Earthboxes, and Earthbox clones, the answer for growing in droughts?

[BACKCOUNTRY]

Silverbacks Watering collar has given me a idea for a reliable system for refilling the earthboxes internal reservoir from a external reservoir. Essentially you have a large bottle or other airtight container that is turned upside down and connected to the earth box by pipe. The end of the pipe is positioned so that the end is just below where the highest water level will be in the earthbox. When the earthbox is full of water, no air can enter the pipe, meaning no water can drop from the external reservoir. When the soil soaks up water, the water level in the internal rez will drop, when it drops below the end of the pipe from the external rez, air enters the pipe, travels up to the external rez, exchanges place with the water, allows water to flow down the pipe into the internal rez. When the water level in the rez reaches the pipe from the external rez, water flow stops again preventing wasteful overflow.

 

[Guest]

Post that idea up after youve worked your way though it BC and let the rest of us know your thinking.. There are a bunch of us that have benefited from your thought process and experiments.. In doing the initial research for collar design we used a number of resources, but a compilation of your threads and drawings were one of our primary resources. Your trials and discoveries of concepts that seemed to work and those that didn't put us light years ahead when we started..

 

[wisco61]

With that idea BC you might as well have 4-2 liters, one in each corner I'm thinking. Though I suppose they would have to be all perfectly level to function correctly? Also, if you had the pipes go into the water, but then had a hole drilled in the side of the pipe at the max water level, would that make it more of a gradual top off? Just thinking of surface area exposed of a 1/4" drilled hole as opposed to the whole bottom of the pipe. I'm baked so I'm surely overthinking it.

 

[eclecticshaman]

Do you think its safe to grow with straight coco in these earth boxes? along with putting the neccesary nuts for a coco mix?

 

[wisco61]

I think the only issue would be increased water usage. It is my understanding that given equal environments, a 2 gal pot of coco would require more watering than a 2 gal pot of soil.

This thread in the Coco growers forum shows a pic of soil vs coco when left 7 days with no water. Coco on the right

 

[eclecticshaman]

thanks that pic helps alot.

so if you were to use coco with the earth box you may just have fill the resvior at the bottom 2-3 times a week instead of the average one fill up a week when using soil?

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

Here is a drawing of my latest idea for extending time between watering visits-

The rez used for this must be airtight, a tote with the lid sealed with caulk or epoxy, or a bucket with a air tight lid for example. A hole with a removable plug should be installed in the lid for refilling, and a nipple needs to be installed near the bottom of the container for connection to the earthbox.
The red is a hose or pipe extending from the external rez, into the earthbox, it then runs straight down to the internal rez, and sits just below the maximum water level of the internal rez.
When the earthbox soaks up enough water to lower the level of the internal rez below the end of the pipe, air can bubble up the pipe to the external rez breaking the vacuum that holds the water back and allowing water to fill the internal rez. When the water level rises above the end of the pipe, the exchange of air for water in the external rez stops, and the flow to the internal rez stops.

What ya think?

This same style reservoir could also be used for feeding Silverbacks Guerrilla Collar, and would allow for peak efficiency with that system.

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

Yep, yep, I can see what you mean, thats one of the main downfalls I can see about the Earthbox, it can't be totally buried.

I suppose a guy might be able to figure out a way to get the planter below ground level without being in danger of having a flooded planter, if you are planting on a hillside. Perhaps if a space was left on one side of the hole to provide ventilation, and if a small ditch was dug to allow excess water to drain out.

A pipe could lay in the ditch and be buried as well.

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

I was spending some spare braincells today to explore the various configurations Silverbacks Guerrilla Collar could take, and I came up with this idea, it kinda borrows from both the Collar and the Earthbox. It has the advantage over the Earthbox because it allows you to bury it completely, and also allows you to plant straight in the ground, allowing the plants to also send out roots in other directions.

This would need to be used with a airtight, non-collapsing reservoir, 5 gallon buckets come to mind.
A by-product of the device would be Oxygen provided directly to the roots deeper in the hole because of the need for air to run the refill system.

What does everyone think??

 

[wisco61]

My only thought is that's getting to be a lot digging. In my sandy soil it wouldn't be bad, but in some rocky/clay soil, that could turn into one helluva job. Though, its worth it considering the value of the plant you could grow with this.

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

wisco61- I'm not sure how big you dig your holes, but this system should fit right inside the normal sized holes I see most members dig here. The exception would be the hole for the rez, which could just be a extension of the main hole, rather than a separate side hole as I depicted.

Not too much more digging in my opinion, definitely no more digging than you would do for Silverbacks collar. I think it would be totally worth it, especially considering the benefits.

