HYDRO Not sure what I did or didn't do

[Toker1]

48” seems too high for the light. The manufacturer suggests 32”. I have never used the viasoectra but when I used a mars hydro 1200 (same actual draw equivalent) I had my light 18” from the canopy if I remember correctly.

[Shock]

48” seems too high for the light. The manufacturer suggests 32”. I have never used the viasoectra but when I used a mars hydro 1200 (same actual draw equivalent) I had my light 18” from the canopy if I remember correctly.

I've only got it that high because of what the manufacturers specs are. I had it 48" for seedling stage. The plants are exactly 3 weeks old today (from germination) so I wasn't sure when it was time for veg and to drop it the 4" down to 44. Been running them on 18/6.

Should I bring it lower? I don't want to cook them.

[Toker1]

I read 32 for veg, but that was on Amazons website. I would think lower. Just based on my experience with the Mars hydro 1200. Yes, at 3 weeks you are in veg now.

[Shock]

Tested pH directly from the reservoir this morning.

[D.A.A.S.69]

Ph is very important, not sure about hydro, but I think it's supposed to be between
5.5-6.5ph.

[Shock]

That's what I've read and tried to keep it in that range. I was using a pH pen but ran out of the calibration solution and the liquid pH test was cheaper than the replacement solution. I see the test this morning as being around 5.6-5.7 or at least that's how I would read it for a fish tank. Am I reading it wrong? Should I adjust pH?

[D.A.A.S.69]

I've used regular milk to calibrate my meters, when I ain't got nothin else, it always is 6.5-6.6ph,
PH rises in hydro I think, I ain't sure though,
You should be fine ,if you keep it between 5.5-6.5.
Pretty sure someone might say milk is bad on ph meters, lol, but I only used it on my cheaper meters, not the BlueLabs one. But it ain't never hurt my cheap meters, either

[LurkingInTheGrass]

Shock

I see you mentioned using distilled water for top ups, but no mention of a Cal-mag additive.

I use RO In DWC, part of the deal means using a calcium/magnesium additive (GH CALiMAGic, I'm using the flora trio)

https://www.growweedeasy.com/ro-water

I understood that distilled water was bad for hydro (it is so pure, it actually strips the plant)

From RQS:

https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/blog-calcium-deficiency-in-cannabis-plants-n602

Neutral mediums & hydro: Calcium problems are far more likely when variables in nutrients and the grow environment aren't buffered by active soil. Most water contains calcium, so little is added to commercial nutrient solutions. If a deficiency develops:
Make a mixture of one teaspoon hydrated lime to four litres of water and water in.
Use a commercial calcium booster or liquid lime.

If your water is 150ppm (EC 0.3), then there is little risk of calcium deficiency. Using unmodified ROor distilled water can strip calcium from plants. Before making a nutrient solution, add two parts calcium to one part magnesium to the water until the ppm reading is at least 150-200 (EC 0.3-0.4).

[LurkingInTheGrass]

Res change, 7-10 days, unless I really screwed the pooch and need to flush

I have gone to 14-16 days, but the reservoir smelled 'less than fresh' 😁 at the end

[Farmall]

I once used distilled water for an invertebrate salt water fish tank and the water had been distilled thru a copper still..... the ion content of the copper was so high every test kit showed it off the scale with the first titration drop.... would have killed everything .Just a thought about what you may think your using.

[D.A.A.S.69]

Farmall, help the man out, I told him I didn't know Jack about hydro,
You an. @ LurkingInTheGrass, know lots more than I do.
But I do remember asking him if his water was good.
What kind of water do you use in hydro, tap water ? Never tried hydro, I ain't smart enough.!! Help Shock out, if you dont mind, I'm confused, the way he describes it, there shouldn't be any problems.

[Shock]

All the lower leaves are doing this. This one is the most severe. Starting to see the same symptoms in the healthy plant. D.A.A.S.69

[Toker1]

Shock are you using all 3 of your GH nutrients? And following their feed schedule from their website?

[Shock]

Toker1 I was only dosing Flora Micro&Grow and only at roughly 1/5 of the feeding guideline on the bottle. I only added nutes when doing a water change and not when topping off. When I did the change yesterday, I added nutes at 3 tsp/5gallon. The recommended amount was 5 tsp/5 gallon. When they wake up I will do another change and add the Bloom.
Do you know what type of deficiency could cause it?
On GWE diagnosis it looks like it could be calcium, magnesium, or manganese or a combination but nothing really explains the bleaching/peeling.
The rust spots go all the way down to the cotyledon.

