Molasses in Reservoir

I have used molasses in soil and have heard and read about how using molasses in hydroponics can reek havoc on pumps that eventually leads to disaster........I have even regurgitated this same info to others and now am feeling a bit guilty since I had never even given it a try.......I have looked online everywhere and really anything I have found is negative responses about using molasses in hydroponics....so this is for those who want to know (not for those who already know) for fact the effects of molasses in a reservoir

SKIP TO NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU ALREADY KNOW THE BENEFITS OF MOLASSES
Here is a short run down on molasses........molasses is very beneficial for plants as most of us already know.....in soil it is absolutely a must have...not only does it feed your plants with vital nutrients and trace elements it also creates a micro eco system in soil to aid plants throughout its entire life,.BUT WAIT thats not all!!sorry for the cheesy infomercial moment but my favorite part of using molasses is that it sweetens and enhances the aroma and taste of your buds.....

I waste lots of money on bottled sweetners that do work but are insanely expensive......paying 30 dollars for a pint of molasses in a bottle is insane...I know there are other ingredients in these bottled sweeteners but are pretty expensive....molasses cost 3-4 dollars a jar and last a lot longer than a pint of a bottled sweetner....waaaaay longer.....
I have been growing hydroponically for years....one of my favorite methods of growing is top feed...through drip lines because the simplicity and ease of use is hands down one of the easiest way I have ever grown.....I have been growing like this for a while now.....and since there are multiple parts that can clog up I dared not to even experiment with molasses for fear of loosing a batch....but I got tired of spending my hard earned money on these bottled sweeteners so I gave it a try.......Now I see what they mean when they say it can cause equipment to clog and pumps to fail....but the solution to this problem is easy,see since your res temps are cool,,at least they should be,molasses doesn't dilute easily in cool water......it falls to the bottom in clumps,even when stirred it doesn't dilute thoroughly and eventually gets in your pumps and lines and pretty much messes things up,and if left unattended you will be pretty screwed........So instead of directly putting molasses in your res you must put some water in a pot boil some water and stir it until it dilutes....doesn't take long at all.......then simply add to your res......I have yet to see any negative effects this way except that your ph will rise a lot faster than usual......I have to ph every other day but to me this is nothing since I spend a lot of time in my garden........I start with 1 ml per gallon and work up to 5 ml a gallon....now I haven't tried this in dwc and aero....but top feed and flood and drain I can vouch for....and again for those who already knew this this is not for you.....

the reason for this thread is to provide some first hand info and maybe save people some money...

Your post was long,i dont like molasses it has always effed my shit up,

SYROUS said:

Your post was long,i dont like molasses it has always effed my shit up,

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Sorry if you disliked the length of my posting but I like to be thorough.....what was the problems you encountered??maybe we can find a solution........

I found that they always rotted i must have been giving way too much but i didnt think i was ,but this was in soil ,i wouldnt try in my res ,but even without effing up the difference was not huge imo,i use bud candy now pricty or not it makes the dope so sweet and tasty and super lovely

SYROUS said:

I found that they always rotted i must have been giving way too much but i didnt think i was ,but this was in soil ,i wouldnt try in my res ,but even without effing up the difference was not huge imo,i use bud candy now pricty or not it makes the dope so sweet and tasty and super lovely

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A rule of thumb for soil is 1 tablespoon per gallon......any who bud candy is one of the sweeteners I have used and the reason I wrote this.....yes bud candy and other sweeteners work but the price is steep when compared to buying a jar of molasses...you can achieve similar results with molasses for a fraction of the cost.......now I am in no way trying to persuade you or anybody to do something they don't want to do I merely stating facts......molasses does work in a reservoir if water conditions are ideal with no negative effects and sweetens and enhances the aroma and taste of your buds like store bought bottled sweeteners but for a fraction of the price.......

And FYI...... look at the ingredients on those bottled sweeteners........you will find some kind of molasses in them....

I wouldn't use molasses in my reservoir.

Can't be good for the pump.

Soil and hydro and 2 different beasts

Clown Baby said:

I wouldn't use molasses in my reservoir.

Can't be good for the pump.

Soil and hydro and 2 different beasts

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Did you even read my post?????

Now I see what they mean when they say it can cause equipment to clog and pumps to fail....but the solution to this problem is easy,see since your res temps are cool,,at least they should be,molasses doesn't dilute easily in cool water......it falls to the bottom in clumps,even when stirred it doesn't dilute thoroughly and eventually gets in your pumps and lines and pretty much messes things up,and if left unattended you will be pretty screwed........So instead of directly putting molasses in your res you must put some water in a pot ,boil some water ,and stir it until it dilutes....doesn't take long at all.......then simply add to your res......I have yet to see any negative effects this way except that your ph will rise a lot faster than usual....

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No. Your post was way too long.

Break it into smaller paragraphs if you want people to read all of that.

I still wouldnt use it in my res. But if it works for you, go for it!

Clown Baby said:

No. Your post was way too long.

Break it into smaller paragraphs if you want people to read all of that.

I still wouldnt use it in my res. But if it works for you, go for it!

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Thanks for the idea.....I re did my post......

Clown Baby said:

I wouldn't use molasses in my reservoir.

Can't be good for the pump.

Soil and hydro and 2 different beasts

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Clown Baby said:

No. Your post was way too long.

Break it into smaller paragraphs if you want people to read all of that.

I still wouldn't use it in my res. But if it works for you, go for it!

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Remember this is a forum for learning about hydro and all the tricks of the trade. There are a lot of people on here that are just offering their help using the experience they have worked so hard for. There is a lot of misinformation in this forum IE. " How much urine should I put in my rez I heard it helps stabilize the PH?" WTF???? Keep it simple brother

If thats post is too long for you how do you read a book?

