BigTokes ~ "How-To" Of The Bio-Buckets 101

[ocanabis]

Hi Bigtoke

I wander if you could help me.I'm in the process of building a 6 bucket bio system.The one item I can't figure out is how & what you used for the float switch.I can see the switch in your res but how is it connected to a water line ?

Here's a brief rundown of what I have so far:
6- 5 gal buckets
10" baskets (I can't find 8")
1 & 1/2 main feed line reduced to 3/4" to the buckets
1 & 1/4" drain to 4" return to res
For the pump I have a 1200 or 750 gph(do you think the 1200 will be over kill ?)
The res is a 60 gal
Thanks in advance
Later
Ocanabis

 

[BigToke]

……………the float valve can be found at almost any hydro store and as for the tubing just ask for a (Refrigerator Waterline Installation Kit). Most of these kit’s comes complete with 20' x 1/4" copper/plastic tubing, saddle valve, and union. This is what you will need that will hook you up to your float valve and your water supply for your resavoir to automatically top itself off with fresh water.

 

[Feminised Clone]

Main Drain Line Question?

Main Drain Line Question?

Big Toke - much thanks and respect in advance. Hopefully you can give me your toughts on my question.

Do you see it being a working scenario, to run 10 - 5gal buckets with 1 1/4" bucket drain lines into a 2" main drain back to the resevoir?

Thanks again,

Fem Clone

 

[gregor_mendel]

Hi BigToke:

I have some feed questions. First, my three trials.

These apply to a 9 bucket system, arranged 3x3, 2 feet on centers.
Main line is 1 inch, feed lines are 3/4 inch. I have a tee on the one inch line at each bucket. On the tee is a 3/4 inch ball valve, then 3/4 inch line to the ell at the bucket.

Trial 1. Main line is looped. It looks like a square with another line connecting the middle.
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Something like that. The plus is a tee, which goes to the 633gph ecoplus pump. 633/45=14. I thought that would be great. So I fire it up, and thethe buckets begin to fill. Actually just some of them. No amount of valve adjustment can even get all the buckets flowing, and if could, it just isn't fast enough. Tried it again with my 1250 gph sump pump. Same problem.

Trial 2. Main line is linear (not actually, it zigzags from first to the last bucket, but it is linear in a pluming sense). Same story.
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Trial 3. Add a 325 gph pond pump to the other end of line. Same story.

Now I am thinking that I should have used the 1 1/2 inch main line. I will do what I must to make this work, but I need to be really sure the change will fix it, as my wife may kill me if I spend another dime on the system without getting it going.

I must say that I am suprised by this problem, as irrigation has never presented any issued for me, and I have run Hurt's original design before with success.

I would love to hear from the man himself, but if we have any irrigation guys out there, please comment.

GM

ps I posted this in BT's thread, as he welcomed me to come to him for help. Feel free to move it if this in inappropriate.

 

[gregor_mendel]

Those "drawings" are wrong, and I can't seem to edit them. The top is a square sort of figure eight. The bottom starts at the left, goes right, down, left, down, right, terminate.

GM

 

[BigToke]

Feminised Clone ~ I believe if I were you I would use a 3” pip, you mite get by with a 2” ½ pip but that’s cutting it close if you ask me………….no room for errar!!

gregor_mendel ~

Now I am thinking that I should have used the 1 1/2 inch main line. I will do what I must to make this work, but I need to be really sure the change will fix it, as my wife may kill me if I spend another dime on the system without getting it going.

dame that’s funny as hell……………….man I like a fella that tells it like it is………….sooooo I’m going to give it to ya as I see it…

everything you said is a overkill, and as for those drawings I cant make site of them…lol

ok bro, according to what I’m thinking for a nine bucket system your going to need:

• a reservoir that will holed 7.5 gallons of water with a one foot drop.
• a 500, (GPH) pump: that will give you an exchange rate of a little over 10 times an hour: pump MUST be within 5’ foot of the first bucket.
• this pump has an: 1/2" intake and outlet, your main line should be whatever the size of your pumps outlet is and in this case it’s ½” ……………so I would branch off to each bucket with an the same size as the main line ½” .

 

[ocanabis]

Thanks Big Toke.I'll post some pics of the System soon.Ineed to get a couple other things squared away first
Later
Ocanabis

 

[gregor_mendel]

Thanks, Big Toke.

Before reading your response, I changed the main line to 3/4". It works well with the 1250 gph, which is way overkill, as you said. But the 633 gph still doesn't cut it. I guess I'll build the 1/2" main with 1/2" feed in the morning. Should work fine with the 633 gph. I won't scrap the 633 for a 500, though. The girls will just have to live with that exta DO.

GM

 

[daltron]

Flora Nova answer

Flora Nova answer

Question:
Has anyone used floranova in bio-buckets? I searched that several ways and got nothing. Yes, it is a mineral salt nutrient, but has 3% humic acids. This concerns me in a bio bucket.

I used FloraNova grow and bloom for my first couple of bio bucket grows with outstanding results......I know floranova is a organic based nute, but I've not read anything regarding it being a mineral salt...... if you have a link to the info, please share it with me, I would like to read up on that........

the grows went very well but the ppm's maxed out at about 500ppm's, [growing lifestar 14 bio buckets] the entire grow ran with a very stable pH.....at 6 1/2 weeks began to reduce the ppm's by 50 ppm/ day down to 200ppm's and this was my final flush; for a great yield, taste and high.........in short FloraNova worked very well for me....

