**Experienced Floranova Users**

[dubbalicious]

thanks Delta9:smile:

 

[Hydro-Soil]

I have also been having issues with Floranova.
1 Bucket has 300 ppm of floranova (tap water going in and less than 100 ppm)
ph set to 5.5-5.7. pH seems to rise up pretty quickly.

Yeah, nutes drop the pH and your ladies are eating it faster than they're drinking the water.

If you up your ppm to around 900-950 (.5 conversion) or 1300-1400 (.7 conversion) you'll notice that your pH swings up and down on it's own without adjustment.

Definitely follow the advice of delta9nxs, raising your pH to 6.0-6.1 during day 20-30 will allow your ladies to drink that Mg that's in your res. After that, drop it back down around 5.8 and leave it.

 

[petemoss]

i've been using flora nova bloom for six years as the only nutrient, additive, or enhancement my plants ever see. i use it throughout the plants life, including vegetative phase.

the only problem with it is that it is extremely thick and sludgy and almost impossible to mix completely by shaking. if it is not mixed completely each use it develops nutrient imbalances that can translate into nutrient deficiencies.

my solution to this is to dump a gallon into a 5 gal bucket and add 3 gals ro water to it. rinse the bottle well to get everything out of it. then a paint mixer attachment on a drill. funnel it back into 4 1 gal containers for ease of use. you will then have something very easy to mix with just a couple of shakes first.

... ...

delta9nxs,
Recently I read that Floranova should not be stored overnight in a diluted form. I think the reason was that some nutrients fall out of the solution if you pre-dilute it and don't use it right away. That comes from GH. Wish I had a link to that post, but I'm sure someone else will chime in with the link. I know that many Lucas users get good results using Floranova, but I decided to stay with Flora micro and bloom because the Flora has indefinite shelf life (Floranova has one year before it goes bad). Plus, with the two-part Flora, I'm free to alter the ratio to 6-9 ala H3ad's formula or drop the Micro entirely in late flower to rid my buds of N. True, Nova has extra organic ingredients added, but I can get that with something like LKarma. All in all, the old school Lucas 0-8-16 works fine for me and I see little reason to upgrade to Nova.

 

[bigtreesaregood]

Thanks for the info hydro-soil. Any advice on ppm/ph for veg process?

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Thanks for the info hydro-soil. Any advice on ppm/ph for veg process?

My pleasure.

You can use the same Lucas formula for veg. It's all good.

 

[delta9nxs]

Hi!, petemoss

I have been using fnb for six years exactly as I described. I grow large style trees that typically yield 9-10 ozs each. The plants are visually perfect with no spots, discoloration, or curling.

I think you are both right and wrong. Several years back I called gh tech support and they told me that at my 3 to 1 dilution it was ok to do this. If you look at my clear 1 gal storage containers they show two different colors of nutrient solution. This indicates that it is going back into a colloidal suspension, which is what it does in the original bottle between uses.

You know that most nutrient manufacturers use at least a 2 part product. This is to keep the calcium nitrate and the magnesium sulfate from interacting. Gh solved this problem by making flora nova a colloidal suspension to get it all in one bottle. The drawback is it has to be completely mixed immediately before each use.

I think the statement you saw about this was referring to dilution at plant use ppms. If you were to mix up a clear container of, say, 950ppm it would not separate, but stay in solution. That is apparently when the reaction between chemicals begins. And it is probably the biggest reason most nute suppliers are adamant about changing your reservoir often. But at the same time I know people who just do addbacks for the entire grow and get away with it.

I am, obviously, not diluting enough to cause any reactions. I keep fnb up to about 4 months like this before use with no issues. I keep it in a dark, cool closet to minimize light and heat reactions.

Nice to hear from you, petemoss, thanks for your input! You have voiced a valid concern.

Later, delta9nxs

 

[dongle69]

I called GH a little while back regarding diluting FloraNova with water.
Here is a copy of my posts from another thread:

GH does not recommend adding water to FloraNova.
Dilution changes the ph of the product and things get screwy.
Only do it as a last resort emergency.
If you have crystalline in your product, it is old and/or it has been exposed to too much oxygen.
You can call GH with the batch code on the bottle and they will usually replace it.
Shelf life is up to a year.

They are trying to keep the ph stable in the bottle.
If you are adding your own water to the bottle and storing it, it starts to become unstable.
It also can become unstable if you were to leave the bottle open (oxygen gets in).
In either case, the "recipe" becomes tainted and it is all downhill from there.
I'm passing on what they have told me.
They advise against adding water and storing it that way.
They suggest buying smaller amounts if you can't shake the bigger ones.
You can also buy a big bottle and split into multiple bottles, as long as the bottles have never been used.
Again, just don't add water, they advise against it.

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Hi!, petemoss

I have been using fnb for six years exactly as I described. I grow large style trees that typically yield 9-10 ozs each. The plants are visually perfect with no spots, discoloration, or curling.

I think you are both right and wrong. Several years back I called gh tech support and they told me that at my 3 to 1 dilution it was ok to do this. If you look at my clear 1 gal storage containers they show two different colors of nutrient solution. This indicates that it is going back into a colloidal suspension, which is what it does in the original bottle between uses.

You know that most nutrient manufacturers use at least a 2 part product. This is to keep the calcium nitrate and the magnesium sulfate from interacting. Gh solved this problem by making flora nova a colloidal suspension to get it all in one bottle. The drawback is it has to be completely mixed immediately before each use.

