Bio-Ponic's: From Bubblers to Bio Buckets - Page 3

daltron · 07-07-2005, 05:38 PM

well Kat you made my day thanks........if just one person learns just one thing from my posting then it was worth all the work........

......Kat grrreat read on D.O. I hope everybody reads it......no way could I have said it any better.........bottom line.....nute temps can be just as important as room temps for indoor hydro........

from my reading's though this site and others I realized how many people are operating at that upper temp limit and could greatly improve oxygen transfer to the roots just by lowering the nute temp.......this is one of the reasons I have gone to great extreams to build a IceBox for my res and buckets.......

just a little heads up for anybody following along tonight in a few hours I wil be charging my system with nutes by G.H. FloraNova grow......anybody having any advice on charging a recirculating sysytem for the first time now would be a good time to speak up.....since I've never done this before......I will check back befor I start.....all for now

penguin · 07-07-2005, 06:14 PM

Good discussion going on here, I agree with the emphasis on solution temp & DO. My recirculating DWC uses a top delivery and a bottom drain, as Kat suggested. The circulation minimizes nutrient concentration gradients within the bucket (important consideration without airstones in the buckets to keep things stirred up), and allows me to drain the system from a single station.

Nice bucket enclosure, Daltron.

A layer of reflectix on the top surface would provide additional insulation to help keep the solution temperature down, and would keep more of the light bouncing around the room for use by the plants.

One of the advantages of using individual buckets is that it allows individual plants to be moved around somewhat. With inflexible plumbing, and the enclosure, I would be more inclined to put multiple plants into 20gal or larger bins rather than 5 gal buckets.

Are you planning to innoculate with Subculture?

penguin

BaadPuTthyKat · 07-07-2005, 06:30 PM

I just picked up a water cooler (120W) on a certain auction website for less than $75...

I just have journey which will cost $50 in fuel to go get it

Still, thats still OK, just the govt gets to tax my grow anyways....hmmmm 80% fuel tax...

Anyway, it will be in by next week. I'm only going to insulate my main res, as the canopy is already soaking up the light's heat & the air is being drawn up through the canopy, between the tanks...Here's something else I found too. It's from a crop science article about sports turf, but for my money it applies to most anything that grows...

"Previous studies suggested that high soil temperature is more detrimental than high air temperature, particularly to root growth (Beard and Daniel, 1966; Skene, 1975; Aldous and Kaufmann, 1979; Kuroyanagi and Paulsen, 1988; Xu and Huang, 2000a,b). In contrast, reducing soil temperature at high air temperature improves shoot and root growth."

I think I can safely say that a water cooler is a good investment for hydro, anyway..........................
Regards charging up the system for the first time... You have an EC probe right? just take your time adding the nutes & let stuff mix well, & adjust pH last. Ah, yes, you don't adjust pH right?

I haven't really had to do much with mine yet, 5 weeks in. pH has drifted a bit, & I have just been doing top ups & recharging up to required EC.... I will change each one out over the next week & redose them with everything. Though maybe I don't need to, my beneficials are healthy, I'm sure?. I can feel them & I have great rooting already. I switched the light yesterday though, so a fresh solution might happen... Hope all is well with yours

edit: Penguin! How's it?

Good to see you around!

daltron · 07-08-2005, 06:03 PM

is the last item we need to disscuss, {as always click on pic for larger pic}

I've selected a nice dark cool corner for the res.set up with R-19 insulation

then cover in water proof poly:

Drill the holes into the res:

needed holes: drain for res, one for my chiller, one for my water pump, a small one for the float valve and a 5" hole for the return line {4" PVC}........so we go from the above pic to this:

I've been running/ purging my system for several days now and I'm ready to add the nutes for the first time.....But.....

Benifical Bacteria will convert the nutes into useful food for the plants and will seek thier own pH level, which usally falls within the useable range.....sometimes while changing it may be out of that range for awhile but thats OK......just let it do it's own thing and it will come back into range.......

when using any bio system you MUST BEAWARE that there is one down side to the system........

Bottom line is those little critters like to eat and fart and you have to help them pass the gas out of the system

you see it's like this ....those little critters love to eat and sh*t......well the plants will take care of all the sh*t { uhmmmmgood food} but with sh*ting comes the passing of gas.....the gas from the BB is very toxic and will build up within the nute solution to toxic levels very quickly.......very bad for any plant....

