How often would I need to feed in this odd coco setup?

[halitzor]

I plan on doing 5 gallon buckets with netpot lids. Coco chips in the netpots and maybe an inch of perlite in the bottom and an inch of coco chips on top of that and then an open area for roots to hang. In this open area I'll have 2 330 degree sprayers mounted in the side of the bucket. I would probably feed for very short periods of time but many times a day. There will be a drain in the bottom of each bucket and about 1/4" standing water after feeding that would be a small reservoir.

Does anyone forsee any challenges or have any tips for me? I'm using Canna coco nutes.

Thanks

 

[jimbobthe3rd]

I can offer some advice but also would like to ask some questions.

~The sprayers would have to feed very regularly so the roots did not dry out, i'm not quite sure how efficient this would be? Due to if any water remains at the bottom of the pot you could get build ups of algae/fungi. Maybe it'd be worth running an airstone down there aswell if you have 1/4" water still sitting in there, that would stimulate root growth alot.

I grow just coco+1-2" of hydroton at the bottom of the coco for drainage. And i feed 4 times a day, 1.5L's per feed pet pot, so each plant recieves 6L a day.

Can i ask why you're trying to run like a hybrid coco top half and hydro bottom half o.O? Have you run this before? Do you find it more efficient than just running plain coco? Or what T_T lol.

~Jim

 

[motherlode]

seems like this will be more trouble then its worth - how are you gonna keep the root zone and the coco from being much wetter or dryer then the other?

 

[Jalisco Kid]

I would have used hydroton at the bottom as it holds less water. I would not try this without a chiller. 1/4" of water on a hot day will not last but an hour or two with my girls. JK

 

[halitzor]

~The sprayers would have to feed very regularly so the roots did not dry out, i'm not quite sure how efficient this would be? Due to if any water remains at the bottom of the pot you could get build ups of algae/fungi. Maybe it'd be worth running an airstone down there aswell if you have 1/4" water still sitting in there, that would stimulate root growth alot.

-- As I said above, i will probably feed quite often for very short periods per day. There will be a tiny bit of water remaining but there will be zero light getting into the containers so algae/funji are of no concern to me. The air stone wouldnt be effective in the shallowness that the water will be. Coco likes to be fed frequently and lightly from what i have been reading so this shouldnt be much of an issue. The only issue that i am forseeing right now is the sprayers getting blocked by roots.


I grow just coco+1-2" of hydroton at the bottom of the coco for drainage. And i feed 4 times a day, 1.5L's per feed pet pot, so each plant recieves 6L a day.

Can i ask why you're trying to run like a hybrid coco top half and hydro bottom half o.O? Have you run this before? Do you find it more efficient than just running plain coco? Or what T_T lol.

-- Because I want a medium in the netpot lid that will retain water for a while and provide the young plants with enough moisture without having to water very frequently. I will most likely hand water the first week or so. The bottom half I would prefer to be completely empty and just have roots hanging down, but I think I need something, maybe even just perlite in the bottom to give the roots something to anchor into. I don't want to use coco in the buckets because 21 bucket fulls would be expensive and really hard to get rid of every grow. Aeroponics works fine in general so it should work here?
~Jim
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Motherlode:

seems like this will be more trouble then its worth - how are you gonna keep the root zone and the coco from being much wetter or dryer then the other?

It won't really matter if there is a difference. Its just a bucket net pot lid with coco chips as the medium, then roots free hanging into the bucket and being misted often. There is a drain to keep the standing water level low.

-----------------------------------

JK:

I would have used hydroton at the bottom as it holds less water. I would not try this without a chiller. 1/4" of water on a hot day will not last but an hour or two with my girls. JK


I don't like hydroton, its dirty and it DOES hold a lot of water, way more than perlite. I won't need a chiller as I'm only using 1k watts on a 7ft mover. but I have a 1/4hp chiller anyway. And as I said previously, I will be feeding frequently so hot days irrelevant.






Thanks for the replies guys

 

[JohnnyBlazedIt]

my 2 cents

Hey man, honestly it seems like a lot more work and effort than is needed. I'd go with one of three ways with net pots over 5 gal buckets..

1.) fill the net cups with coco/perlite mixture and bubble at half strength from below with an airstone and a couple gal of solution and top water once a day or every other day as the top layer gets dry. Change bucket every 3-4 days or as needed. (Closest to what you're trying to do... i think)

2.) Put a small pump in the bucket and a 1/4" drip line coming up through the lid. Put the pump on a timer and water 3x a day for a minute or two. (best hydroponic method)

3.)***Recommended Method*** - ditch the lids, drill some holes in the bucket, fill it up with coco, and grow the best plant you've ever grown.. this is by far the best solution! Water every 2-3 days as needed.

Hope that helps! Good luck one way or another!

Johnny Blaze

 

[halitzor]

1.) fill the net cups with coco/perlite mixture and bubble at half strength from below with an airstone and a couple gal of solution and top water once a day or every other day as the top layer gets dry. Change bucket every 3-4 days or as needed. (Closest to what you're trying to do... i think)

Thanks for the suggestions, this one is absolutely retarded though. You would be increasing my workload from ZERO. to constant dumping of buckets. Are you freakin kidding me man?

Thanks for your input but I dont think I need any more of your advice on this.

 

[Mr. Nice Guy]

If you try this keep your plants on the smaller side to avoid a congested root zone in which the sprayers would be innefective.

 

[halitzor]

Thanks Mr Nice, I definitely am planning to keep them small anyway because there are 21 crammed on a 4x8' table and I only have 3.5 foot of room from reflector fully raised to top of buckets :D. I was planning to finish each plant at 2.5 to 3' tall.