I think the statement you saw about this was referring to dilution at plant use ppms. If you were to mix up a clear container of, say, 950ppm it would not separate, but stay in solution. That is apparently when the reaction between chemicals begins. And it is probably the biggest reason most nute suppliers are adamant about changing your reservoir often. But at the same time I know people who just do addbacks for the entire grow and get away with it.

I am, obviously, not diluting enough to cause any reactions. I keep fnb up to about 4 months like this before use with no issues. I keep it in a dark, cool closet to minimize light and heat reactions.

Nice to hear from you, petemoss, thanks for your input! You have voiced a valid concern.

Later, delta9nxs

I have the same results.

The main issue I can see is if someone used something other than distilled or RO water to do the mixing. Obviously it's also within the best interest of the company to not advise things that can be abused and blamed on the company.

It's perfectly natural for the company to take the stance they have.

 

[delta9nxs]

thanks hydro-soil,

thanks hydro-soil,

you added what i forgot to mention! ro or distilled water only. my tap water is usually around 260 ppm and i can tell you from experience it won't work for diluting.

also, the info i got from gh tech people was all verbal. but, this was at least 4 years ago.

i don't know anything for sure. i'm just a little monkey trying to get by! later

 

[dongle69]

GH told me that any kind of water, including RO water shouldn't be used for diluting.
It still changes the ph of the recipe, which is bad.
It is a gamble for sure.

 

[delta9nxs]

hey, dongle69

hey, dongle69

is that printed anywhere? i've looked all over gh's site and i can't find mention of it anywhere. do you possibly have a link to that? thanks, delta9nxs

 

[dongle69]

1-800-374-9376.
Try to talk to a good tech instead of an operator.

 

[Hydro-Soil]

GH told me that any kind of water, including RO water shouldn't be used for diluting.
It still changes the ph of the recipe, which is bad.
It is a gamble for sure.

Ok.... now that's going a bit far.

This stuff is rock solid stable after 1:1 or 1:2 dilution so quit scaring people. Sheesh!

IF I was going to hang onto it for a year, I would most likely go with a smaller amount. Try to use your diluted solution in 6 months.

Anyone having problems with diluted FNG or FNB within 6 months of diluting it is going to have problems with any nute as they're storing it improperly.

Thank you. Next!?

 

[Blue Dot]

For all the haters complaining about how thick FN is, GH HAD to make it this way to keep it a one part nute.

They use a new technology called suspension something (?) and this allows certain minerals to coexist in the same bottle with other minerals and not lock up.

If you don't like shaking then your only alternative is to go to a two part nute and keep the minerals separated before use. You could even go three part if you want but is mixing three parts really faster or easier then shaking?

Mix your quarts properly first then store in little bottles that are half full so you have plenty of headroom for shaking.

 

[Hydro-Soil]

For all the haters complaining about how thick FN is, GH HAD to make it this way to keep it a one part nute.

They use a new technology called suspension something (?) and this allows certain minerals to coexist in the same bottle with other minerals and not lock up.

If you don't like shaking then your only alternative is to go to a two part nute and keep the minerals separated before use. You could even go three part if you want but is mixing three parts really faster or easier then shaking?

Mix your quarts properly first then store in little bottles that are half full so you have plenty of headroom for shaking.

Using the Flora Micro and Bloom worked awesome for me for years. I'll put up with the shaking to get that extra velvet lush the Nova brings

 

[dongle69]

Ok.... now that's going a bit far.
This stuff is rock solid stable after 1:1 or 1:2 dilution so quit scaring people. Sheesh!

I don't know how that is going too far.
They (GH) don't suggest doing it, so if you do it, it is your gamble.
I'm sure it works for some.
Their best suggestion was to split it into 2 bottles undiluted, making it easier to shake.
Is that scaring people?
There is no "hating" coming from me.
Fortunately, I don't have the problem because I go through a gallon in less than 2 months.
Now breath deep......relax.....

 

[onegreenday]

I mixed 3 gallons of FN-grow nutrient & it came out 5.1 Ph
(my city water is 7.2 ph and 150ppm DST)

This seemed to be on the low side from threads I've read
so I wanted to boost it up a little but have no Ph up.

So I used a 1-TBSP of Safergro HUMAX and the nutrient is up to 6.3 PH
and 1000ppm
right now in a 5 gallon bubble bucket,
which is higher than I wanted.

Perhaps only 1 TSP would have been better.

but I thought I'd mention the
Ph up feature of Humax and the effect on FN-grow.

I had a little yellowing but I think the 1000 watt HPS may have shocked it. I'm hoping it greens-up a little with this fresh nutrient.

 

[petemoss]

Hi delta9nxs!
Good to see another Bio bucket user. Did I meet you before on OG?
I was going to PM you, but I think you need 50 posts before you can use Private Message. Hope we can chat soon, maybe in another thread...
I hear there's some "haters" here haha

Dongle69, thanks for the FNB info! Your post is the one I was thinking of. Good to know. And BTW your growroom
has to be the cleanest ever. Just Pristine!

 

[highvolt]

great thread guys..
so i am going to give the fng and fnb a try in my recirculating dwc and would just like to know what ppm shoulds i be aiming for during the veg stage and the flowering stage, i am using tap water which has a ppm of 300 and a ph of 7.. thanks.

 

[Hydro-Soil]

great thread guys..
so i am going to give the fng and fnb a try in my recirculating dwc and would just like to know what ppm shoulds i be aiming for during the veg stage and the flowering stage, i am using tap water which has a ppm of 300 and a ph of 7.. thanks.

If you're tight on space, run 1300-1400 of just FNB through both veg and bloom.

The FNG is great for trees and too much for my little grow area.

Just BE SURE TO SHAKE WELL! LOL (You read the thread.)