DD's bucket system - Start to Finish

[Lost]

Looking good!!!

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

I gotta build those cages this weekend...

I am wanting to get more done than I am, but I am a dad first so my hobby gets put on hold at times(single dad)...but I can accomplish a lot in the 20 minutes here and there I do get!

 

[easypleasie]

Here in a few months that's gonna be a jungle in that room! I'm really debating on going back to the home depot mini-res after reading about what dds said - wider = better.

 

[Lost]

I am wanting to get more done than I am, but I am a dad first so my hobby gets put on hold at times(single dad)...but I can accomplish a lot in the 20 minutes here and there I do get!

Heh, I understand more than you know! :) :damnhippie:

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

I did a quick photoshop of my general lighting layout plan...I think I will vertically double up cool tubes in the middle, and maybe all of them? maybe 600's in some and 1000's in some? And no corner lighting perhaps?

if I doubled 'em up I'd probably only turn the top ones on in week 2 or 3 of flower and make the tubes stationary if they are doubled up

just brainstormin'

 

[easypleasie]

I've been thinking the same thing with double stacking. I'll give it a normal run first and think about all that later. lol if I keep changing my mind i'll never get anything started!

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

Here in a few months that's gonna be a jungle in that room! I'm really debating on going back to the home depot mini-res after reading about what dds said - wider = better.

which ones? is that what I have?

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

I've been thinking the same thing with double stacking. I'll give it a normal run first and think about all that later. lol if I keep changing my mind i'll never get anything started!

well, the way I see it I have a couple weeks to decide, so I have brainstorming time, we have genetics in veg to pick from at any given time, and I think I have sorta decided, but I have sorta decided a few times, LOL....maybe, just maybe we may do our bullrider, the ceilings are 9 feet tall and she is one hell of a lady.....thought about snowcap but she may get too big...but I know both of them very well and DD says go with the ones you know best

 

[easypleasie]

Yuppers. My first prototype was with those tubs and 3 gallon buckets. At the time, I thought they were too big. Knowing what I know now, they seem like the perfect tubs. I might just do a run with my round ones and make the change up later...not sure yet. I still have a bunch of those tubs laying around. The only thing I didn't like was the lid was a bit flexible with a big hole cut out of it for the bucket.

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

Yuppers. My first prototype was with those tubs and 3 gallon buckets. At the time, I thought they were too big. Knowing what I know now, they seem like the perfect tubs. I might just do a run with my round ones and make the change up later...not sure yet. I still have a bunch of those tubs laying around. The only thing I didn't like was the lid was a bit flexible with a big hole cut out of it for the bucket.

the lid does flex with that big of a hole- another reason why a 6 or 8 inch hole would be great so long as the extra water in the tubs isn't an issue

 

[easypleasie]

I had wondered about the weight of the plant pushing down on the lid and submerging the roots more as it got heavier. Guess it doesn't really matter after it's got a huge root mass. There shouldn't really be enough flex to make a difference.

I still wonder about the amount of water. If you have more water (bigger mini-res) do you need bigger water pumps to cycle it?

 

[lollipopman]

I'm sorry boots i missed read what dd said, i thought the higher the pot the more cord roots it produces but its how high the water level is, so a 6" pot would be better then, cause it gives you more room for the roots...maybe dd can clear this up...

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

and if each of my tubs would hold roughly 15 gallons solution x 4 = 60 gallons, so then will a 60 gallon main res work for this then? And since I am only doing 4 this round I think all the pumps and what not are ok

 

[mrdizzle]

hey boots i have the same tubs, with a 3gal bucket's covered 2inch a 70gal isnt large enough to fill the tubs and still have water in the res. So ur about right with the 15gals of water.
i would have used a 100gal but couldnt fit it , so i fill the 70gal, nute it ph it then pump it out. as the pump starts to dry pump I fill the res again until it is almost fill. so the system takes about 130gals of water.

you may or may not need to double up the lights, the plant really grows out depending on where you hang the bulb, I think if you leave the center bulb bare you can cooltube it up very easily. are you stacking the tubs on top of each other like I am? I may drop mine next run but i havent hit the ceiling yet so they might be perfect. I think im going to switch to the 10gal net pots next run also. i'll get some pics up on the progress

 

[easypleasie]

hey dizzle, don't you need those tubs to sit on so gravity will drain the tubs back to the res? Or do you have a sunken res?

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

hey EZ
My reservoir will be under the floor of my set up, but yeah, you need gravity one way or another

I am sure diz will agree

 

[easypleasie]

Wish I could put the rez below. It would give me extra space before I hit the ceiling. I have some 5ft girls right now and they are just too close to my 8 ft ceiling. And they sit lower than my new setup does. Guess i'll try to keep them around 4ft tall.

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

one kinda crazy thought I had was for people who can't put their res under would be to sit the tubs on the floor, then measure and build a pond liner style res out of 2x6's and plywood that fits in the grow space all around the buckets, like a 7 inch tall plywood covered walkway around the plants, calculate the size and fill accordingly....does that make any sense? I'm puffing lemon diesel right now and I'm a bit cloudy

 

[easypleasie]

You must be smoking some good shit, bro lol Just messin with ya, that might work if you don't have other alternatives. btw, I come up with the craziest ideas when i'm pretty twisted :) Most of them are completely ridiculous! Stoner talk is the best!

 

[Boots Sugarleaf]

yeah......it's good, on to the maui superdawg now

I totally know what you mean