Currently using the original Prue Blend grow and bloom [organic] ppm's are maxing out at 450 with pH runnig at 6.0 and growing well.....I'm working with organic nutes because I think it produces a better tasteing smoke, just my 2 cents

 

[BigToke]

ocanabis ~ ……………good luck, and looking forward to those pic’s.

G_M ~ …………..just remember to use a valve on each bucket to control the flow and to even out the pressure in the main line…………good luck.

daltron ~…………..it’s good to hear from ya D, and thanks for the info…………some times folks just ask me questions that I don’t have the answers for that’s way it’s always good to hear from an accomplished Bio-Grow as yourself…………thinks for the input.

 

[HydroPonixs420]

Wow thats fuckin crazy. That shit must produce some nice quality! Wow is that as far as you can go with ur indoor BigToke lol. Great Post. Looks like too much effort is required for me to even attempt this.

For me outdoor growing is enough until i get more a bigger place.

Keep us updated i need to see how this works! Good Luck!

 

[gregor_mendel]

Thanks for the Floranova answer, Daltron. I don't have a link, but called GH once, and was told what I posted above. What they are calling organic base is the 3% humic acid. I am glad to hear you are having success with PBP.

Big Toke:
The morning has arrived, and I am second guessing going down to 1/2 inch line to utilize the smaller pump. Why?

Big Toke has 36 buckets. 36 divided by 4 is 9, which is the number of buckets I have.
Big Tokes pump is 5000 gph. 5000 divided by 4 is 1250 which is th gph of my sump pump.

So IF sump pumps are safe and reliable to used as one's hydro pump, then I should be fine with that overkill - Big Toke is.

I have the rest of the day to think it over.

If I stick with this, should I change my handle to Quarter Toke, and sign my posts as QT?

GM

 

[medman]

Big Toke--Daltron Can you guys explain what is taking place in my system? I feel as though I have a rather unique set up. One bucket contains a 750 gph pump. It feeds 4 buckets and is returned to the pump bucket via a one inch lines. One line per 2 buckets is waterfalled back to the pump bucket. Each feed line is injected with air doing away with troublesome airstones. Each bucket has an 8 inch net pot filled with hydroton. They are submerged to within an inch of the top. I had been battling a ph problem until I saw a post from I believe Daltron who mentioned having Nute ppm's no higher than 400/500. I had been trying to keep my ppms at 900/1000 When I lowered to 700 my ph remained a steady 5.8/6.0 I have not changed the the water at all. My ppms have remained at 700/750 Plants are extremly healthy and fruitful. Trainwreck from clones. What have I got going on? Is it possible I have a bio bucket? I should add that I use ro water, Flora Nova Veg and Bloom Nutes. Auto topped with same ro water (25 ppm/6.3ph) Rez temp 68 Rh at 40/50% Air temp 75 And one 400 hps per 4 buckets/plants.

 

[BigToke]

…………….ok bro it’s like this, my pump was supposed to go on a much larger system then what it did, seeing that I ran out of grow/room space and had already bought the pump I used it……..does that clear things up for ya?

……………the best thing you can do is to use the same size outlet of whatever the pump size has; if you go bigger then the pump will not have enough pressure for the bucket supply lines.

 

[dadda]

Big Toke my man. How big of a pump would I need for a 32 plant grow. Via bio buckets.

 

[brooklyn]

this is the general idea i have for my bio setup, since i do it mediumless, i'm wondering if i can possibly setup this way and still maximize on the system's benefits? also for my system i have a rio 1100 powerhead, pumps 300gph would thid be strong enuf to move the liquid around? thanks.peace

 

[dadda]

BT could I use rapid rooters to start clones in and put them in the bio bucket system. Or would that mess with the beneficial bacteria.

 

[BigToke]

dadda ~ …………this is your basic rundown of your 32 Bio-Bucket System:

• 24 gallon reservoir with a one foot drop!!
• 2416,GPH this pump used with your 32 Bio-System will have an exchange rate of 15 times an hour; pump must be no further away then 5-feet from the first bucket!!
• At lest a grow/room size of 11’ L x 9’ W.

this should at lest get you started…………good luck.

Brooklyn ~ hay dude I can make out that drawing at all……………I’m not for sure what your driving at………..if you’d like to try that again then that’s ok.

 

[dadda]

BIG TOKE

BIG TOKE

What do you think of the Rapid rooters benefical fungi BT.

If I had a bigger pump it would not need to be as close to the buckets correct.

your grow is only 4 buckets more than mine why did you have such a big pump?

 

[brooklyn]

peace BT, if u click on the pic it will enlarge, this is a synopis of what i want to do, if i setup my buckets with the larva rocks in the same buckets as the plants but seperate from the root ball, this way still harvest the BB's and stay mediumless...i hope i may this clearer..also 2 35L tubs and 50L res how many gph do i need in my pump? my powerhead has is rated at 300gph is this enuff? and how do i figure out how much water do i need??? .peace