Macro Watering Schedule for Hydroton?

[ZinksInk]

Hi all, I use to have the book Integral Hydroponics... Some how its no longer in my collection.

To any one that still has it: can you look up their recommendation for watering hydration or clay pellets.

I have switched over from a crappy digital and or mechanical timer and can now water in minuets and seconds.. So i'm wanting more frequent cycles for much less time.

Please let me know if your quoting from the book or have experience with photos to back that knowledge.

 

[medicalmj]

Cycle timers are perfect for flood tables or ebb buckets. I assume, and hope, you using w flood table or ebb buckets. Simply calculate the time to fill table(or buckets) and then time to drain. On the flood side the most precise the better as you dont need roots sitting in solution. Add a couple extra minutes to the drain side to be safe and that would be best cycle for hydrcorn. Each drain will force O2 into rootzone, while the flood provides nutes. This also ensures that nutes are not sitting in bottom of bucket or table to stagnate. The roots that come out the bottom will never be sitting in idle solution, which is what will cause rot. Read up on and understand the concept of under current. Check Heath Robinson's stuff. While not same system, the concept of keeping the nutes moving is the key to healthy fast growing roots. I want a cycle timer now, lol.

 

[ZinksInk]

MedicalMJ: Thanks for your reply... I should have specified

This is for a top feed drip. Ebb n flow and flood tables take a bit more time for the fill than what I am looking to do here and completely saturate the medium.

I have no problem with flood tables and know how they work; Thanks again... but far from what i am running at the moment....

You did get my idea that I want to keep the nutrients moving.... My idea is that using a top feed drip for shorter on times: such as seconds, should mean i can regulate how saturated the hydroton will be and it should be able to dry out quicker... This should translate into me being able to get a bunch of extra feed cycles per day.

 

[Iffy-Caradoc]

MedicalMJ: Thanks for your reply... I should have specified

This is for a top feed drip. Ebb n flow and flood tables take a bit more time for the fill than what I am looking to do here and completely saturate the medium.

I have no problem with flood tables and know how they work; Thanks again... but far from what i am running at the moment....

You did get my idea that I want to keep the nutrients moving.... My idea is that using a top feed drip for shorter on times: such as seconds, should mean i can regulate how saturated the hydroton will be and it should be able to dry out quicker... This should translate into me being able to get a bunch of extra feed cycles per day.

Why not run it constantly? Switch it off for a day here and there to encourage root growth. I run constantly through drippers into hydroton, no probs.

 

[ZinksInk]

cuts are in rock wool as a buffer so its not practical this round. Next time ill try being very aggressive and ditching rock wool. Time to fire up the EZ-Cloner.

 

[medicalmj]

cuts are in rock wool as a buffer so its not practical this round. Next time ill try being very aggressive and ditching rock wool. Time to fire up the EZ-Cloner.

I running constant w root riot clone cubes, which hold water about like RW. I have my drippers far enough away from the cube and stalk so that the cube is dry. The stalk is so big now that its basically all split apart at this point. Not good tho if ur using 3x3 RW cubes or bigger. Tried it and it attracts FGs and rot.

Have you checked out the guy who started the defoiliation thread? I could see a good cycle timer like yours really working there.

I got this awesome plan, I need to post it. It would be a ebbing/DWC that filled from the bottom for just a very short time then drained and then filled again right away. The drain would be gravity. Imagine submersing your plants roots into a reservoir and then immediately lifting it out. Then repeat immediately. That's what would happen. But you'd only need 1 pump and 1 timer, unlike some of the more complicated ebb & grwo systems.

 

[Iffy-Caradoc]

That sounds like a pretty neat idea. Like the tide comin in & out. Keep us posted if you build it mate.
Stay safe

 

[Keep goin]

Yeah, like Iffy said...just work with the idea that constant on is OK. Then back it off as you want.

I have played with 30 min on 30 off. Even a cycle timer with less time like you are proposing.

The great thing about hydroton is its versatility and forgiving nature...you can do just about anything you want with it in terms of watering schedule.

Just my 2 cents though...I was running a scheduled feed on a timer like I mentioned. Then one of my girls managed to "dip her feet in the pool"...in other words the roots reached through the drain opening and draped down into the res...she got to be about twice the size of her neighbors. All on an old ebb and flow table...so obviously exposed to the same exact circumstances, and from the same cut. So no real "other" explanation for the difference.

Since that experience I only time my feed cycles when plants are small. Once they are through transition and are sizable I feed constantly during lights on and give em a half hour of feed twice during the lights out.

Good luck