The Hydro Guy F*** Up thread!

[MynameStitch]

I know a lot of us there has been one point in time we did not know how to fix a problem so relied on the Hydro shop guy to point us in the right direction!
Though it seems as time go by; there comments and fixes get more ridiculous.
The worst one recently being in my thread telling a guy to spray neem oil all over the guys buds to help rid of mites!

So I am dedicating this thread to everyone who has had messed up advice given to them by the hydro shop guys! You should always take the advice given to you from them like a grain of salt; taken at your own risk type of thing!


Anyone who has had a bad experience please post here and lets get a collection started!

Cause it seems more and more are getting funny and crazier!
One proof is just in my sig

 

[BowlPacks]

Stitch!!! Havent seen you in a while!
Yeah, the hydro store guys are "know it alls". I've heard people get the WORST advice from the store. I used to correct them, but nowadays if im even there im trying to keep a low profile.
Good to see the old school come new again!!

 

[Mr Celsius]

So I had root aphids and the guy tells me to buy patrol and spray on the plants when the lights go out and I would get rid of the flyer's. He also said to spray around the root zone and it would completely get rid of all the root aphids

$200 wasted.

 

[GivaDogaBone]

I bought two bags of dirt and was going to mix it in buckets, hydroguy tried to sell me a plastic cement mixer for 400 dollars. Don't fall for the over sell.

 

[Blest_1]

I dont ask those guys anything. Thats what this site is for. If you cant find it in a search, theres always someone on here with the info you seek willing to help.

If you walked into this hydro store I used to frequent and ask anything about growing they start acting all weird and nervous. Even when I was actually asking about seeds for some sort of tropical flower to grow. Maybe it was just me getting profiled. I dont exactly look like someone that would spend around 3K in a hydro store just to grow exotic flowers from South America.

 

[Suby]

I could fill a whole thread with the BS these guys fed me from the time I was a newb to today.
I'm lucky I have a hydro shop owner that has a phD, he gets results or money back and I have yet to return anything.
He's shown me more about growing than I have learned online, I get the scientific reason things do or don't work with him as opposed to hudu and "this guy I know tried it and it was awesome...", he even pulls out the textbooks sometimes when things are slow.
I pay maybe 10% more than ordering online but knowledge has a price and at the $/g rate of MJ it's worth every pennie.

I'm not trying to Jack Stiches thread, she is a guru in my eyes and her message is a good one, beware of the people who run these places, they are both a security risk and a pit for shitty information.

Anything pest related be carefull, they want to sell you an $ solution not a cheap one and if your an organic grower don't tell them, they love to sell useless beneficial insects before even knowing what had infested your garden.

I'm in sales so I see these guys comin a mile away lol, be annoying and ask questions, if they draw a blank then research before buying.

Buy ph meters and EC pens as seperate units, combo's work but over time one probe likes to be wet and the other dry so...

Test anything electrical before buying, especially ballasts that have been repaired or refurbished, I have these bastards plug in everything I buy before I pay..in cash of course.

Check soil and especially compost for critters before bringing them home, I've tossed about 3-4 bags of compost after seing things jump out the bag, a yellow insect trap close to a small hole will confirm if critters are present.

Man I am stoned, sorry for the lol

S

 

[Bulldog11]

My hydro guy once tried to tell me that buying CO2 wasn't worth it becuase the plants produce enough CO2 on there own. I told him it was an inclosed system and fresh air only gets brought in every 5 hours, he said, "your plants will produce enough on their own no problem." That's when it became necessary to start driving another 20 min to another hydro store.

 

[yamaha_1fan]

I know a while back the hydro guy told me a dayton 256 4" squireel fan was going to cool 3 hoods with 4" flanges that had 1k bulbs. After we set the fan up, we could not feel an ounce of suction.

WTF did I know?

Years later in a new area/new store I do my research here, then ask for the product.

Recently I went to buy some SM90 to control some mold/mildew I had on my rocks. When checking the bottle, it says its a wetting agent. I asked the guy and he called the other store and they both denied ever hearing it being used to control mold/mildew and suggested some other stuff which happened to be cheaper. The stuff worked great but the shitty part is I could have gotten it at Home Depot and saved the 45 minute drive.

I dont ask alot of questions. Just tell them what I need and leave

 

[MynameStitch]

First I like to start by saying thank you to everyone who has shared there stories so far; it's us as a whole community that makes it count!

Hey there bowlpacks; I have been around; I mainly stay in the infirmary!
How ya been doing bro?

Dude, hydroguys are a pain man, I don't know which is worse them or cops coming on here giving out grow advice lol.

Hey there suby! great to see ya ! Na man, you are not trying to hijack at all bro!
Thanks for sharing your story as it's very very true and a good well written post

Dude, :shakes head: I can't believe some of the stuff that comes out of these guys mouths..... I mean my god dude..... it's so insane it should be criminal sometimes lol.

One thing I will share is this; if you make yourself look like you don't know a whole lot; it's open season for them on you to try to get you to buy all kinds of useless stuff.

So if you go to a hydro shop; it's ok to ask questions, but don't let them sucker you into stuff.

 

[zero.kewl]

when i had spidermites i also got told to go out and by safer soap with neem..... do not try this method... no matter how much u wash off your bud or how long u wait. it kills every hair and make it taste like this harsh burnt pop corn... fucken sucked lol.