I have some questions about adding sugar supplements in general. When do you add them? I was going to replace my nutrient solution in my reservoir with a sugar supplement for the last two weeks to maximize taste. Is this a good idea? How does adding a sugar supplement affect the nutrient regimen. I was planning to go with fox farm nutes and they advise not adding in any thing else to the nutrient mix. I wasn't able to figure out from their site if any of their products add a sugar source, and they never responded to my email.

"I was planning to go with fox farm nutes and they advise not adding in any thing else to the nutrient mix." I think they answered your question.

You are WAY WAY WAY over thinking it!! Use the nutes you want using the recommended formulas and you will be fine. If this is your first rodeo just use a simple 2 part nute and focus more on light, water,air and you will be more successful. I promise if you do that you will not ever know you didn't add sugar.

looks like good results to me! although I wont use molasses during the flush. i would use Carbo Load since it has no nutrients in it. also would use a enzyme. I use drip system too and love it. maybe i"ll try the molasses. I usually like floranectar as a sweetner. What is your res. temp? i always keep mine in the low 60's

This post is kinda just a reminder of how ignorant people are.

Haha

"It was too long boo hoo hoo, I like to use chemical bud candy bla bla"

I read it... it's very good information.
And no, it's not that long either. Why don't you go read a book or something.

You don't see any negative effects from it? Does it make the reservoir sticky at all? If you use it with a drip system it should be good to go with my flood tables... when do you add it? All of flowering or just the last few weeks?

sparkafire said:

"I was planning to go with fox farm nutes and they advise not adding in any thing else to the nutrient mix." I think they answered your question.

You are WAY WAY WAY over thinking it!! Use the nutes you want using the recommended formulas and you will be fine. If this is your first rodeo just use a simple 2 part nute and focus more on light, water,air and you will be more successful. I promise if you do that you will not ever know you didn't add sugar.

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Umm well in Jorge Cervantes's bible... it says "adding sugar the last few weeks, augmented the harvest by 20%" with pictures. The sugary bud is definitely bigger and looks a lot more chrystaly.

Like the thread starter stated "I have been growing hydroponically for years."

Hey man its cool if it says it in the bible it must be true. Did it say anything about what it does to your system after you put it in your rez or the ramifications to your system on the next cycle or how hard it will be to keep shit from growing in your rez from all the sugars feeding bacteria? It might have said that but is it really worth all the headache of figuring it out , doing it and then cleaning it up not to mention maybe fucking up your grow? Like I said you are Way Way Way over thinking it for a first time grower. Good luck.

i just used molasses in my 3 gallon tote res last week to finish out flowering my plant...after 12 hours of being in the res there was a slime built up all over the roots,res,tubes,and airstone....it was bubbling a white colored gooey substance.my res temps was around 65-68f...i had to rinse and clean everything and put a new stone in just incase...when i mixed the solution together i mixed it up in almost boiling hot water then added it to my solution to make sure it would dissolve as much as possible.it seem to be ok at first...then the next morning it looked like hell and smelled awful...i had not any any problems in my res till i added molasses...i only added in 1/2 a teaspoon per gallon...i would not suggest using straight molasses in a hydro setup...go for some other sugar additives like bud candy..ones that will dissolve better and not clog/slime your system up...thats just my opinion..if anyone finds a good way to add it in without cleaning your res every 3 hours...please let me know

Fry Monkey said:

If thats post is too long for you how do you read a book?

I have some questions about adding sugar supplements in general. When do you add them? I was going to replace my nutrient solution in my reservoir with a sugar supplement for the last two weeks to maximize taste. Is this a good idea? How does adding a sugar supplement affect the nutrient regimen. I was planning to go with fox farm nutes and they advise not adding in any thing else to the nutrient mix. I wasn't able to figure out from their site if any of their products add a sugar source, and they never responded to my email.

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Well molasses can be added throughout a plants entire life.......2 weeks is too long of a flush you don't want to deprive your plants of nutrients that long...in hydroponics 3-5 days is suffice....I add molasses in my flowering room from day 1.........if you add now it will definitely make a difference...just add along with your regular nutrient mix....when your gonna flush you can add until the last day if you wish.... some folks prefer to run the last 24 hours with plain water alone

djruiner said:

i just used molasses in my 3 gallon tote res last week to finish out flowering my plant...after 12 hours of being in the res there was a slime built up all over the roots,res,tubes,and airstone....it was bubbling a white colored gooey substance.my res temps was around 65-68f...i had to rinse and clean everything and put a new stone in just incase...when i mixed the solution together i mixed it up in almost boiling hot water then added it to my solution to make sure it would dissolve as much as possible.it seem to be ok at first...then the next morning it looked like hell and smelled awful...i had not any any problems in my res till i added molasses...i only added in 1/2 a teaspoon per gallon...i would not suggest using straight molasses in a hydro setup...go for some other sugar additives like bud candy..ones that will dissolve better and not clog/slime your system up...thats just my opinion..if anyone finds a good way to add it in without cleaning your res every 3 hours...please let me know

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If you read my post I said I haven't tried molasses in aero or dwc or any water culture....I haven't tried it in any water culture method of growing such as dwc or swc because I am certain the added oxegen levels in the solution might make it a ideal breeding ground for bacteria especially if the solution temps are higher than they should be...that is why I vouch for top feed and flood and drain... I do mention that in my posting....my res don't have airstones in them...and I keep them at 65-68...I don't have to clean anything either....... once it is time for a scheduled res change there are absolutely no traces of molasses in my res......