Adding air to ebb n flow res?

Air pump with Ebb n Flow...
I am just getting my new ebb n flow table setup and I am wondering... Is is necessary to use an air pump to keep my resivoir oxygenated?

I am using RO water, 70 gallon res, lucas formula with flora nova.

I have a four outlet pump that I can use to pump some air into it. Is it necessary? Is it a good idea to use it even if it isn't necessary?

Also, my water is going into the RO system at 200+ ppm with a ph of about 8.1, coming out at about 2 ppm with a ph of about 6.6 after leaving the ph pen in there for a bit. Is this normal? The reason I ask is because when I first stick the pen into the RO water, the PH reads 8.2, then it drops down to about 6.6 after about 2 or 3 minutes... Is that normal? How long should you leave the ph meter in the solution before taking a reading because with the ph pen I am using (hanna ph, ec, tds, temp) the little flashing symbol goes away, even though the ph is still coming down. Do I wait until the ph completely stops and doesn't fall anymore before assuming that is my reading?

Should I agetate the ph pen or leave it still?

i have a 55 gallon drum as my res for my ebb and flow and i keep an airstone in it. some people say its not neccessary and probly isnt. but i like it in there to keep my res from stagnating and just to add that extra o2 into it.

as for the ph pen. do you have some calibrating juice with it? everything sounds normal just leave it in there until the reading is steady and thats ur ph. swish it around a little bit but its not really necessary.

Thanks for the info...

I am just debating putting the air in there... I have a four outlet pump, which is a bit loud which I don't like... Maybe go purchase a cheap single or dual pump that operates quietly.

I know I will get air into my water when it drains back into the res. I might not need the extra air since I am going to be flooding the tray every 1 to 2 hours. Guess I can see how it does without it...

yeah i flood my pots every 2 hours. but i still like it in there. a 40 gallon pump only runs about 10 bucks at the pet store.

Alright, and it is a pretty quiet pump?

I assume you are doing the same thing as me if flooding every 2 hours. My plants are directly in hydroton, no other medium. No rockwool cubes or anything, straight out of the bubble cloner into the hydroton. You think every 2 hours is ok? You do this when the light is both on and off? This is a good flood time throughout the entire process?

LumpStatus said:

Alright, and it is a pretty quiet pump?

I assume you are doing the same thing as me if flooding every 2 hours. My plants are directly in hydroton, no other medium. No rockwool cubes or anything, straight out of the bubble cloner into the hydroton. You think every 2 hours is ok? You do this when the light is both on and off? This is a good flood time throughout the entire process?

Click to expand...

yeah its super quiet, rubber feet and all. my plants are also directly in hydroton. i mean they were in 1 inch rockwool cubes but the stalks have all since shedded the rockwool. how long does it take to fill your tray and completely empty? only feed when lights are on, never water when lights are off. you might have to adjust your watering periods for the size of your plants. obviously 5 week agressive flowering plants will want to have more water than freshly rooted clones. u just have to let your plants tell you what they want/

I will get you the timing on my flood and drain soon...

So you say NEVER flood when lights are off? Hydroton doesn't really hold much water at all... so that means the roots stay dry for 12 hours straight... Won't the plants die if the roots dry for that long? With oscilating fans etc still running at night, won't this be a problem?

ive always heard to never feed at night. i never feed at night and i never have problems.

you never feed your plants at night, the hydrotron will keep the roots wet

I accidently screwed with my tds meter and I don't know what to set the beta to. The hanna meter has ATC (automatic temperature compensation coefficient) which I don't know what to set it to, 0.0 to 2.4. Damnit, I don't know how to reset it or anything. Can you give some advice?

i have no idea man. i have a milwaukee brand ph/ppm meter and i never ahve to calibrate anyhting. so i got no clue bro

Hanna's number is 800-426-6287, and their tech support guys are great. I don't know about the ATC setting, but the changing pH reading sounds like the grounding probe isn't in the solution.

As far as aerating your res, it's not necessary unless your dissolved oxygen (DO) is being used up by something. If your res is sitting stagnant, then the amount of DO will be determined by the temp. If there are critters living in the soup, then they use up the DO, so you must roil the soup surface to mix in more oxygen, so it can be used by your plants when irrigated.

So for you, if you use only chemical nutes, then aeration isn't needed. If you add an organic supplement, like Floralicious Plus, then you'll want to keep your res water in motion.

HTH

good advice roast. i use organic nutes and i just like to have my shit bubbling and moving. i know it probly doesnt make any difference, but it makes me sleep better at night lol.

I use organic nutes too, and that's when you really need to keep the res aerated. Otherwise, after a couple of days it smells like something has died. And that's exactly what's happened. When I used only chemicals, I never bothered with it.

HTH

In my new set-up I have a bubler in each res and an air line under each of the pots that is on a dual timer to come on with the res pump( I know I'm an o2 freek!). There's nothing growing right now...but soon. But I would call the tech line for the meter question.

Thanx, slap me and call me Shirley. I'll put the airstones back in. VV

do i need a stone or can i just keep the tube in there ? also my plants are like 10 days old and 1 of them is a little yellow what does that mean and what should i do ? this is my first time with growing and i just got the aero garden . . .its goin good so far i started with 4 seeds onlt 2 grew and 1 is growing faster . .