 

[Queso45]

When I started growing, I went to the hydro shop to have the guy recommend I use soil mixed with coco. Came home, went on ICmag after I mixed everything, and learned you need different PH levels for soil and soiless. I wasted all the soil and coco.

Went back to get fox farm soil. Different employee this time... told me I should plant directly into just Ocean Forest and in 3 weeks to start adding fox farm veg nutes. After a month from seed I had 6 inch seedlings with nute burn.

Also... first time I bought a PH tester the guy told me to use the one where you put soil in and add the drops. Like I could ever tell what the PH was in that doody water.

I think I had to buy everything except my Lights and fan twice before I got the right stuff. Fuck the hydro guys.

Oh and BTW... Stitch was the one who bailed me out of every one of my mistakes. Fixed my nute burn, recommended PH pool strips, fixed my nute burn again....She's the best. If only Stitch worked at the hydro store...

 

[s0cK3y3]

EYE H E A R T MynameStitch!!

aNyhow - I asked a hydro shop regular employee if drip is really that beneficial whilst dwc. I told him I was told the "feeder roots" were on the top and top drip would provide up to a 50% increase in yield. The guy told me there is no such thing as feeder roots and that all roots derive nutrients from the bottom, lowest hanging roots.

After I told my friend of this, he told me he would prove it. Side by side dwc to a dwc/drip and sure as shit the plant (in veg) was twice the size of straight dwc.

Another case of getting a second opinion that saved my ass heh

 

[MynameStitch]

dude, craziness man pure craziness! thanks guys for the support and sharing your stories; my point is in making this thread is to watch out for what advice a hydro guy gives.......so far I am sure who ever read this so far knows this now

 

[MynameStitch]

bump!!!!

 

[HairlessCaveApe]

I went to my first HydroFarm bout 6 years ago and asked for my FoxFarm3-2-6 and the dude gives me the 6-4-4. The botles are just bout identicle too. Pluss, did anybody ever notice the way FF puts that stupid ass stikker rite over the npk values? Anyhow. I spent bout a month anna half watchin my mother slowly die till I finaly realized waddafukk was goin on. I went back to the store and told dude what he did. Ya know what he did? He said "Naaa, I didnt give ya the wrong shitt, everybodys usin this!" I told him I didnt care what everbody was usin, I asked for the 3-2-6. He didnt even poligize or nothin. Then just last year at a completely differant HydroFarm I had the exact same thing happen again. This time I recomended the FF nutrient regime. The Grow Big, Tiger Bloom and Big Bloom or whatever it is. I told him to tell the dude its fir hydro. He came back with the products I recomended but with the FFGB6-4-4. I told my friend to take it back because it wasnt for hydro. The dude at the store swore up and down its what everybodys usin. Again. My buddy sugested we call the service# on the FF jug and we did. The lady on the phone told us the hydro store dude was all wrong and we should be usin the 3-2-6 like I said. I think these guys work off a script and sell whatever the main office is pushin. Double check EVERYTHING!

 

[Chomas]

Id MUCH rather come here for advice haha

 

[MynameStitch]

They will try to sell you all kinds of stuff you don't need, that is one thing I hate especially when you know what you are talking about and you know what you need and they try to change your mind and say oh no, you need this that and not that BS!

 

[Cranberry]

What a great thread:

Hydroponic stores love to take your money...... Bottom Line..

I have years worth of bad stories, because I use to be on the quest to find nutrients that preformed better than GHflora. That alone was a good mission.

If one store or group of nutrients sales people that are totally full of crap is Humboldt. One afternoon I stopped in because I had a bottle of root juice blow up! I enter a bit hot and ask WTF and told them what had happened. They almost called me a liar, then I reached for the 200 dollar bottle of the crap, rolled it across the counter and said to them open it. The owner, laughs and cracks the lid to hear a hiss a O fuck the lid blew off and within a blink the counter was foaming black and the smell of amino acids and b vitamins was awesome. We then opened bottles from other batches to find the same thing. I walked out laughing my ass off, because they had one hell of a mess to clean up.

I learned my lesson that afternoon: Stick with what works for you, and don't let anyone tell you how to run your grow, especially if their selling you something.

Stick to the basics: Clean room, air, cool water, bright light, and refined nutrients and you'll be just fine. Less is always better

 

[hydroclops]

I hope you don't mind this one, not being hydro.

But I spent about 200 plus dollars on shit for white flies.

and after all that shit and no help what so ever.
Some body on IC sugested plain old sand and put a 1/4 inch over the soil.
and guess what flies gone in about 3 days.
So people do not spend any money on any thing chemicle related,
for white flies just go to the beach or hardware store and get some sand and VILOIA.
Oh and one of these yellow pest strips for the flying buggers.


Stay safe and high.

 

[Apollo11]

Went to a hydro store to buy a SS2 reflector and I got this pile of BS:

- A SS2 is actually an SS1 with aircool fittings and a glass plate.

- A cooltube is a better reflector than an SS2.

I got these classic lines from a guy I was trying to a buy a 600w off of:

(keep in mind these are direct quotes from our email correspondence)

"i am all out of 600w but i do have a 1000w. not trying to up-sell but there is no reason not to go with 1000w at this time of year. heat is no problem (i have 3 x 1000w going and it still gets too cold even now) and your yield will double going from 600w to 1000w. sunlight is 1200w in 4x4 feet."

"you cannot grow in both stages with a normal HPS lamp"

There is more craziness and lies this guy tried to push on me but its beyond the scope of this thread.