by Travis
1-month update on my WF
12:53 am in Completed Window Farms, posts with pitcures!, Projects in Process, Seeking Advice by Travis
Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxNmkNX6wfA
Thanks for watching!
-Travis
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make the tubes black or use special drip lines!
this will slow algae growth, still need to clean them though it’s part of the job.
light is getting into your tubes causing algae to grow. if you used black tubing it would help solve that.
looks awesome!
Algae needs light, nutes, water, and air to grow, just like any plant. The only thing you can really starve it from is light. Using black tubing and covering your nute tank is the best approach. Cleaning out equipment that has algae in it already is also a good step. To do a good job cleaning up algae you need to use something that would kill any plant too.
I would suggest you do the following:
take your plants out of the sistem and put them somewhere they can be happy for a few hours (in a bucket of water in the shade, or something like that)
dump your nute tank
refill the nute tank with 1 part bleach to 10 parts water
Turn on the pump for at lest 20min; 1hr would be better
dump out the bleach solution, and replace with clean tap water. Let this run for 10-20min to rise out the bleach
Light block everything you can with black electrical tape, and or aluminum foil
Swap out the rise water for some fresh nutes. Do a smell test before putting the new nutes in, to make sure there isn’t a strong concentration of bleach anywhere.
Put your plants back in, and you should be good.
I would suggest NEVER using bottled bleach to clean out anything that will eventually pass chemicals onto food that you EAT. Sodium hydrochlorite is the active ingredient in household bleach, which in itself is safe to use around plants that yield food for human consumption… the problem is bleach often contains lead and other chemicals which are toxins and carcinogens that plants soak up and put in your food… Lead is a known carcinogen and if consumed will for sure give you cancer in the 5-20 years it takes to kick in… DON’T D
What I do when this happens is use vinegar in the same concentration I purchase it (in other words I don’t dilute it). You can buy a gallon of 5% acidic vinegar for a buck or two. Let that run for 20-30 minutes. Then run with water to rinse it out. It disinfects and the low pH will kill and dissolve the algae. Don’t worry about the smell. Vinegar is an organic substance that breaks down readily. In a few hours you won’t smell anything.
As you know, you eat vinegar; so, it’s quite safe to let the plants absorb it, but in reality it will break down in organic systems and will not be passed on in the form of acetic acid (vinegar). Anyway, just don’t use dangerous chemicals on stuff that will eventually go in your body!!!!!
“The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has determined that lead and lead compounds are reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens and the EPA has determined that lead is a probable human carcinogen. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has determined that inorganic lead is probably carcinogenic to humans”
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts13.html (ya know, from the CDC dot goveeeeeee!!!!)
@izzy, Lead in bleach? where are you getting this? They recommend it for sterilizing baby toys, don’t think it has lead in it, well maybe if you find some from the 1940′s, or buy the generic wallmart brand…
Anyway an acid shock could work, I would bother buying vinegar though. As I have a hydroponic set up, and therefor have a big tub of “ph down”.
But I like to go with sterilizer that will kill everything, with out doubt. (some algae are can take a low ph, none can take bleach). Hydrogen Peroxide, Methanol, rubbing alcohol, ethanol, could all get the job done. I’m still saying bleach is the best, but there are options.
It’s been awhile, but I just wanted to comment on your algae comment. My system has been running well for 3 months now and I haven’t done anything about the algae growing in the tubes in that time. My resevoir is covered so I get nothing there, but I have clear tubing for the main line going to the top and clear tubes between the levels like you have. Algae grew inside all the tubes, but it seems like it only grew to a certain point and stopped and nothing bad has happened and nothing ever got clogged.
Just for kicks though, I did clean everything out this last weekend. I took the plants out to look at the roots and gave the bottles and tubing a good rinsing with just water. The algae just fell off after shoving a stick through the tubes. The tubes look new again.