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Originally Posted by dlove
Hi, this is my first post and my first attempt at hydroponics. I built the 11 plant system and started it up a week or so ago. I am having a terrible time maintaining my ph (which goes up every day) and two of my rockwool cubes have a something green growing on the top (should i throw these away?). Today when i checked the water there was all this filmy crap which showed on the outside of my ph testing vial. I'm wondering if this is a result of the white vinegar i've been adding everyday to lower my ph or if its a result of the green stuff growing on my two rockwool cubes. The next time I change the solution/water I'm planning on buying distilled water from the supermarket. I am using hydroton, which I rinsed/cleaned with tap water a few times. I see some others used a bleach solution, is my hydroton throwing off my ph? Any ideas, any help will be greatly appreciated, thank - dashiell
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Hi Dashiell, the green stuff is algae that is growing because your
nutrient solution is being exposed to light. The rockwool needs to be buried beneath the surface of your growing media about 2 inches. This will keep it out of the light and prevent any more algae from growing.
The bottles you used for your eleven grow chambers also need to be light proof. Algae will grow on the inside surface of each of them for the same reason; light is hitting your nutrient solution.
Your High-Water mark in your bottles should be 2 inches below the top of your media. This will prevent algae growth on it as well.
The algae growth is part of your pH problem, I'm sure. Once you've fixed that problem, see if your pH balances out.
Vinegar is not a good pH adjustment method. I would suggest that you buy some "pH down" that is Phosphoric Acid Based, like that which is sold by "Green Air Products" or any other company that sells that type of solution at a reasonable cost.
You should strive to maintain a pH between 5.8 and 6.2 for the best results with most veggies.
Good luck! Post more if you need help.