I don't have any hydro/aero set ups going now but I thought I'd pass on some great info I used to keep plants happy and healthy. This kills 99% of all pathogens and adds much more O2 to you nutrients. I promise you'll love it. The beginning discuses store bought products then followed by "DIY" methods. If you'd like to make your hydroponics a "Bioponic" hybrid system w/ the same beneficial bacteria found in the best of soils. I can show you instructions for making a "Biofilter" used to create then provide a "home" for the bacteria. It's the same as a trickle filter used in aquariums but adapted to work w/ your reservoir. It's the best of both worlds all in 1;)
JD
Oxy-Plus"® It should be noted that "Oxy-Plus"® is a product name that is easy to confuse with other products. There is also an "Oxy-Plus"® brand name product from "Growth Technology" with 17.5% H2O2 content, not the 35% content as the article below mentions. It's believed the 35% solution has been revised since the below article was written, and is now a 17.5% solution carrying slightly modified instructions. The mixes from both the below article and the revised instructions are compiled at the end of this message.
"Oxygen-Plus" is not the same as "Oxy-Plus"®, in fact both names seem to be commonly used where any oxygen related product is concerned. I've seen an "Oxy-Plus"® product meant to be taken internally by humans, another product to put in with your wash, and there are more. Yet another is a mild plant food but doesn't state the H2O2 content on the label.
Look for good labelling, make sure you know which product you have, or at least know the H2O2 content.
"Oxy-Plus"® contains 35% Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) in a stabilised form. H2O2 is highly oxygenating in action. It is a chemical which is fundamental to life itself, participating in many of the metabolic processes in plants and animals. When added to the nutrient tank it will quickly break down into pure water, releasing the extra Oxygen ion into the solution where it can be taken up by the roots in much the same way as nutrient ions.
In plants the extra Oxygen provided will massively stimulate protein production at the cellular level. This will greatly enhance the photosynthetic process, leading to bushier plants with larger leaves, thicker stems and shorter internodes. Plants will be stronger and leaves will be darker, thus collecting light with greater efficiency and further improving photosynthetic response.
"Oxy-Plus"® has many applications in the greenhouse or growroom. It can be used to improve germination of seeds and to increase strike rates of cuttings. It can be added to the nutrient tank and also used as a Foliar feed. Finally it can be used at the end of the season to disinfect the system and to clear out decaying organic material from growing media.
Test Strips. Used to monitor levels of "Oxy-Plus"® in nutrient solutions. Strips are easy to use and show a wide range from 1 - 100 PPM. H2O2. These readings will allow the easy monitoring and maintenance of effective levels of H2O2 in the nutrient tank. Optimum level for hydroponic systems is 30 - 100 PPM H2O2 .
Growing with H202 35% "Oxy-Plus"® is just one of a number of high performance Growth Enhancers now available to the dedicated grower. These instructions are based on a range of agents, including "Oxy-Plus"® which work best together. In all cases "Oxy-Plus"® can be used on its own for the applications suggested. In all cases it is important to stick to the recommended dosage. "Oxy-Plus"® is a very powerful chemical and higher doses can be harmful to plants.
MORE IS NOT ALWAYS BETTER
INSTRUCTIONS FOR USE:
Seed Germination.
To a Litre of lukewarm water add :
15 drops "Oxy-Plus"®
5 mls ( 1 teaspoon) "Nitrozyme"®
Stir thoroughly. Soak seeds in this solution for 24 hrs. before germinating in the usual way. Seeds treated in this way will germinate faster and produce more vigorous seedlings.
Cuttings (Clones).
Stock plant (mother). Stock plant should be sprayed or misted with "Nitrozyme"® about two weeks before cuttings are to be taken. This will produce a flush of vigorous new shoot growth and provide plenty of material for cuttings.
To each Litre of lukewarm water add:
5 mls ( 1 teaspoon) "Nitrozyme"®#
1 - 2 mls "Agral"
15 drops "Oxy-Plus"®
Mist stock plant thoroughly with this mixture. Apply when light levels are low, early morning is best time.
Treating Rockwool.
