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Randog3
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Pvc pipe and joints, put together like a frame with holes drilled in it for strings to go through
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That ^^^ is exactly what I was talking about OP. In my opinion, nothing will compare production wise, & ease of growing. The drawback is that they are a pita to work under. Where yours are narrow & hydro, you don't have to get under there much.Pvc pipe and joints, put together like a frame with holes drilled in it for strings to go through
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IN MY OPINION, scrog is the most efficient way.
junk said:PVC is good, but not over any distance more than 6'. Anything more than that, & you will need support "studs." You can look up how to do it. The nice thing about PVC is that generally, if YOU select the parts to build it, you can make them so they fit tight enough...& then the scrog can be broken down when you don't need it
In retrospect, I think it was because I made 6'x6' square. A square PVC design is floppy if you suspend it.
2x4 in my opinion is the best solution for what you are doing. I don't know how much you know about construction, but if you like, I can show/explain it. Unless you are going to be standing on it, you won't need that many support studs for the span. If you aren't going to stand on it, one every 10-12' would be fine. If your entire span was 14', I would probably skip a center stud altogether. 16' I would put at least one support stud. If you can get away with using one 2x4 for the span (usually up to 16') it would be better than patching it together.
So, you can see how, if you run ONLY tops, it's going to get tight in there, hence needing 6-7" scrog holes.
Before you flip, get rid of everything that is not going to reach the scrog. Your plants should look like they have no pants on. Pull off all the larfy stuff. Once the plants are 1/2 the way through the stretch, go back under the scrog & again, get rid of anything below the net. In the end, no light is going to get down there anyway. All the growth will just die off, so get rid of leaves, branches, everything.
This is an area of my husband's expertise. We go to Lowe's, he takes me over to the electric supply section. There are these seriously LONG ass metal tubes, they're LONG! He cuts 'em down for me so one end is pointy so I can stick it in the dirt. From there I can attach Hortonova trellis around the poles (the posts are vertical and I wrap the trellis vertically also). I no longer use horizontal levels because it's a BITCH to get the plant out of that. Emphasis on bitch.Yea the aisles are designed to walk up and down. The tables are 3x3. The 20 gal coco pots sit inside of each tray.
Sea maiden what do you mean by cut conduit? Like precut conduit? I can buy conduit but what structure do you make with it?
Pvc pipe and joints, put together like a frame with holes drilled in it for strings to go through
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Yes sir...8" AMS. It's not made for the STI, the intercooler is stock, but we had to fab up all the connections.Is that an intercooler i scope on your avatar pic?
It was...sigh, I loved that car. But sadly, I have a seizure disorder that is hard to control. I've had 4 seizures while driving. If I had a seizure while driving that car, I'm not going to walk away. It's a 9 second car.Is that your car?
I would make it out of PVC if I had a bunch of PVC laying around, but I don't. Plenty of copper & pex lol, but no PVC.but I think you are working way to hard to build a trellis.
Whenever I'm involved buddy, there is always whispers of "stud" ;)So PVC is a lil floppy i guess but what is all this "stud" talk
Agreed. I meant if the span is large. But I prefer a single unit. E.g. Mine is 5'x10'. So I could have just made two 5'x5's, but then I have two pieces of structure running right down the middle of the scrog. That's prime real estate. Even if it's only blocking 3" x 60", that's just about 1.3 ft2 of prime real estate. If I can help it, I'm not going to lose 180", right in the middle of the space. It's not the end of the world, but it's less than ideal.Shorter re-inforced sections are perfectly fine.
Construction speed would be a wash. In my case, anyway, if you were using those ratchet cutters, tapping the top rail, putting all the screws in it, tying the string etc. It's a plain table design on a level surface. I just cut all all the pieces, I have a nail gun, then just staple the trellis on (advantage to wood). It's just what you are used to, or setup to work with. If you don't have construction equipment, PVC is cheaper, lighter, simpler. @sedate I have no problem with PVC. I think PVC is the better option, it's just not what I had laying around. The little bit I did have, I ended up using to plumb the feed lines.And you can snap together 12'x12' frames in minutes.
