Anyone using dry potassium silicate? (AgSil)

J

jonnynobody

Well-Known Member
xtsho said:
Not a huge savings. On e pound of Agsil is $17 but the price drops considerably with more volume. 4 pounds is $44. 20 pounds is $156. So 964 reservoir fills for $44. A couple hundred dollars if buying 4 pounds at a time. Not all that much but if you're cheap like me and try and save as much as possible it's not a bad savings.
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If I didn't have to pay for shipping AgSil would be hands down the winner for value at nearly $20 cheaper than 2 gallons of Armor Si. I don't think I have a local vendor though. I'll check to be certain. $20 is $20 :)

With all of that I posted I will say that I prefer dry fertilizer over liquid. I'll probably end up ordering AgSil instead of the Armor Si in the next day or so. The value is nearly the same even with shipping. If I can avoid shipping the AgSil is hands down the better value. And you don't have to measure fucking liquids :)
 
J

jonnynobody

Well-Known Member
rkymtnman said:
i've used Armor Si for a few years off and on and to be honest I can't tell a difference.
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I can't say I've done a comparison, but I will say my stems and branches are incredibly strong. It's difficult to chop the main stalks at harvest time even with nice cutters. Without a comparison I can't say with certainty the increased strength was attributed to the KSi, however it seems to be universally recognized in the world of horticulture that KSi is beneficial. There are plenty of voodoo juices out there that everyone should avoid, but I think KSi has it's place in the garden.
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
I didn't take into account the shipping costs. A mistake on my part. But you did get me curious about a local vendor and I found one less than 10 miles from my home. They have 4 pound containers for $38. Not that I need a local supplier as the 1 pound I have has been around for awhile and I've only really used it as a foliar which was very good at preventing PM and budrot here in the Pacific Northwest. But the supplier I found carries other items that are of interest to me. And it's just down the road from the Bob's Red Mill flour outlet so I might just take a short drive and browse the showroom while picking up some flour at Bob's.

So thanks for getting me thinking and finding this local supplier as shipping costs can be pretty steep.
 
rkymtnman

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
jonnynobody said:
I can't say I've done a comparison, but I will say my stems and branches are incredibly strong. It's difficult to chop the main stalks at harvest time even with nice cutters. Without a comparison I can't say with certainty the increased strength was attributed to the KSi, however it seems to be universally recognized in the world of horticulture that KSi is beneficial. There are plenty of voodoo juices out there that everyone should avoid, but I think KSi has it's place in the garden.
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no, i agree with you. i just can't tell a difference visually. my stems are strong using it or not using it.

i'd like to know how much it helps with temp issues: too hot or too cold? does it really reduce plant stress?
 
J

jonnynobody

Well-Known Member
rkymtnman said:
no, i agree with you. i just can't tell a difference visually. my stems are strong using it or not using it.

i'd like to know how much it helps with temp issues: too hot or too cold? does it really reduce plant stress?
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I can't say for sure, but I do push the plants with light intensity pretty hard. I'm actually thinking I have over powered my flower room presently. I can't even run the quantum boards at 50% yet nearly a week into flower without the leaves drooping. It's not even a heat issue. It's an intensity issue. I think I am done buying quantum boards. After seeing the performance of these COB's in my veg nursery I am strong believer in the technology for horticultural applications. Exponentially better vegetative growth results compared to quantum boards. I don't know how they will perform in a flower room, but COB's are hands down the best lighting for vegetative growth. I think my real beef with quantum boards is that they are significantly over powering diodes too close together resulting in light bleaching. Lower powered boards spread out would produce a dramatically different and more desirable result. It's not necessarily a problem with the technology. It's a problem with how they're being assembled and marketed.
 
Cabrone

Cabrone

Well-Known Member
jonnynobody said:
I think my real beef with quantum boards is that they are significantly over powering diodes too close together resulting in light bleaching. Lower powered boards spread out would produce a dramatically different and more desirable result
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Sounds like you are describing the 4, 6, 8, bar fixtures. Quantum boards spread out. Pretty much the same thing right?
 
