Water level in dwc causing probs?

[Dublegendz]

So I'm wondering if the leaf curl on my dwc (Ripley's OG) is due to water level being too high? I only run the top feed twice a day @ 2 min intervals & the roots are bright white & healthy. I'm only concerned cuz next to her my Walter White's leaves are perky in the coco...they were born the same day & the dwc is getting slightly faster growth despite the droopy leaves. Ph is 5.8 & nutes are at 400ppm. FloraNova grow, Rapidstart, CalMag & Hydroguard for the dwc res. The water level is 1 1/2" below the netpot. Should i lower the water level? Any input or advice would be greatly appreciated.

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• Dublegendz
• Dec 10, 2018

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• Dec 10, 2018

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• Dec 10, 2018

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• Dec 10, 2018

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• Dec 10, 2018

 

[Simplicio]

The main seedling problems I've had in dwc are too high ppm, and too low water level.
Increasing the water level above the netpot bottoms, reducing ppm, and hand watering for awhile fixed my problems in a non-top feed.

Moving seedlings in wet rapid rooters to dry netpots makes no sense.
Nor does cramming food into sprouts that percieve nutes above a maximum amount as poison early on.

My advice is to cut ppm in half, and leave the top feed on 24/7. That's what i do in a top feed dwc.

 

[AJrexxx]

I am not a DWC expert but I agree with Simplicio. When I run DWC i do not worry about a res till roots are hanging out the bottom of the pot. The PPMs are a bit high for how I grow. I usually start at 200 and move us as I go. I usually only hit 800 in the end. Not expert advise but has been my experience with DWC. I always used Heisenberg tea and I would start with 150-200 PPM nutes around day ten give or take depending on the size of the plant.

 

[Dublegendz]

The main seedling problems I've had in dwc are too high ppm, and too low water level.
Increasing the water level above the netpot bottoms, reducing ppm, and hand watering for awhile fixed my problems in a non-top feed.

Moving seedlings in wet rapid rooters to dry netpots makes no sense.
Nor does cramming food into sprouts that percieve nutes above a maximum amount as poison early on.

My advice is to cut ppm in half, and leave the top feed on 24/7. That's what i do in a top feed dwc.

And this is why i ask questions...thanks for your reply! So if it makes no sense using wet rooters in netpots then what do you suggest? I'll change her res & stick to your advice on nute strength. I appreciate the feedback. I'd like to not harm these babies...

 

[davisgirl]

Kind of a noob to be offering my 2 cents but here it is. I put the rapid rooter into netpot with the pebbles. Set the res at 200 ppm and the water level at a half inch below the netpot. Turned on the air pump. Made sure the rapid rooter stayed moist during the 36 hours it took the roots to reach the water. Then they were on their own.

Thinking to try Ripley’s OG on my next run. Best of luck.

 

[Simplicio]

The main seedling problems I've had in dwc are too high ppm, and too low water level.
Increasing the water level above the netpot bottoms, reducing ppm, and hand watering for awhile fixed my problems in a non-top feed.

Moving seedlings in wet rapid rooters to dry netpots makes no sense.
Nor does cramming food into sprouts that percieve nutes above a maximum amount as poison early on.

My advice is to cut ppm in half, and leave the top feed on 24/7. That's what i do in a top feed dwc.

150 ppm injured the seedlings of my present grow. They recovered when ppm was reduced.
These weeds need little

And this is why i ask questions...thanks for your reply! So if it makes no sense using wet rooters in netpots then what do you suggest? I'll change her res & stick to your advice on nute strength. I appreciate the feedback. I'd like to not harm these babies...

I plant seeds directly into rapid rooters sitting in a container with about 1/2 inch water in the bottom, which keeps the RRs wet.
When they sprout, the wet RRs go into hydroton pellets in dwc, low light, and ppm<50.
With top feed, I don't worry, but without top feed, I believe the RRs need to be kept moist by a water level high enough to do so.
I know all the written advice says to keep water level 1/2 inch below netpots, but that doesn't work for me.
My seedlings are stressed and have problems if the RRs dry out before roots reach the reservoir.
But most seedlings will outgrow early problems.

 

[Dublegendz]

That's a great point but how did you get your ppm so low? I start with ro water...1ppm. My res is about 3.5 gallons & i put 10ml of CaliMagic & the ppm went over 150 so i added only 1ml of grow nutes to keep ppm under 250. Thankfully the Hydroguard & Rapidstart dont add much ppm...luckily i changed her res & cut nutes in half which seems to have done the trick. While she's still a tad droopy, her stem went from dark red to a lighter more normal color. Is CaliMagic that potent & what's the best amount/gallon for dwc?

 

[davisgirl]

That's a great point but how did you get your ppm so low? I start with ro water...1ppm. My res is about 3.5 gallons & i put 10ml of CaliMagic & the ppm went over 150 so i added only 1ml of grow nutes to keep ppm under 250. Thankfully the Hydroguard & Rapidstart dont add much ppm...luckily i changed her res & cut nutes in half which seems to have done the trick. While she's still a tad droopy, her stem went from dark red to a lighter more normal color. Is CaliMagic that potent & what's the best amount/gallon for dwc?

Keep everything in the proportions on your feeding schedule ...

Here is the feeding schedule I use, just for an example.

Forget the hydroguard and calmag for a week. Just use base nutrients at half strength for week 1. In this case, micro, grow, and bloom. This will give you a reservoir of 175.

 

[Dublegendz]

Keep everything in the proportions on your feeding schedule ...

Here is the feeding schedule I use, just for an example. View attachment 985805

Forget the hydroguard and calmag for a week. Just use base nutrients at half strength for week 1. In this case, micro, grow, and bloom. This will give you a reservoir of 175.

Yea i printed that same schedule along with the drain to waste version for my coco pot. I'll try your formula of 1/2 nutes leaving out the Hydroguard & Calmag for a week. I've also got Floralicious+, but I'm assuming you'd advise me to hold off on that & the Rapidstart, and stick only to base nutes for at least another week?

 

[davisgirl]

Yea i printed that same schedule along with the drain to waste version for my coco pot. I'll try your formula of 1/2 nutes leaving out the Hydroguard & Calmag for a week. I've also got Floralicious+, but I'm assuming you'd advise me to hold off on that & the Rapidstart, and stick only to base nutes for at least another week?

Go ahead and feed according to the week 1 schedule, just at half strength. Floralicious and rapidstart begin in week 2. In week 2, use half strength at the very most ... you may even want to use a third strength. I wouldn’t exceed 400 next week.