DIY Bloom Enhancer and Ripening Agent (aka MOAB)

[monkeyman]

M.O.A.B. ( Mother of all blooms) is a popular commercial bloom enhancer and ripening agent, and it is easy to make your own (or something very close), at a fraction of the cost. With an extremely high phosphorous and potassium NPK rating, it is designed to increase the size and density of your harvest. It helps induce flowering, and during the last few weeks of flowering for added levels of phosphorus and potassium to increase the size and trichome production of your buds.

RECIPE:
908.19 grams of Mono-potassium phosphate (aka MKP)
90.81 grams of Mono-ammonium phosphate (aka MAP)
1.0 gram of powdered soluble Thiamine HCL ( aka Vitamin B1)
(you can obviously make more or less, just divide or increase the recipe ratios accordingly. It’s a 10:1 ratio of MKP to MAP with roughly a 100:1 ratio of MAP to vitamin B).

These are easily purchased on Amazon or eBay or at your local hydroponics store. For what you would spend on one small container of the commercial product you can make a lifetime supply. The Thiamine HCL is important, even though it is there in such small quantities, since most other nutrients don’t supply a lot of vitamin B, and it helps with the uptake of the MPK and MAP.

USAGE:
During early flowering (first week) use 5ml (1 tsp) per 5 gallons, and in late Flowering (last 2 to 3 weeks) use 5-10 ml (1-2 tsp) per 5 gallons.

NOTE: The amount of base nutrients used may need to be reduced by as much as 50% when using this, and over feeding may burn plants.

When used in combination with Hammerhead or a similar PK boost it is known to help create frosty giant dense buds. You can learn how to make your own Hammerhead here :

DIY PK Boost similar to Hammerhead

Hammerhead by AN is a well-known PK boost, and this formulation comes pretty close, and uses only 2 ingredients (well actually 3 if you count water). You can make your own for a fraction of the cost of commercial PK boosting products. RECIPE: Potassium sulfate aka soluble potash = 45 grams Monopotassium Phosphate aka MKP= 39 grams 1 pint of water Add the soluble potash to your water first and let that dissolve, and then add the MKP. USAGE: NOTE: always add first to your water, before addin…

MOAB & HAMMERHEAD COMBO
bring your base down by 50%
10 ml of Hammerhead
10 ml MOAB
5 gallons of water

[Purple-N-Hairy]

My hydro store gave me a small jar of MOAB a long time ago. At that time, I was using the complete line of House & Garden nutes, so I didn’t want to create conflict between the 2 and burn my plants. However, I did a little research on MOAB back then (in 2010) and discovered this exact same recipe on THCFarmer.com. Have you made your own batch?

[monkeyman]

@Purple-N-Hairy

Have you made your own batch?

Yes I have, and it works as advertised. I think it cost me around $30 bucks at the time to make around 10 pounds worth, and I still have more than I will ever use. I got the recipe from a friend a few years ago so maybe he got it from the same place you found. I spoke with the Mad Farmer at a cultivation show a few years ago and he was very friendly and open about his products and how they are made, and he acknowledged that this has been used by hippies in Humboldt County for a long time.

[spek]

What’s the purpose of the Monoammonium Phosphate? Simply for the N?

[monkeyman]

@spek

What’s the purpose of the Monoammonium Phosphate? Simply for the N?

both P and N. It works well with the MKP and has a synergistic effect

[Purple-N-Hairy]

Yeah, 10 pounds is a lotta MOAB!

@monkeyman

…he was very friendly and open about his products and how they are made…

For the record, and as you’d see at the link I posted, that recipe was provided to THC Farmer by a user (budboy299). He actually posted it in 2 different threads. There didn’t seem to be any evidence that “Mad Farmer” had any input or comment on the recipe. That doesn’t mean he didn’t use it, but I wouldn’t describe it as his product.

