We had a member in the Grow from Home forum ask a very relevant question about the use of beneficial bacteria in DWC systems. My initial inclination as a grower is to say “negatory” to beneficials in DWC because it invites issues like algae and pythium, but that is my two cents. What are do other @mastergrowers and @GrowOpEmployees and @growopowners and @Caregivers think about beneficial bacteria in DWC systems?
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I totally avoid them and keep the uc roots in 24/7. I only grew in dwc for 6 months but when I tried ben bac I had problems. a friend of my swore by it. if I did id use teas weekly. im sure cleaning is a nightmare after that tho.
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Not A DWC grower, but being a long time rock wool grower, I like my root zones as sterile as possible. Would not add any beneficials!
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I ran bubble buckets for awhile. It’ss an awesome way to grow on small-scale. I had excellent results and would strongly suggest giving them a whirl to anyone interested in trying something new… that said - I also suggest keeping it simple: Do not add any beneficial bacteria.
If you want to do something like aqua-ponics (which I’m pretty sure falls under the umbrella of DWC), beneficial bacteria seems like it’s probably built into the program. In which case, add all the bennies your fishies like-sies.
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I’d say go for it, if your water is chilled. I run them in my system.
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Have you ever experienced issues? At what temps do you keep your res? What beneficials do you run?
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My veg, 65 degrees, and I have three different flower rooms, each maintaining its stage. So one flower room is 62, 59, and 57. That is one of the great advantages about having a chiller. I’ve never had a problem before, but I realized also, I did not need this in my lineup. I am running Rdwc and aero. I jumped the gun on this one.
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