Eggshell WCA (Water-Soluble Calcium)

[J.James]

If you have been growing cannabis for very long then you know by now that every problem can be solved by adding Cal/Mag. While in reality Cal/Mag may not solve every issue it is still a very impotent component for the plants to build strong cell walls.

How much money do you spend a year on Cal/Mag?

Well, grab a stress ball because I'm about to show you how to make a shelf-stable Cal/Mag concentrate for around $20 that when added to water with a dash of Epson salt will yield 1000 Gallons of cal/mag solution.

What Is WCA?
Water-soluble calcium is a source of available calcium that can be made from commonly used household items, eggshells, and vinegar. When applied as a foliar spray, WCA provides available calcium to plants for normal cell processes, root growth, and fruiting (Hasenstein and Evans 1988, Marschner 1995, Hodges 2010).

 

[J.James]

I toss my eggshells in the freezer and once I have 50 or so I make a batch of WCA. 50 large eggs yield around 1 cup of cooked shells and are enough to make 10+ cups of WCA.


I like to use a cast-iron skillet on my electric burner so I can control the heat. I set the dial to 4 and set a timer for 60 minutes.


After 25 minutes


After 40 minutes


After 60 minutes


After they cool we will take them outside and toss them around (Flip them in the skillet) to remove the membrane inside the shell. Toss them gently or stir and fan them with a piece of cardboard and the membrane will fly out the pain leaving mostly eggshells. Any organic material will lessen the shelf life of your WCA

 

[J.James]

Now measure out 1 cup of shells and put them in a one-gallon glass jar and add 10 cups of vinegar.


Add the vinegar a few cups at a time to ensure the reaction doesn't cause the mix to overflow. You will instantly see bubbles start moving the eggshells around shooting them towards the surface and falling again. If this doesn't happen then you have not cooked your eggshells long enough.



I put my cap on loosely so the gas can escape. and in a few days when it settles down will use the vapor lock built into my lid but you can cover it with a paper towel or breathable cloth for storage until the process is done. We will wait 10 days for all eh calcium to be released from the eggshells before continuing.

 

[J.James]

Had someone make a comment on another forum questioning the effectiveness of WCA.
"How can this solution use such a small amount in comparison to what I buy from the hydro shop. So you think you can make a stronger solution than the scientist they hire. ROTFL This is bro-science shit"

My solution is still bubbling but let's put the tester in and see what type of TDS PPM increase we got in comparison to just straight rice wine vinegar.

Straight Vinegar comes in at a reading of 736 PPM TDS


WCA on day 8 comes in at a reading of 5460 PPM TDS

The X10 is just out of the photo

Now there is no way for me to tell what nutrients & minerals dissolved in this solution but it is my understanding that the majority of this is calcium. This is why we do our best in the cooking stage to remove all the organic material so that the toasted eggshell is all that remains.

I will do a final reading when the solution is finished and will grab some Cal/Mag solution and test it to compare the concentration of each.

 

[treefarmercharlie]

Had someone make a comment on another forum questioning the effectiveness of WCA.
"How can this solution use such a small amount in comparison to what I buy from the hydro shop. So you think you can make a stronger solution than the scientist they hire. ROTFL This is bro-science shit"

My solution is still bubbling but let's put the tester in and see what type of TDS PPM increase we got in comparison to just straight rice wine vinegar.

Straight Vinegar comes in at a reading of 736 PPM TDS
View attachment 82930 View attachment 82931

WCA on day 8 comes in at a reading of 5460 PPM TDS
View attachment 82932
The X10 is just out of the photo

Now there is no way for me to tell what nutrients & minerals dissolved in this solution but it is my understanding that the majority of this is calcium. This is why we do our best in the cooking stage to remove all the organic material so that the toasted eggshell is all that remains.

I will do a final reading when the solution is finished and will grab some Cal/Mag solution and test it to compare the concentration of each.

God I can't stand the attitudes some growers have. What makes them think that the manufacturers "can't" make more concentrated versions of their supplements? When they make them weaker, it's usually to help prevent the solution from more easily precipitating the compounds...or simply to make a higher profit.

 

[H.A.F.]

I use calmag religiously. I use an RO to strip my water of almost everything, then I 're-tap' it putting in the minerals I want.

