Need Advice On Building My Own Top Of The Line Cloner

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piggySquishy

piggySquishy

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I've been around huge grow rooms before, I've even had a couple of grow rooms inside my house before where I was even able to make roses bloom in pots because I had my set up dialed in so perfectly. So step one I've taken a good bit of time looking at what manufacturers are building and selling for top dollar, and then scouring through YouTube to see everything that every other person out there has dreamed up tried and built. Finally I've turned to the sites and forums to listen to every person out their who knows enough to have something to say on every topic and complied it all together... Which brings me to writing to everyone here today, to discuss what I have learned, or believe I've learned, learn where I might be going right in my design, or if my design ideas are flawed please just tell me.

While to start with I am not looking to run anything more than a closet setup, so the last thing I want is some 64-plant cloner hogging up space I really don't have to start with.

After careful thought I considered every type of size, and ended up deciding that it seems that Cloners really boil down to just a few types:

#1.- The old school design is putting clones in rockwool, peat moss, soil, etc... and to place it inside a growing tray, and placing a cover over the top of it. I've done this before and it works for growing plants in soil, but the system I want to grow in is geared more towards aeroponics, not soil.
#2.- A platform floats on the water with your clone ends sit in the water which has an air stone bubbling oxygen into the water, encouraging root development and growth. So if I am understanding this concept correctly this is the type of cloner you'd want to use for Water Culture, EBB & Flow, etc...
#3.- A dark, water-tight container holds a submergible pump and pumps water out to some misting jets, which all 360-misters. So I am guessing this is the type of cloner I'd want to make and use for Aeroponics.

I know from a lot of research, and personal experience that no matter what you are doing with plants to stay away from anything with PVC and some other types of plastics, as they leech chemicals into the water, soil, mix with other nutrients and chemicals and can have any unknown reaction on your plants. So whenever possible stick to paying for Food Grade plastics and products, to prevent future issues and problems arising down the line.

Knowing this I felt then perhaps my best way would be just using a 5-gallon Food Grade bucket (bought at most hardware stores, and stated "Food-Grade"), but as one grower pointed out in his YouTube video he had problems with his cloner pump running 24/7 as it heated up his water too much, so he put in on a timer to run 15-mins on and 15-mins off. But I was also considering adding an air stone to the bottom of the bucket and just seeing if it would even make a difference; unless someone here can tell me the answer?

The only time a cloner really seems to need a clear lid over the top of it is when you are dealing with issues controlling the temperatures around the plants, or you are concerned with cool drafts. Am I understanding this concept correctly?

Finally when it comes to rooting hormones in the cloner water, rooting gels & powders, and even honey are all great to encouraging rooting, it seems that only some people use them in the water setups, and everyone needs them in the soil setups.

Finally I am brought to the question... What have I overlooked or what am I missing?
 
H

happy b

Guest
I just got a turbo kloner and it works great but the reality is its just a $25/35 submersible pump and mist bar in a moulded bit of plastic.its way over priced imho.your paying for convenience and ease of use.
the mist bars & pumps can be bought as a set off ebay.just go on ebay and search for "aeroponic mister" or mister & pump and it will come up.buy one and a between 400 & 1200 lph submersible pump and bingo the working part of your cloners done.now all you need do is get a decent sized dark light proof tote with a flat lid to cut out your holes on top for neoprene inserts and thats you.easy.
i used this method to make a bubble cloner but all you would do is get a tote thats a bit taller and add the mister & pump.
oh yeah check out these "dewey misters.theyr powered by an air pump situated outside the rez so you dont have a pump in your rez heating up the water.
hope this helps.let me know how u get on.
 
piggySquishy

piggySquishy

5
3
oh yeah check out these "dewey misters.theyr powered by an air pump situated outside the rez so you dont have a pump in your rez heating up the water.
hope this helps.let me know how u get on.

So I did go check out the Dewey Mister as you'd suggested, and it really looks like what I need as it is made out of medical grade / food grade plastic, they point out it works to make composting tea, which is something I do really enjoy using and stops the issues with making it. They also point out how they keep the temps regulated because it is only using an air pump to get the water misting... so again it saves on algae growth issues from the submersible pump being water cooled which in turn heats the water up, and helps keep the electrical usage down so it will help me on my battery life for those power outages we deal with here as well. Thank You...
 
MrBelvedere

MrBelvedere

707
143
Keep it simple. All you need is Rockwool 2 inch cubes, CloneX gel, and a tray for keeping the cubes in. That's it. Maybe a humidity dome for experimenting. Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be ;)

People have been very successful cloning with rockwool cubes and a simple tray for more than 40 years :)
 
H

happy b

Guest
  • Keep it simple. All you need is Rockwool 2 inch cubes, CloneX gel, and a tray for keeping the cubes in. That's it. Maybe a humidity dome for experimenting. Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be ;)

    People have been very successful cloning with rockwool cubes and a simple tray for more than 40 years :)

    That is true Mr B but some people (like me) cant stand rockwool and are garbage at rooting in cubes.if EVERYONE was able to do it easy cloners wouldnt exist.
 
