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First Timer: 12 Light Coco Multi-feed
- Thread starter RB26
- Start date
thats perfect !!!
Cool!
I think I need some reservoir insulation though, its chilly even in California.
Yeah, EC's the universal figure. Easier not to have to convert imo. Especially on a forum when everyone uses different calculations....it's a pain in the ass.
Two things I just want to give my opinion on:
The first is about cation exchange of coco and run off figures.
You'll have heard about coco having a high cation exchange capacity, how it holds onto and stores nutrients, pre-charging, etc etc.
The results of the low run off figures are most probably nothing to do with that and are probably a lot more simple in nature.
When you saturate any absorbent material; coco, soil, a sponge... whatever else you add in afterwards, mixes and dilutes with what's already in there. It's obvious, but overlooked.
This is especially important in any container over 5L in volume.
When you fill a large pot with a weak solution, or plain water, any measurement of the run off figures of a stronger feed will always read out low compared to what you put in.
In other words, if the medium is soaked with plain water, it'd take a load of run through with a stronger mix, before what was coming out the bottom matched what was going in the top. Simply because it's mixing with what's already in there.
Tomorrow, when you feed at full strength again, your run off will be low. That's not because your plants ate what you put in, but because the RO and clearex you flushed with will dilute what you put in.
Be careful not to misread the low run off figures as your plant being hungry, as you would in a water culture. I'd advise not to check the run off in coco at all. It'll cause more shit than it'll solve in my opinion, simply because what's coming out the bottom isn't an accurate guide as to what you should be feeding, for so many reasons, not least the one I mention above.
The second thing is about how you make up your nutes.
You should always make sure that your main base feed is what's making up the bulk of your EC reading imo. Anything else you add on top should be based around that.
I know from experience that a straight 1.0EC of formulex (including 0.2 tap) from seedling is the perfect amount for lush vigorous growth through the veg stage. If I want to add anything in which will alter the ec, it'll be worked around that. If I can squeeze another 0.2 of add ons into the equation, cool. But they'll never go in at the expense of the formulex.
1.2 will usually be as high as I need to go in flower. If I've got a base flowering feed, once stretch is over and I know the pk has to be adjusted, I'll replace 0.2 of my base with 0.2 pk.
So I go to 1.0EC with base, then 0.2pk on top. From there I know I'm in a good range. You can always tip it slightly left or right, but at those amounts you'll never be far out.
Basically, whatever brand of nutrients you choose, I think it's important your base feed makes up the bulk of what you're putting in, and that you don't try and push your girls too hard.
1 question: What EC does 10ml/gallon of just the bt grow, give you?
I'm not entirely positive, but I believe it should be right about .85 EC if you put 10ml of BTG into 1G of my RO (0ppm).
Great post Pappaduc !!! i was going to get into the improper readings of runoff , but you beat me to it & went way beyond what i woulda said 
the only real way of understanding what levels your coco are at is a slurry test of the coco in the pot . but i've never gotten a really good reading from that either , so i don't even check the runoff anymore . i let the plants tell me if something isn't right .
the only real way of understanding what levels your coco are at is a slurry test of the coco in the pot . but i've never gotten a really good reading from that either , so i don't even check the runoff anymore . i let the plants tell me if something isn't right .
Pappa ... what type of water are you using ? sounds like Tap with no calmag or silica .
with RO water .... i like to build my water first . by that i mean .3 EC of calmag & then add the base nutes to my desired EC . then any additives like protekt or cannazyme . with PK i do like you do .... i'll drop my base just enough to need the PK to bring it back up to that EC .
example .... i want 1.0 EC .... i'll add .3 EC of calmag & .7 EC of A & B to give me my 1.0 EC .... protekt & cannazyme don't add much EC to the mix ,cannazyme will add maybe .1 EC but thats it , so i don't really account for it . they do however effect my PH quite a bit , especially the protekt .
silica blast is the same thing as protekt (silica ) its just a little less concentrated , but shouldn't add anything tangable to the EC . calmag will ! & thats why i build my water with it first & the silica last .
the aquashield is to keep your drip lines clean right ??? have you ever tried H&G drip clean ? it adds nothing to the EC values & works pretty good . plus theres some logic here at ICmag that if you use the drip clean at 1ml per gallon from start to finish .... you'll never have to worry about salt build up in the coco . it disolves all salts from my understanding , and leaches them out with your runoff .
on a side note ..... all this is going to change if ya switch over to V&B
you'll be adding grams of powder to get the desired EC & your done !! you probably won't even need to adjust the PH . its that easy to work with !!!
the aquashield is to keep your drip lines clean right ??? have you ever tried H&G drip clean ? it adds nothing to the EC values & works pretty good . plus theres some logic here at ICmag that if you use the drip clean at 1ml per gallon from start to finish .... you'll never have to worry about salt build up in the coco . it disolves all salts from my understanding , and leaches them out with your runoff .
on a side note ..... all this is going to change if ya switch over to V&B
you'll be adding grams of powder to get the desired EC & your done !! you probably won't even need to adjust the PH . its that easy to work with !!!
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silica blast is the same thing as protekt (silica ) its just a little less concentrated , but shouldn't add anything tangable to the EC . calmag will ! & thats why i build my water with it first & the silica last .
the aquashield is to keep your drip lines clean right ??? have you ever tried H&G drip clean ? it adds nothing to the EC values & works pretty good . plus theres some logic here at ICmag that if you use the drip clean at 1ml per gallon from start to finish .... you'll never have to worry about salt build up in the coco . it disolves all salts from my understanding , and leaches them out with your runoff .
on a side note ..... all this is going to change if ya switch over to V&B
you'll be adding grams of powder to get the desired EC & your done !! you probably won't even need to adjust the PH . its that easy to work with !!!
