Control of algae

[Tileman]

Hi guys I have a Verti-Gro Recirculating setup about 12 pots.

And my tank is a water tank that I got from Tractor Supply


I am having algae growth in the tank about 10 days after I clean it out.

The tank & setup is in the green house but it dose get sun on the tank hmm 12 to 13 hrs a day here in florida

Is there a reason to worry about it or just keep cleaning it out every 10 -14 days it gets real stuck to the sides of the tank & pump.

Also we use well water here not city water & there's no chlorine in the water just a sand filter off the pump & we test the water about every year for contaminants.



Ron.

[GpsFrontier]

The tank & setup is in the green house but it dose get sun on the tank hmm 12 to 13 hrs a day here in florida

Well this is probably your problem right there. The water tank looks like it's not light proof and the sunlight will promote the algae growth. The sunlight on the tank also will probably make the water temp to high, also promoting algae growth as well as other unwanted organisms.

Also the tank itself looks like it would be hard to reach inside and scrub all over to get it out. If you don't get it all out it will just seed your fresh nutrients, making it return faster. Small amounts of algae Should be OK it is just when it begins to get out of control that it can be a problem. If you light proof the tank and keep the nutrient solution below 72 or 70 degrees you probably wont have a problem with algae growth in the reservoir.

Chlorine is not good for plants anyway. What I would be concerned with are Microorganisms and pathogens that might be in the water. I am not sure what they test the water for when you have it tested, also what the filter actually takes out. I use mostly RO water 90% and 10% of the hard water from outside hose water. I boil the outside water and let it cool before I use it to be sure it is free of these things. I haven't looked into it and I'm not positive, but I think the RO filter is sufficient to take these things out.

P.S. Also if you use a air bubblier/stone in the reservoir it would help keep algae growth down. As the air bubbles rise in the reservoir it keeps the water moving, and algae cant grow very well in continuously moving water (like in a river or stream). The more bubbles the better. The air bubbles also help oxygenate the water.

[Tileman]

Thanks for the info.

Light proofing the tank could be done. Just need to know how? Maybe paint the outside of it?

As far as keeping the solution below 72 would be the hard part for me.

Cleaning the tank is a pain it has built in legs that get the algae in it.

The water is tested for human consumption so that its safe to use & drink.

Ill try to post a few pics mon of my setup.

Thanks again for the info.

Ron.

[GpsFrontier]

Light proofing the tank could be done. Just need to know how? Maybe paint the outside of it?

For me the easiest thing to do is give it a few coats of black spray paint (outside only) it to block the light, then I spray paint it white to reflect light (so it dosen't absorb heat). Though brushed on paint might be easier on the finger (maybe even cheaper) for something that's large, not sure how many gallons the tank is.

As far as keeping the solution below 72 would be the hard part for me.

I would start by keeping the sun off of it first. I don't know what the temp is of your nutrient solution, but if it's much higher than the 72 degrees your plants wont do well regardless of any algae. I may have a few ideas depending on how you have things set up. One common way is to keep the reservoir underground (no light proofing necessary). Another is a series of coils underground that can be run in two different ways to cool the nutrients. Also if keeping the reservoir above ground, using the coils to cool the solution I would insulate the reservoir to keep the cool in. In this case the insulation would act as the light proofing (if completely insulated). The easiest and cheapest way would probably be building a box around it, and lining the box with 1 to 2 inches of sheet Styrofoam insulation. Then filling all the cracks and holes in the box with spray insulation to make it air tight.

The water is tested for human consumption so that its safe to use & drink.

That's what I thought, but I don't know if that tests for all Microorganisms and pathogens that are harmful to plants or not.

[GpsFrontier]

P.S. I would probably build the box so it has a removable lid. This way the reservoir can be changed or used for something else later, even just general maintenance. I would line the lid with weather stripping for the air tight seal. Also make notches just big enough to run the lines in and out with. Then cover the lines with pipe insulation so it fits snugly into the notches to keep the box air tight. Just make sure there is enough support at the bottom to support the weight of the water.

[Tileman]

Thanks again for the info.

On my outside setup I have a 44 gal gray trash can that I use but it dose not recycle the nutrients. Just on a timer and a full tank will last hmm 4-5 days.
And I have been running it for about 3 yrs with no algae growth.




So I may in the green house try and use a small 10 gal can that's inside of a 25 gal can so that way I can put insulation around the small can that's in the big can LOL that make any sense.

I know this year we are building a shade house to shade the plants last year was hard on them the ones in the ground do fine but the Verti-Gro was just ok.

I try to post some pics today I have a meeting at noon here.

Ron.