Problem with ez-cloner...soft stems...HELP!!!!!!

[ThePizzaMan]

OK

back story: I have been struggling with aero cloning for a while now. Things were ok when I first started to clone using a DIY cloner. Recently I have been battling something extremely powerful....it could be the devil himself. For a while I was running 80+ temperatures with the addition of Chlorine(clear Rez) after following a members post on here about problems with slime..rotted stems. Things were ok for a bit...but they have been getting progressively worse.

So...I went ahead and purchased a Turdbo Klone....and the first round went AMAZING. HUGE WHITE ROOT BEARDS...I WAS SO STOKED!!!!

The next round was horrible...I had several die...and the ones that did root...were seriously sick...and I was lucky enough to have them root and do ok while vegging...at least they look ok...they are starting to pick up under the 600w in veg.

Third round(current round)...I have been monitoring temperatures every day...20x per day. I have like 25-30 days to get some clones going(luckily I have someone who has extra if I need)..and since they have been in my cloner for 5 days now(previously in my friends DIY cloner for a few weeks)....there was grayish slime on the stems...many of them had stems that were hollow and rotted in the middle...and the leaves were a nasty shade of yellow...and they are starting to get curly and turn inward on themselves(I have never even seen that in my 2 years of ez-cloning)

before this round...I ran it in my bathtub with bleach for like an hour. As per the manual..I took all the parts off..and soaked them in bleach and water over night(pucks,misters, orings). While they were soaking..I ran the machine overnight with H202. Could it be the pucks harboring bad bacteria? Do I have SMS...even with all of the aggressive sterilization?

What should I do with the clones currently? Some are trying to root...others are not. Should I scrap the clones and start over ASAP?

Should I try cloning with rockwool starter plugs? Can you offer any info on that...as I have had zero success with other methods...and I am in a major time crunch. I have a heat mat...should I get a thermostat for my tray w/dome?

Anyone gone through this here..what helped. Also...there was crap floating in the water. The only thing I added to the water was Botanicare Powerclone solution..and I ph'd it.

PLEASE HELP!!!!


TpM

PS. I know there are guys on here that strictly clone in rockwool...I like the idea...and would like to give it a try...any tips for a newbie...AS per krunchbubbles thread...I will pick up a bottle of RooTing powder from Home Depot...and give the rockwool starter plugs a shot...I purchased an orange tray to make sure they are not in water(as rockwool holds alot of water)...I have read threads online about it...but really Im just wondering what you guys would do if you were in my situation. Like I said...I have 25-30 days in which I need like 25 rooted clones.

Thanks guys

 

[accessndx]

Only problems I've experienced with EZ-Cloners are related to either one of two things:

1) Temperature
2) Cleanliness

If you keep it relatively cool and clean, you should have no issues.

In the meantime, make sure you take extra cuts of everything. Only take the strongest cuts also. I've been having issues lately with my Chem D not wanting to put off roots, but it's neighbors in the cloner are fine. That could be a deficiency with that particular strain prior to cutting tho.

Anyway good luck bro.

 

[vertigo0007]

Yes. Temp and cleanliness. A cycle timer will eliminate heat added by the pump. Frozen water bottles. Straight tap water and physan20 work wonders in a tainted cloner.

 

[vertigo0007]

Sterilize it with a higher dose of physan and then run 1ml per 10gal permenantly. $10 bottle will last a lifetime.

 

[mobitsfa]

I'm sure it's caused mostly by high temps. 75 is perfect to me. Anything above 80 is too much and causes problems.

A lot of people think high humidity, and high temps is the perfecto environmento for clones, it's really not. You want somewhat high humidity but average temps. I've had the worst luck with bubble cloning because my temps were way too high 80+ and I couldn't bring them down. So I recut the clones, they had slime/mushy stalk, dipped them in olivia's cloning gel, and stuck them in pre-soaked 5.5 ph'd rapid rooters. Then put them in a clear bin from walmart and misted. I remove the lid once a day and fan them with the lid. If it seems dry I'll mist, not really the clones but the container. If they havn't wilted and it's still somewhat moist then I just put the cover back on. If they're wilting I'll spray the clones too. All root within 2 weeks. All of my cuts have rooted el since-o.

I don't use a heat mat at all, I just put the bin on a towel so it's not on the floor. But my temps are around 78 so it's perfecto. If they were lower I'd use the heat mat.

I've seen clones root in all types of conditions, you just gotta find what works best for you.

 

[weeddaddy50]

cycle timer....on 15 minutes off 15 minutes....the will root faster and roots will be bigger....also....it directly related to how old the plants you are taking cuttings and where on the plant you are taking them......get a mom....and just take them from there.

Good luck

 

[THEDOO]

ez cloners drive me nutz i have great runs 4 or 5 consecutively then they bomb out on me for no good reason i have a very strict procedure i follow also. A brand new unit always runs good as they get older and dirtier they get touchy i do use physan20 and all types of other stuf but most people are right clean it clean it clean it and temps are huge to fall through spring im fine summer its a no go switch to rapid rooters then and im ok

 

[pankynugga]

The issues i have ever had from the EZ cloners was water temps...... other than that its a great cloner..... i always unplugged and lifted the lid and placed a fan blowing inside the unit to cool the water and pump.... that method works but a pita to babysit for 2 weeks imo.

 

[sweetestsin420]

sounds like the stems rotted,which prolly happened cus the water tempertures were too warm,what id do is remove all clones,and them use bleach to sterilize the whole kit,and make new clones,and keep water temp nice and cool,and maybe add peroxide to the water everyday

 

[ThePizzaMan]

Ok...we are on day 2....got about 20 clones in there. Here Is what I did.....

