This is my first grow and I have been plagued by deficiencies and other issues. I have: Ebb & Flow system with a 25 gallon res. 1000w HPS w/ vented hood and glass shield Fert- 2 part N-P-K, senical Mg mix, epsom salt I am growing AK48 (from seed) all the problems started in the 3rd week under CPS. To be honest; I didn't have a clue what I was doing at that time. All the info I had was a list of ph's, ppm's and temps and very little knowledge (2nd hand from the guys at the hydro store) on what all this meant. after the problems started I realized that if my baby was gonna live then I needed to do some home work. since then I have read (cover to cover) The Indoor outdoor bible and one other. Just when I thought I had fixed all my issues... yep you guessed it. Things got worse. It started with what I thought was a sulfur deficiency. symptoms: top of stems turning purple, Burned, down curling tips and stunted growth. I first added sensical mg mix (confusing Mg and MgS) at it's recommended dosage. then realizing my mistake I purchased Epsom salt and added (1 tsp per gallon) Not only have I NOT seen progress from that, but its gotten worse (in about a week). Now, the effected foliage has grown rust colored spots that have consumed them, the leaves are curling upward and very brittle. It looks as if its spreading to the new growth but I'm not quite sure. Will adding adding sensical mg mix and epsom salt (Mg S) cause toxicity of Mg? Or am I having other issues? Any help would be greatly appreciated! BTW I will post some pics tomorrow
Hard to diagnose without pics...they will help you get more replies... Also, you may get more help here...Sick Plants and Problems - Grasscity.com Forums
Oh by the way... I am changing out the res water now (an all day process with Rev osmosis filter), so I can apply any nute changes today.
Good place to start... What kind of drift are you getting...ie you set your ph at ??? later that day or the next day it is at ???
well, after I added the epsom the ppms were at about 1350 and I balanced the ph to 6 I am not sure if I am measuring the ppms correctly though. My reader say "ppm NaCl". It has other measurements such as "KCI" and "442". I don't really know what all that means. I have always used the "NaCl".
NaCl is simply sodium chloride, or table salt for the laymen. that ppm is soooooo high. might want to check the EC. ppm should be of total dissolved solids, not just salt.
I think that setting has to do with what you use to calibrate... See if you can make sense of this...ec meter calibration - need help quick!!! - Hydroponics Forum - GardenWeb Your ppm sounds kinda high... If your ph stays constant, 5.8 is better than 6.0...if it rises, you could set it as low as 5.6 and reset when it gets to 6.0...
Never had good luck letting it get that low. I never let it go below 5.6 if all this was happening to me I would flush the system and start back with half strength nutes and no more than 1/4 teaspoon of the epson salt per gallon PHed to 5.8.. I did go trough something like this about a month ago. mine turned out to be because my cheap ass wasn't changing the res often enough.
There...changed it just for you... Depends on how fast it rises...5.4 is a bit too low, but if it goes up to 6.0 in a day, it won't stay that low very long... I think bender's advice is sound if you haven't tried this yet...
If it goes up that fast you need to find out what is causing it.. I only have to adjust mine about once a week..
That's 'cause you have your ppms in line...over/under feeding cause wild ph swings... Interesting reading...http://forum.grasscity.com/advanced-growing-techniques/613139-lucas-formula-2-0-how-maximize-lucas-formula.html
What setting do you read your ppm or ec (ie."ppt-KCI","ppt-442","ppt-NaCl","uS", "mS","ppm-KCI","ppm-442","ppm-NaCl" These are my options with my meter).
mine doesn't have all of that so I really can't help you there, But it sounds like a great start to a new thread so someone that knows can help..