Take an appropriate amount of lukewarm water.
Adjust pH to 5.5.
For each Litre add :
15 drops "Oxy-Plus"®
5 mls "Nitrozyme"®
Allow Rockwool cubes to soak in this solution until thoroughly saturated. Set aside to drain.
Take cuttings in the usual way. Most species are propagated best from softwood tips. Selected material should show signs of healthy vigorous growth. Stems should be thick and firm and foliage should be dark green. We highly recommend "Clonex"® Hormone Rooting Gel as the best product for root initiation. Once all cuttings are in place, mist them thoroughly.
For misting solution, to each Litre of lukewarm water add:
5 mls ( 1 teaspoon) "Nitrozyme"®
1 - 2 mls "Agral"
15 drops "Oxy-Plus"®
To encourage speedy root initiation on your cuttings, it is necessary to pay attention to the environment in which this is taking place......Cuttings need to be kept in a very humid environment and will benefit from frequent misting. Best way to ensure ideal rooting environment is to use a propagator with a heated base and a high clear plastic cover. Keep cover on for at least three days then begin to open vents. Mist regularly with "Nitrozyme"® Foliar as above.
Hydroponic Systems To each 10 Litres of Tank Volume add :
5 mls ( 1 teaspoon) "Nitrozyme"®
2.5 mls."Oxy-Plus"®
5 mls "Earth Food"
Sir thoroughly before circulating to plants. "Oxy-Plus"® should be added to tank two or three times a week to maintain optimum levels of free Oxygen in the solution. Test strips are available to assist the grower in this (see your Hydroponic retailer).
If it's convenient to add "Oxy-Plus"® on a daily basis, then it should be added at the rate of 5ml per 20 Litres of tank volume.
Foliar Feeding :
Rocket Fuel .
Foliar feeding is the most efficient way to maximise benefits from these extraordinary natural growth enhancers. University studies have shown that correctly applied Foliar nutrition can be up to TEN times as useful to the plants as dry fertilisers. The following recipe is widely used in California where it is considered the ultimate growth booster and is affectionately known as Rocket Fuel.
To each Litre of water pH 6, slightly warmed, add the following ingredients, stirring or shaking thoroughly between each new addition :
1. 15 drops "Oxy-Plus" ® This will remove any Chlorine and increase level of Oxygen availability, improving nutrient uptake and usage in plants.
2. 36 drops "Agral".
3. 5 mls "Nitrozyme" ®
4. 30 mls "Earth Food"
Shake mixture thoroughly and mist the entire plant. Plants should be treated in this manner every two to three weeks and definitely no more than once a week. Foliar feeding should ALWAYS be carried out in low light, early morning or late evening. The above solution can also be used to water the root zone of plants. First dilute the mixture with four volumes of water. (One Litre of the above mixture will therefore make up to five Litres of watering solution).
Cleanup. "Oxy-Plus"® can be used to clean and sterilise your hydroponic system and growing medium. It is a powerful and very aggressive liquid and it will effectively kill all pathogens and harmful bacteria. After application it will rapidly break down to harmless substances and there is no risk of damage to future crops. For this reason "Oxy-Plus" ® is a much better material for sterilisation than "Hypochlorite". If you are using a medium such as Perlite or expanded clay you will need to remove as many of the old roots as possible. You can then soak the medium in a concentrated solution of "Oxy-Plus"®. This will oxidise organic matter in the medium and assist in its rapid decomposition. Remember to flush medium with fresh water before re-use. You can also make up "Oxy-Plus" in the tank and circulate it around the system to sterilise all the pipework, drippers etc. Once again remember to flush the system thoroughly with fresh water before installing new plants. For cleanup solution To each 10 Litres of Tank Volume add : 25 mls "Oxy-Plus" ®
Attention "Oxy-Plus"® is highly concentrated. The active ingredient is a volatile and aggressive chemical. Treat "Oxy-Plus"® with great caution and handle with due care. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN
BELOW ARE pH's CALCULATIONS BASED ON THE ABOVE ARTICLE.
