I had good results on my initial experience with the cloning machine. My second attempt failed. The cloning machine was full of clear slime and the cuttings had black rot. The slime was so thick, it staled the pump. I cleaned everything and tried a third time, but this failed the same way. I did some research and I think I know what went wrong and how to fix it.
Problem: Slime is a symtom of pythium growing in the water. There are many species of phythium. Three common species found in hydroponics are Pythium aphanidermatum, P. dissotocum Drechsler, P. ultimum. Pythium produces both clear slime and black rot on the plants grown in hydroponic systems.
Solution: Hydrogen peroxide 3% from the drug store is effective against pythium. A recommended solution is 4 tbsp/gal of water and let sit for 4 hrs before using it on plants. Another recommendation is to use a lower amount directly in the hydroponic water every 4 days. source:http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/hydro/2004082043013671.html.
Another thing to do is to keep break up the slime. Hygrozyme is used for this purpose and is $25 per 0.5 liter on Ebay and Amazon.
Another path to take is to increase the population of good life in the water. BushDoctor Microbe Brew is used for this purpose. It is about $20 per quart online.
So I will try again. Prevent the growth of pythium with hyrogen peroxide. I may also break up the slime with Hygrozyme and culture good critters with Microbe Brew.
