Most fool proof system for absentee grower(nutrient delivery)?

[nut]

The most simple method is passive Hydro such as Auto-pots or even better you'er very own simple wick system. The wick system is maintenance free as long as the reservoir is large enough.

A simple wick system = a bucket with a plastic cover with holes drilled in it you then place the cover over the bucket.

Next you need to get some cloth (old pair socks or pants will do) or proper capillary matting from garden center.

you will need to cut the cloth/ capillary matting in to strips that you push through the holes in plastic cover on top of the bucket so it reaches down to the bottom of the bucket
leave enough cloth above the plastic cover because you will be feeding the rest of the cloth in to you'er plant pot that's going to sit on top of the bucket and water its self until the bucket runs dry.

search " passive hydro wick system" its fool proof you can make them any shape size you like they cost for next to nothing to make its just as good if not better ( no - very low maintenance) than any NFT E&F DWC active hydro system you are likely to use.

The reason its so simple once you fill the tank with water and nutrient set the PH that's it! the plant will take what it likes, when it likes, no need to adjust the EC or PH every day unlike recirculating systems where they need almost continuous maintenance e.g= topping up and or adjusted EC/ PH almost daily.


The passive wick method as no moving parts or timers that can fail from braking down or power cut ect.. if a pump or timer brakes and you are away for weeks that is only going to mean one thing= "dead plants when you return"

 

[go4broke]

Bio-buckets work for me. My system has two plant sites, a 40 gal. reservoir, and a topoff tank that holds 20 gallons. The plant sites each hold 6 gallons. The reservoir can hold 40 gallons, but the topoff valve is set to only keep 13 gallons in it for a system total of 25 gallons. The longest i've gone away for is five days. I set nutrient level, check and clear the drains of any roots, fill the topoff tank, train the plants under the screen and walk away. The only problem i've had was having to pull the new growth under the screen when i get back. This is a scrog grow. The lights are set at 27 inches above the screen and are never moved. The PH holds steady at 5.8-- I don't use any timers during veg. so after an outage the pumps, light, fans, and reservoir heater turn back on after power is restored without having to reset any thing. During 12/12 i use a digital timer w/memory.When the power returns everything starts up and the timer resumes it's program. If the air pump were to fail the water is oxygenated by the waterfall in the reservoir. If the water pump quits the system turns into a dwc setup with the air pump suppling the oxygen. I've gone a little over 48 hours without power with no ill effects. I have my own home so if the reservoir leaks out i'm not flooding anyones place out, just my own. The plant sites each hold 6 gallons so if i loose the reservoir the system reverts back to dwc . I really like bio-buickets . Simple and low maintenance. Just do like Ron Popiel says--set it and forget it.----go4broke.

 

[johnnyrotten]

Most fool proof system for absentee grower(nutrient delivery)?

I agree with wicking systems...I see my plants twice a week and I never water... Mix nutes once a week, I only have a 5 gallon reservoir...

I use jacks hydroponic 5-12-26 and cal nit... The same strength in veg and flower... Check out delta9's threads, Passive Plant Killer...

I'm getting ready to run a similar organic grow using water only...

 

[5th]

If the air pump were to fail the water is oxygenated by the waterfall in the reservoir. If the water pump quits the system turns into a dwc setup with the air pump suppling the oxygen.

That...that right there. KISS method for the win.

Of course Blu Mats and a dozen other things will work. But at the end of the day its all about component failure.

Or in my case stupidity. I used to take shit tons of clones, so I needed a few big, bushy moms. (5 gallon pails with airstone) When it came time to cut, I got to one of the moms in the back corner and realised I forgot to plug its air pump back in. It didn't have the growth obviously the other moms had...but it was still alive.

For "foolproof", I'll say roots in water/nutes all day long.

 

[johnnyrotten]

Most fool proof system for absentee grower(nutrient delivery)?

That...that right there. KISS method for the win.

Of course Blu Mats and a dozen other things will work. But at the end of the day its all about component failure.

Or in my case stupidity. I used to take shit tons of clones, so I needed a few big, bushy moms. (5 gallon pails with airstone) When it came time to cut, I got to one of the moms in the back corner and realised I forgot to plug its air pump back in. It didn't have the growth obviously the other moms had...but it was still alive.

For "foolproof", I'll say roots in water/nutes all day long.

The reason I never went rdwc is because of power failures result in both air pump and water pumps going out causing root rot, as well as res temps over 70F...plus the need to check PH and PPM's...

Not saying it doesn't work but if my pump goes out my plants will continue to be fed by the media wick... Plus I feed them at 600ppm and don't check the ph or ppm's... The hardest part is building the system...

