How to water when leaving town for a week??

[mrgrowmez]

Ok my beloved IC'ers I need your advice once again.......

i need to go out of town for 6 days and im not sure how to handle the watering situation.....at the moment im watering every 3rd or 4rth day going by wieght or if they start to droop.

they are in they're 7th week of vegging, 4 NLs and 4 BG's in 2.5 gal containers and im getting ready to switch over to 12/12 in another week or so.....

so what do you think i should do as far as i see it i have two options.....

1. setup some kind of wick system

or

2.Ask a close friend to come over and water them...which i dont really want to do of course but i do know i can trust this person and i dont want 7 weeks of work to die on me......

they will only need to be watered once when im away so im thinking i can get away with a wick system....any experice, ideas, advice is VERY welcome!!!

thanks heaps everyone
peace

mrgrowmez

 

[Farmer John]

I would go for the wick system or Blumat system...
http://www.rambridge.com/products/irrigat/tropf/tropfbu2.html

 

[stretchpup]

I've seen those hollow stakes in Home Depot, you fill with water and stake in the soil, and it slowly waters your plant over a week.

Not the best watering method of course but might work in a jam.

 

[Farmer John]

Well, take a empty plastic bottle, fill with water and make a few pinholes in the cap and stuff it in the soil so it drips very slowly but constantly, do a test for how long it takes for the bottle to drain, thats a easy one also!

 

[Guest]

http://www.committment.com/stengle1.html

 

[Guest]

Do you have any rubbermaid or some other brand of large sized plastic totess?

Preferably one where the top is at least half as tall as your containers...

Put your plants in the tote, add enough water to have a 1/4 of your planters submerged. The soil and roots will absorb the water from the bottom up.
Being as water is self-leveling, and with moisture wicking and evaporating its way to the surface of the soil, there is no danger of over-watering, especially if your plants are currently healthy.

 

[mtnjohn]

i used a wick watering deal when i went on vacation for a week

came home and my plants were looking healthy and green
..no problems at all and they had grown about 4-5 inches

personally i think that wick watering is supierior to hand watering
my 2c

mj

 

[Lofty]

.2.Ask a close friend to come over and water them...which i dont really want to do of course but i do know i can trust this person and i dont want 7 weeks of work to die on me......

if its a trust thing regarding their capability to water them, just leave the liqud in little containers for each plant, u will know how much they will need 2-3 day after your gone, they shud only need to water once.

how much of a f***k up can they make with 1 watering?

 

[toshphan]

yea im also in the same position. except i am renting and unfortunately the place hasnt bee signed on for next fall yet. so while im on SB, a buddy is gonna come over and water/feed and also check for those ominous house showings. We used to move the plants downstairs during the showings, but now were just gonna but a lock on the closet door. Does this sound sketch to any of you IC members?

 

[toshphan]

bump to say that the plants are 4-5 weeks old and wont be flowering during the time, so odor shouldnt be an issue.

 

[Guest]

Whatever you do, tweak it and get it right before you travel.
Away from a grow, nothing is as distracting as not having confidence that you'll return to a welcomed relieving sight.

 

[mtnjohn]

Whatever you do, tweak it and get it right before you travel.
Away from a grow, nothing is as distracting as not having confidence that you'll return to a welcomed relieving sight.

you still worry....even though


i know i do

especialy when this is at stake.....lol




mj

 

[HighonPottery]

I bought one of those battery-powered "Green Genius" pumps. It works awesome. It's got multiple outlets and has a timer with flow control. I think I got mine on eBay and it was around $50, but is well worth it if you have nobody to come water for you. Good luck.

 

[mrgrowmez]

thanks all for he replies, guess ill try and test out a wick watering system this wekk before i go and try to get it dialed....mtnjohn how did you set yours up and what did you do about the height of your bulb??did you raise an extra few inches before you left or what...my plants are at just the right distance so taht they wont get heat stress but are as close as possible so i guess ill just raise it up extra and hope for the best.....

 

[Pipedream]

I'd do two things. First, since you are still in veg, I'd greatly reduce your lighting. It will slow down both evaporation and transpirationm and thereby reduce total water requirement. Second, Id bottom water them right before you leave and let them ride it out.

Here's an easy method to fully water (bottom water) your plant. This will take it to a point at which the soil can not hold any more water. Once there, you'll have a good starting point for the week...... First assure that your container has drainage holes in the bottom. Next stand the entire container in a large tub or bucket. Fully water the plant until water comes thru the drain holes and starts to collect in the outside container. Now pour additional water directly into the larger container until the water level is about two inches deep, or about an inch or two below the top of your inside container. Let your plant sit in there for about 45 minutes. During that time, constantly add additional water to the outside container to maintain the same water level. After 45 minutes, remove your pot, stand it on an elevated platform like a bakers rack and allow it to drain for a full five minutes. Your plant is now fully watered and the soil or growing medium has been re-hydrated. Do not water it again until the container feel light to the touch. Then resume normal watering.

JMHO, but its worked well for me when I used to grow in soil and travel on business.

 

[mrgrowmez]

ok cheers pipedream........

 

[Brastaman]

hiya mrgrowmez

i tried a few different methods for unattended watering.
had a friend come by and water...too much hassle and not the same love appreciation for the garden
tried mini sprinklers...uhh...must of been stoned when i had this idea
tried the wick system but...if i didn't have the "wick" already in the pot then it was difficult to implement
tried filling up a tub full of water and letting the plants sit in them while i was gone...good but a lot of water vapor in the air (humidity) from evaporation (lost water) and sometimes one plant might suck up all the water
tried drip system...probably i prefrence because i use it now! lol

good new is that they are in veg state, so they can endure more stress than say flowering plants.
take the time to practice with whatever method you will use. it will help.
for the drip, i get a bucket or tub (big enough) one pump, and some drip lines from Home Depot.

good luck.

 

[badgr]

I need a wick watering system. Thanks for all the info. I'm losing my mind with all the hand watering.

 

[Guest]

Mr growmez since it wasnt mentioned,home depot or lowes has 4 ft 4 lamp T-8's for fifty bucks,I can leave 8-10 plants that size for a week at a time with a thorough saturation,especially if you transplanted and all that good shit.Just thought I'd mention it maybe for next time,HID's are usually not nearly as mini-vacation friendly to plants as tube floros.A hundred bucks beats a babysitter with a mouth lol,even a trusted babysitter.

 

[randude]

I have my inlaws do it.