J

jonnynobody

Well-Known Member
Cabrone said:
Sounds like you are describing the 4, 6, 8, bar fixtures. Quantum boards spread out. Pretty much the same thing right?
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Sure, if you want to spend $800-$900 per light. I don't think the expenditure is necessary. Smaller quantum boards spread out - literally. It is considerably more cost effective than purchasing a light bar. Same chips in a different package. And the price is substantially cheaper, because quantum boards are cheaper to manufacture and ship. It is what it is.
 
rkymtnman

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
jonnynobody said:
Lower powered boards spread out would produce a dramatically different and more desirable result.
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bingo! diffuse lighting vs single point light source. i drive mine lightly: they don't need any cooling either. i went from HID to COB to QB. QB all the way for me. Its basically a ceiling's worth of even light distribution vs either 1 source or a handful of COBs.
 
J

jonnynobody

Well-Known Member
rkymtnman said:
bingo! diffuse lighting vs single point light source. i drive mine lightly: they don't need any cooling either. i went from HID to COB to QB. QB all the way for me. Its basically a ceiling's worth of even light distribution vs either 1 source or a handful of COBs.
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I see how HLG tries to solve the problem while still comprising a single fixture for $849.
https://horticulturelightinggroup.com/products/hlg-600-rspec Great hardware. Just overpriced. What kind of lighting are you running for flower? Today I cranked my 660w board in the flower room up to about 80%. The Jager I have underneath of it did not respond positively to full blast in the first 2 days. Curled a few leaves so I dialed it down for a few days. Today I hung it at a 45 degree angle to spread the light further. Same with the 450w board. I'm hoping this reduces the light bleach issue. I will say that even though the 660w board bleached up the hash plant leaves pretty good the flower was the best hash plant I have grown in 3 cycles. Rock hard buds that were more dense than the hash plant flowers under the HID's. Not a huge contrast, but noticeable. Flowers turned a purple hue also. Very pretty.

To touch on COB's a moment. I'm impressed with their output for the power consumed. Fantastic for vegetative growth. I just don't know how I could incorporate them into a large flower room due to the difficulty spreading the light. In a 5'x5' tent they're amazing. As a matter of fact I would like to outfit the rest of my nurseries with them and dump my T5 lights.
 

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Renfro

Renfro

Well-Known Member
I ordered a 4# Agsil and it arrived busted but it was wrapped in saran wrap so not much was lost, they still sent me a whole nother container full at no charge. That was off amazon. I have more of that shit than I could use in a lifetime growing here.
 
Keesje

Keesje

Well-Known Member
There are a lot of studies done about the benefits of silicia.
Almost all with the outcome that it benefits the plants.

I use YaraTera Actisil as a foliar spray. It is Orthosilicic acid, which is more expensive to make, but easily absorbed by leaves.
Actisil is not available in the USA market yet.

Potassium Water Glas is the same as almost all the fancy nute companies use.
You can buy it at some paintshops for example.
You just need 1.5/2ml per 10 liter water in your rez. So a liter of Potassium Water Glas will last a long time.
It is not expensive at all.

Or you can buy this
www.7springsfarm.com

Sil Matrix - 2.5 Gallon

Sil Matrix is a Silicon-based material used for natural control of fungal plant pathogens, insects and spider mites. Features multiple modes of action.
www.7springsfarm.com www.7springsfarm.com
 
rkymtnman

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
jonnynobody said:
What kind of lighting are you running for flower?
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i kinda lucked out and found Atreum boards that I was able to run off my Meanwell drivers that I had for my COB lights. So it ended up being really cheap especially since it's DIY. 480 w total in 12 sq ft. plus 2 far red pucks.
 
TintEastwood

TintEastwood

Well-Known Member
rkymtnman

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
rkymtnman

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
jonnynobody said:
Got a response from GH:

In response to your question, see the elemental content at 1.25 ml / gal for Armor Si.

All numbers are in PPM
Sum of K12.4
Sum of Si17.564
Sum of K2O15.0
Sum of SiO237.6
Sum of TDS70.0
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so if the article that Tint put up is correct, you'd need to run 3x the 1.25ml/gal amount to get the optimal 47 ppm of Si.
 
Cabrone

Cabrone

Well-Known Member
The chart I posted in #3 post lists the recommended rates per agsil for different types of feeding. Drip systems, ebb and flow, nft, dwc, etc.
 
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