Question about bubble cloners

[MrStonerMan]

So my bubble cloner is built and ready to go. Now my only question is, as I have seen both ways being used.. Should I submerge my stems or should I leave them right above the water level? Any input would be appreciated. I know there's most likely not a right or wrong way to do this but I would just like to see what works for others. Thanks in advance!

 

[urbanfog]

I keep mine right at the water level, so the bubbles keep the rw moist which seems to work for me. Once they get roots going it wont matter.

 

[MrStonerMan]

Thanks I appreciate the input! Yeah I was leaning towards leaving them at water level as well. I think I'm gonna go with it

 

[FreezerBoy]

No other area of growing sees such disparate results from identical procedures.

Give it your best thought, try it out. It it works, great. If it doesn't, tweak away. I REFUSE to believe my IC brethren are lying to me about their success with naked stems. However, after more than a dozen attempts, it's killed everything I put in it. Used "wrong" with rockwool and gel, 100% success. That doesn't make the naked stem crowd wrong. If you got roots, you did it right.

Start simple and go from there. Just stay patient. Should you fail at one method, try another.

 

[MrStonerMan]

No other area of growing sees such disparate results from identical procedures.

Give it your best thought, try it out. It it works, great. If it doesn't, tweak away. I REFUSE to believe my IC brethren are lying to me about their success with naked stems. However, after more than a dozen attempts, it's killed everything I put in it. Used "wrong" with rockwool and gel, 100% success. That doesn't make the naked stem crowd wrong. If you got roots, you did it right.

Start simple and go from there. Just stay patient. Should you fail at one method, try another.

Well said bro! And I strongly agree. I have been having success with peat pellets but I am trying out new methods to try and shorten my rooting time. I'm thinking of giving rock-wool a shot as well while i have enough growth to spare. Right now it takes me two weeks to see roots. What's your average time?

 

[Scrogerman]

Hey man, I Submerge roots 10-15mm, not much, the important bit is solution tempreture, low 80's(83f-85f) for rooting(only). If you have a bubbler/cloner that gives alot of bubble splashing action then thats almost like aeroponic cloners & alot of people dont bother submerging & get results, best to submerge till you get to grips with it, as long as its actually touching should be fine. Its piss simple, ive never lost a clone.

Once you get roots 7 days-+, reduce solution temps gradually back down to 68f over a few days. Low EC(0.2/4) & H2o2 is a good addy for bubblecloning, you should have no issues at all!

Heres a good thread:
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=26473&page=2

G'Luck!

 

[Incognegro]

I personally never had success with bubble cloners, and I tried both methods, at level and submerged...I got 1 to root outta prob 100. Said fuck it.

Tried aerocloning; SHIT MAN! I was getting damn near EVERYTHING to root, I started just cutting off random leaves and etc, and literally 4-5 days later, 10 at the most, I had roots everywhere!

But now since I'm back in full coco again and not doing DWC, I cut and stick in coco, sometimes add hormone, sometimes not... have about 90-95% success rate! (if it makes it overnight, they're guaranteed to root!)

 

[foomar]

Usually drop them in so the bottom inch or so is submerged and they are all rooted within seven days.

If they just touch the surface or are in the bubble bursting zone they root a little quicker , just as in aero , 4 - 5 days and sometimes even faster , dropping water level from evaporation/transpiration has lost me a few cuts so i submerge now unless in a real hurry and can watch them more carefully than usually required.

Suggest you try half your cuts each way and show us how it goes , individual results seem to vary hugely given seven factors to play with , rootzone temps have proved the most important to me.

 

[FreezerBoy]

What's your average time? What's your average time?

I prefer using the lowest shoots and see roots in 10-12 days. On occasion I'll use the main growing tip and see roots in 5-7 days.

 

[CannabisDog]

I had trouble with a bubble cloner. Didn't get near as good of results as with the areo cloner in my sig. Didn't cost me much and works like a charm might want to check into building one if the bubble cloner doesn't work out for ya.

 

[FreezerBoy]

Because aero uses a water pump, they often provide enough heating that mats or aquarium heaters aren't necessary. On the other hand, aero cloners are well know to simply "stop working" one day. In most cases this happens from lack of proper maintenance. Make sure to sterilize aero units between every batch or consider EWC teas.