H

happy b

Guest
So I did go check out the Dewey Mister as you'd suggested, and it really looks like what I need as it is made out of medical grade / food grade plastic, they point out it works to make composting tea, which is something I do really enjoy using and stops the issues with making it. They also point out how they keep the temps regulated because it is only using an air pump to get the water misting... so again it saves on algae growth issues from the submersible pump being water cooled which in turn heats the water up, and helps keep the electrical usage down so it will help me on my battery life for those power outages we deal with here as well. Thank You...
No sweats buddy.it pissed me off wen i got my TK that i paid $200 for was only about $30 worth of equipment to it.and the pump didnt even work coz im in the uk so i even had to buy my own pump.so i paid $200 for a bit of moulded plastic and a H mister bar.it DOES WORK though which is the main thing ,but i couldv made it at a fraction of the cost.the only bit i couldnt have did as good was the moulded plastic of the unit itself.
 
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Wildill

Wildill

445
93
Jiffy peat pellets are easy I just made a cloner out of a 5 gallon bucket I already had a pump its 800 gallon per hour pump which may be to big for this application if that's possible. i have a Titan timer that does a 5min 5 min off cycle.like mentioned above I got the manifold of eBay. I have not yet tested the cloner I can't wait to see how fast they root. I've always used jiffy peat pellets it normally takes me 10-14 days to get good healthy roots to transplant I've read and seen videos of great roots 7 days in aero cloners.
 
H

happy b

Guest
Jiffy peat pellets are easy I just made a cloner out of a 5 gallon bucket I already had a pump its 800 gallon per hour pump which may be to big for this application if that's possible. i have a Titan timer that does a 5min 5 min off cycle.like mentioned above I got the manifold of eBay. I have not yet tested the cloner I can't wait to see how fast they root. I've always used jiffy peat pellets it normally takes me 10-14 days to get good healthy roots to transplant I've read and seen videos of great roots 7 days in aero cloners.

If youv got your aero cloner dialed RIGHT IN with perfect ph,temps and a root enhancer you MIGHT get roots in 7 days if your lucky.they start to form after roughly 7/8 days in my turbo klone on most strains.some are faster to root than others.but theyr usually ready to transplant with roots 6 inches long or so after about 18/21 days in mine useing plain tapwater no phing or root enhancer.the only thing iv been doing is trying to keep the temps at about 72 degrees.
im thinking about getting some "black label root enhance" as i know it gives the cuts much thicker stronger and more healthy roots.
 
piggySquishy

piggySquishy

5
3
Perhaps I didn't clarify myself better early on, as I didn't want this to be to lengthy... Its not that I can't or don't know how to use peat moss disks, rapid rooters, or even soil... I turned the inside of my house into a green house for two straight years, with literally hundreds and hundreds of things growing in pots and bags. The simple and basic facts are like this:

I live in a very rural place, to get to a basic mom & pop greenhouse that is only open during the summer I have to travel 35-miles (one way) and that means nosey people. So I had to go into the city 90+ miles away (one way) and shop across not one but two State Lines to get greenhouse supplies at my 2nd nearest greenhouse, which again raised more red flags. So for the two years I ran my own greenhouse inside of my house to grow flowers and food I had the local authorities always checking in on me, and even got a three search warrants all based on the fact and issue that I was buying "potting soil" and gardening supplies for an inside garden! Then you don't even want to get me started on the issues of soil, and the issues of moving it over long distances like I have to do, the bugs and pests that can hitch a ride in your bags of soil, etc...

That is exactly why I came to the forums to ask questions, and learn everything I can as I move forward with a combination of EBB/Flood & Drain, Hydro Sprayers, and Fogging... I came up with my own plan of how to set up the EBB/Flood & Drain, Hydro Sprayers (from above) system after some time of doing my own research on different systems and even found a couple of professional growers who have their systems set up this way. Then when I have been looking at how some people are using foggers I knew I was going to combine the two systems together for a second back up system encase the primary system has a problem. Then because like I said I live in a very rural place, I have even been looking at a DC pump as a second backup planned for my system. Which I hope will ensure that no matter what problem my system encounters that I have another working backup in place while I make repairs to the primary system.

Which is exactly why I am getting away from growing my clones in soil or starting them out in any other solid matter, which could potentially later interfere in another one of my systems.
 
Herb Forester

Herb Forester

766
143
You can make a quick and cheap aero cloner from a 5 gallon bucket or any container you prefer. Just get the foam collars, pump, and cycle timer online. I have one with a plant saucer for the lid, it's just the right size to sit partially inside the bucket and eliminate dripping and leaking.

I use a spring clamp to hold the lid on, and just secure the pump to the bottom with the suction cups, and add a short legnth of pipe to the discharge port. Cap the pipe on top, then drill small holes along the sides, which once activated, will blast streams of water perpendicular into the sides of the bucket. The number and size of the holes will affect performance, so go slow and test in between drilling. This will create a fine mist without any forgers or other special equipment. The 5 gal bucket holds about 18 pucks.
 

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