I am not sold on name brands but ease of production/use etc. matters to me. There's a sack of cal-mag+iron granules that makes 1.25 gallons for about $20-30 - so it is not cost prohibitive or anything.

That said, in my 'organic' grow that part is not.

So I'm open to anything, but what I do now works - if that makes sense. I need to be sold, and this may be doing it.

 

[Streetpro09]

What about using this solution in hydro?

 

[ChronicWonders]

What about using this solution in hydro?

I’d probably just suggest as a foliar.

 

[Streetpro09]

I’d probably just suggest as a foliar.

Kinda figured but I'm almost curious enough to try a bucket with it. Too bad its so labor intensive to make, just for a shot in the dark.

 

[J.James]

Kinda figured but I'm almost curious enough to try a bucket with it. Too bad its so labor intensive to make, just for a shot in the dark.

I'll send you some to try when it's finished if you wanna give it a try in the bucket

 

[Streetpro09]

I'll send you some to try when it's finished if you wanna give it a try in the bucket

I would definitely give it a go for science and conversations sake.

 

[angel4us]

After ten days of the eggshells dissolve or fo you strain them.???? Do you use this liquid straight ? If not how much per gallon ? And do you use it in soil watering daily ???

 

[Now1more]

Wish I could contribute some pictures here, but my sd card shit the bed.

If you all are interested in a foliar spray during flowering, try J.James' recipe above with banana peel tea. I had comparison pics. There is a noticeable difference, not huge, but you can see it.

If I can get myself motivated this year, I'll do some posts on different teas and FPJs.

I'm a big advocate for what @J.James is doing here. I've turned a couple friends onto organics and not one said I'm going back to bottle nutrients.

 

[NoWaistedSpace]

If you crush the shells up, more like pulverising,
would that possibly "quicken" the process?
I eat between 4 and 6 eggs every day. Shells pile up rather quickly around here.
Maybe try a coffee bean grinder or a "tire tool". lol

 

[H.A.F.]

If you crush the shells up, more like pulverising,
would that possibly "quicken" the process?
I eat between 4 and 6 eggs every day. Shells pile up rather quickly around here.
Maybe try a coffee bean grinder or a "tire tool". lol

Seems that at least the first part where you are cooking off the skins and junk, bigger would be better. Untill you blow the chaff off

 

[NoWaistedSpace]

Seems that at least the first part where you are cooking off the skins and junk, bigger would be better. Until you blow the chaff off

As long as your shells were good and dry before you ground them up might help. Is there a stronger "acid" that will breakdown the calcium faster?
Pulverized would give you more surface area for the solvent to work faster was my thoughts.

 

[H.A.F.]

As long as your shells were good and dry before you ground them up might help. Is there a stronger "acid" that will breakdown the calcium faster?
Pulverized would give you more surface area for the solvent to work faster was my thoughts.

I mean pre solvent. after baking when you have to get the shells clean. If you have to blow the egg-skins out, bigger pieces of shell would be less likely to blow all over the place wiith the chaff.

 

[NoWaistedSpace]

I mean pre solvent. after baking when you have to get the shells clean. If you have to blow the egg-skins out, bigger pieces of shell would be less likely to blow all over the place wiith the chaff.

O got what you're saying now. The trick is to get as much of that lining out while the shells are 1/2'd. Boiling the shells , all would come out before frying them. Right?
There has to be a quicker way.

 

[H.A.F.]

O got what you're saying now. The trick is to get as much of that lining out while the shells are 1/2'd. Boiling the shells , all would come out before frying them. Right?
There has to be a quicker way.

The part I am talking about is this:

After they cool we will take them outside and toss them around (Flip them in the skillet) to remove the membrane inside the shell. Toss them gently or stir and fan them with a piece of cardboard and the membrane will fly out the pain leaving mostly eggshells. Any organic material will lessen the shelf life of your WCA

I am just assuming that bigger shell pieces would make that part easier. Might not - never done it.

 

[J.James]

After ten days of the eggshells dissolve or fo you strain them.???? Do you use this liquid straight ? If not how much per gallon ? And do you use it in soil watering daily ???

I'll cover all that later today, my batch just got finished up.