The dreaded algae
4:51 pm in posts with pitcures! by Natalia Medina
So, now it has happened to me to. Algae has started to grow in my windowfarm, or rather in the tubes. I knew it would eventually start to grow algae because the tubes are transparent, but that was what my local pet store had. The plants doesn´t seem to have suffered.
Now I have washed all the tubes with very warm water and soap and re-installed them. To reduce the possibility that it will come back, I covered the tubes with white tape.
@natalia Your farm is so healthy and I’ll bet that is why the alge is healthy too. I purchased black drip pipe at Lowes [Large Hardware Store] and had little alge. I am so happy your plants ate growing well. Happy windowfarming. Sylvia
If I may play the devil’s advocate here, algae is not such a bad thing. Sure, it eats up a tiny amount of your nutrient solution, but there is no harm whatsoever in a little algae. It’s not beautiful, but its natural and some discoloration over time is a small price to pay for being able to visually see whether or not water is making it to the top of the column of your windowfarm. On the core team, we decided to point people in the direction of clear tubing after seeing lots of posts about dead farms when people did not realize for several days that the water was not pumping high enough for one reason or another. we opted instead to give everyone instructions for how to make a bead chain cleaner in the later pages of the v3.0 instructions. It’s definitely a personal decision so do whatever seems best in your situation, but I just wanted to toss in a vote up for clear tubes. We’ve been using them and cleaning them for three years now and so far we’ve kinda just gotten used to a monthly tube cleaning, which is probably good for all kinds of buildup that may accumulate over time. Opaque tubes will definitely block out the light to reduce algae growth, but your tubes will still need to be cleaned.
I just went through something similar, but it was this white film, not brownish. AND it prevented the flow of any water to come down from my reservoir to be pumped up on my t-lift system! I cleaned out the opaque tube, but did the mistake of not taking the time in cleaning out everything else. That, combined with the fact that I increase the timing of the water flow i think was the reason my windowfarm was completely gone two days later! I have to start from scratch all over. I had started my windowfarm from seeds. I am contemplating on buying some lettuce, spinach, and strawberry plants in soil, but I am just a bit indesisive right now, with a broken heart. Does anyone one know if that what that white crusty film could’ve been? Algae?
@sylviawoerner , Didn´t think about it from that perspective. But it sounds very true, if the plants thrive so will other things such as algae. So it’s in a hardware store that you can buy black tubes, thanks for the tip. Lots of hugs!
Thanks for all this wisdom. Didn´t realize that algae could be a sign of health. After washing the tubes I covered them with tape, but left some areas in order to see the water flow. Hopefully it will mean a little less alge accumulation at the same time as I can see that everything is okay. On your advice I will keep the transparent tubes
Oh, what a awful bad luck! It doesn´t sound like algae, but I’m no expert. Could it be salt from the plant nutrients? Or calcium from the water; calcification?
I have no way of knowing, as I have cleaned everything out, and have started my seedlings again. While they grow I am going to repaint my bottles, and possibly purchase a book on hydroponics. Any hydroponic book selections anyone want to refer me to?