 

[gregor_mendel]

PPKs:

Cons - slightly more work to put together

Pro - leave for long periods of time, no air bubble issues, pump failure = no big deal, always ideal moisture in the root zone, high flexibility of medium

 

[bad gas]

The PPK is as dependable as gravity. The pulse watering is a bonus.

I built the version that yielded 22 oz with a 5wk veg and 9 wk flower. I'll fire it up this winter after my soil grow is complete. Wick on!

Have a nice day. bg

 

[johnnyrotten]

Most fool proof system for absentee grower(nutrient delivery)?

The PPK is as dependable as gravity. The pulse watering is a bonus.

I built the version that yielded 22 oz with a 5wk veg and 9 wk flower. I'll fire it up this winter after my soil grow is complete. Wick on!

Have a nice day. bg

When you do your ppk grow, I'm gonna run a modified organic ppk...

 

[Northstar22]

cameras and a buddy...or bluemat and camera and a buddy with a key to save disaster while your gone

 

[*mistress*]

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=154875

 

[FlowerFarmer]

Blumats or PPK....cant really go wrong with Flood & Drain either...or timed DTW, or anything really. lol

I can leave my Blumats for a while without a hitch. Just recently went to the other side for the world for 12 days and things didnt miss a beat. Lots are frustrated with them, but I set them up in straight coco according to the instructions and they work.. plain and simple.. no pumps, no timers, no real point of mechanical failure. (check my Circles grow in my sig)

Before blumats I ran a bucket Ebb&Gro and could easily leave for as long as my barrel permitted. I have had a failure once with a pump getting airlocked, but all in all flood buckets can be ran simply and with little input. (not that I'd really recommend the CAP unit as I've heard a lot about failed floats, etc). Homemade is best!


A gravity fed timed solenoid activated release like what Bobblehead is doing is pretty bullet proof so it looks. Check him out. He's hours away from his grow and visits once a week I believe. Solenoid kicks on and lets water fall from an elevated res. Simple.. babyshit.

 

[johnnyrotten]

I just read about a local grow that got busted because the system had dumped its entire reservoir and it was coming out of the house...thats why bluemats scare me...

 

[greenmatter]

I just read about a local grow that got busted because the system had dumped its entire reservoir and it was coming out of the house...thats why bluemats scare me...

then any watering system should scare you at least a little. there is always a chance of things going south when water is involved

pond liner would be going in the room before anything else if i was going to be an absentee grower ........ murphy's law has kicked me in the sack too many times

 

[FlowerFarmer]

Yea.. Blumats are way nicer if one has a means of run-off control... even if only used for setup, flush, and safety net for potential run-aways.


I once got a call while I was working over 1hr away that there was water rolling out of my garage and down the driveway. I had forgot to turn off the RO filling a 50gal barrel (in a bedroom situated above the garage) before leaving for work. Got it handled, but that was a close one had someone else noticed it.

Float valves and pond liners are good investments.

 

[Hydro-Soil]

Just setup the table. Maintenance is pulling the res out every ten days and mixing new nutes.

You can do this without pulling the res every 10 days... just adding more nutes. Look up 'Ask Lucas' on the web and read the entire thread. It's the 'advanced' res management you're looking for using nute add-backs to maintain the proper pH swing.

No dumping the res during the run... I've run dwc, E&F and drip through hydroton this way for 10 years... works great.

For a no-visit situation I would use a storage tank of clean water for my top-offs and use a float valve to keep the res at a constant level. The storage tank limits the size of the mess in case of accident.

Once you get to know the setup extremely well you could go to a 1/3rd or appropriate strength add-back solution... instead of plain water. Only you will be able to see if it's necessary for you or not.

Stay Safe!

 

[FlowerFarmer]

In case you are lazy.

FloraMicro: measuring your reservoir that has been topped off (aka diluted) back to full and you need to figure what to addback.

((target ppm - current ppm) / target ppm) * 8 * res volume

- double that figure for amount of FloraBloom you need to addback.

PS - target ppm for lucas is 1330 ppm @.7 conversion. Easier to just call it 1400 ppm for simplicity sakes.

 

[SpicySativa]

I have had success with a simple submersible pond pump, a timer, a 5-gallon bucket, and some spaghetti tubing. Don't use emitters, just use an equal length of spaghetti tubing for each pot, and make sure all pots are level with each other. This will help even out the flow rates for each plant.

If you water before you leave and have it water once while your gone, you can easily buy yourself a week of vacation.