These are based on the 35% H2O2 solution. For sterilising, these figures should provide an adequate concentration to do the job. If anything it should be much greater than that needed if the instructions were meant for the 17.5% product. At worse you'll pay a few pennies more for H2O2, but you'll rest assured the equipment will be sterilised.
If you don't have instructions that came with your product, beware of using too high a concentration of H2O2 with living plants.
25ml Oxy Plus @ 35% H2O2 to 10 litres water for sterilisation. Or 2.5ml per 1 litre
3.785 litres = 1 gallon
3.785 x 2.5ml = 9.46ml/gal or 10ml/gal Oxy Plus for sterilising.
Drug store H2O2 is 3% solution, Oxy plus is 35%. Will need 11.7 times more drug store H2O2 to do the same as Oxy Plus 35%. 11.7 x 10ml = 117ml/gallon drug store H2O2 to sterilise, OR 1/2 cup per gallon.
Below are the recommended concentrations for various mixes from each set of instructions included with the 17.5% and 35% products. The parts per million of H2O2 for each is also noted for comparison.
Will assume that 20 drops = one ml for the below.
H2O2 content 17.5% = 175ppm at 1ml per litre. 35% = 350ppm at 1ml per litre.
Increase oxygen content in hydro systems, for use 2-3 times a week = 17.5%, 5 ml per 10L 88ppm 35%, 2.5 ml per 10L 88ppm
Increase oxygen content in hydro systems, for use on a daily basis = 17.5%, 5 ml per 20L 44ppm 35%, 2.5ml per 10L 44ppm
Optimum H2O2 Levels for hydroponic systems. 30-50ppm for the 17.5% solution 30-100ppm for the 35% solution
Note: 30-50ppm seems to be safe for hydro systems/tanks, and up to 100ppm may be OK for a short period of time. Use your best judgement.
Seed germination. 17.5% : 20 drops per Litre, 175ppm 35% : 15 drops per Litre, 262ppm
Misting solution. 17.5% : 15 drops per Litre, 131ppm 35% : 15 drops per Litre, 262ppm
Treating Rockwool. 17.5% : 30 drops per Litre 262ppm 35% : 15 drops per Litre 262ppm
Sanitising. 17.5% : 50 ml per 10 Litre, 880ppm 35% : 25 ml per10 Litre, 880ppm
The above concentrations translated into US Gallons : 2.5ml per 10 Litre or 0.25ml per Litre or 0.95ml per Gal 5.0ml per 10 Litre or 0.50ml per Litre or 1.90ml per Gal 25ml per 10 Litre or 2.50ml per Litre or 9.50ml per Gal 50ml per 10 Litre or 5.00ml per Litre or 19.00ml per Gal 5.0ml per 20 Litre or 0.25ml per Litre or 0.95ml per Gal 15drops per Litre or 0.75ml per Litre or 2.84ml per Gal 20drops per Litre or 1.00ml per Litre or 3.79ml per Gal 30drops per Litre or 1.50ml per Litre or 5.68ml per Gal
The needed amount of a 3% H2O2 solution to produce the above PPM values : 5.5ml per Gal 3% H2O2 for 44 PPM 11.0ml per Gal 3% H2O2 for 88 PPM 16.5ml per Gal 3% H2O2 for 131 PPM 21.8ml per Gal 3% H2O2 for 175 PPM 33.2ml per Gal 3% H2O2 for 262 PPM 111.2ml per Gal 3% H2O2 for 880 PPM
Happy mixing. LIQUID CONVERSIONS. (US Gal)
Millilitre Gallon Cups Ounces Tsp. Tbsp. Litre 1.0000 0.00026 0.0042 0.0338 0.203 0.0676 0.0010 1.2321 0.00033 0.0052 0.0417 0.25 0.0833 0.0012 2.4642 0.00065 0.0104 0.0833 0.5 0.1667 0.0025 4.9284 0.00130 0.0208 0.1667 1 0.3333 0.0049 14.7852 0.00391 0.0625 0.5 3 1 0.0148 29.5703 0.00781 0.1250 1 6 2 0.0296 59.1406 0.01563 0.2500 2 12 4 0.0591 78.8542 0.02083 0.3333 2.6667 16 5.3 0.0789 118.2813 0.03125 0.5000 4 24 8 0.1183 157.7083 0.04167 0.6667 5.3333 32 10.6 0.1577 177.4219 0.04688 0.7500 6 36 12 0.1774 236.5625 0.06250 1 8 48 16 0.2366 3785.0000 1 16 128 768 256 3.7850
Appx 19 drops = 1 ml 1 ml = 1 gram H2O 1 litre = 1 kilogram H2O
Making Liquid Oxygen to prevent and cure...
