Hello everybody first time posting. I have a very serious problem. This is my 2nd go at hydroponics. The first run I experienced some root rot but I was able to get it under control. This time I got a severe case of it again to where my plants have slowed down completely. I managed to get it “under control” but days later it comes back. I don’t feel it’s pythyum as I’ve looked it up and what I get is nasty brown sludge type it created a nasty film around my airstone. The roots start to look like they’re stained but then when it comes back it looks like mucus and it stinks like a dirty aquarium. I’ve gone threw a whole liter of UC roots with no visible effect as well as using hydro guard and great white. If anyone has experienced this by tips can help. I did not have a chiller but like I said my first go came out great this time it just got waaay out of control I’ve had to throw away the plants as a way of cutting my losses. I just don’t know if I should continue in hydroponics but I just don’t understand how to get a hold of this. Thanks in advance. I am running a ts1000w with advanced nutrients ph perfect.
Is there light getting in your tank
From what I can tell it is light proof but again I can’t see inside. All the lines go threw the side of the bucket I made a hole do the airstone and temperature probes to go in threw other than that no holes. I feel like it’s light proof but I could be wrong.
I had that issue last grow i covered the open slots in my system and used hydo guard and I was good
Cool. I’ll try doing that. I just can’t figure it out I even purchased a chiller and this is going to be my 3rd go at it. I’ll try hydroguard again. I do appreciate you taking time to respond hopefully I can get this in check.
No problems my friend im new to this as well we have to help each other out
@ Midnitrtoker Curious how often you are changing your reservoir water/nutrients… and if you are reusing your grow containers did you clean them properly. I use Hydroguard with good results so far and completely change out reservoir every 7 days with fresh nutrients and water. As others have said light can cause this too.
Double check the light transparency of your buckets by holding your grow container up in the full sun outside. If it seems like it there is any lighter color or glow from the sun you may need to paint the container outside with acrylic paint to thicken the walls. My lids/tops glowed through the sun even though my buckets were good. A layer of paint was all it took for me.
Also, check where the airline goes in. Wrap the airline with black electrical tape back about 12”, especially if it’s the clear stuff. Then pull or hug the airline hose about 4” back along the side of the bucket and tape it down (don’t kink it). Make sure to cover over where the hose goes in with a few pieces of tape.
Did you try hydrogen peroxide? It is so cheap and has helped me the most with slimes and algae in the roots. I just free pour it into the bucket until the bubbles look finer coming out of the air stones. I also like to mist the roots at nutrient change and spritz the inside of the buckets. Let it sit a few minutes and bubble.
Since you said it smells like a bad aquarium, hydrogen peroxide works great for those too. You can spray it onto algae and slime molds in fish tanks too, it doesn’t kill live fish
I just saw you have a chiller. Clean your chiller lines. Flush them out well. Maybe outside with the garden hose. It could be where the scum is hiding. The chillers have a maze of hoses inside them. I had a cyano bacteria problem (red slime) in an aquarium that would not die. After trying everything, I finally took the cover off the chiller and all the inside the internal hoses were coated with Cyanobacteria slime. I reverse flow blasted it with a garden hose and walla no more cyano bacteria. (I do aquarium maintenance for a living.)
What is the water temp? Bacteria grows faster when temps are above 65 degrees. You can also run a little Food Grade 12% Percent Hydrogen Peroxide to Keep a Sterile Operation. A Good Scrubbing Between Runs Always Helps 2. I would Start with the Temp First.
From reading your post I would suggest making sure you change your reservoir water at least once a week. I change mine every 10 days. You have to keep your growing buckets clean. In my old system all my buckets were connected and drew from the same reservoir and I had several issues. I changed that 3 years ago now I fill each bucket separately and have not had any problems at all. It’s a little more work but worth it.