Last grow my branches and trunks were kinda wimpy (ff hydroponic trio + soluble trio) so this time I’m gonna be throwing in some agsil16h. Anyone use this and have any tips for me? My base is going to be masterblend 4-18-38 calcium nitrate 15.5-0-0 and epsom salt.
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I take an old bottle and pre-mix it for a 1% solution, and then shake it up before I add it to the reservoir.
You can follow this from customhydronutrients, and then shoot for 1/10th to 1/20th the ppm application rate. Eg. 38mL per 10 or 20 gallons, instead of per gallon.
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Thanks, also wondering if I should add azos or myke into the mix.
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Not if you’re running a sterile res. Those will die when you add h2o2 or a chlorine product like pool shock.
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Or if since I don’t have a water chiller I should go sterile?
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I have only done sterile so far, because it seemed easier to me. So I don’t have too many pointers on using beneficials.
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Didn’t know that you could do sterile till about halfway through my last grow 
Didn’t have any issues in the res though.
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Haha! Well I have seen algae grow in some small flood and drain if I don’t use chlorine for about 2-3 weeks. I think you can use either some beneficials or sterilizing agent, and people seem pretty devoted to their methods whichever they choose… It would be an improvement to use some beneficials I think, but pool shock and h2o2 people seem to like as well. I’m not sure it matters, but whatever you decide, I think it’s probably better to use something than nothing.
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Gonna go non sterile, using southern ag garden friendly fungicide, it’s just hydrogaurd but cheaper/more concentrated.
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Turns out I ordered raw silica(45%silicone dioxide) gotta stop shopping while high. Does that work out about the same as the Ksil or should I just follow the label dosing then adjust ph before adding my nutes?
the issue with beneficial bacteria in your system is it can create a bio-film making it hard to clean and causing ph swings.
but dang did I have some wicked buds in a system I was using organic teas in before. (now a days I’m going sterile.)
I’m gonna change the solution out weekly so hopefully that’s not a big issue.
The idea of chlorine in my plants freaks me out so i went with hydroguard… I use it at 1/3 strength and my roots stay white as hell even with my res temps getting in the 90s… I did notice that they have an almost pearlescent sheen like oil on the roots themselves but not the water. Was gonna check out their silica blast next grow though have you tried that one at all?
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This is my second grow so I’m still just figuring things out. Hydroguard isn’t a silica though it’s a beneficial bacteria (bacillus Amyloliquefaciens) I’ll be using a cheaper/more concentrated brand southern ag garden friendly fungicide. I’ve heard mostly good things about both.
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As for silica blast. Haven’t used that either. I’m going to assume it’s overpriced and watered down but decently effective like most premixed pre diluted nutrients. Good for small grows but not cost effective for large.
I am using the southern ag 5-11-26 hydroponic mix right now. It works great, but it’s a little more hygroscopic than peters and it tends to get sticky feeling. Also it’s blue, which is hilarious. I call it the blue raspberry mix. But that’s only because they use copper chloride in their mix.
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I’ve ordered before, dude buys the big jugs and repackages. Its great to try as a sample before committing to a big container.