[Toker1]

Shock It’s really hard to say. The realm of calcium/iron/magnesium is particularly difficult because if you take away one, it affects the others.
1/5 the dosage and the lack of bloom can do something like this. Let’s start with a flush, and what I mean is really rinse off those roots really well.
Then follow the GH feed chart (1/2 the dosage is when you are not sure how the plant will respond to full strength feedings). Then use the hydroguard like normal. PH down to 5.5 and check the PPM or EC to make sure the mineral content is in a low enough range.
The spotted leaves will not recover, but growth should pick back up again and you need to keep checking to make sure the issue does not continue to spread to other healthy leaves.

[D.A.A.S.69]

Shock , are you using Micro first ?and shaking it up real good ? Before adding Grow an Bloom.?
Just curious , been thinkin bout this all night,
If you are using good water, an your nutreints, what's on the bottle, the way they tell you to use them, you should be fine. You got your ph, right, you said.
Follow the directions on your nute bottles. Whatever it says to do, but only half strength. Plus add some cal-mag, at least 2-3ml, a gallon.
GoodLuck

[Toker1]

He was not using the bloom. Which is recommended on the the feed chart found on the manufacturers website. Guess what the bloom has, magnesium.
My guess is cal-mag could solve that issue. But first, let’s get the nutes straight...dumping more calcium and/or magnesium into the mix could potentially be counterproductive. This is just me playing it safe. The normal GH feed should contain enough magnesium and his tap water should contain more than enough calcium as is. I’m just being overly cautious because I don’t want to sent his plants into lock out right now.

[Shock]

I had not been shaking the bottle of nutrients up before adding them but I have been adding micro first and then grow and then Hydroguard at the end. I put it all in one of those 5 gallon water cooler jug, put the cap on, and roll it around for a good 1-3 minutes. I then let it sit for an hour. Then I test the pH. I don't have a ppm meter just a copy of my municipal water quality report. This is why I'm so confused. I've followed the directions from the tutorial near exactly (dosed a little less nutrients). I have not used any distilled water since the issues started appearing. I have only used about half of the gallon of distilled water total between both reservoirs in two weeks so I don't think that's what caused it but like Farmall said, there is no telling what was in the small amoun I did use, so I won't be going back to that. I also thought it could be wind burn since I have 5 fans in my 4x4 tent but the two on the floor are pointed straight up, one is blowing across the top of the light, one is blowing directly under the light, and the third is aimed to blow th4 light exhaust directly into the carbon filter while the extraction fan is running. There is no direct air flow on either of the plants unless I open the front flap on the tent. I have ordered cal-mag though to be on the safe side. At least if I do end up with too much calcium like Toker1 said, at least now I am well versed in the art of water changes and have the steps/guide on how to flush.

Thank you all for all of your help. I'm going to do a change tonight as I didn't have a chance to do it last night. Fingers crossed.

Side note: Farmall your fish and live rock would have been fine and you would never have gotten ich again haha. Would have been a very bad day for your inverts though.

[Toker1]

Yeah, a water quality report will not tell you the ppm in your reservoir. Every time you PH adjust, you are increasing the PPM. With out a meter, you will not know if the salt content of the water is too high. If the salt is too high, and you add cal-mag you could experience nutrient lock out which will lead to further deficiencies.
The GH trio is a well balanced formula when used correctly. Once you balance the micro, grow, and bloom... see if that fixes the issue. If you continue to have issues, check the PPM and of low enough...then try the cal-mag.
This is the least risky way to troubleshoot your issue.

[gbauto]

Those plants are far enough along that you should be using the veg stage concentration for the GH Flora trio. Those plants are hungry-feed them

[Shock]

Left is perking up, right has a leaf tacoing but also showing the same spots as the one on the left. About to do a water change on both.

[Toker1]

You can clip the dead “taco” leaf off now. Lol

[Shock]

pH of the nutrient mix after 1 hour and 3ml of pH down. It was between 7.5 - 8.5 before I added pH down. Should I add another 0.5ml of pH down and let it set and test again or do you think it's in range that I could go ahead and change the water?

[Toker1]

Ph should be 5.5 right now. Let me know when your there.

[Mr.furley]

Those drops are really confusing and have mess me up in more than one grow. They are better than nothing but I would suggest a nice Ph pen.

[Farmall]

I found several under $20.00 on Amazon as well as a calibration liquid for acid and base adjustment. Despite the $11,000,000.00 for pumps buckets and lights I did not get a better pen but... this one has been reliable I think.

[Shock]

They both are looking better.

[Toker1]

She looks happier now. Glad to hear it’s working out. Hit me up if something changes.

[gbauto]

Much better. Use the feed chart as a guide-ultimately, the plant will tell you what it wants.