450= a 200PPM fluctuation which is far out,groovy,and hip.Bouncing around from 1500 to 2500 back down several times during the 12 hour period will result in normally grown plants.You didn't use enrichment because of the fluctuations.Been at this awhile and I hope it makes sense to someone.Uncontrolled co2 results in normally grown plants.Thats why Randude thinks co2 is for the birds I guess lol.Believe me Randude my yield increased an easy 25% weightwise
D
dunkybones
Which is why this thread, along with it's ingredients for making co2, belong in the compost heap.
It definitely -is- true, you even said it yourself. After 20-30 minutes, you'd see a rise of ~50ppm. If you hung out in there for over an hour, you'd get it up to ~100 over average.
By your own numbers, your plants were using about 100ppm in 30 minutes. So if you spend an hour, you'll get thirty minutes of increased CO2. Plus, it doesn't matter, since you're not in there the full lights on anyway.
Oh, and there's one more little issue - 100ppm rise in CO2, even for the whole lights on doesn't even make a blip on the plants radar. It will make absolutely no difference. You have not effected the growth of the plants in any way. You could have a 100ppm CO2 difference just by moving.
So yeah, when even living in your cab full time makes shit-all difference, then "puffing a few breaths in makes a difference" is a bunch of bullshit. Like the blacklight bullshit, no difference
As I said the first time.
That is all
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