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Strange Slime buildup on roots

NotMeYou

Member
Synopsis, rich?

Synopsis, rich?

I have read this entire epic post I want to state right from the beginning.

I'm hoping you can maybe summarize briefly exactly what to buy. :)

The bloombox I have just has you clone it in, so no EZ Cloner currently.

I don't think I have the slime, but my temps have been high and I'm sooo scared after reading this whole post that I see little things and think "root rot" or "super death slime".

3 week old plants, but really more like 2 since they got stunted a bit with a PH issue.

What Beneficials should I buy? Running FloraNove Bloom, a shot of that Diamond stuff and like 100 ML of FloraShield too in a 3 gallon rez for veg. (I think I might have put in .5 ML of Floralicious Plus which has Kelp as I recall, so I will toss it)

Will have to drill a hole in my bloombox and add another pump I guess where the UV thingamajiggy goes. The current pump is 132gph but it already hooked up to 2 Air stones, so not sure if the UV sterilizer can be daisychained or something.

I realize you probably have already gone over this and I think I remember worm castings or something, but for a newbie, we not only have to worry about this War and Peace sized post on Slime, but also a billion other posts about cal/mag deficiencies, overwatering, underwatering, heat, moving your mother from hydro over to Coco and then learn all about Coco, etc...

I'm sure you remember how it was when you first started with nobody to help in person. You all sound like insane gardeners and I hope I get there some day, but until now I have been brown thumb guy. hahaha!

It just seems like during this process, so many things have been thrown out so many different ways and I keep buying nutes and then hearing not to use them and then use something else, now don't use that, use this and my head is spinning.

I will go back and re-read the recent ones again, but if you have minute or two sometime and can just put down your 101 basic step course how to minimize/negate the slime, I would be forever grateful.

On a side note, if the whole root is white and it looks like a tap root, but there is ANY brown on it below the water line is it rot or this slime? I understand that at the water line there may be staining, but should there be NO NON-WHITE root anywhere below the water? I have searched and searched and it seems that most pics show all brown or all white (excluding waterline staining) and since Rich has to be one of the best experts in the world on this slime (and probably rot now too), I figure I will see what the guru thinks. Pics in next post and it does look like rot or slime now since I last checked. I was checking the crappy little stunted guys that don't have barely any roots and not my 2 or 3 seemingly healthy ones and you can see in the pics that it looks like they do have something. Not super bad yet though.

What is your professional opinions to save the day? I don't have any way to get clones so really would like to salvage them if they are going to die. Should I grab the 2 best ones and put them in Coco to be used as Mothers? That way at least I can salvage the next grow I guess if they will survive in Coco but not in hydro now. (then I will need how to switch it over to Coco from Hydro I guess next...omg...I'm in over my head!!!) hehehe!

Thanks!!
 

NotMeYou

Member
Here are pics...looks like slime :(

Here are pics...looks like slime :(

First time using the equipment and even bleached everything before so as pristine an environment as you can make it.

Then we have record breaking heat and my temp shoots through the roof while I'm at work 3 days in a row and the ice packs i put on the side of the resevoir lasted probably an hour before not being cold anymore.

I think they were being overwatered, so the heat and the extra water probably is what did me on the rot/slime front.

Am I slimed? :(
 

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NFTNate

New member
If you are doing DWC and you get the brown algae, stop. Throw the entire system away, and just buy the GH Waterfarm units. Ive been in this thread since the beginning and trust me, its not worth the time to save em. Ive been using the Waterfarm system for the last 2 grows with nothing but success. The reason it works so well is because it takes the water from the bottom of the bucket up to the top and drips it on to hydroton which then drains back into the bottom. From the water draining through the hydroton it acts as a beneficial bacteria filter. A small amount of green algae appears on the top of the hydroton which (although im not a microbiologist) means healthy bacteria! Just my .02. Again like I said in the beginning of this thread, Richy has worked extremely hard and has gone into so much detail trying to help everyone with this issue. For that, much thanks.
Cheers

Waterfarm + Lucas Formula = Success
 

FreezerBoy

Was blind but now IC Puckbunny in Training
Veteran
I think they were being overwatered, so the heat and the extra water probably is what did me on the rot/slime front.

Am I slimed? :(

Over-watered in a DWC. Not likely although, you could be under-aerated.

My roots briefly looked like yours but, as the result of my nutes falling out of solution. New nutes and the problem was gone. It may just be staining. Does it rinse right off? Mine did.

 

Dr. G

Active member
Thanks for the good advices Rich.

I don't have access to physan 20 here in Canada but i'm alaways using bleach (for pools) in 30 ppm concentration and rinse the hell out of it between uses.

So far so good, just 3 clones melted out of 40, day 6 now. I would have been slimed up 2 or 3 days ago wthout ewc tea. This is the thing and cost next to nothing. A 20 pound bag of castings and some grandma's make a long way....I wish i have known this before, i have red all winter about bb and ordered some subculture and tarantula and had no success with it. As soon as those clones are ready i'm going hydro again with theses littles balls in my systems:
img3039622thmb.jpg


This is a bio filter media from an aquarium store, the goodies will stick to these balls and will be in contact with the roots.

Reports will follow.

IGT- Good to know that you cured it, a few gray hair is not that much.
I almost lost all mines in the last year or so.:badday:

This should be a sicky on the recovery method to fight the herpes.

