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Snype's RDWC Construction Tutorial For 250 Watts - 7,600 Watts!

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Winjy

New member
Long-time lurker, 1st time poster, have been watching this thread with much interest, have been fiddling with various ideas for sealing buckets...

Snype & others who have obtained gaskets to Snype's specs, which are (for reference)...
  • Neoprene Washer
  • 3/16" thickness
  • 1-7/8" ID
  • 2-1/4" OD
  • 50 durometer

1) - How much thread engagement do you typically have before the seals just start to compress?
2) - How much did the seals end up costing from Reliant Rubber?


The practical part of me wants to obtain some Snype-spec gaskets. I got a quote from my local gasket cutting shop:
  • $2.05 per @ qty 24
  • $1.64 per @ qty 36
  • $1.54 per @ qty 100
  • $1.33 per @ qty 250
This is no screaming deal, but to order them would set the wheels in motion and allow getting on with the project. That has its own advantages.

The stingy part of me hates custom anything but seems to enjoy wasting time looking for solutions to problems that usually don't exist. Based on that, and the following videos...
...I found that a few of the gaskets used in Camlock industrial fittings have convenient size-correspondences with typical plumbing sch-40-derived dimensions. Have a look at the attached sizing chart for reference. Both charts shown in the jpg were gleaned from Google as typical gasket specs and typical plumbing specs.



The blue boxes are a correspondence between 3/4" PVC threaded pipe fittings and 1" Camlock gaskets.

The green boxes are a correspondence between 1-1/4" PVC threaded pipe fittings and 1-1/2" Camlock gaskets.

The red boxes are a correspondence between 2" PVC threaded pipe fittings and 2-1/2" Camlock gaskets.


Here is the potential issue. These gaskets are all 1/4" thick so that chews up another 1/8" of overall thread available. (This relates to my questions 1 & 2 above.)

I searched around and found that Camlock gaskets are not usually spec'd for Shore-A hardness, but that some suppliers sell 50 durometer, some sell 60 durometer, other sell 70 durometer. If you were going to use these gaskets, you'd need to verify the material (buna-n, nitrile, neoprene), and the hardness.

Another interesting side-note is that trap adapters are available in 1-1/4" threaded end and 1-1/2" pipe hub or spigot. These could be then tied into double sanitary tees with 1-1/2" side inlets and a 2" main run, to collect individual bucket outputs --> all of that could dump into a main control bucket using a 2" coupler.

0.75" PVC pipe is 0.824" ID, flow area = 0.533"^2
1.25" PVC pipe is 1.380" ID, flow area = 1.496"^2
1.50" PVC pipe is 1.610" ID, flow area = 2.036"^2
2.00" PVC pipe is 2.067" ID, flow area = 3.356"^2

If you start with 1.5" pipe as the standard...
0.75" pipe has -73% flow area
1.25" pipe has -26% flow area
1.50" pipe has +-0% flow area
2.00" pipe has +65% flow area

So, those are my thoughts and I look forward to constructive comments and feedback.

Sorry for being long-winded.
 
Snype

Snype

Active member
Veteran
The washers are like 25 cents each at reliant. That company you listed for custom washers is robbing you. I get my washers for 12 cents but order them by the thousands. I don't list the manufacture that I use because it's a security risk for me.
 
F

fabietto83s

Active member
Ciao Snipe,volevo ringraziarti per questo splendido 3d...sei stato davvero bravo a condividere la tua passione per noi amanti dell idro...grazie tanto
 
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fabietto83s

Active member
Snipe Hello, I wanted to thank you for this beautiful 3d ... you've been really good to share your passion for us lovers of hydro ... thanks so much
 
gardener60

gardener60

Active member
Pretty slick and you do not have to disturb the root system. Hey Worms Way has some very good products. Nice tutorial.
 
F

fido

Active member
mjkelly93 said:
Sorry i hadnt gotten back to you sooner. I dont have a part number from them but i can tell you exactly whats on the invoice.

Washer 3/16" thickness x 1-7/8"IDx2-1/4"OD Neoprene, BLack 60-70durometer Quantity 250 Price 25.00
UPS Shipping $11.72
Total Due: $36.72

Its reliantrubberco.com. They respond fast and answer the phone when you call.

Overall as a customer id give them a 10/10 no problems whatsoever and price is fantastic.

Id ask about 50 durometer though. I forgot to mention that so i got 60s and they are a little on the hard side. I really had to tighten the nuts with channel locks to prevent leaks. 60s did work fine though after being tightened.
Click to expand...
i remember.
fido
 
M

melone

New member
Hello SNYPE. You have a very nice !!! I have long been seeking something. I would like to 5 barrels for 5 large flowers for about 1.5m. How big would you recommend barrel in gallons for each separately? Thanks
 
Loc Dog

Loc Dog

Hobbies include "drinkin', smokin' weed, and all k
Veteran
Has anyone tried this system with top feed?? I saw a youtube video saying that the water falling into each bucket will add more air. I was going to try shooting the water downward into each bucket to really stir it up, by reducing the size of the feed tube.

Also has anyone tried submersible pumps, or would that raise the temperature of the water too much?

Melone, Snype was banned a few months ago.
 
Bobby Boucher

Bobby Boucher

Active member
Loc Dog said:
Has anyone tried this system with top feed?? I saw a youtube video saying that the water falling into each bucket will add more air.
Click to expand...

