Wed, 2009/05/06 - 8:32am
Hi All,
I've experienced three ag malfunctions within a week! First, one ag deluxe pump failed (no big surprise - I had ordered an extra just in case). Next, I discovered my other home deluxe select button is frozen. And yesterday, my work deluxe "reset" itself. You know how if you hold the select button the lights flash off and on and the control panel lights circle? Well, wasn't anywhere near it and it went thru the reset cycle. Now, I can't get it to select any other setting than tomatoes, and it won't reset when I hold the select button. I haven't had a chance to call aerogrow yet. Has anyone had either problem?
Thanks,
Beth
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 9:02am
#2
HiMary,
The one at home I bought in December. The one in work I got in February. So, not old at all...
Beth
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 9:15am
#3
Have you tried unplugging it and plugging it back in?
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 10:15am
#4
Darn - I just tried that and now it doesn't work at all. Good suggestion, though. Time to call ag-
Beth
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 11:04am
#5
Hi All,
Got thru to customer service in 7 minutes. Two new bases are on the way. I'm glad I was here when it croaked. I picked all the lettuce - big salad tonite! Now I need to decide what to plant when the new base arrives..... Hmmm...
Beth
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 11:04am
#6
Bummer, Beth. I hope AG was able to help you.
Such a spate of malfunctions ... perhaps local power has become noisy lately? Might be worth a power strip to protect them?
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 11:11am
#7
Hi Gisette,
Scott in customer service was wonderful. I'm so happy that they don't try to make you feel it's your fault that it broke. I do have the ag's on power strips. The one at home was a physical problem with the button. The one at work he thinks blew a fuse - but it isn't accessable. I think it was the old adage that bad things happen in threes.
Beth
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 11:42am
#8
Beth - definitely re AG customer service. Those people are such a treasure, and Cliff's leadership clearly shows! I care more about the fate of this company because I care about the CS people, who care about us.
I hope your AG's are back up and reliable soon!
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 12:38pm
#9
Still weird that they design a base unit with a fuse that is inaccseeable, very stupid and wasteful engineering practice. Might as well not have the fuse and burn everything, since the whole unit is junk anyway.
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 1:37pm
#10
Hi Stonecold-
Yup, I was thinking the same thing. A sealed fuse it a dumb idea. I had half a mind to open the base to see what was in there. I'm sure just a fried circuit board.
Beth
Wed, 2009/05/06 - 5:42pm
#11
Beth,
The SS6 and AG3s do not have any serial numbers. Are there any with your Elite +.? I see they have 3 suppliers in China and I wonder how they track the reliability of each supplier.
Thu, 2009/05/07 - 4:56pm
#12
Beth,
Have a look here, I've already opened my Classic up and gone into it's contents. It would follow that the circuitry is very similar inside yours, look for the fuse next to the incoming supply - this is the one which, if it blew, would cause your AG to be completely dead.
Thu, 2009/05/07 - 6:44pm
#13
I wouldn't mess with it since they're sending you new bases. I really appreciate their customer service too!
What do you plan on planting when they get to you?
What happend to the cukes? Are they still growing? Or did I miss something?
Enjoy!
Thu, 2009/05/07 - 9:19pm
#14
Oh... I'd mess with it. 
After getting the new ones, of course. Because now Beth has spares to experiment with, you see! That's how I came to rewire my minis - the spare effect.
Thu, 2009/05/07 - 10:43pm
#15
When I had a problem with my 6+ they sent the label to return the bad one. Couldn't keep it. So I'm sure she'll have to return the bad ones.
Thu, 2009/05/07 - 10:50pm
#16
Ah. They've gotten more Organized. 
Fri, 2009/05/08 - 11:58am
#17
Hi All,
I'm not going to mess with it - I believe I have to send it back. I don't want them to think I broke it. Now, if they don't want it back, I'll definitely open it! No serial number on this deluxe, just a model number and date code.
Judith - I ended the cucumber experiment when that deluxe pump failed. All I had was a bunch of shriveled cucs 
Beth
Fri, 2009/05/08 - 12:50pm
#18
Beth - do you still have the potting-mix cuke in your swiss chard light setup? My seedling shelf has emptied out quite a bit, and I'm thinking of trying a dual cuke experiment in there, one in potting mix and the other passive hydroponic (like my lettuce outriders).
Fri, 2009/05/08 - 3:01pm
#19
Hi Gisette,
Nope, that cucumber is long gone. I needed the space for seed starting. I did get 3 cucs though. The plant was starting to get rootbound anyway - but it never developed the leaf problem that the ag cuc got. I just seeded an earthbox with Cucino's though. And I actually read the seed packed that suggests that it can be grown inside in a 10" pot! It's T&M seed, though, and I don't know if that is UK english for a greenhouse or not. Maybe Peat can translate?
http://www.tmseeds.com/product/355.html
Beth
Fri, 2009/05/08 - 4:22pm
#20
T&M is just a shortcut of Thompson & Morgan - they are pretty much the major seed company over here. It's OK, it doesn't mean it's exclusive to greenhouse propagation, looks like you can grow it indoors and outdoors.
The cucumber I have grown in the AG can also be grown in a 10" pot, I tried it once and had it in my living room by the window!
Looking at the high cost of these, I guess they are all female and don't need pollinating?
Fri, 2009/05/08 - 7:20pm
#21
Nice, Beth. A 10" pot isn't too space-demanding... Well, the growbox instructions say to plant 6 cukes or squash or melons per growbox, and it didn't say small ones, so they seem to need less root space than you'd think for such huge plants. (In contrast, the growbox is supposed to have no more than 2 eggplant or tomato.) I actually got cukes from two in little pots last autumn - maybe 6"? It was just so late in the year, I decided it didn't greatly matter how big their pot was, since they wouldn't live long enough to outgrow it much.
Hope you enjoy the Earthbox! I have a lot of fun with the growboxes.
Are you turning off the seedling lights once the spring rush is out?
Beth, sorry you are having problems. How old are the AGs?