THE CURE: the waterfall churns the nute solution enough to seperate the gas from the nute solution and becomes a air borne gas within the res

so all that must be done is to vent the gas out of the res while keeping it in the dark and keeping all other matter out of the res.......plus you must allow for a constant fresh air supply to recharge the oxygen to the nute solution

so i will place a screen over the res and prop the back of the lid open about 4 inches....with a fan to move the air I will remove the toxic gas, allowing fresh air in...with almost no light leakage......I do expect some light leakage {weak indirect, reflected light} but I don't expect a problem from it...if problem accuress I will have to come up with something else......

thus conculdes the building of my Bio-Ponic system....question comments statements?????

daltron · 07-10-2005, 10:57 AM

chargeing the Res was simple....way easy

set the ppm to 300
set the pH to 5.9
water temp = 69 and falling

note this is the one and only time you adjust the pH....think of it as setting the starting line......once set the BB should keep it within the proper range

click on image for larger pic

for anybody interested I will be starting a GJ in the hydro section.......I think more people may see it there......I will keep this thread open for any questions, comments or disscussion's on my bio system or bioponic's in general.........

check out the attachments to see what will be in the GJ...........first 2 Bogglegum.......next 2...LifeSaver and then LifeStar this will be a BOG grow from seed

daltron · 07-11-2005, 11:03 PM

penquin quote
Nice bucket enclosure, Daltron.

A layer of reflectix on the top surface would provide additional insulation to help keep the solution temperature down, and would keep more of the light bouncing around the room for use by the plants.
totaly agree on my to do list

One of the advantages of using individual buckets is that it allows individual plants to be moved around somewhat.
from bucket to bucket or turning of lid....other wise my 5' x 7' is stuffed

With inflexible plumbing, and the enclosure, I would be more inclined to put multiple plants into 20gal or larger bins rather than 5 gal buckets.
if needed remove 2 clamps and shut off valve and the buckets lift right out......I wanted to use 10 gal buckets with a larger output hole { the bottleneck in current systen} however I could not locate the 10 gal buckets at a reasonable price.....yes mutiple plants in 20 gal bins could be another way of doing it.....thought about this...for vegg'ing......using one tub for plants and second for res......... as a half way step for allowing roots to get a good start plus have everything ready to go for the next crop........

or even on a larger scale replacing each of my buckets with a 20g tub and mutiple plants in each...which is what I think you met....right? that would be one huge SCROG

way beond me, I'm into growing bushes/sm trees

Are you planning to innoculate with Subculture?
yes after the air borne bacteria has had a chance to grow and just before placeing plants into the system....about 12 hours prior

always nice to see you stop by penquin.....good info always travels with you.....thanks

BTW I've started a hydro grow journal for this grow click here to read

Fillabong · 07-14-2005, 10:43 AM

booyah! this baby is a 5-star thread

You know I'm knee deep in your new journal and thanks for this one. It's gonna be a flight. I could fit about 6 five gallons in my room.

What was the damage on this system? What did it set you back man? Looks costly but no doubt worth every cent.

*n_d_shadows* · 07-15-2005, 02:34 PM

will have to come back to read it all but just from the first 5 post, IM IN! looks great daltron. awesome job starting up this journal and just the info in the first couple post makes it all worth reading.

anyway, back to read more later
NDS

daltron · 07-20-2005, 02:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fillabong

booyah! this baby is a 5-star thread

What was the damage on this system? What did it set you back man? Looks costly but no doubt worth every cent.

Hello Fillabong & everybody else

thanks for the kudos on a five star thread, did you rate this thread??

the cost all depends upon how many buckets you intend to use.......yes 14 times everything does tend to add up

the most expensive part is the water pump, don't skimp here for this is the heart of the system......my 2400gph pump set me back $200 [{plus I bought a spare}after all it is the heart] my pump will feed 20 to 25 buckets, way more than I will ever need......being the heart of the system I strongly recomend that you buy larger than you think you need and buy top quality on this item.....I can't stress this enough

needless to say a 4 bucket system will use a smaller pump and cost way less......

per bucket cost: bucket, lid, net pot, bulkhead fittings [in and out], sump pump hose[output hose],3/4 inch inlet hose, 3/4 inch shut off valve, hose clamps, plumbers insulated tape, reflective cover for bucket, lava rock, drain fitting......depending on the quality of the parts you buy.......about $30 to $40 / bucket

PLUS: res and PVC pipe and connectors, PVC glue.....my cost for 14 buckets was less than $50 bucks

PLUS: wood for support frame and nails for my system was less than $50 bucks

my total cost for a 14 bucket system: about $900

Mr Burns · 07-22-2005, 06:23 AM

Well Daltron, I was looking at oxy pots and came across this/your thread. Having read the whole thread I have to say from one keen constructor to another, I'm impressed.
I have considered hydro many times and thought a few more soil grows was in order first, however, looking at this I think it's time to make the leap. Maybe it won't be straight after my current grow as I'm looking for a house with a garage to put that sort of weight on but it will happen and pots seem the way forward.

Impressive to say the least. It's gotta be a 5 star rating for taking the time to share all that info.

Grow on

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

New To Site?	Need Help?
Register to Participate View Forum Leaders Privacy Statement Contact Us	Frequently Asked Questions Did you forget your password? Mark Forums Read

Hot Products: