Roots Clogging my Aeroponics System

I am in the midst of my first grow with the Botanicare Aeroponics system. My plants seem to love it...maybe too much. My plant roots have made their way to the downspout from the spray chamber and they are on their way to totally clogging up the system. Can anyone help me unclog the system without killing the girls...or putting them into shock? Is it cool just to cut the roots?
 

kabona

Active Member
just dont let them clog your drain or your chambers will eventually overflow with water and make a huge mess.

but if you mean they are blocking your sprayers... dont worry about it ... it shouldnt clog, water will still come out of the sprayers and will push the roots out of the way enough get some water flow inside your chamber. any horizontal based aerosystem is usually really aero/nft.. your roots will still be getting their water
 

fatman7574

New Member
But the full mass of the roots stacked high on the tubes will not be getting a high DO flow of water through them. Most of the high DO water will simply flow over the top of the roots masses stacked up in the tubes. Only a small percentage of the water will actually flow through the rest of the root mass and what does actually flow through the roots will be stripped of nearly all if not all its DO before making it back to the reservoir. This is why NTF systems do not work well for plants with large root masses. NTF is a design intended for small root systems (lettuce). mj does not have small root sytems.

NTF should have wide throughs so the roots are spread out not stacked up on top of each other. The DO in the flowing water diffuses only through about 10 mm of roots. That is less than 1/2 inch of roots (O.39 inches). True NTF means a flow of water only 0.5 mm through the root channels. That means no more tran a 0.39inches of roots will mean the water will not be stripped of all Do before ot makes it diffuseDO through the standing root mass.

IE less than 1/2 inches of stacked up roots for a maximum with a flow calculated to provive a 5.mm of water through the tubes 24/7 if there was nothing in the tubes. It is called horticultural science not mj grower and retaker down sizing (cheaping and gross underbuilding) How can anyone justify down sizing a system made for small root n masses for growing a plnt with a large root mass. Pretty ludicrous.

Therefore, expect to have root rot problems unless you start using Chlorox or hydrogen peroxide and continue to use it through the rest of the groww. That systems is not even built large enough to handle many fast growing SOG systems with small root systems yet alone larger vegeed then budded plants. By the time your systems plants have large root masses your system becomes a NTF system rather than aero system as your roots are nearly all laying in water not hanging in air and therefore being sprayed with high do water. Sad, sad design and deceptive labeling. It really quits operating as an aero system very quickly. Perhaps aero cloner/NTF growing system would be more appropriate labeling.

You are hopefully already budding the plants? The only really successful uses I have seen for that system is to start clones in it at 24/7 lighting and switch to the budding 12 hour light cycle as soon as roots appear. NO VEG CYCLE. AUTO strains work well with that system. Just grow with lighting at 18 to 24 hours per day from start to finish. Get strains such as lowryder that are usually only 10 inches to 12 inches tall. They are quick growing and have small root systems. Forget about trees. Think lots of little ones grown quick.

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3984.m38.l1313&_nkw=aquarium+water+top+off&_sacat=See-All-Categories
 

auto22

Member
trim alittle if need be and try and keep the flow going as much and fast as possible. runit like an NFT system to get to the finish.
 

Creek

Active Member
You can pull the roots out and get a some course stainless steel mesh to stop them from going in again.
 

kabona

Active Member
But the full mass of the roots stacked high on the tubes will not be getting a high DO flow of water through them. Most of the high DO water will simply flow over the top of the roots masses stacked up in the tubes. Only a small percentage of the water will actually flow through the rest of the root mass and what does actually flow through the roots will be stripped of nearly all if not all its DO before making it back to the reservoir. This is why NTF systems do not work well for plants with large root masses. NTF is a design intended for small root systems (lettuce). mj does not have small root sytems.

NTF should have wide throughs so the roots are spread out not stacked up on top of each other. The DO in the flowing water diffuses only through about 10 mm of roots. That is less than 1/2 inch of roots (O.39 inches). True NTF means a flow of water only 0.5 mm through the root channels. That means no more tran a 0.39inches of roots will mean the water will not be stripped of all Do before ot makes it diffuseDO through the standing root mass.

IE less than 1/2 inches of stacked up roots for a maximum with a flow calculated to provive a 5.mm of water through the tubes 24/7 if there was nothing in the tubes. It is called horticultural science not mj grower and retaker down sizing (cheaping and gross underbuilding) How can anyone justify down sizing a system made for small root n masses for growing a plnt with a large root mass. Pretty ludicrous.

Therefore, expect to have root rot problems unless you start using Chlorox or hydrogen peroxide and continue to use it through the rest of the groww. That systems is not even built large enough to handle many fast growing SOG systems with small root systems yet alone larger vegeed then budded plants. By the time your systems plants have large root masses your system becomes a NTF system rather than aero system as your roots are nearly all laying in water not hanging in air and therefore being sprayed with high do water. Sad, sad design and deceptive labeling. It really quits operating as an aero system very quickly. Perhaps aero cloner/NTF growing system would be more appropriate labeling.

You are hopefully already budding the plants? The only really successful uses I have seen for that system is to start clones in it at 24/7 lighting and switch to the budding 12 hour light cycle as soon as roots appear. NO VEG CYCLE. AUTO strains work well with that system. Just grow with lighting at 18 to 24 hours per day from start to finish. Get strains such as lowryder that are usually only 10 inches to 12 inches tall. They are quick growing and have small root systems. Forget about trees. Think lots of little ones grown quick.

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3984.m38.l1313&_nkw=aquarium+water+top+off&_sacat=See-All-Categories


why are you all horned up for d/o in your water, maybe you should start doing a DWC or something. In aeroponics, almost all oxygen taken in by roots are from the air in which the roots are hanging ... not from your air stone..... you mainly saturate your nutrients/water with oxxygen by watering with a mist or fog. Not even to mention that the oxygen in the water is a very low percentage of the oxygen that your plants actually uptake.

i dont see how i will get root rot with my set up.... my water drains out of my roots chambers...even if it didnt drain though my pump runs every 4 minutes, there is no time for my roots to take up and stale water


but sounds like you know everything already.......beginners part of this forum is back a few pages.... i think you in the wrong spot :P
 

kabona

Active Member
Good day. I can't explain it much simplier than I already have so read it two or three times if that is what it takes for you to absorb it dude.

sorry i thought your were reffering to my system. My mistake.


but either way you should go read a book or something on aero.....

if the only way plant roots recieve oxygen is d/o in water... theres no point to using any other system then dwc. aero would be pointless.... and rock wool would be unaccceptable because of its water to air holding ratio,.
 

IAm5toned

Well-Known Member
fatman is correct.

plants get the very vast majority of there DO from water.
ever wonder why soooo many noobs have overwatering problems when using soil?
standing water gets anaerobic really fast...
 
So....fundementally what I am hearing is that I am still at risk for root rot....and should use peroxide or chlorox to keep it from happening...and ....I should change my light cycle sooner ..rather than later...because the larger the root ball...the greater the chance that anaerobic problems will kick in. And finally...yeah...I can pull the roots outta the downspout before it obstructs the flow. Also...you guys arent impressed with the design of the Botanicare system.

Thanks...u answered my question...and gave me more to think about!
 
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