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Connoisseur Flushing: E&F with a recirculating res

G

Godless

Here is how I flushed last time:

1. Drain rez
2. fill with RO water and PH to 5.5
3. Run this for a week (3x floods daily)
4. Add Clearex to rez
5. after a day (3x floods), drain rez
6. fill with RO water and PH to 5.5
7. Run this for a week (3x floods daily)
8. Chop

The resulting smoke is pretty smooth, but the ash is mostly black, so I am thinking that I need to refine my approach. My goal is to be as connoisseur as possible - I am growing only for me and want to counter all the crappy commercial shit I have smoked most of my adult life.

Suggestions for improvement? Should I be doing more dump and fills (major PITA in my setup)? Should I flush for a third week? Is my original approach solid and the black ash something that will get better as it cures? (at 4 weeks cure now)

I have a library of growing books and have spent countless hours soaking knowledge from icmag (only place I'll go due to https) but this aspect of hydro growing is totally unclear to me. Help?
 
G

globel

Member
if your ash is black its not all the way dry yet. Make it to dry to smoke.... then put it in a jar and it will rehydrate .
 
H

Haps

stone fool
Veteran
I would help you, but I am a creature that serves God, and I might contaminate you with blessings and such.
 
B

beatster

why add clearex or phdown? just good clean water prob do the trick i figure i dont use the down cause there arent any nutes in there anyway make them suck it out the leaves
 
G

Godless

@globel - Interesting. The buds are in a place that is usually below 25% RH and have been curing in jars for 6 weeks now. I'd have thought they were totally dry, but I will do some experimentation and see if I can tell a difference between my regular stash and a super dried bud.

@Haps - I didn't pick my username to piss you off friend - sorry that it seemed to.

@Calimed - At two weeks (so right at step 8 in my last process), 15% of the fan leaves have dropped, 70% are fully yellowed and the rest are green but starting to go. I am at the 99th day of 12/12 on these KaliMist girls and eager to chop as the cloudy trics are spreading. Should I be waiting until ALL of the leaves have fully yellowed or is now a fine time to chop?

@beatster: why? Because I am a newb that is trying to get as connoisseur as I can (honest answer - lol). So I should be flushing with straight RO water? Your reasoning sure makes sense and it is simpler, so thanks for that tip! I can't say that i am using the Clearex for any reason beyond their advertising and me wanting to be uber anal in my flush.

Much thanks to all the helpful responses.
 
B

beatster

ya i bet just ro would get a good flush
i just use my tap water to flush my flood tables the last 10 days or so but i empty my rez every other day during the flush doubt its necessary but it makes me feel good
but the ph down i think is really not needed maybe the clearex is good shit dont know never bought it
later
 
iSmokeTrees

iSmokeTrees

Member
25% is too low and is slowing down the drying process friend.

I live in the cold, dry north and I'd recommend using a humidifier in your drying closet to keep it at 45-55%. If your house is around 60°/20% like my house, the humidifier will keep your closet like 70° which is better for drying also. A teacher of mine taught me this so I'll pass it on of course!


Good luck!!!!
 
B

beatster

i totally agree you want a slow dry to fast harsh lawn clipping city
 
V

Villain

Member
I'll be honest with you man. I do not flush because I think that the plant should be fedd up till harvest. Starving them might make them taste a bit better, but I would rather have the weight. I do not grow perpetually so I need enough smoke to keep me going for a few months between harvest. Not to mention I would hate if my care giver was starving my ass for the last week or 2 of my life LOL.
 
pray4pistils

pray4pistils

Member
I'm on the same page with beatster. You don't need to pH the water because all you're doing is hydrating the plants -not trying to feed them. Similarly, there's no need for RO because harder water's nutrients are organic and don't need to be flushed. Of course, if you kill all the microbes (e.g. w/H2O2) there won't be anything to convert those micronutes to useable food, anyway. So, again, RO water is just a waste.

I'd simplifly and do it like this...
1. Drain rez
2. fill tap water + Clearex
3. Run this for 10 -14 days
4. Chop
5. Dry/cure properly

By the way, I often switch to pure organic nutes for the last 2 fed weeks after doing synthetics up to that point. In this case, I'll only flush for about 4 days to a week maximum.
 
G

Godless

Sorry, I wasn't clear enough. The drying room is 50-60 RH. My house (where I only keep a couple jars of current smokables) is at 20-30 RH. So I was commenting on the dryness of the buds I was actually smoking.

Thanks for the input pray4pistils. I thought that clearex was supposed to be run through a couple times and then flushed, so I am still thinking I'd do two flushes, but great to know I don't have to muck around with PHing the water.

Really interested in your recommended switch to organic nutes at the end. So you only run them for two weeks - is that to keep the rez from getting too slimy from the organic nutes? Have you ever done any with/without 2wks of organic nutes taste testing? I guess I am wondering if two weeks is enough to make a noticeable difference.

I am still real interested to hear from others with recirculating hydro experience talk about flushing methodology.
 
pray4pistils

pray4pistils

Member
Godless said:
Really interested in your recommended switch to organic nutes at the end. So you only run them for two weeks - is that to keep the rez from getting too slimy from the organic nutes? Have you ever done any with/without 2wks of organic nutes taste testing? I guess I am wondering if two weeks is enough to make a noticeable difference.
Click to expand...

In actuality, I have two basic methods. The first that I described for you is organics at the end so as to keep feeding them while the synthetic nutes are completely consumed and leached from the water/grow medium. Taste isn't changed much compared to straight synthetics + conventional flush. However, the yield increases while the process is simplified.

Then, there's the second way I do it and that's with a 60/40 synthetic/organic arrangement. Basically, I underfeed with the salts and fill in all the blanks with the natural stuff. That is (once again) until the last two weeks where I go 100% organic. In hempy buckets I'd use earthworm castings as about 20% of the grow medium itself. At harvest time I'd routinely find fungal mycelium in the root zone plus juicy worms wriggling around. So, that environment was very much alive. In E&F hydro I brew aerated compost teas and add that to my constantly aerated reservoir.

Taste is improved with a more earthy/complex flavor. Grow rates are about the same as usual except for the end where it increases beyond plain water. The organic supplemented plants show more pest/disease resistance and certainly superior drought peformance. Stress seems to be reduced. Sativas grow with tighter internodes (probably because of the kelp I use.) It's wins all around as far as I'm concerned.

So long as I keep the water temperature between 65 - 70degF, use enzymes (e.g Hygrozyme), and keep it all aerated... I never get any smells or slimes. The pH goes very high (~6.7) during times of heavy organic feeding, but it doesn't matter at all. Switch back to mostly salts and it drops back to 5.8 or where ever I choose to set it. :smokeit:
 
B

beatster

perhaps you should try flushing with holy water, stole like 50 gallons from this church down the street
 
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