There’s no hydroponic growing method I haven’t tried; DWC, RDWC, Flood and drain, top feed, bottom feed, aero, NFT, sprayers, and yes, even bio buckets. Buckets, bins, tubes, rails, you name it. If I had all the money back that I’ve spend on hydroponic growing contraptions, I’m confident I could take a vacation to Hawaii. But there is one exception. I’ve never tried flood and drain, using a controller box. You’ve seen them:
I bought one of these Flood and Drain controller boxes a few months ago and started experimenting with it.
For those of you just now boarding the Captain’s ship, here is an example of my growing style. A $10 tote, $15 water pump, some hose and a drip ring. I run the water pump twice a day for 15 minutes at a time. The grow is perpetual; each plant is self contained; each plant is a “harvest”. Read Capn Style HOW TO here.
I got the controller bucket hooked up, with the idea I could run a few stations using a single reservoir, and get the growing containers closer to the floor, allowing more head room on top.
And it worked. Here’s “Emdog”, a few days before chop.
But there was a problem. My first mate, Slingblade was also experimenting with the same system. After a month, he told me he was seeing slime in the reservoir. I wasn’t seeing it yet, but after about two months, I started to see the slime in the bottom of the res. But where was it coming from? The reservoir water was no warmer than 70F, and I put an airstone in there to keep the dissolved oxygen high.
I disconnected a few hoses and this is what I found inside the hoses:
Yeah you guessed it. The water sits stagnant in the hoses for 12 hours at a time. During this time, the dissolved oxygen goes anaerobic. Slime grows. Slingblade was correct. Flood and drain, using this controller box, will not work. I disassembled the system and migrated my chongers to regular Captain Style totes again. I pulled two of the rootballs out of their growing buckets to check the root balls, and luckily, no slime. The slime was mostly free floating like little jellyfish and didn’t infect any roots. However, if I had left it, I am certain it would have, eventually.
Looking back at it, I realize now what a huge mistake it was, and I should have known better. But sometimes when we WANT something, we forget about the possible consequences, or go into denial about what could happen, should we choose this path.
A few years ago, I had a battle with “root rot”, or “Pythium” in a deep water culture grow. DWC is notorious for being prone to pythium. Pythium is the bad, anaerobic type that will literally make mush of your roots. Once you get it, it is near impossible to over come. The roots die, plants start yellowing from the bottom up, and there is little hope for them. I tried to combat it by killing ALL bacteria, with products like H2O2, Dutchmaster Zone, physan 20. I was completely unsuccessful. After 3 months of pain, I finally turned to beneficial bacteria and changed my growing style.
There are 100 reasons why “captain style” growing is one of the most fool proof, high performing, hydroponic grow methods. Here are just a few:
- Little to no chance of slime, pythium, root rot.
- Each plant has its own simple growing system.
- No chance of salt build in growing media.
- The ppm and PH inside the root ball is always the same as the ppm and PH in the reservoir. So there is no nutrient build up, no PH swings, no deficiencies. No guesswork about the PPM and PH. No need to measure “run off” water.
- Errors with PH or PPM can be corrected immediately.
- Roots love the wet / dry cycle twice a day, rather than twice a week (dirt / coco).
Capn Style growing is easy for beginners, and pros. Your plant can be left for up to a week, unattended, depending on the size of your reservoir (or auto top off system).
This picture below was sent to me from a Canadian grower, who took CapnStyle OUTDOORS in his green house. He grew 12ft tall plants. Even with high reservoir water temperatures, he had no issues with root disease. When the irrigation system turns on, water is super-saturated with oxygen, and the rockwool holds just the right amount of oxygen for the roots.
Don’t fix it it ain’t broke
thanks again Capn for always trying and reporting…save us the expense and time.
Flood tables and irrigation lines should never be level. 😉
awesome it wasent a big post but i was hoping to go online and reading something new from the capn him self for my b day thanks capn for spreading the knowledge
Thanks Capn, I’ll put that in the “deep six” file. I’ve tried couple variations of the Capn Style but so far the original works the best! One plant, one res. Thanks again Capn!