You are describing an undercurrent system. Rapidly churning water should provide enough dissolved oxygen for your plants all on it's own, but adding air stones makes your system pretty bullet proof.

Also has anyone tried submersible pumps, or would that raise the temperature of the water too much?
Click to expand...

A pump big enough to push that much h2o is going to create some heat. I would get myself an external. Mama always says "Better safe than sorry".
 
Loc Dog

Loc Dog

Hobbies include "drinkin', smokin' weed, and all k
Veteran
Bobby Boucher said:
You are describing an undercurrent system. Rapidly churning water should provide enough dissolved oxygen for your plants all on it's own, but adding air stones makes your system pretty bullet proof.



A pump big enough to push that much h2o is going to create some heat. I would get myself an external. Mama always says "Better safe than sorry".
Click to expand...

Thank you Waterboy!!! Is it possible to have too much air in water??? Is it worth a DO meter, to make sure you have enough, but not too much or wasting effort/electric on too much?
 
Bobby Boucher

Bobby Boucher

Active member
Loc Dog said:
Thank you Waterboy!!! Is it possible to have too much air in water??? Is it worth a DO meter, to make sure you have enough, but not too much or wasting effort/electric on too much?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't worry t-too much about it getting a DO meter unless you are working without an air pump or adequate waterfall, nor would I ever worry about supplying t-t-too much DO. My first hydro run, I wound up pumping something around 110 lpm into a single 5 gallon bucket. Asides from some minor root tearing, I didn't notice any ill effects. Anything past a slow boil though is p-p-probably over kill.

I've seen maters of the craft do it both ways. I personally use a 571 gph (43 lpm) commercial air pump ($30) to supply 4 buckets. It keeps everything moving pretty rapidly.
 
Loc Dog

Loc Dog

Hobbies include "drinkin', smokin' weed, and all k
Veteran
I found this, which explains why the undercurrent is very important and if you use CO2, you need to move airpumps outside of room-

The size of the bubble that an air stone produces makes a significant difference in their ability to add dissolved oxygen to water. If a single large bubble and 8 small bubbles have the same total amount of air inside of them, then the surface area of the smaller bubbles will always be greater. Consider this example: a bubble with a 5 mm diameter has a volume of 524 mm3 and a surface area of 314 mm2. A bubble with a 10 mm diameter has a volume of 4,188 mm3 and a surface area of 1,256 mm2. The 10 mm bubble could be divided into eight 5 mm bubbles, which would have a combined surface area of 2,512 mm3. By producing bubbles that are half the size, the surface area is effectively doubled, doubling the surface contact of bubbles to water therefore doubling the capacity of the air to increase the DO level. Additionally, smaller bubbles are less buoyant and rise through the water slower, allowing them to diffuse more oxygen into the water. Smaller bubbles are produced by high quality air stones made from silicon carbide, which is fired at 1300 degrees Celsius. The high temperature produces a more porous stone which makes smaller bubbles than the less expensive blue air stones which are only fired at 200 degrees Celsius.



An air stone in the bottom of your hydroponic nutrient reservoir can make all the difference!Air pumps and air stones are not without their problems, however. Pumping air from inside a grow room, especially a grow room enriched with CO2, will cause the pH of the fertigation solution to drop over time. As air that contains 400 PPM of CO2 reacts with elements in the water like calcium, carbonates are formed which accumulate and lower the pH of the solution. Additionally, water holds on to some gases better than others, and because water can only hold a set amount of gas at a given time, the water molecules will selectively hold CO2 and allow the O2 to dissipate out of the water. Consider this example: if water can only hold 100 units of gas at saturation and it starts with 50 units of CO2 and 50 units of O2, then as air (which contains both CO2 and O2) is bubbled through the water over time, the water will absorb more CO2 and release the O2, resulting in lower and lower DO levels over time.

So are all hydroponic growers destined to kill their plants? If we add hydrogen peroxide then we oxidize the roots; if we bubble air through the water then we raise the pH and force the DO level down over time; even if we do nothing, when water stagnates (stands still), dissolved oxygen starts to rise from the bottom of the reservoir and dissipates back into the atmosphere. Don’t give up hope yet! There isa solution to our DO woes – adding a mixing or stirring pump to the reservoir.

Stirring Pumps

A stirring pump is a submersible pump placed at the bottom of a reservoir attached to little or no tubing that either continuously or on a timed cycle mixes the solution, similar to how the oceanic currents keep the water in the oceans perpetually moving. Mixed or moving water will allow the already dissolved oxygen in the water to remain stable in its concentration and also provide increased DO as the water mixes with air on the surface of the reservoir. Moreover, the movement of the water will prevent stagnation and reduce the potential of the growth of harmful anaerobic bacteria which cause unpleasant smells, toxins, and disease.

Although there are a few methods of increasing the DO level I have not touched upon like commercial air diffusers and electrolysis, these methods are not practical for most gardeners. In a nutshell, it is best to use the air stone and air pump combination for hydroponic methods like Deep Water Culture, and if you choose to use it in another type of hydroponic system make sure to place the air pump in an uninhabited, well-ventilated room that is not enriched with CO2 (people hanging out in an enclosed space increases the CO2 levels). Dissolved oxygen levels in systems other than DWC are best maintained with the addition of a stirring pump. If you follow these recommendations you may save your plants (and your conscience) and become a more successful gardener in the process.
 
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