I know I'm pretty excited about testing the V&B. I'm going to dissolve it in a 5 gallon bucket and apply it by hand to a couple plants and see how they react.
The Aquashield is actually not for keeping drip lines clean, its for enhancing root masses. It adds very little to the EC, if any. I use SM-90 for drip cleaner, because it doubles as a root inoculant and anti-pest measure. Roots excel. adds a little to the EC as well.
Exact same thing i'm doing with the V&B ..... if it ever gets here ! its a week late now ! friggin Xmas season Grrrrr
if the test on some of my seedlings look good & the V&B don't turn to shit in the bucket ..... i've got 2 trays emptying in a couple weeks , i'll do one of the trays with it when i refill them .
Gotcha about the aquashield & SM90 .... never used either .
Really?! I paid yesterday and got shipping info today!
Sounds good.
Best way imo. So much goes on in terms of EC fluctuation that isn't directly related to the base nutrients available to the plants. People might read a high run off figure, then decide to flush based on that, even though the plant itself would need to keep being fed.
Yeah, main difference is tap vs RO. If you're starting from 0ppm then building it to 0.2 or so with calmag resets the balance. Silica can be a funny one. Even though it doesn't alter the ec a great deal, it can seem strong to the plants. Cannazyme, or any enzyme product, I've always treated like hydrogen peroxide and just squirted in a rough amount close to a mil per L. There's no need to ever be precise with those I've found.
cannas cannazyme has more of a pk value than it is an enzyme . its more of a bud builder than it is enzymes . kinda like liquid koolbloom , you use it right from veg all the way through flower & really helps build & set the bud sites .
my V&B finally cam today & he threw in a jar of the Life+ ..... so it looks like i'll be doing some reading up on that today
now where did i put that clean homer bucket
cannas cannazyme has more of a pk value than it is an enzyme . its more of a bud builder than it is enzymes . kinda like liquid koolbloom , you use it right from veg all the way through flower & really helps build & set the bud sites .
my V&B finally cam today & he threw in a jar of the Life+ ..... so it looks like i'll be doing some reading up on that today
now where did i put that clean homer bucket
Awesome! Keep me posted, mine should be here tomorrow.
cannas cannazyme has more of a pk value than it is an enzyme . its more of a bud builder than it is enzymes . kinda like liquid koolbloom , you use it right from veg all the way through flower & really helps build & set the bud sites .
my V&B finally cam today & he threw in a jar of the Life+ ..... so it looks like i'll be doing some reading up on that today
now where did i put that clean homer bucket
Did you happen to recognize if he had gone back to the "old" formula or not? I seem to remember something in that thread that indicated a color difference between the old and new formulas.
no its still has blue tints in the powder . the original had green tints in it , so i doubt hes changed much sense i last bought it .
if you got the dirty ... if i remember correctly it was like a tan color . & had bigger chunks of stuff in it .
I checked my water again today before i mixed it & the damn filters needed changing again !! man the tap water here SUX !!! but i'm back at 0 water again , i mixed a 5 gallon bucket of it today ,even though my 32 gallon container sets at .3 EC ....& with 3 tsp of V&B it came out to 1.4 EC , .3 of it being my water & a ph of 6.3 . i brought it down to 5.7 & its going to set till tomorrow to see what the PH does .... hopefully it stays somewhat stable . now i know why i've had to use so much PH down in the last few days .....
I remember from the last time that when i mixed it with my water it came out to 5.8 or damn close to it . so i'm assuming its my water again causing it to be a higher PH after being mixed .
then in a day or 2 after i've used all that water & the container is at 0 again i'll mix another jug to see if theres any difference in the PH .
if you got the dirty ... if i remember correctly it was like a tan color . & had bigger chunks of stuff in it .
I checked my water again today before i mixed it & the damn filters needed changing again !! man the tap water here SUX !!! but i'm back at 0 water again , i mixed a 5 gallon bucket of it today ,even though my 32 gallon container sets at .3 EC ....& with 3 tsp of V&B it came out to 1.4 EC , .3 of it being my water & a ph of 6.3 . i brought it down to 5.7 & its going to set till tomorrow to see what the PH does .... hopefully it stays somewhat stable . now i know why i've had to use so much PH down in the last few days .....
I remember from the last time that when i mixed it with my water it came out to 5.8 or damn close to it . so i'm assuming its my water again causing it to be a higher PH after being mixed .
then in a day or 2 after i've used all that water & the container is at 0 again i'll mix another jug to see if theres any difference in the PH .
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Yup I got the dirty. I don't really know why, I wasn't sure which to go with.
I just transplanted the 818 SOG and the Purple Cadillac into their 3 gallon buckets. The room is now full with 66 Sharks and testers of (5) 818 SOG, (3) Purple Caddy, and (1) KKSC. The 818 is the healthiest, most vigorous plant I have ever grown, period!
shes doing very well for me
i thought 70 days to finish them , but they're looking like maybe 63 will be fine . lots of orange hairs & the calyx's are swelling pretty good & they've only been flushing for a week . the 16th will be 2weeks flush & day 63 for them , but i've got the 6 GG's coming down that weekend & the 818's will have to stay in till the GG is dried & off the dry lines . so they'll get 70 days regardless well thats one way to get rid of all that .3EC storage water .... i just filled both rez's that are flushing the 2 trays & its damn near empty now . 30 gallons out of 32 gone !!!
