I have a few questions ....i will try to be clear ...i have a stealth hydro bubble ponic system ...the six plants i have in there are about 3-5 weeks old ...i seem to have developed some kind of root rot .....i guess i messed up something with the nutes when i started this ...they went from bright white to tan/brown after 2 and a half weeks...the plants are still growing nicely, they are about a foot tall..... im getting them big enough so i can take about 6-7 clones from each....they are ver very bushy ...they are bigger around than they are tall.. they are from White Widow seeds. How do i get rid of the root rot and the roots are very very long ....(foot and a half) can i trim them down or will that kill them ...? there is also a very slimy film over all of the inside surfaces ...and i can see what looks like brown alge inside the feeding tubes....its almost time for a nute change ...i was using the dry powdered nutes that came with the system at half strength...but switched to flora nova grow 2 weeks ago...i have the res temp at about 74 and the nutes are now at 1000-1200 ppm.... i started them out on half of the micro and half of the grow packets that came with the system ...and they were fine but when it was time for the 1st resevoir change i saw the tanning/browning and by the second nute change 2 weeks later i had to dissasemble the dripper distribution assembly and clean out tan/brown gunk that was clogging the screen that leads to the drip tubes. They had only been getting water from the roots that were hanging in the resevoir...2 weeks ago i added (2) 12" inch air stones and a high quality air pump with dual nozzles....i have a 105 watt blue cfl and a 85 red cfl and a 85 blue cfl.....a total of 275 fluro watts mixed light...a 4'x4'x4' grow box with a 12" occilating fan and (2) 105 cfm exhaust fans pushing hot air out the top and (2) 5"x9" louvered passive intakes at the bottom front of the grow box. The grow box walls are covered in the really strong mylar material with all the little faccets...i keep the Ph at 5.8-6.0 and the temp never gets above 77 degrees the humidity is 40%...i was gonna get 6 -7 clones from each plant then flower 1 each of the clones to see homany are females then veg the females that i have and get rid of all the males at that point i will also have another 4'x4'x8' grow chamber with a 400 watt hps and mh...just wanted to give you as much info as possible for help with this root problem....can i cut them...they are very long and how to save my plants...??
Dont trim the roots, you could put your plants into shock. Root rot sucks, but since your root rot is in (I would estimate) the mid stage of rot. You should still be able to save them. I had the same problem once. Get a big bottle of hydrogen peroxide (3% or 5%) that you can get at any store will work, but the 17% high grade is better (but you have to deliute it well - down to 3%). a day Before you switch out the nutes. Add 25ml (just over a half an oz) of hydrogen peroxide per liter of water to the system. Being that the stealth hydro setup is 6 gallons. Add around 6 to 8oz of 3% hydrogen peroxide solution to the water. Wait a day and that nasty smell should start going away. Then change out the water in the system, and clean it very well. Next add 3/4th oz of peroxide per gallon of water that you refill the system with, and continue to add a little peroxide every time you top up the water, or refill the system. Good Luck.
I agree, In my aero setup, I have always added a few ML of peroxide to my regular nute schedule. Not only will it help control any root rot from the start, but it also adds O2 to the water. Don't forget that peroxide is an acid, and you will need to add some Ph UP at the same time to keep your Ph at the desired level.
Feel the brown roots, if they are not slimmy then its not root rott, but just discoloration from the nutes. to prevent root rott, dont over fert and also main cause is light getting to the water causing algae.
I'm glad someone showing common sense, my roots are always brown cause of the ferts I use. The peroxide has one disadvantage it kills helpful bacterias in organic based nutes.
one way to tell if its root rot is the smell. If it smells like something rotting when you open up the resevior. Then its root rot - hence the name. Brown color on the roots is normal, but bown algee like stuff in the feeding tubes is not. usualy I see white salt deposits in the feeding tubes.
lots of good advice above. what you want to do immediatlely is get that rez temp. down. 70 degrees tops. mid 60's even better. cooler temps. inhibit rot. warmer rez temps. decrease oxygen content.
Today is my resevoir change day ...i did the peroxide addititve for 2 day i will take your advice and continue to add peroxide...i had to buy 2 -12" airstones and a new pump ...the airstone that came with this settup was a piece of crap...i really feel foolish for spending the money on the stealth hydro unit...thanks to this forum i could build 3 of them for the price i paid for the bubbler and the lights...i also just found out my job sells the 105 watt cfl's in the blue spectrum and with my employee discount they are really cheap. My plants still look really healthy and there is daily growth ... Again thank you for all of your help and advice...i feel honored that you guys took the time to answer my questions.
i felt the roots ....some of the really brown ones simply disentigrated when i touched them and the last time i changed the nutes 2 weeks ago there was a lot of dead root matter in the res. and in the feed tube distribbutor...def root rot....the smell has cleared up and most of the slime is gone...i guess the more air the better ...those 2 12" air stones are really trowing out some nice bubbles...!!!!!!!
This is a good piece of advice I rarely see. I always like to add hydrogen peroxide even to the water used for soilless. Just a few drops, not enough to kill a lot of bacteria, but enough to increase the oxygen content of the water. In hydro/aero, it is a must.
Ok ...got another question ....i have all 6 plants at the stage where im ready to take about 6-7 clones from each .... i have obviously had some nute burn and nute lockout due to over feeding but not a ton and all 6 plants still look really healthy and continue to grow... Will i have problems with the clones because of the root rot and nute burn ....will they be hermied and do i just need to start over....i have about 11 white widow seeds left that i have not sprouted....i planned to take one of each set of clones and flower it to determine sex then destroy all the males and get serious about this grow and stay on top of my nutes but if im going to get bad results do to my lack of attention i would rather start over im 48 days into this grow...all replys welcome. i planned on having one of the healthy female clones as a mother plant and get rid of the ones with root rot
From the sound of things the root rot is going away, and actually if you were to clone your plants, the clones would most likely be in a little better shape than the mother (root wise). Just keep adding a little peroxide to the res even for the clones and they should be just fine. Root rot doesnt spread to the rest of the plant until the final stages of root rot, and then your plants would be unable to be saved. I think that you cought it in time) Clone away.