I admire you guys, slimed up unite and fight!




those balls are not good

if you know anyhting about aquariums they make more alge and bad crap the industry is steering away from those latley


a better idea would be hydroton in a filter bag from the fish store
 

FeelRealGood

New member
I just picked up this physan20 and wanted to see how you guys apply it. I had planned on filling my rez all the way to the top with tap water then dropping the physan20 in (5ml per 52 gallons). Should I then dip the roots all the way up to the rockwool?

I'd imagine after dipping it in the physan20 treated water for 30s-1minute I would flush the roots with water. I would then empty the rez with new water and add my nutes/h202/dutchmaster. Thanks for the help. I'm ready to kick this slime right in it's protozoan's ass.
 

ItsGrowTime

gets some
Veteran
I just add the physan straight to the water at about 1ml/gal and let the roots sit in it overnight. The next day dump the water, rinse off dead roots and dead algae, clean the res itself thoroughly, refill with fresh water. You didnt mention any beneficial supplements so you'll probably get the slime again if you don't use them! Add beneficials only, reinstall plants. Couple days later add nutes. Dont bother with H2O2. It won't do anything.
 

FeelRealGood

New member
I just add the physan straight to the water at about 1ml/gal and let the roots sit in it overnight. The next day dump the water, rinse off dead roots and dead algae, clean the res itself thoroughly, refill with fresh water. You didnt mention any beneficial supplements so you'll probably get the slime again if you don't use them! Add beneficials only, reinstall plants. Couple days later add nutes. Dont bother with H2O2. It won't do anything.

Thanks for the tips. I am using Dutch Master Zone. I thought this was a beneficial? If not what do you recommend?
 

ItsGrowTime

gets some
Veteran
I dont think Zone is a beneficial bacteria supplement. I think it's similar to Physan in that its a sterilization agent.

I've used Botanicare's AquaShield (formally Hydroguard) with good results. Read the last few pages of this thread. I recently beat a slime outbreak and posted the details.
 

richyrich

Out of the slime, finally.
Veteran
Zone is a type of chloramine. Chloramines are used in many municipal water supplies for cities to kill pathogens. It is a longer lasting product to use for sterilizing applications in hydro growing. It is not to be used with beneficial microbes. It will kill them and negate their use. At a point it seemed to be the best defense, but this thread has moved course. UV Sterlization lights seem to work best for the complete sterilization route. And, priming a reservoir with beneficial microbes (the right way [read previous posts in this thread about this]) seems to be the winning ticket.
 

jupiter8

New member
Just alittle report here.

the aformentionned dose of worm casting tea recipe by Rich worked wonders in my cloner.

And like him i even on purpose pushed the temps up to 84 f. Did that twice in a row without even cleaning the cloner like you said Rich, just changed half of the water.

I think i can call the aero cloner case closed.

Worm shit is the shit!

Now testing in my aero setup, same recipe, will post results.
 

richyrich

Out of the slime, finally.
Veteran
Just alittle report here.

the aformentionned dose of worm casting tea recipe by Rich worked wonders in my cloner.

And like him i even on purpose pushed the temps up to 84 f. Did that twice in a row without even cleaning the cloner like you said Rich, just changed half of the water.

I think i can call the aero cloner case closed.

Worm shit is the shit!

Now testing in my aero setup, same recipe, will post results.

Congrats. Keep the results coming guys.
 

ItsGrowTime

gets some
Veteran
Last update, no pics sorry. But the plants have completely recovered and are now day 26 of flower and growing like nothing ever happened. I did lose one plant but out of 26 that were slimed to various degrees, only losing one is a victory. I beat that shit! YAY!
 

Ns1

Member
So, can I get a recipe/directions on how to make this tea?My ezcloner is killing me(and my cuts):(

in the last page...

Jupiter, welcome to the slime club.

Keep it simple with the ewc tea. 3 gallons of RO water. Add 1-2 cups of ewc and just a tad of molasses and that is it. Do not add humic acids or kelp. It is food for the microbes including the slime.

Do not add any molasses (food) to the cloner. You only want to add a couple of cups of ewc tea every 3rd day to replenish. Do not feed the microbes within, just replace them. The food could of been your problem. Always clean your unit with Physan20. I add power cloner solution made by botanicare to the water and away it goes. That is it.
 

opt1c

Active member
Veteran
and when making the tea all you need is an airstone, aquarium pump, and a 5 gal bucket to bubble it up in; just brew it for 24 hours and you're good to go... tea has a short shelf life so you can probably get away with brewing a smaller batch just fine but i just put the leftovers on all my vegetables outside and they love it; ewc tea with no guano isn't going to burn or hurt anything so it's a bit different than a lot of the other teas out there... probably the most basic tea you can make; or one of them
 

Ns1

Member
and when making the tea all you need is an airstone, aquarium pump, and a 5 gal bucket to bubble it up in; just brew it for 24 hours and you're good to go... tea has a short shelf life so you can probably get away with brewing a smaller batch just fine but i just put the leftovers on all my vegetables outside and they love it; ewc tea with no guano isn't going to burn or hurt anything so it's a bit different than a lot of the other teas out there... probably the most basic tea you can make; or one of them

thanks for the info! looking to brew me some tea this week after my previous DWC fail
 
damn .. i jjust read this entire thread...

thinking about leaing towards uv sterile for the next run.. i've tried zone, hygrozyme, roots always turn brown 3-4 weeks in but dont look slimey as those.. hopefully it works
 
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