 

[wisco61]

ya, i'm thinking to literally of your scale. Res being a 5 gal bucket at 2 ft tall and a foot across makes it look like a 4'x4' hole. I'll dig a big hole, but I don't want to hop down in one with a shovel and start going at it.

I realize now it would not be nearly that bad.

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

Yeah, I'm more trying to translate a new idea, like Silverbacks Guerrilla collar, this system could take on many different configurations and scales.

I changed the drawing to show the bucket as a part of the main hole, and also showed how water and Oxygen will infiltrate the soil from the device.

 

[Cascadia]

LOL! I got called away on a job in the Sierras south of Yosemite(I don't work that far south much), just got back in late last night, I've got some final touches to do on the 5 gallon planter and I'll get them up as soon as they are done.

 

[Cascadia]

Well, I got my planter all finished, looks good. But I'm having trouble getting a 5 gallon bucket airtight, specifically the outflow that connects the airtight 5 gallon bucket to the planter. I got everything hooked up, and the whole refill system worked, but as I was admiring it I could hear that low whine that indicated a air leak where the outflow connects to the bucket. Damn!!

I had simply drilled a hole in the bucket and put a piece of pipe through until it touched the the back of the bucket(so that I could push in on the pipe while connecting the hose going to the planter to it, I used some heavy duty industrial glue/sealant that has worked great for similar things in the past, but it didn't seem to bond well with the plastic the bucket is made from. DAMN!!

Like my hero Survivorman, I was trying to make this with things I find laying about my place, from simple parts that anyone could find, but now I can see its going to take more specialized parts to get the seal I need on that bucket. Maybe I'll need to head for the Hardware store tomorrow and see what they got.

Anyways, still working on it, I think my next project is a larger workshop, trying to get stuff done under a carport is ridiculous.

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

I hear ya on the air-tight rez, I think with connections like this it is best to use fittings that seal themselves, glues and sealants just don't have the strength to hold that seal, especially when you are trying for a reliable air-tight seal.

See if you can find something called a "Bulkhead fitting", or a "Thru-hull" fitting, creating tight seals through the walls of containers is exactly what they are for. They are not always easy to find on the shelf however, it is possible to create one from plumbing parts however, but ready made ones are absolutely awesome.

Do a search online for Hydroponic Bulkhead adapter(or thru-hull addapter), the indoor boys use them for building ebb and flow, DWC, and other Hydroponic systems.

I have a few heavy-duty Bulkhead adapters on hand, never used, left over from years back when I was going to use them for building drip irrigation reservoirs.
While sitting and watching LOTR The two towers(for the 200th time) last night, I came up with what I think will be my final plan for this years GSWD(and air-tight rez) model. Those leftover Bulkhead adapters are going to be just the ticket.

Sorry about clogging your thread with GSWD talk.....

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

I've got all my gear ready to do a build on my GSWD, and in the process make a air-tight reservoir. While rushing around I found this-

Back when I was younger I was very much into homebrewing beer, this bucket was my first fermenter, I long since switched to all glass fermenters, and when I did I used this bucket as a aerated tea brewer(my plants in the 2005 season were mostly fed with Guano teas from this bucket). After that season I switched back to Miracle grow mostly for convenience, and this bucket went into the shed, where it has been holding a gallon of old tea for the past 3 years.

The thing I realized is that the spigot provides a great seal through the wall of the fermenter, and the spigot itself is designed to slip on vinyl tubing. The spigots can be found online to install on your own buckets for around $3.00, or a grower wanting a ready made airtight rez could buy one of these fermenters, and a Latex cork to plug the hole normally used for a airlock, using that hole instead for refilling the rez. The lids come with high quality rubber seals, and the plastic is usually semi-see through, so you can check the water levels easily with out breaking the airtight seal. More expensive versions can also be had made from clear plastic carboys.

Anyways, just another option for a air-tight rez. I'm gonna go get that build done.......

 

[cway]

cway, were those indoors or out? Got any pics?

hamstring, survivorman is the man!

backcountry, I hope these do well for you, I have a feeling these will do the trick!

Sup homie...

It was a indoor grow with a 1k lights.. I have even used my own soiless mixes and had even better results.. Here are some pics of my Trainwreck in Earthboxes..

 

[BACKCOUNTRY]

Cway- Sweet plants! How long were they in there? Yields??

Cascadia- I didn't get the final plumbing done on my air-tight bucket rez cuz when I opened my PVC cement it was all jelled, went bad. I'll get it done soon as I can get to town and buy a new can. The build looks good though, just need to get some parts glued and I'm ready to put up a demo.

 

[Gantz]

i can't believe you discussed all of this and i missed it....damn it....now i have to read all of it...who knows what ideas i might be stumbling upon...


in any case if anyone wants a video how to...check my signature