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Recirculating coco drip

dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
hey everyone. This place has made my transition to coco the simplest possible and Tahnks to ALL for that.



I have 2 12 head emitters and they flow at 2 GPH. From the head runs 1/4 inch tube to the plant stalk base. At first i was doing run to waste, but its a pain for me to keep filling the rez. Since I've implemented recirculatin and since, I have had a pretty stable PH, only rising about .1 every day.

Is there anything I need to do when doin this recirculating? Any pointers, or tips?

I'm using canna coco and nutes.

Yes and i know i have mutha truckin thrips...dam fuckers.
 
T

thc43

Active member
Veteran
looking good. I havnt come accross many recirc coco grows though..

when growing run to waste you should actually use less or the same amount of water as recirc. RTW should be more efficient because you use every last drop rather than eventually dumping your mix like in recirc.

you may have been putting too much solution through the pots, 1gallon per hour seems like alot of water my drippers emit around 500ml to 750ml per hour watered 4 times daily 15min, 20min,5min,5min,5min. with no more than 10% waste dripping from pots at the end of the day. 200litre res lasts me 7 to 10days with 3 x600wts, with flouros id think youd be battleing to use 60litres a week in run to waste (RTW) just wont drink anywhere near hps lit plants..
 
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G

Guest

dusto2k3, recirc is something I'm going to do also. I've got the materials and am just waiting till my plants are harvested so I can pull the grow out of the closet and into the middle of the room. Right now the plants are so big and the buds are weighing down the branches to the point I'm afraid to even move the things for fear of breaking something.

I'm interested in how yours works out for you. One of the things I've wondered about is how do you know how much nutes to put back into the reservoir? Like thc said, are we going to end up dumping the res cause it's got too high an ec in it due to the plant's use of the NPK? I don't know all the answers so I'm really curious bout what happens.

forgot to mention, NICE FUCKING GROW, man!

What size trays you got? I'm using 2x3 concrete mixing trays and wonder if they're gonna be big enough.
 
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AbaZabba

AbaZabba

Member
Hey dusto :wave:

Welcome to the coco thread and a phellow re-circ drip user. While we're only doing drip for moms and E&B for flower, drip seems to be too ideal in coco. While we only drip 15 minutes intervals twice daily with no GPH emitters, the coco stays nice and moist without ever being too dry or wet. (this stuff rocks)

Like you said, the ph barely budges in re-circ drip with Canna nutes and have experienced 0 problems keeping moms at 8-10 ml/gal A & B with no additives. I contribute much success to huge cheap bricks of quality coco that was pre-flushed, which I think Canna does too with their coco?

Even if your coco comes with a high sodium content, a simple flush and this stuff is more forgiving than any medium I've experienced.

Your setup looks real clean man, once those thrips get out of town you will definately notice the growth explosion of drip coco (if you haven't already).

I look forward to the rest of the show :lurk:
 
dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
hmmm. All good questions, here's my thoughts.



Maybe i am way off, but how can a RTW be more efficient. When watering, if there is 10% runoff, then i am wasting 10% of the feed everytime. In recirc., i put that 10% back in....how do you lose?

And yes, i do believe that i am putting too much water through the pots too. I have a propump 500 and it moves a lot of water. I use 1/2" pvc, I put in a 25psi regulator inline and the heads say they are functional from 8-80. Here's the thing, I run strait 1/4" tube from the heads and the flow is wayyyy more that 2 GPH. But I dont wanna use drippers cuz my buddy said they clog alot. So, I made dripper rings by using 1/4" tees and drilled about 8 1/16" holes in each ring, this should really slow down the rate (I already tested).

Yeah the thrips are gonna get a dose of AVID once it gets here, so they'll be done.


The nutes thing. Ideally the plant would be eating the water and nutes at the same time right?? So, that means the PPM's should stay the same. If the PPM's of my runoff are rising, that means they are eating more water than nutes and to slow down on the strength. . Yes?

Lighting, those are floros, but soon in about a week of so be switched out for my 1khps.
 
G

Guest

a recirculating top feed in coco is a lot easier than a lot of people think. i run 3.5 gallon pots using a single, open 1/4" feed line for each bucket. I water 3 times a day for 15mins each time. the runoff just pours back into the rez... it's that simple. a longer watering time is good as it gives all the coco time to get fully saturated.

the ppm fluctuations in coco is not an exact indication of what the plants are eating as coco will hold nutes at times and release at other times. I go by trends over a few days rather than daily changes in ppm.