The only oxy plus I could find for hydroponics was 17.5% and couldn't find it at any US hydroponics places
http://www.growthtechnology.com/product/GT056.asp
They do have 35% food grade H2O2 here
http://rawhealth.net/oxygen.htm
The nitrozyme may be a little expensive, it essentially is liquid seaweed, I believe, and I think you can find other liquid seaweed products cheaper than nitrozyme.
Could find no source for agral other than something called agral 90, which was just a surfactant.
Also could find no source for anything called "earth food"
This message was edited Apr 9, 2004 9:08 PM
JD since you are back at DG can you give us a source for the above ingredients or maybe hints on names.
Thanks,
Judy
I sure will. It's been such a long time since doing this, I'll need to rattle my brains and do some diging. I know I saw a OXY PLUS or similar product just last week. I use Maxicrop for foliar feeding, feeding/misting cuttings andI mix it with Superthrive most of the time for all applications too.
I'll go over that post above and replace the odd or hard to find ingredients with easy to find and use products. The main ingredients I use for most everything are Superthrive, Maxicrop(the green bottle) and drug store 3.5% hydrogen peroxide. Iuse mixtures of those for everything from seed soaking, cuttings and transplanting. Then I just add stronger ferts to finish vegatative growth and then agin for flowering.
I'll try to put something together ratio wise ASAP.
JLD.........Thanks for the imformation............How much 3% hydrogen perioxde, do i use to a gallon of water, to water vegetables outside in the garden soil?......Thanks......hoss
I have only been doing hydro for a year now and and only use H202 to clean with.
I use a product called hydrogaurd and by adding H202 to my water/nutes
will just defeate the use it. H202 will kill off your benifical bugs if you use
to much of it.
For hydro, if i want more O2 i just toss a aquirium air pump and air stone into
the system.
Neat info
Vbsparky, your absolutely right about it killing off beneficial microbugs etc. IF you use too much. This creates disolved O2 in smaller molecular "clusters" or individual H2O molecules that are much more readily absorbed by plants than air provided via airstone or the like. I've used it with plants that have been water logged to the point of rootrot and by adding H2O2, the plant can actually get more O2 while submerged in liquid than it could by merely letting it dry out or adding an airstone to the roots. It's all about more Oxygen at the most basic/smaller scale. Oxygen and many other elements tend to clump together in clusters that aren't as easily taken in by plants.
Ofcourse I can't prove this and I haven't actually seen it, it's just my understanding from articles etc. plus it just seems to make sense.
As for the 1st artical I posted to start this thread. I just thought I'd post it as it covered what I was trying to do aswell as other info I thought maybe helpful.
When using it to water potted plants or garden plants outdoors, 1/2 cup of 3% H2O2 per gallon of water works well. I know others that use less and others that use more, all with good results. I don't use it everytime I water as plants do well alone when in ideal conditions. But for times when they need a little help ie. rootrot or over-watered plants, using H2O2 helps out a lot.
Vbsparky there are times when you need to add enough H2O2 to kill both good and bad bugs(aerobic and anerobic bacteria) in order to kill the the bad bugs that cause rootrot. Once the plant is healthier and has no signs of rootrot(stagnant smells), then you can just use a little as a means of preventing it from happening again and adding extra O2 to the mix.
I hope that helps clear things up a little. I'm sure there are other ways to accomplish similar results, this just worked for me and I thought I'd share.