Treated with erythromycin...as per directions. I then cleaned it out...and it sat dry for bout 10 days. I got new pucks, treated with physan 20. I am running ro water with ewc tea. So far the water is crystal clear....and temps are in the 74-76 range. They all look happy...so I will have to keep you guys updated..

TpM

Sent from my LG-P509 using Tapatalk

 

[Yikesy]

Throw my whole unit in the dishwasher after each run.

 

[St3ve]

What kind of water are you using?

What all are you putting in the water?

What kind of lighting? (you said "pick up under the 600w" but I hope you're not trying to root under that)

Need these questions answered.. otherwise its just going to be guessing. Also if you have any pictures of it running in place would be helpful.

 

[ThePizzaMan]

Steve

Using ro water. Rooting under 2 t8 floro............only thing on the water right now is ewc tea. I think the new pucks and ewc tea are going to take this where it needs to go. Fingers crossed.

TpM

Sent from my LG-P509 using Tapatalk

 

[Harry Gypsna]

You really don't need anything in the water, other than the Physan someone else suggested(and that's optional).
Certainly not Earth Worm Casting tea, if that's what you mean by EWC.
Physan 20 is Quaternary Ammonium, and it (QA) is the industry standard steriliser in the "Straight" horticulture world. Bleach doesn't kill some of the pathogens we deal with- QA is the stuff to use.

 

[weeddaddy50]

ya.....nothing in the water....just plan tap water is fine.....check the PPM....mine is 200 right out of the facuet.....ph to 6.2-6.5 and you good to go.....once they have good root mass....feed at 600-800 ppm until they really get some good roots then you can bring it to 1000 ppm.......right now my clones are just hitting good on everything....cloner and rockwool are both taking 10-14 days and they are ready.....in hotter weather just go with the rockwool and dome....way faster and nearly 100% success....

I use the cloning powder.....take your cutting off your mother....dip stem in water...scrape it...douse in powder....stick in already soaked rockwool cube 1 1/2 x 1 1/2
I do 50 per tray....given them space and they seem to root better...but thats just me.

 

[St3ve]

Steve

Using ro water. Rooting under 2 t8 floro............only thing on the water right now is ewc tea. I think the new pucks and ewc tea are going to take this where it needs to go. Fingers crossed.

TpM

Sent from my LG-P509 using Tapatalk

Thanks for the info.

Ditch the R/O and use tap water. Every store bought cloner I have every looked at always specifically instructs to use tap water.

All the shit they put in tap water to keep it from growing bacteria makes the cloner a nice clean environment. The t-8's are good..


I personally always get 100% with my home made ex cloners. I fill it with nothing but tap.. hell I don't even pH the water anymore and I still pop roots in 7 days. After each run I clean all the parts in my sink with dishsoap and let it air dry. Then toss it all aside till next run.

No bleach, no anything at all to clean it or to run in it. The only time I had an issue is when I tried to use citric acid for pH down. It created a coating over the stems and caused them to take almost a month to finish rooting. You trying to add worm castings or anything organic like that could very well be doing the same thing.

Hell, my cloner is full of about 48 clones as I'm typing this and all 48 of them have at least 3" of roots on them after 12 days. With nothing but un-pH'd plain ole tap water.

 

[aerokrafter]

Temps are the biggest issue, followed by how clean you keep them.

You can get into trouble over 80 degrees. 2 liter pop bottle ice cubes can help in a pinch.

Start clean and change out the res often to keep critters and nutrient imbalances at bay. I use my cloners to veg in and keep clones in the cloner for up to 45 days.

If you are interested in recipies and other cloner stuff: http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=243325&page=12



Best of luck with those cuts!

-AK

 

[St3ve]

You don't want cold water in there either as it will slow down the roots.

I put a heater in mine in the winter set at 80 and I never have issues. I also use tap water tho and it kills alotta shit.

 

[Holdin']

Up until my recent project i've always used an aerocloner.... and always had 100% success up until the clones i rooted for my last run. This run i used rockwool, and here is why. The last run i had the worst rate ever... and the longest root time. Some of which taking 3-4 weeks to root. And roughly 75%. The only difference was that i had moved to a new location with a different municipal water supply. I'd always used tap water, with clonex cloning solution at 1 tbsp/gal and dipped in clonex gel.

I had the same temps, used a 15/15min cycle, same bit of lighting... just one small flouro. Well little did i know due to not checking my ph until after the fact... the ph of the tap water at my new location was over 7. So I came to the conclusion that my problems arose strictly to ph. Always cleaned the unit regularly and thoroughly after each run. This most recent run of clones i: didnt even want to risk it.... ph'd the water i soaked rockwool cubes in, used a dome, and had roots in about 10 days. Moral of the story... pretty sure it was all from ph.

 

[ak-51]

I am starting to pull my hair out over the problems I'm having with my ez-cloner.

I had a few sucessful runs the first time through but ever since then it's been mostly misses. I've thoroughly cleaned the body itself, the collars, the pump and manifold with a bleach solution, run 1mL/10gallons of physan20 in there recently, put it on a cycle timer to keep the temps low, let it run all the time for a while instead. Keeping the pH around 6.0. Nothing seems to get this thing back up to the near 100% rate that I should be getting.

What is happening is that my stems are getting mushy and the leaves are yellowing. This happens starting a week after I cut them, up until then they look great, except for the fact that there are no roots.

I just cut another 20 and threw them in there. This time I didn't scrape the outer layer of the bottom off. I had been taught to do that since I first started, but that's where the tips are getting mushy so I'll try this run without doing that.