First of all I want to say thanks Capn for all the knowledge. I’m on my first capn style grow and its awesome. Crazy growth its truly amazing. I remember seeing somewhere the nutrients you use. If I remember right it was RX base, gh calmag, gh silica, and florilicious plus. Oh I know I know also recharge. Is there any thing I missed.?? I can’t seem to find the article and I’m going crazy looking. Do you mine sharing you feed regiment. Iwould like my next grow to have the same nutrients. It would greatly be appreciated .
Capn The EMDOG looks great. I’m glad you went back to Capn Style,I was on GOOGLE and found a sealed reservoir ,thought it might help with sealed room. I know you put a lot into that room.
I bookmarked this so when I can do hydro this will come in really handy thanks cap.
>>>Crazy growth its truly amazing. I remember seeing somewhere the nutrients you use. If I remember right it was RX base, gh calmag, gh silica, and florilicious plus. Oh I know I know also recharge. Is there any thing I missed.?
Thanks for the kind words everyone. I’m not using RX any longer but I will be posting my usual nutrient recipe today, in another article.
No slime here. Took a minute to learn tho.
The slime is from not enough running water .& poor circulation in the res.
Use these systems flooding more than once every 12 hours. It’s in the instructions.
Between 2-3 grows just flush a lot between grows,, with Clorox every 15 minutes for a day and then change to tap to clean all the bleach out. Then change the tubing every , say, 5 grows? Bleach ur fittings. Use a toothbrush or a small test tube brush.
The hose is real cheap. Replace it. Any hardware store for pennies a foot. You’ll have a little maintenance with any system.
Additives like floralicious plus and many thicker organics will do this.
Change the tubing.
It’s just nutrient sludge anyway
For head stash go with soil. 100%.
For Ebb & gro buckets use salts with house & garden drip clean to remove excess salt and 1 ml of regular Clorox per 10 gallons for the white roots.
And any boosters u like but no bennies or anything alive. Very inexpensive to grow.
Roots ,,,, use GH rapidstart,,, works with bleach for the explosive growth and pearly white.
Google fatman Clorox
Learn what commercial hydro greenhouses use to prevent disease like pythium .
You think they buy all those high priced products?
Pythoff & zone are both chlorine based
But ur buying a lot of water
Clorox = 1 ml per ten gallon every 2-3 days and pearly white roots. A 3$ gallon bottle lasts forever.
Peeps go oooh, bleach. The jokes on them on the $$$ spent. There is more bleach in the water they drink from municipalities.
To reiterate ,,, personal go soil.
Ebb and grow is so easy. Once you run it a few times you’ll learn the ph rises a hair while the ppm goes slowly down .
After you us a ph down product twice then it’s res change time. Or 10-14 days. Either .
Cap’n I like ur reads but these buckets are soooo easy. Give em another try.
I’ve got twelve for vegging into two bud rooms that are offset in timing by about4-5 weeks. i like diff. hybrids and most are 9-10 week flowering. Just pick an inner bucket up and go to new room. Root more cuttings. When they r ready first put in buckets to veg. Then go to other bud room & repeat.
Easy peasy. LOL
Peace
Btw,,,, not trying to b a hater. Your system is really nice but simple and you produce good looking results!
Jus sayin maybe you didn’t have the ebb & gro system dialed in.
But there r lots of ways to skin a cat they say.
And Michigan is correct. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it
I’m a big believer of giving plenty ( to the point of not being skimpy) of all the regular needs. I think lots of the deficiencies would be eliminated,,,,so no supplement /additives are necessary……. With exceptions like a bloom booster or root builder or a hardner.
But mainly just a good solid feed of all the basics. For instance IMHO I’d give up the supplements for the proper environment or better genetics.
I apologize if I sound arrogant or offended you and ur work. Not my intent.
Love to see that success any way u can !!
Peace.
Cant find recharge in canada! Tryed amazon and they wont ship north! Would love to get my hands on some!
Ty