Load cell irrigation

[Terppalooza]

I have been growing rockwool, because its very easy to transplant ^^ but the issue has been keeping up with the water needs of the blocks the plants end up often needing water more then 8 times a day, the issue is every strain drinks different quantities of water, so some end up with ridiculous run off while others are getting to little water. so im trying to rethink how i water my plants. and ultimately decided to to try out load cell based irrigation, to avoid excessive runoff, and ensure the plant never gets too dry

Basically the rockwool block stands on the black square in the picture above. the metal pieces left and right are a loadcells that measure how much weight is applied to them. if the weight drops too much, with some extra programming i want to asses if the plant needs water, and start my pump. Indivuidually catering to the needs of 4 different plants in the tent, keeping them from ever drying out too much.

with this valve i can turn on and off the solenoids for 4 outlets. so control water flow to 4 plants individually.
This is still work in progress, im waiting for the pcbs for this project but it will be a esp32 based controll system

If anyone has any ideas lmk! i will be posting updates over the next days/weeks

 

[Terppalooza]

inspired by the the dutch tomato greenhouses

 

[Terppalooza]

PCB for controlling the water valves and reading the loadcells

 

[Orange's Greenhouse]

Why so complicated? Just use excessive runoff and recirculate it.

 

[Terppalooza]

Why so complicated? Just use excessive runoff and recirculate it.

I prefer drain to waste. my system works quite well, the water pumps in from outside, i have a bucket under the plants and usually i empty that out once a week and refill the res twice a week, its been rather easy.
and why not recirculate, because i want to precisely control my input fertilizers. and to avoid nutrient drift.

 

[Orange's Greenhouse]

i want to precisely control my input fertilizers.

That implies you have a precise knowledge of the sufficiency range and stable enough environmental conditions that they are applicable. Also you have to mix it yourself from elemental stock solutions. Using a "pre mixed" bag of salt is not as homogenous as you think.

Otherwise you're overengineering for something that you don't have.

 

[Dime]

Why not just run constant drip? It works better and supplies o2 at the same time. Just a thought

 

[Terppalooza]

That implies you have a precise knowledge of the sufficiency range and stable enough environmental conditions that they are applicable. Also you have to mix it yourself from elemental stock solutions. Using a "pre mixed" bag of salt is not as homogenous as you think.

Otherwise you're overengineering for something that you don't have.

i do mix it myself, i have 11ingredients! and my environment is relatively stable unless summer is in full swing. Been working on my fertilizer mix for a while now, testing it also with a few buddys thats all working great, its really just rockwool drinks a lot of water and im trying to keep up, i need a system that can detect when the block is running low on water, and apply it

 

[Terppalooza]

Why not just run constant drip?

I enjoy drain to waste. less cleaning i just have a small painters bucket underneath the table and empty it out once a week, its very small and easy to clean. I have two tents with the identical setup, connected to a single pump and a single res!. constant drip would mean i need to empty the buckets out every day or more. im trying to reduce that to empty it out maybe every two weeks if possible, no need for excessive runoff. plus automatic detection for when its time to empty out my painter bucket is something i have planned as well!

 

[Dime]

I enjoy drain to waste. less cleaning i just have a small painters bucket underneath the table and empty it out once a week, its very small and easy to clean. I have two tents with the identical setup, connected to a single pump and a single res!. constant drip would mean i need to empty the buckets out every day or more. im trying to reduce that to empty it out maybe every two weeks if possible, no need for excessive runoff. plus automatic detection for when its time to empty out my painter bucket is something i have planned as well!

No, constant drip goes back into the main reservoir and gets filtered and you check ph and Ec at the tank. Good luck and a bountiful harvest to you.

 

[Dime]

i do mix it myself, i have 11ingredients! and my environment is relatively stable unless summer is in full swing. Been working on my fertilizer mix for a while now, testing it also with a few buddys thats all working great, its really just rockwool drinks a lot of water and im trying to keep up, i need a system that can detect when the block is running low on water, and apply it

My issue with rockwool was the stone got too cold and finding a place to dispose of it once spent, I ended up just using a manifold with pipes and no medium at all and staked the clones. Whatever works for you is how you should do it.

 

[Terppalooza]

No, constant drip goes back into the main reservoir and gets filtered and you check ph and Ec at the tank. Good luck and a bountiful harvest to you.

i understand it goes back to the main res, recirculating system. I actually use a hybrid recirculating system and drain to waste for phenohunts. the table floods everyday ensuring all the plants are fed. just many little plants in rockwool blocks, and the drain to waste just refills the water for the food and drain system, sometimes i can go 3 weeks without even lookign at that tent ^^ it works really well the only issue is the ph and ec drift. its all working with a small easy to clean painter bucket.
Really my issue with any recirculating is that its alot more cleaning work. you need a bigger res ideally, so again more work moving a big ressevior and cleaning work. i just want fire weed to smoke and minimum effort spent. and i know watering frequency has been my issue with rockwool

 

[Terppalooza]

My issue with rockwool was the stone got too cold and finding a place to dispose of it once spent, I ended up just using a manifold with pipes and no medium at all and staked the clones. Whatever works for you is how you should do it.

i live in a big city, imagine new york. with lots of people its not easy to get rid of 20 gallon airpots here, my neighbors get pissed, the trash people get pissed why does this trash can weigh 200pounds lol ^^ i love growing in soil and i do it as a treat nowadays. but rockwool blocks are very small and compact. easy to throw into an apartment complexes trash! also very fast to transplant, no soil and vermiculite everywhere. its a bit of game changer for apartment life (for me)

 

[Dime]

The roots breaking down also effects ph as does temp, i used to put a nylon stocking around teh pumps and at the outlet to catch debris which kept it more stable and reduced clogs considerably. I just grow in promix now looking for the holy grail since the market is flooded in my area. I give away whatever I figure I won't smoke or make hash with it. I'm the only smoker in my house so a few lbs a year is more than enough.

 

[Dime]

inspired by the the dutch tomato greenhouses View attachment 19179547

That's how I did it only no cubes,just nft

 

[Terppalooza]

The roots breaking down also effects ph as does temp, i used to put a nylon stocking around teh pumps and at the outlet to catch debris which kept it more stable and reduced clogs considerably. I just grow in promix now looking for the holy grail since the market is flooded in my area. I give away whatever I figure I won't smoke or make hash with it. I'm the only smoker in my house so a few lbs a year is more than enough.

its all about genetics. for shure. you can be the best grower in the universe. if you plants genetics sucks, your weed sucks

 

[Dime]

What strains are you running?

 

[Terppalooza]

What strains are you running?

Guava Gelato, Kosher Beltz, UK Cheese, Pink Runtz, Silver Amnesia, Lemon tree x sour d are my keepers. I personally like the silver am and pink runtz for daily smoke. but all of them are good.
and hunting some ghost og x (og kush x tkbx1) from ez genetics and some og kiss from josh d.

 

[Dime]

Guava Gelato, Kosher Beltz, UK Cheese, Pink Runtz, Silver Amnesia, Lemon tree x sour d are my keepers. I personally like the silver am and pink runtz for daily smoke. but all of them are good.
and hunting some ghost og x (og kush x tkbx1) from ez genetics and some og kiss from josh d.

Check out cannaventure for ghost

 

[growingcrazy]

When I had the same issue in RW, I put the plants that use more water into larger blocks. Cheap and effective.