Blumat auto watering

[FlowerFarmer]

I do the same thing. I just bought another set. 24 blumats and overall I'm still very happy with them. I took a 6 day vacation recently and they performed great while I was gone. I'm actually going to be adding these to a hempy smartpot coco setup. Can't get any better than that imo.

How does that work?

Is it still a hempy if there isnt run-off to fill and replenish/refresh the reservoir space under your coco?

 

[nachoconqueso]

How does that work?

Is it still a hempy if there isnt run-off to fill and replenish/refresh the reservoir space under your coco?

What if I top off by hand when the rez gets low?

 

[nachoconqueso]

After working with the distributors for a long time now I've decided to ditch them and go for smaller pots. The distributors are too finnicky and get clogged ever so slightly that it affects performance. Was using 3 gallon smarties with distributors but I think 2 gallons is more than enough in coco. My plants in 1 gallons with just a blumat cone (no distrib) respond so much better so I believe they'll still water evenly in 2 gallons.

Hundred Gram Oz inspired me with his 9.5oz from a 6.5 liter. Smaller is better with coco and blumats imo.

 

[Kit Kat]

Hey y'all, just wanted to chime in after running the silicone 8mm hose I mentioned back in June.

This stuff works fantastic with the fittings that come with the blumat patio kit as is and I never ran into any dripping issues (no kinks, clogs, or fitting leaks) when using it.

 

[420ish]

I'm buying these to set them up and I have some questions.

1) Does the patio kit really come with only one 8 mm to 3 mm tee? I thought I needed 12 to connect all the carrots to the 8mm line. How could you ever run the patio kit without buying 11 more tees?

2) I need to fully remove each plant individually from the tent and take it outside to spray every week or so. How can I do this? Should I use the "Quick connect/disconnect for 3 mm tube" aka IG15522? If I am using all 12 carrots, I guess I need to bite the bullet and buy 12 of them? I was planning on using shutoff valves on each side of the 8mm tube anyway, so I guess I don't need the more expensive disconnects that also have a "stop," because I can bleed the water out of the tubes before using the disconnects. Sound good?

Thanks, this thread is great.

when i ran blumats,i would stick the carrot in the pot next to the one i was removing for maintance work.no readjustment or anything.it was usually only ten minutes or so in my case.

 

[skyview]

You won't have to readjust, but you might need to bleed the air out. The setting won't change simply from moving the plant, but air bubbles can wreak havoc with the blumats. What I do is mark the location of the pointer on the twist cap with a liquid white-out pen used for making writing corrections - you can then open the valve up and purge the air bubbles, and come right back to your setting. If you need to change the setting later, you can just scrape the white-out off with your fingernail and re-mark it. However, I've found that once you find the right setting, it doesn't really change even from one run to the next.

That's a great idea!
I've been watching where the setting is, turning several arrows while counting, and then turning back the same count. It's easy to get mixed up that way though.
I use the 3mm quick connects/stops and they really came in handy this year. I had plants outside on a deck and frequently had to bring them inside because of hail and other unexpected bad weather.

 

[LEDfoot]

Hey y'all, just wanted to chime in after running the silicone 8mm hose I mentioned back in June.

This stuff works fantastic with the fittings that come with the blumat patio kit as is and I never ran into any dripping issues (no kinks, clogs, or fitting leaks) when using it.

MOCAP SRT224 is the part number.

Thanks for the reminder. I set up a veg area with the patio kit and needed almost boiling water to straighten the main tubing. I put sections of the 8mm in a baking dish filled with water and microwaved it. I was going to ask if anyone straightens longer lengths by pouring hot water over it in a bathtub. BUT I don't want to crack an old cast iron(?) tub.

 

[Kit Kat]

Here are a couple of pictures from when it was set up for the perpetual configuration - 3 control valves for the main veg res, and not pictured were bloom and flush. Each 4 set was a closed loop with a marked line running from it.

When a particular set was ready for bloom or flush, I'd turn off its valve (the line was marked with tape), pull the line and connect it to the next res valve. This let me move through the H&G schedule for veg/stretch, bloom, flush without having to dump the res each time for the switch. Topping the tanks was simple as well, since their contents never changed.

The silicone hose made this real easy, since it lays flat after moving without needing to be heated up or held in place. Pulling the line off the fittings is incredibly easy too, a good tug and it just pops (I've had trouble with getting tees apart using the black hose).

 

[StennyH]

Thanks for reporting on your positive results with the silicone line. That's extremely helpful to us.

 

[StennyH]

I just wanted to add to this thread that my experience with blumats has been way easier than expected. I set them up and haven't had to make any adjustments. No runaways, no dry pots, just perfect. Only problem is mildew in the res, but that doesn't have anything to do with the blumats.

 

[Lapides]

Mine still work

 

[skyview]

Thanks for reporting on your positive results with the silicone line. That's extremely helpful to us.

You can also buy this in small quantities and by the foot: http://www.sustainablevillage.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=59_69&product_id=136

 

[StennyH]

Yeah, sustainable village's prices just seem really high to me. That tube is nearly a dollar a foot. And tiny quick release/stops cost $3 each?? Wish there were an alternative.

 

[skyview]

Yeah, sustainable village's prices just seem really high to me. That tube is nearly a dollar a foot. And tiny quick release/stops cost $3 each?? Wish there were an alternative.

Only 59¢' if 100' though. And you can get big discounts for quantity on the stops.

 

[Kit Kat]

Only 59¢' if 100' though. And you can get big discounts for quantity on the stops.

This is actually cheaper than the MOCAP 100' roll I picked up, that was $75 shipped. Next time I'll pick it up through here, because I won't be using the black hose again.

 

[stonedstoner]

does anyone use H&G Roots Excelurator in their blumat res? any problems with clogging lines or anything like that? how long will it stay good for in the res?

 

[Kit Kat]

does anyone use H&G Roots Excelurator in their blumat res? any problems with clogging lines or anything like that? how long will it stay good for in the res?

I do, along with Drip Clean and don't experience any clogging issues. I don't know if there's a stay good time period, but I've continually topped off tanks with RE for multiple cycles without switching and didn't notice a problem.

 

[otis33]

I usually do re until stretch is over, no problems... my res is continually circulated between the elevated res and the bulk res.

 

[cody2white]

I used silicone tubing, it was heavy and would droop from pot to pot sometimes moving the little ones around would pop out the blumat. eventually the roots would grab a hold of it and became less of a problem. one time i broke the tip off but didnt break into the res it has worked still. I also like the double rez technique too.

All in all Maxibloom+blumat+double rez+autotop off = a lot of freed up time. lol as dhf would say, baby shit.

My only real issues over the yrs was ph drift and air bubbles in the line from the rez's running dry. if i set em up again r/o is a must and the auto topoff

 

[Canniwhatsis]

.........


Had some issues since the city changed up the water chemistry for the winter, none the less the Blumats are working well and keeping my plants VERY happy!!!!

Had to dig this one out of the root mass at the end of flower;