OP, this is pretty much correct^^. Including the corner pieces etc, you should be well under $50 per structure. I'm not sure where you got an estimate for $5k for parts. Maybe it's a typo? But that is a lot of friggin PVC dude lol. You can use this to give you an idea on priceFor seriously less than $15 worth of 1/2" PVC at HomeDepot. 10' sections are $1.74 and you can cut in right down in isles with the lil handhelt scissor thing at the end of the isle at most stores. All the 1/2" fittings are >$2.
That design is more than stable enough for it's purpose there. But if he is going to be making a longer one, it's going to need to be designed a little bit different. The length of it would just need several T fittings to put in some PVC studs like the picture I put up.Here's one of the first ones I did. You can see a bit of bowing on the side once I ran the string taught but the lines were quite stable for plant growth -
Sounds naughty...This is an area of my husband's expertise. We go to Lowe's, he takes me over to the electric supply section.
Not what I was expecting to follow the first line, but I'm with you...There are these seriously LONG ass metal tubes, they're LONG!
Gotcha...He cuts 'em down for me so one end is pointy so I can stick it in the dirt.
I understand what you are saying, but I'm starting to lose the imagery...From there I can attach Hortonova trellis around the poles (the posts are vertical and I wrap the trellis vertically also).
Here is where I get lost. I think I understand what you are saying...you are talking more about a tomato cage type design no?If you can make a frame out of the conduit, then you'd just wrap the Hortonova around it and keep your trees supported from the outside.
I don't use the pre-fab netting for that reason. I do it myself with individual nylon strings stapled to the frame. So when cut time comes, I cut the string at both ends, & pull it out...so when that is done, the plants are free to be cut just like normal. With the premade, I have the same problem as you. The plants grow into the trellis material, & all the squares are joined at each corner, so it's a pita to get it out. With nylon string, maybe I've just been lucky, but I can usually cut one end, & pull it through.I no longer use horizontal levels because it's a BITCH to get the plant out of that.
I wish I saw this before...thank you 3N, you summed it up perfectly.If they are in a line you wouldn't need elbows on every tub, you could do a really long one with just a few elbows
Yeah... I am just *not* going to spend time doing something like that. I'm just not.I don't use the pre-fab netting for that reason. I do it myself with individual nylon strings stapled to the frame. So when cut time comes, I cut the string at both ends, & pull it out...so when that is done, the plants are free to be cut just like normal. With the premade, I have the same problem as you. The plants grow into the trellis material, & all the squares are joined at each corner, so it's a pita to get it out. With nylon string, maybe I've just been lucky, but I can usually cut one end, & pull it through.
I see what you mean now...I didn't realize you meant "trees" literally lol, those are massive. Looks like almost 6'.Hmm... why not use a tomato cage? First, they're fuckin' expensive. Second, if you're going for actual trees a tomato cage ain't gonna cut it, they're just not made large enough.
Here, for visuals. This is my second raised bed. Since we got to plan ahead after having a few years experience
, Dave went ahead and sunk some conduit into the cinder block retaining wall, so I permanently have vertical supports on the backside of the bed. The way I do it isn't necessarily the prettiest, or even the best, but it's the best for me because come harvest time cutting every branch out of a horizontal support makes me want to suck a pistol. I want to be able to make no more than three cuts per plant and bring as whole a plant as possible into the drying and curing area. I know others who very meticulously cut certain length branch by certain length branch and hang them again very meticulously, so that may float many boats as well. Mine is not so floated unless I have lots and lots of help like they do. :)
Ok, vizhu-uhlz! You should be able to see how we've got the conduit as vertical supports (think about how you might frame out a house), then Hortonova is stretched as tightly as possible around that, creating a basket of sorts.
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Yeah... I am just *not* going to spend time doing something like that. I'm just not.
That's discouraging. I haven't bought a tomato cage in about 15 years, but this last summer I said to my wife, "These things are done." Can hardly stick them in the ground anymore they are so bent, unbent, re-bent, unbent etc. Most of them are super rusty. I'm going to need at least a dozen new ones, & I think the last time I bough them they were like $2 each for the super tall ones.Hmm... why not use a tomato cage? First, they're fuckin' expensive.
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