JD
My last hydro setup was a 8 foot long aeroflo tube hanging from the cealing
in the spare room. when i set it up , i do the nutes first and add the hydrogaurd.
also have a 12 inch airstone and dual outlet air pump to add more O2 to the water.
fire it up and get the bugs worked out so everything is spraying like it should.
then i start adding the plants. i had transplanted strawberries from soil to it,
which you cant get all the dirt off ther roots .. added some mint and peppermint
from my Ezcloner to the collection, some Green vine i had i took a cutting and
put that up in there. now im off n rocking .. i keep adding the hydroguard every
few days for the first few weeks then taper off to once a week.
Then the problem ... Dang spider mites took over .. killed off the strawberries
which were fruiting in november.
Well i gave up on the fight and tore it all down to toss the plants.
when i pulled the peppermint plant, the roots were 2 feet long and pure white
with a floressent Green stripe down the main part of the root ..
they looked awsome .. the other plants were nice and white and even all
the transplanted berry plants had nice white roots ( the new ones ).
Theres tons of good products out there to help and boost growth. But
I like the KISS method .. keep the water temp in the low 70's , ph 6 to 6.5
and give them all the food they need ...
VB Sparky
Everyone would like the KISS method.
aeroflo ~ nutes ~ hydrogaurd ~ airstone ~ dual outlet air pump ~ Ezcloner .. .. .. .. .. KISS?
As for this novice gardener, JD's recommendation of taking a little H peroxide out of the medicine cabinet has saved many an overwatered rotting plant for me. Can't get any more KISS than that.
I am sure the two of you understand what you are debating and we all are learning everyday. I had trouble with spider mites too and finally learned to spray with water and add to it alcohol, Murphy's Oil Soap, and a little Neem oil. That solution covers spider mites, mealy bugs, aphids and any other overwintering pests. Periodic spraying with this solution, misting plants occasionally and running a humidifier has made my overwintering much more successful.
Yesterday I learned something new; using worm castings worked into the soil is supposed to deter aphids!? I'll try it out. Have to always be open minded to new things.
Thank you JD for this most informative thread.
This message was edited Mar 6, 2005 10:45 AM
Vbsparky
I have an idea that may have caused your problem. How much lighting did you use? When I started I had a single 430 sonagro and the mites took over pretty quick. When I stepped up to 1000wattMH, the plants were healthy enough to fight off most pests themselves. Many hydro growers make themistake of listening to the people whom sell lighting. I was told my 1000mh would cover a 10ftx10ft square with plenty left over. I tried that and it was no where near true. It covers a conopy that large but w/ no light penetration at all. I bought another 1000watter andput each lamp over a 4x5ft. bed and everything thrived. Sadly my electricity bill was thriving way too much aswell. I'm betting your strawberries weren't getting nearly enough light but the mint can adapt and thrive in most any condition. I then took 2 different hydro systems to the patio under sunlight and quess what? No mites or any other pests. I've found it's nearly impossible to supply enough light for fruit of any real quality indoors. They may look good but they suffer in 1 way or another.
Another area you may want to look is the nutes. I found when using Gen. Hydro 3 part nutes, my plants were still lacking. I played and played with many additives and finally had my bets luck when I used a biofilter in conjunction with pots full of grorocks(Lavarocks like stuff) as it acts just like a filter once established. I also got away from store bought systems and made my own drip system that sppit out 2 gph per plant which the bacteria needed to thrive in each pot. Do you have a ec or ppm meter? I'm curious as to what ph level you had and at what levels you had what nutes at. How often did you change your res.?
There are endless variables and there is also endless ways to get great results. It's all about finding a happy medium that works well with your style and your crop. Mixing species in a single system was a miserable experience for me unless it was just house plants. Mixing fruits or veggies will deplete your nutesand then cause nute lock up on other plants faster than you can imagine.
I only play around with hydro on a very small scale now. Mostly I like setting a few bubbling buckets up for specimen plants just to show off for our visitor's.
Doing hydro full time took too much time, effort and I found a well mixed soil out performed hydro more often than not. I now use my lights to keep my tropicals alive over winter and I get to enjoy blooms all winter long.
Keep tweaking around with a single crop before trying to do to much. Once you get 1 thing dialed in well, then try others. I think that would make your life easier and much more enjoyable. Good luck
JD
aeroflo ~ nutes ~ hydrogaurd ~ airstone ~ dual outlet air pump ~ Ezcloner .. .. .. .. .. KISS?
yep, well to me its KISS ( keep is simple silly) maybe it dont look it to some.
My EzCloner is just a tub with a few sprayers in it hook to some pvc pipe and a water pump.
add some plain water and plug it in, pop in the cuttings and sit back .. thats it .,
I've only done hydro for a little more then a year but do alot of reading.
From my gatherings and understanding , once you get root rott , you got it , all
you can do now is control it .. biggest cause of it is high water temp . over 80F,
using the hydrogaurd to me is alot easer then using H2O2 ,, just measure a few
teaspoons or tablespoons and dump it in ..
H2O2 i gotta figure out what % it is (depending how its written on the label),
how much to delute .. or not to . how much to mix ..
dont goof you youll eat the roots right off the plants ..
The hydrogaurd might cost more but man i have see it make the brown slime
just fall off the roots in my NFT system.
JLD ,
I dont remember what the ppm's were now , i think up around 1500.
yeah , i got a ppm and ph pen.
When the rez gets used up i just play the feel gauge , do i feel like
mixing up more nutes or just add some water back for now ..
most of the time its one week just water add back and the next a new
mixture of nutes.,
Yea on the light , i just had a 400 HPS on the tomato and 80 watt floro's on
the berries , but the berries were sweet and yummy , just small in size.
i had some Habenaro's in a aeroflow using the same GH 3 part . and they
loved it. it just got to hot in the house so i move it all outside, put the resivoire in
the ground to keep the temp down. after flower and fruit set i ran the ppm's over
2300, i was running close to 4.0 EC @ .7conversion.
the Habs got 6 foot tall and were very very very HOT!!
right now i got some palms and cordylines in coco coir on drippers, 30 minutes of drip / 8 hours off.
feeding them at 700 ppm.
getting ready to infest the room with some morning glories and cardinal climbers.
going to toss some of them in the aeroflo unit with some catnip for my cat.
Moving your res. to keep it cooler was probably 1 of your best moves IMO. I've found from experience and reading that 72F is optimal.
As far as controlling rootrot, it can be wiped out completely IMO. I've never tried to control it. Your thinking of the cause of rootrot is pretty much right on as water temp. dictates the amount of saturated O2 water can hold. When it gets around 80F and up, the amount of O2 is pretty low. That's where H2O2 comes into play bigtime as it not only helps eliminate the anerobic bacteria that causes the smell and speeds up the rotting process. It also chemically alters the waters ability to have more available O2. If you look at the make up of water and hydrogen peroxide, the only difference is 1 extra oxygen molecule. When the 2 are combined and used like this, the extra oxygen molecule breaks away from the H2O2 and is now available for the plant.
I've never had rootrot in hydro before but I have had it in potted plants almost every fall when I bring my tropicals indoors for the winter. If the saucer attatched to the bottom of the pot sits full of water for more than a week, it goes stagnant. Before I figured out using H2O2, the only remedy was to leach the plant with lots of water and remove the saucer completely. By merely adding 1/2 cup peroxide per gallon of water and letting the roots sit in it for a few days, the rot is gone along with the odor and you can see the foliage perking up immediately. I know this isn't hydro but I can see where it could do the same in hydro. I'm not familiar with the product your using and I'm glad its working well for you. The only reason I posted this thread was due to my excitement of figuring out how simple and cheaply 1 could cure this potential problem with such a cheap additive. That's when I thought I'd try it in hydro with healthy plants. I noticed healthier looking plants and not as much yellowing on lower leaves. Then I noticed the plants were depleting the nutrients from my res. solution faster and faster/thicker growth over all.
If it's not for you, that's cool. I know it has helped a few folks out and may get others to experiment more in other ways to help us all out. I'm tired of talking about it now unless soemone else wants to try it and needs some more input.
Now I'm going to work on my cuttings and seedlings for spring.
Keep it green friends;) Adios, JD