[monkeyman]

@Purple-N-Hairy

There didn’t seem to be any evidence that “Mad Farmer” had any input or comment on the recipe. That doesn’t mean he didn’t use it, but I wouldn’t describe it as his product.

that is true, and I am not claiming that this recipe came from him, and I appreciate the clarification. I have also not seen that thread on that site or I would have given that author credit, it was passed on to me by a friend, and I thought I would share it here. The MSDS shows that these are indeed the ingredients, but the ratios and recipe are obviously his own creation, but a recipe for a bloom enhancer using MKP and MAP in a 10 to 1 ratio has been passed around among growers in Humboldt for awhile and the Mad Farmer claims to have added the thiamine hcl to the recipe, which is very smart, and does seem to help. My plants seem to react to it just as they did with MOAB. and yes it is a LOT of MOAB, I have given it away to many people and I still have a lot lol

[GramTorino]

Related…

http://customhydronutrients.com/haifa-growclean-53140-c-1_45_640/

http://www.hortipray.com/product/map-mkp-anticalc

I suspect precip happens more than most folks realize.

[spek]

@GramTorino

I suspect precip happens more than most folks realize.

I completely agree. It’s particularly why I asked about the MAP specifically. I can envision a lot of people with precipitation as well as toxicity leading to antagonism if they don’t know what they’re doing.

I use a slight bit of MKP from week 2.5 of flower, then reduce the entire solution PPM when I’ve got a couple of weeks left.

[vernal]

There is probably no Monoammonium phosphate in MOAB.

If there was, there’d be some N in the guaranteed analysis.

MOAB is likely only Monopotassium phosphate, with a nip of vitamins.

I use a 50/50 blend of MKP and potassium sulfate for my bloom booster. Ends up being around 0-26-43 and provides extra sulfur.

[monkeyman]

@vernal

There is probably no Monoammonium phosphate in MOAB.

Mad-Farmer-MOAB.pdf

the MSDS clearly shows both Monoammonium phosphate and Monopotassium phosphate in MOAB in roughly the same ratio as listed in the recipe above

[spek]

@vernal

I use a 50/50 blend of MKP and potassium sulfate for my bloom booster. Ends up being around 0-26-43 and provides extra sulfur.

By how much EC/PPM do you boost your nutrient mixture with this flowering solution? Do you reduce anything else when using it, or just introduce it into your standard solution?

[vernal]

Then there’s so little as to not even have 1-52-34…guaranteed analysis has zero nitrogen in MOAB.

Monoammonium phosphate by itself is 12-61-0. So we know it is less than 10% MAP.

[vernal]

Nope. Just regular feedings. I do cut it towards the end of flower when plants stop drinking as much, no need to waste fertilizer.

Tossed my ppm meter a long time ago.

[monkeyman]

@vernal

So we know it is less than 10% MAP

the ratios are listed in the msds - it’s within the ballpark listed in the recipe.

[vernal]

Says 8% plus or minus 2, so it could be as low as 6%, not even enough to give it a single point of N…might as well not be in there at all. MKP doing all the work.

[monkeyman]

from what I have read the MAP and MKP work together and have a synergistic effect providing better uptake of the phosphorous and potassium than just the MKP all by itself. I have seen different NPK ratings for MKP and MAP that is for sale, so perhaps the Mad Farmer found a special blend of MAP that has less nitrogen for MOAB.

[vernal]

MAP is always 10-12% elemental N by weight depending on purity. Agricultural fertilizers are often impure because they’re so cheap.

I don’t know why Mad Farmer would include it in the blend, can’t see an advantage in such low amounts.

[monkeyman]

Then the NPK ratings of MOAB are all BS in that case, because he clearly uses MAP acording to the MSDS. It would be interesting to do a side by side study of several clones, and use MOAB on one, the recipe listed above on another, and MKP with Thiamine HCL on another, etc. and see if there is any marked difference or advantage of using one over the other. All I know is I have a ton of this crap and it works (thank goodness lol)

[GramTorino]

I’m all about using what works!

Non soil growers may not want the Ammonical N contained in Monoammonium Phosphate. From my experience and readings, it can cause PH issues - with coco/hydro.

I suffer from precip paranoia. lol