 

[ak-51]

I have always had my stems above the water in my bubble cloners. Always had great results with them.

I currently have 2 bubble cloners with 14 sites each. 1 clone has been lost due to having low bubbling in that corner, the other 27 still look viable and healthy.

If you're making one make sure to get a container with a flat lid. The ones I have now have slightly bulbous lids and it causes a small amount of water to run down the lid and out the sides. A bead of silicone all the way around would probably fix this, but you shouldn't have to do that if you just buy a proper container in the first place.

 

[MrStonerMan]

Thanks for all the info peeps! I think I am going to try half and half on the next round. Right now I have them above water level and they've been on there for 4 days. Another question.. So to grow a plant out and flower it using this method all I add is nutrients as needed? After separating them to bigger containers of course

 

[Scrogerman]

Thanks for all the info peeps! I think I am going to try half and half on the next round. Right now I have them above water level and they've been on there for 4 days. Another question.. So to grow a plant out and flower it using this method all I add is nutrients as needed? After separating them to bigger containers of course

Id add nutes now, contrary to popular belief, you do need a little EC charge in there from nutes(IMHO) from day 1. OK you might get away with it with some strains & Pheno's but my advise is to add nutes now at low EC, very weak, you wont get instant deficiencies then. your ass is covered! If you dont as soon as roots are in that water, there gonna want EC(from nutes). Ive done both with & without nutes, its better with ime!
H2o2 would be a welcome addy too, depending on your nute line.

What temp have you set your water to? What size Res, pump & airstones are u using?

How are they looking, any wilting?

Can we see some pics?

The beauty of bubblecloning is you can transplant into pretty much any medium after rooting or none at all. Good for clone sharing with buddies using different mediums ect.

 

[MrStonerMan]

Id add nutes now, contrary to popular belief, you do need a little EC charge in there from nutes(IMHO) from day 1. OK you might get away with it with some strains & Pheno's but my advise is to add nutes now at low EC, very weak, you wont get instant deficiencies then. your ass is covered! If you dont as soon as roots are in that water, there gonna want EC(from nutes). Ive done both with & without nutes, its better with ime!
H2o2 would be a welcome addy too, depending on your nute line.

What temp have you set your water to? What size Res, pump & airstones are u using?

How are they looking, any wilting?

Can we see some pics?

The beauty of bubblecloning is you can transplant into pretty much any medium after rooting or none at all. Good for clone sharing with buddies using different mediums ect.

My water temp is set to about 78.. Is that ok or should I go warmer? The cotainer is a plastic shoebox with holds about a gallon of water. The air pump I am running is rated good for 15-20 gallon aquariums. I have two 4 inch airstones but I think I'm gonna go get some 6 inch ones just for piece of mind. The clones are looking great! No wilting. Hopefully I see some roots soon! I will get some pics up asap

 

[Scrogerman]

83-85f, they'll take ages to root at 78f, yeah id turn it up myself, once you get roots actually in the water/solution then decrease the temps gradually back down to 68/70f & your away. I use H2o2 too, gives them a great start, & keeps the nasties at bay!
No wilting, your pump/bubbles are obviously doing their job.

G'Luck!

 

[MrStonerMan]

83-85f, they'll take ages to root at 78f, yeah id turn it up myself, once you get roots actually in the water/solution then decrease the temps gradually back down to 68/70f & your away. I use H2o2 too, gives them a great start, & keeps the nasties at bay!
No wilting, your pump/bubbles are obviously doing their job.

G'Luck!

Thanks for the heads up! I just set my heater to 83. No roots yet but I'm sure I'll get some soon

 

[Scrogerman]

You will/should be happy! ill be back in to check how many days it took from the time you set the temp to 83f.

G'Luck man!

 

[MrStonerMan]

I got roots at about 12 days.. Not bad for the first run. I already shaved about a week off my rooting time

 

[Scrogerman]

N1 man, you'll find rooting times vary, strain/pheno etc, but yeah 83-85f seems to do the trick.

G'Luck!