IMO a recirc will waste less water/nuts then run to waste.
 
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G

Guest

Cool, folks. Makes me feel better about the choice. I didn't know if ec was a direct measurement of remaining NPK over time or if as the plants used the actual NPK you would get a buildup of waste in the water in the form of residual salt. Kinda like what we get in the coco if we let it get too dry. Sounds like I need to educate myself on what's left in the water after the plants eat.
 
dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
So, anyone using a rez, how much is your PH fluctuating on a daily basis, and is there any range to leave it. I set mine at 5.8, and after 24 hrs, its up to 5.9., does that mean i have to do daily adjustments.

so i hear im ok between like 5.3-6.2, does that mean i can set at like 5.4 and wait til about 5.8-5.9 to drop it back down or what?
 
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rhizome

New member
I wouldn't worry about a .1 shift per day

I wouldn't worry about a .1 shift per day

The coco's pretty forgiving. You can let it go up to 6.3 no problem, IMHO. Ya might also find that it cycles up and back again- coco will house thriving microherds.

Don't forget that the thrips have an instar that drops from the plant into the media and develops there for as long as 10 days- I've had great success using Avid to control thrips, but it has always required a soil drench- I let it sit in the media for a couple hours and then flush HARD but I'm not sure that the flush is mandatory. YMMV

If the thrip thing is persistant, you might want to pick up some nematodes- I like the sponges, which I just toss in the res.YMMV

Are you also on CannCom?
 
dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
I hope the trips are gonna hit the shit. Yeah, i thought the larve comes up from the dirt, then matures above ground. Would ladybugs take care of them?
 
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rhizome

New member
Not the subterreanean instar- you'd be looking at keeping ladybugs in the space for a long time. They'll work for the adult, but thrips are so damn small that predators will rarely do more than control a population. Once you're out of convergens, the thrip population will spike pretty hard. Had better luck with lacewing larvae, which are also really cool looking.

If you have Avid, use it as a drench even tho the label CLEARLY STATES that you shouldn't. The concern there is run-off contaminating groundwater, which is not much of an issue for you.

Turn off the watering sys, pump out res, hand water w/ Avid solution( overwater), give em a bit, hand water with plain old H20, dump Avid/flush waste from res, replace nute, turn watering sys back on.

Try to bubble air thru the waste before you dump it- Avid oxidizes really quickly, and is fairly nuetral w/in about 24 hours.
 
dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
sounds good, but for me, now, handwatering isn't really an option. It would be a mission. I just spent 8 hours setting everything up yesterday an I should have the avid by friday, So im thinkin ima dedicate one day to pest control. Run Avid through, then run plain water for two watering cycles after, whatcha think. I dont even know how much avid im getting, a friend is sending to me. so shit, maybe nematodes might be the answer, I'LL just have to wait.
'
 
NPK

NPK

Active member
I maintain a document of useful stuff I glean from here--copy, paste, edit. :wink: Here's what I've got on the subject of PH and recirculating:

Recirculating your nutrients will raise the PH in your tank if you don't water frequently. Normally, the PH should stabilize quickly with regular watering: your "out" measurements, or runoff PPM, will closely match your "in" measurements, or tank PPM. With three to four waterings a day, the tank mass should not have a problem absorbing the runoff.

Generally, plants stay healthier and grow faster in coco when the tank PPM is higher then the runoff PPM. If you notice that the runoff PPM is significantly higher than the tank PPM, it's time to flush your coco with plain PH'ed water. Collect the plain PH'ed water for the outdoor garden. Normally, one full tank of plain PH-ed water will bring the runoff PPM back down to acceptable levels.

It helps to use an enzyme product if you recirculate.


I also use recirculating drip systems, and in my experience, the larger your reservoir, the more stable the PH. I have an 18-gallon tank that needs regular adjustments, while the 40-gallon tank stays rock-solid for days on end.
 
dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
ahh, good info. I just ditched my 35 gal rez, for a 17 one that will fit under my tray. so, so much for rock solid ph. Oh well, adjusting ph is better than watering hella plants!!

Thanks NPK. i do use a cannazym and rhizo
 
dusto2k3

dusto2k3

Member
what are ya'll doing about the off time in the rez, do the nutes settle or what, do i need to throw another pump in there just to mix prior to the feed pump coming on?
 
NPK

NPK

Active member
I've been using Sensi coco nutes, which don't have any solid/sludge-y matter and don't need regular mixing. Still, I can see how an air pump might help, esp. if you run it just before lights on/first feeding.
 
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