introducing air into reservoir

[medicalGreenGrower]

just wondering if i should have an air stone to introduce oxygen into my hydro reservoir. i'm using an ebb and flow system with 20 gallon reservoirs. will the added oxygen change the chemistry of the nutrients? thanks.

 

[diablo_cannabis]

oxygenating the water will not hurt it at all. i have an air stone in my reservoir to keep the water from becoming stagnant and to keep the nutrients from settling at the bottom.

 

[Tater]

medicalGreenGrower, that is exactly how DWC or Deep Water Culture works. Your plants will love the extra O2. If you ever decide to use CO2 though in your grow becareful using airstones as bubling CO2 through water will lower the pH.

 

[WeedHopper]

Yes ,,DWC and Clonners,, work great that way. I LOVE BUBBLES. And so will your Plants.

 

[medicalGreenGrower]

i understand that i would want an air stone if i was using DWC but i have an ebb and flow system. i read on a nute bottle that oxygen pulls out necessary nutrients so if i'm just using an ebb and flow system i wasn't sure if i should throw in an air stone. i am using co2 so maybe if i use air pump/air stone set up i should put the pump near the ceiling since co2 sinks? thanks.

 

[Tater]

If you are using an ebb and flow system you don't need an air stone, but its up to you. Capillary action will provide the plants with the O2 the need.

 

[someguy]

i might do overkill, but in a big fan of aeration

 

[Vegs]

but i have an ebb and flow system. i read on a nute bottle that oxygen pulls out necessary nutrients so if i'm just using an ebb and flow system i wasn't sure if i should throw in an air stone.

I'm in the same boat as well because I've had the same thoughts but wasn't really sure if I was going to reap any rewards of adding another device sucking up more electricity to only provide minimal benefit. I never heard of oxygen lowering the nute levels. My reservoir is not only black in color but capped so it doesn't get much contact with moving air.

 

[POTUS]

As Tater has said, in an ebb and flow system, adding oxygen to your reservoir is pointless. During the "Flow" or "Fill" cycle, the plants gain their nutrients and water. During the "Ebb" or "Drain" cycle, the water recedes and pulls fresh air all the way to the bottom of the grow chamber. The media and root mass will retain enough moisture to supply the roots with all the needed water and nutrients during the "Drain" cycle and they are getting all the oxygen they need during that period as well.

This is taking for granted that you're running your cycles properly. If your nutrient strength is correct, you should be able to run your pump cycle every couple of hours. I use one hour on, two hours off, 24/7. My plants love it.

However, if you ask twenty Ebb and Flow users, you'll get thirty different cycle settings. :smoke1:

 

[Vegs]

Lol, no doubt...I roll with 3 - 15 minute cycles.

 

[Tater]

However, if you ask twenty Ebb and Flow users, you'll get thirty different cycle settings.

haha to true

 

[greenfriend]

imo i would have either an airstone or a small circulation pump to keep the res solution from becoming stagnant. in ebb and flow the root system doesnt really need the extra oxygen, but it cant hurt, and stagnant water is not ideal

 

[CasualGrower]

imo i would have either an airstone or a small circulation pump to keep the res solution from becoming stagnant. in ebb and flow the root system doesnt really need the extra oxygen, but it cant hurt, and stagnant water is not ideal

What POTUS said earlier was ABSOLUTELY right..... with an Ebb and Drain system you do NOT need an airstone to oxygenate your water..... the pure movement of that water will oxygenate and keep it circulating enough to keep it from going stagnant.

Some people use an airstone or 2 to keep the nute solution stirred however and keep any settling elements in the solution suspended.. it is a good method. Some people might use a small submersible pump to keep the water moving to help keep the nutes from settling, however placement of that pump and the outlet of that pump will have to be placed so as you do not set up a constant current in your res. IF you do that you will set up a whirlpool effect in there and then all your not totally dissolved nutes will collect in the centers of these lil whirlpools....

I am kinda making this a lil more confusing than it needs to be, however if you do a weekly water changes or so, there is NO need to worry about it heh....

 

[POTUS]

Another bit of knowledge for you; If you size your reservoir so that you can add one tenth of it's total volume per/day in fresh nutrient solution, you never need to change out your water/nute solution.

That also prevents the water from ever getting "stagnant".

Changing out the water in an ebb and flow system should NEVER be necessary. If you have to, then your reservoir is too big and it's making you waste money.

 

[Vegs]

Another bit of knowledge for you; If you size your reservoir so that you can add one tenth of it's total volume per/day in fresh nutrient solution, you never need to change out your water/nute solution.

Amen! I never change my rez. I tier the nute schedule plus add fresh water daily.

 

[TentFarmer]

Ready for the opinion of another Eb user?

I run an air stone and a small pump. Even with both of these going I still get a little nuit settlement. I know this system is viewed as overkill by many, but the amount of electric used by the water and air pump are nothing compared to the rest of the setup.

If you're going to use a water pump I've got a trick. My pump has 4 little suction cups on the bottom of it. I stick it to the res wall and then pull the top two off. Then the pump is aimed at the bottom of my res. I aim the pump right at the heat element and towards the flood pump.

My air stone gets put to the side of the res. When I use both I notice little settlement on the bottom. Also note that many water pumps will filter the nuits. If I hit my pump with fresh water when doing a res change, it poured out dark nuits. I tried removing the filter and that worked until it sucked up a little piece of hydroton. Thankfully it worked fine once I removed said hydroton.

I would suggest that you do at least one or the other. Although I'll keep working with both if for no other reason then to hear how wrong I am.

If there was only one method that worked, we wouldn't need this board.

Good luck

 

[POTUS]

Ready for the opinion of another Eb user? I run an air stone and a small pump. Even with both of these going I still get a little nuit settlement.

If your nutrients won't dissolve in water, even with water flowing around them 24/7, imagine what they're doing in your grow chambers.

Pitch whatever you're using in the bin and use a liquid fert like the three part Flora Series made by General Hydroponics. It mixes instantly with water and needs no constant stirring.

We all learn over the years what works or not. Now that you've learned, move on and have even better crops with less management.

The entire ebb and flow method is designed to make it easy. No changing of water, no reason to stir nutrients, no reason to add air to your reservoir. No roots to trim. Just easy.

As for: "If there was only one method that worked, we wouldn't need this board.", obviously your method isn't working. You have undissolved nutrients laying in the bottom of your reservoir despite a constant flow of water movement around the solids. All you need to do is quit being stubborn and change your method instead of trying to prove you can do it the wrong way by adding more complication to it.

 

[TentFarmer]

If your nutrients won't dissolve in water, even with water flowing around them 24/7, imagine what they're doing in your grow chambers.

Pitch whatever you're using in the bin and use a liquid fert like the three part Flora Series made by General Hydroponics. It mixes instantly with water and needs no constant stirring.

We all learn over the years what works or not. Now that you've learned, move on and have even better crops with less management.

The entire ebb and flow method is designed to make it easy. No changing of water, no reason to stir nutrients, no reason to add air to your reservoir. No roots to trim. Just easy.

As for: "If there was only one method that worked, we wouldn't need this board.", obviously your method isn't working. You have undissolved nutrients laying in the bottom of your reservoir despite a constant flow of water movement around the solids. All you need to do is quit being stubborn and change your method instead of trying to prove you can do it the wrong way by adding more complication to it.

I appreciate the advice, however there is more info that you are not aware of. I am using PUre Blend Pro from Botanicare witch is a hydro organic fertilizer. The system takes care of all of my micro nutrients and has provided some very very nice results. While I could throw away 100+ dollars in nuits so I didn't have a very small amount of nuits settle don the bottom of the res, I would rather use up what I have and possibly try something different then.

I understand I am stuborn. However if I didn't stick to my guns at times, and changed everytime someone told me to, then I wouldn't have made it this far. My ppm stays very consistent through the week and I spend 20 minutes a week changing the res water.

I'm a hands on type of guy. I brew my own beer, grow my own dope, and create and maintain many other projects in my life. While I have no frustrations with my current system, I'm sorry to hear you do.

Appreciate the advice, illistrates the "20 different answers" scenario quite well.

 

[NewbieG]

I run an ebb and flo and have two air stones running full time. Its so little electricity and the plants seem to love it. I vegger my bag seed for a month (I topped them as well) and I got shoots over 3 feet tall. Hope this helps.

 

[POTUS]

I appreciate the advice, however there is more info that you are not aware of. I am using PUre Blend Pro from Botanicare witch is a hydro organic fertilizer. The system takes care of all of my micro nutrients and has provided some very very nice results. While I could throw away 100+ dollars in nuits so I didn't have a very small amount of nuits settle don the bottom of the res, I would rather use up what I have and possibly try something different then.

I understand I am stubborn. However if I didn't stick to my guns at times, and changed every time someone told me to, then I wouldn't have made it this far. My ppm stays very consistent through the week and I spend 20 minutes a week changing the res water.

Why are you throwing away your nutrient solution every week?

The reason I ask is that if your reservoir is sized correctly, the plants would use about one/tenth of the total volume each day. The evening of each day, you could add fresh solution to top off the reservoir and never have a problem. I've been doing this for decades. I've never thrown out a single gallon of nutrient solution. It's all used, every time. I never have problems of any kind while doing this.

So, as I was saying:

I don't have to stir my nutrients and they don't collect in my grow chambers. Yours does settle in your reservoir and because of that, there is no way the same thing isn't happening in your grow chambers. That will end up with a problem of salts buildup.

I don't waste any nutrients by throwing them out each week. Every cent I spend is used by the plants. Every time you throw out your nutrient water each week, you're throwing money down the drain.

DISCLAIMER SO THAT YOU DON'T THINK THIS IS AN ATTACK OR CAUSING AN ARGUMENT:

Please don't think I'm attacking you. This group is for people to explain different methods of growing and their benefits or disadvantages.

I believe that the way you're using your ebb and flow system is wasteful of nutrients, electricity and equipment.

You have the additional costs of another pump, more expenditures on nutrients and the potential buildup of nutrient salts in your grow chambers. Also more labor because of the solution change-out each week.

When a method that eliminated those problems or costs is presented, what is it about changing to a more effective manner of growing that isn't something you would want to do?