how often should i feed/water my plants in coco?

[im4satori]

is it safe to mix them all and add to water?or should i mix them separately since my cal mag is liquid and the nutes are powder nutes?

just add the calmag and mix it well
then add the salts

if you have hot water you can pre-dissolve the salts in hot/warm water but its not required

just stir it well until its dissolved
obviously warm/hot water will dissolve it a few minutes quicker

if you want to wait a couple minutes between each addition and stirring well that's fine but im not that worried about it

 

[boilingoil]

@im4satori, you seem knowledgeable in the nutrient department so could you give me a solid nutrient formula for a coir DTW setup? I would prefer a dry mix as I really don't like to keep stock solutions around.

 

[joeparak]

just add the calmag and mix it well
then add the salts

if you have hot water you can pre-dissolve the salts in hot/warm water but its not required

just stir it well until its dissolved
obviously warm/hot water will dissolve it a few minutes quicker

if you want to wait a couple minutes between each addition and stirring well that's fine but im not that worried about it

i got rid of the calmag it had too much N tho i got some epsom salt and some gypsom (CaSO4) and wanted to make my own cal mag solution and got a digital scale too so i thought id mix 3gram of CaSO and 1 gram of epsom in a gallon and use it every other watering for fixing the cal mag ratios and cations in coco tho i want your expertise in on this too

 

[joeparak]

whats the ph of the source water?

does the source water contain iron?

btw i pHed my source water with those pH test papers it shows somewhere between 6 and 7 not so much greens on the test paper tho id say 6.5?

 

[im4satori]

If I where you id stick with the formula I provided you
gypsom isn't a good choice its for soil and its slow release
if you have other options ask before you buy

your source water ph is good
also check the ph of the solution after you add in the fertilizer

 

[im4satori]

@im4satori, you seem knowledgeable in the nutrient department so could you give me a solid nutrient formula for a coir DTW setup? I would prefer a dry mix as I really don't like to keep stock solutions around.

whats your goal

cheapest possible
or
least complicated

 

[im4satori]

@boilingoil

theres a few options
pick one and I will tell you how to mix it

you could get the maxigrow and maxibloom dry salt
or
the floranova and flora grow which are liquid
these above are super simple and require the fewest ingredient


if you want to mix your own and save $$
5-11-26 hydro special
calcium nitrate
magnesium nitrate
mono potassium phopshate
Epsom salt aka magnesium sulfate

https://customhydronutrients.com/

all of the above can be purchased at this site (except what you cant source locally)

 

[joeparak]

If I where you id stick with the formula I provided you
gypsom isn't a good choice its for soil and its slow release
if you have other options ask before you buy

your source water ph is good
also check the ph of the solution after you add in the fertilizer

i would tho all the cal mags ive seen on sale had 10 sometimes as much as 20 percent nitrogen in them
i can buy all other variants of calcium from chem shops tho

 

[im4satori]

btw i pHed my source water with those pH test papers it shows somewhere between 6 and 7 not so much greens on the test paper tho id say 6.5?

I believe the ph should drop a bit more after you add in your nutes

can you go to the auto parts store and get battery acid?

take a 1 gallon jug
fill it half way with plain water

then carefully pour in the 1pint of battery acid (aka sulfuric acid)
don't breath in the vapor and if it gets on your skin just rinse quickly, no big deal

then top off with more plain water until full

this will make the acid diluted/less hazardous to handle

 

[im4satori]

i would tho all the cal mags ive seen on sale had 10 sometimes as much as 20 percent nitrogen in them
i can buy all other variants of calcium from chem shops tho

just use the mix I gave you with the calmag you have

its a good mix, it doesn't allow for much adjusting but still a good mix

 

[joeparak]

I believe the ph should drop a bit more after you add in your nutes

can you go to the auto parts store and get battery acid?

take a 1 gallon jug
fill it half way with plain water

then carefully pour in the 1pint of battery acid (aka sulfuric acid)
don't breath in the vapor and if it gets on your skin just rinse quickly, no big deal

then top off with more plain water until full

this will make the acid diluted/less hazardous to handle

i have a pint full of battery acid im on it
so i am to use it every feeding to adjust the pH?

