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Blumat auto watering
- Thread starter sunnydog
- Start date
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- Tags
- blumat drippers irrigation watering
M
moodster
get some drip clean and a submersible pump i get no clogging at all with the lucas formula
I'm using the 3/32 barbed tee from kent systems
G
greenmatter
..... i would go with a 1/16" drill bit , but i've never tried it. better to struggle a little trying to get the T's in the line than have leaks IMHO
B
BasementGrower
anyone use these with like 80 plants at a time?
I've used them with 150+ plants at a time.
A
ak-51
How did you have that set up?
I have used them with 25 at a time on a single line. Bulkhead from the elevated reservoir going down to 25 and then terminating at a L with a tied hose in it, no loop. It seems like the more you add the longer they take to do the initial calibration, and the more chances for everything to get messed up. I can only get the top water level about 3.5-4 feet above the carrots right now. Wish I could get it like 12 feet up.
imma hook up a few couple dozen of these with mineral nutes (no organics). got ???'s though.
1. do i need a regular and a maxi carrot in a 3 gallon pot? how about a 5?
2. how many can i put on a single line? how high does the rez need to be elevated?
3. i hear guys talking about using them with a pump. how's that work?
4. apart from drip clean, what can be done to keep these things unclogged and working well?
thanks!
1. do i need a regular and a maxi carrot in a 3 gallon pot? how about a 5?
2. how many can i put on a single line? how high does the rez need to be elevated?
3. i hear guys talking about using them with a pump. how's that work?
4. apart from drip clean, what can be done to keep these things unclogged and working well?
thanks!
A
ak-51
I would put the upper reservoir up as high as possible. My elevated reservoirs are 5 gallon buckets, and the lids are like 3 inches from the ceiling. Most people, myself included, use a 2 reservoir system, so you don't need to have a huge 30+ gallon reservoir up that high. If I had 12 foot ceilings they would be 12 feet in the air. I think somebody in here calculated the height that would be required to match the pressure given by the pressure reducer faucet fitting; it was like 30 feet or something, so I wouldn't worry about having too much pressure just by hanging it.
After every run I clean mine. That involves running hot water through them while I stretch out and massage the drip lines. This usually dislodges some salts and stuff from the inside. While doing this I also uncap the end and smack the black feed line with a yard stick. The black feed line is really too firm to squeeze or massage with any effect. I just try to smack it hard enough to shake something loose inside. It seems to work.
What about if one is running a perpetual?
I'm going on month 14 with mine in my perpetual. I've drained & wiped the rez, but never any special attention to the carrots/feed line.
FWIW, my rez contains (per gal):
5 ml Pro TeKt
2 ml SM90
5 ml Ful Power
ak51 has a good thought though, to massage the drip line, pull it through the sensor & kind of "wake up" that part that's kinked by the sensor/brown knob.
G
greenmatter
i have run perpetual for years and blumats have made my life much easier than it was without them
here are those pics i promised you a while back. the clothes pins and couplers make moving plants in and out ultra simple.
G
greenmatter
thanks rrog, but the pics are probably a little deceiving since the scale really can't be seen (it's smaller than it looks), the system works great but i wouldn't call it a "real operation".
the pots you can see are 3 gallon geo pots. they worked great for coco but i had a few problems with clogged lines (just the 3mm) and started running the whole room in no till soil . running plain water solved the blumat issues but i find that 3 gallons of soil is not enough to get a plant all the way through the cycle no matter how much i top dress. teas have saved my ass so far, but i am switching over to 10 gallon tubs and phasing out both the coco and the 3 gallon pots. i'm VERY happy with what i am seeing in the 10 gallon tubs so far ........ cool things happen when you triple the volume of soil a plant has to work with.
one small piece of advice on the clothes pins. you have to make SURE that the 3mm line is pinched closed. it will "weep" just a little if you don't get it in the clothes pin correctly and a little weeping equals a lot of water by the time you realize you missed something.
taking an extra 5 seconds to make sure that you are operating a clothes pin correctly makes more sense than cleaning water off the floor for 20 minutes ........... guess what i was doing when i figured that out
live and learn , right?
the pots you can see are 3 gallon geo pots. they worked great for coco but i had a few problems with clogged lines (just the 3mm) and started running the whole room in no till soil . running plain water solved the blumat issues but i find that 3 gallons of soil is not enough to get a plant all the way through the cycle no matter how much i top dress. teas have saved my ass so far, but i am switching over to 10 gallon tubs and phasing out both the coco and the 3 gallon pots. i'm VERY happy with what i am seeing in the 10 gallon tubs so far ........ cool things happen when you triple the volume of soil a plant has to work with.
one small piece of advice on the clothes pins. you have to make SURE that the 3mm line is pinched closed. it will "weep" just a little if you don't get it in the clothes pin correctly and a little weeping equals a lot of water by the time you realize you missed something.
taking an extra 5 seconds to make sure that you are operating a clothes pin correctly makes more sense than cleaning water off the floor for 20 minutes ........... guess what i was doing when i figured that out
live and learn , right?
Lovin' the couplers. Link? 
G
greenmatter
Lovin' the couplers. Link?
same old place >>>> http://www.kentsystems.com/
unless they made some drastic changes to their web site i would pick up the phone and call them. dealing with the web site pissed me off so bad that i got in the car and drove there (not an option for most people)
Fwiw sustainable village has new 3 mm unions (barb x barb) that when disconnected stop water flow....goodbye clothes pins and 3mm knots. The two female ends disconnect, they also have options to install other sized barbed fittings that connect to the 3mm fitting so u can run different sized line to feed the 3mm line such as 1/4". They have a lot of new fittings (they sent me some for free with my order to test out), just not sure if they are all on their website yet. Also you have to tell them you want the water stop option when u order the 3mm barb unions.
My plan is to do a pressurized set up w nutes, a 4x8 geoplanter from the makers of Geopots, and 72 blumats. Planning a no till w black gold natural and organic soil.
My plan is to do a pressurized set up w nutes, a 4x8 geoplanter from the makers of Geopots, and 72 blumats. Planning a no till w black gold natural and organic soil.
Welcome! You may want to look into distribution drippers (slaves), They will work great in what you describe. Less adjustments to make. Cheaper too! Best wishes!