 

[im4satori]

i have a pint full of battery acid im on it
so i am to use it every feeding to adjust the pH?

no

you only use it if and or when the ph has gone outside the ideal range

there is some debate on the proper ph of coco
most peeps around here will say its 5.5 to 6.0

I have always read (not in forum but from literature) that the proper ph range for coco is 6.0 to 6.5

but since I have not personally grown in coco I cant say from personal experience

 

[im4satori]

@joeparak

are you able to get your hands on an EC pen/meter?

don't get ppm meters... get an EC meter if you can

the blue lab brand is comparatively economical and works well with a usual good life span

personally I have a Myron which is a bit more$

if you cant get it or don't have the cash don't sweat it and get it when you can

 

[im4satori]

i have a pint full of battery acid im on it
so i am to use it every feeding to adjust the pH?

so your going to fill your pale with your water

add your fertilizers and mix until dissolved (this is the stock solution)

then your going to cut it 4:1 to make your solution (this is your finished solution)

then your going to test the ph of the solution
if the solution is already in range then you don't need to adjust it
if the solution ph isn't in range you will add a couple drops of your DIY ph down (battery acid) and test it again and repeat until its where you want it

if you accidentally go too low or add too much acid youll need to start over

if your able try and track or measure how much ph down you added so next time youll aready know what it takes
a 1ml syringe works well for small mixes if you can get one

 

[im4satori]

eventually what I would do is

figure out how many mls ph down was required to adjust 1 gallon of finished solution

then figure your stock solution (before its cut 4:1) is mixed for a total of 20 gallons

so id multiply the mls of acid required for finished solution x 20 and add it to the stock solution each time a made it and the finished solution should come out just right

 

[im4satori]

I made a couple edits to the last two posts to help clarify

 

[im4satori]

calcium chloride
might be something you can source

its water soluble and can be used sparingly and might allow you to use a bit less of the calmag that you have

 

[im4satori]

@joeparak

sent me a PM hes sourced calcium nitrate so where going to rebuild his mix using it instead of the "calmag" liquid that was cost prohibitive

I thought I go ahead and post it here for anyone else whom had interest

for veg
full strength per gallon
base 1 gram
bloom 1 gram
Ca-N 1.5 grams
Epsom 1 gram

bloom
full strength per gallon
base 0.5 grams
bloom 1.5 grams
Ca-N 1.5 grams
Epsom 0.75 grams

the only down side to this formula (and the other) is the iron

unfortunately neither the base or the bloom have enough iron in them
if your area is known for having iron in the source water then you might be ok

otherwise it would be nice to find a way to up the iron and maybe the P if there where more available options

 

[Huckster79]

Im not the guy to get into the npk ratio with you, but im telling u i feed lightly and am in straight coco. I either buy charged coco so preloaded w a lil calmag... or i soak it before using it for a while in cal magged water...

In veg i feed maybe one out of four times, in rocking time of flower i hit em a bit harder prob every other or every third water...

I also use heavy 16 prime, a mostly organic additive that stabilizes ph, 6.5 in, and out everytime i check, only use it when i use nutes, others are straight water, or a periodic calmag and water...prime can be used w any nute line...

They need water often in coco but at full strenghth the girls dont use all the nutes every water.

Nice thing w coco is the second you notice uv gone too light you can immedietly add nutes no need to wait for a dry cycle...

 

[boilingoil]

whats your goal

cheapest possible
or
least complicated

Both, right now, it's just too easy with bottled nutes to pull up the required amount out of bottles in my syringe and add to the rez. But them again I am relying on the nutrient manufacturer for a non specific marijuana nutrient profile. So I don't know, maybe I'm just looking for a happy medium between the two.