S
Shawnery
- 1,499
- 163
Airstones the worst is a little over stated.i see the same exact reports and waterfalls were better but it was negligble.in most cases you have to have water surface to create DO.in my buckets the roots take up the entire top of the Bucket so a waterfall would have no effect pouring on top of the roots.prob better for a big tote.my plants love my air stones dont see any thing worse about this.What do you guys think about using a running waterfall for DO production and agitation instead of an air pump with air stones in a undercurrent system? Anyone who knows fish tanks will know of the over the back filter systems that add oxygen and produce positive bacteria. The point wouldn't be for bacteria but for DO production in place of air pumps.
Then instead of running airstones to each individual bucket I would run 1 inch PVC from a manifold connected to the non-submersible pumps positive pressure to the top of each bucket. I would drill a number of holes in the end of PVC and cap them off. This would then create pressurized streams of water to add DO to each bucket through surface agitation.
Everything else would be the same as most other undercurrent systems. 2" return PVC at the bottom of buckets connected to 1" hose that connects to the "in" side of the pump. 1" hose would run to manifold then 1" pvc would run to the tops of each bucket and reservoir. Adding DO to system water through pressurized agitation from streams created by holes drilled in end of pipe.
I've been reading that for a number of reasons DO production through air pumps and stones is the least effective means of adding oxygen to system. There is also the side effect of adding hot air to the water, root system and inside of buckets as well. I actually found two different threads on two different sites that tested DO with meter. Both found that out of 4 different ways of adding oxygen airstones and pumps were by far the worst.
I gathered the above idea from reading a few posts and most of all from DGP's systems.
I was also considering running my air conditioner in a separate room just big enough to hold my reservoir and air conditioner and a bit of space for cool air. Then I would run ducting from the cold room to the grow room. This way I can cool the room and the systems nutritional fluid for the same energy use.
What do you think?
All about insulating the buckets.my chillers only come on about 5 minutes twice an hour 3 at the most,77 degree ambient 67 water.Shawnery,
I use both the waterfall and airstone methods. I followed Current Culture's recommendations for the exact amount of airflow to the system. I think CC uses waterfall as well. The tube that comes back into the control bucket from the chiller has a T fitting on it and as such there are then two waterfalls dropping into the control bucket water. Pay attention also to the size of the water pump, pumping too much or to little can mess with your chiller setup.
One thing I would do different this time is raise the control bucket 6 inches or so. This way you can maintain the correct water level and still have enough headroom to create your waterfall fitting with the T.
I think the airstones are not just about aeration but also about agitation and when the buckets get congested with roots I think this added movement of the water is good.
Lately when I pull the plants up to check the roots they are in a tight bundle shaped just like the square buckets with two nubs where the roots are actually following out the drain holes so there will be congestion.
The water is a very efficient heat exchanging system and when the water goes into the grow it picks up ambient heat very efficiently so I was surprised by this and even when I kept my master res outside the grow in a 50 degree garage during the Winter it still didn't work without a chiller. Before buying a chiller I limped along with throwing frozen milk jugs filled with water in the res 2X or more per day. Works but a pain.
Dee
Why raise the bucket when you can just either use a bigger bucket or put the return line in the lid.thats what I did.my return line dumps into the top.400gph pump.lots of DO but not enough.if my pumps quit my plants will take a dump.ive seen it.Shawnery,
I use both the waterfall and airstone methods. I followed Current Culture's recommendations for the exact amount of airflow to the system. I think CC uses waterfall as well. The tube that comes back into the control bucket from the chiller has a T fitting on it and as such there are then two waterfalls dropping into the control bucket water. Pay attention also to the size of the water pump, pumping too much or to little can mess with your chiller setup.
One thing I would do different this time is raise the control bucket 6 inches or so. This way you can maintain the correct water level and still have enough headroom to create your waterfall fitting with the T.
I think the airstones are not just about aeration but also about agitation and when the buckets get congested with roots I think this added movement of the water is good.
Lately when I pull the plants up to check the roots they are in a tight bundle shaped just like the square buckets with two nubs where the roots are actually following out the drain holes so there will be congestion.
The water is a very efficient heat exchanging system and when the water goes into the grow it picks up ambient heat very efficiently so I was surprised by this and even when I kept my master res outside the grow in a 50 degree garage during the Winter it still didn't work without a chiller. Before buying a chiller I limped along with throwing frozen milk jugs filled with water in the res 2X or more per day. Works but a pain.
Dee
Why raise the bucket when you can just either use a bigger bucket or put the return line in the lid.thats what I did.my return line dumps into the top.400gph pump.lots of DO but not enough.if my pumps quit my plants will take a dump.ive seen it.
All about insulating the buckets.my chillers only come on about 5 minutes twice an hour 3 at the most,77 degree ambient 67 water.
Once you get enough growth over the buckets also it shades them out.
I wanted to run waterfalls and could easily design a setup but I use 4 gallon buckets for 3 week veg cycles.theres just no way to add waterfalls when the roots take up the entire buckets.
Theres some waterfall threads here where some guys got some good results and were using big totes,having to clear the roots from under the jets etc.
I dont intend personally to fix something that's not broke
best one i saw was a seperate pump installed in the epi tote and there were seperate lines that went into each tote individually from the tops,So you had the normal recirculating pipes and then there was like a 6500 gallon pump pumping water to water jets into the totes.System looked nice but took up a shit load of floor space.You prob would also need 2 inch pipe moving all that water to make sure you dont get any out od balance buckets over filling.Good suggestion, I just know with all my buckets the same I would still like a little more headroom to form a nice water fall. I wouldn't consider going without airstones myself but I don't know if it really matters. CC had done a lot of research so for me it was just a deal where I thought it was best to go the same route.
Dee
Too complicated for me, my system is working too well. My veg plants are always done early (we have plant size limits as well as count limits). My flower room currently has plants so big I have to bend over the flower spikes. The plants are over 6 feet tall and I have 9 foot ceilings but the indica girls next to these bigger ones weren't getting enough light. With the UC system my water stays cleaner and I never use H202 any longer. Using mycos and other beneficial bacterias now as well with no negative issues and that's hard to do in hydro, generally speaking.best one i saw was a seperate pump installed in the epi tote and there were seperate lines that went into each tote individually from the tops,So you had the normal recirculating pipes and then there was like a 6500 gallon pump pumping water to water jets into the totes.System looked nice but took up a shit load of floor space.You prob would also need 2 inch pipe moving all that water to make sure you dont get any out od balance buckets over filling.
Yeah if I could give a rat's ass about the power bill I would have DE bulbs on 5 foot centers growing trees.i have to keep my power bill in check so i run scrogs to get the most out of a given footprint.6 foot plants dont do me any good under cobs.maybe some guys do it but i like to count my colas and keep everything big.plus I've had strains that are super lanky and seems you have to support every top from falling over.once I get out to Colorado shit is gonna be crazyToo complicated for me, my system is working too well. My veg plants are always done early (we have plant size limits as well as count limits). My flower room currently has plants so big I have to bend over the flower spikes. The plants are over 6 feet tall and I have 9 foot ceilings but the indica girls next to these bigger ones weren't getting enough light. With the UC system my water stays cleaner and I never use H202 any longer. Using mycos and other beneficial bacterias now as well with no negative issues and that's hard to do in hydro, generally speaking.
Just love the UC systems, I think they are the best hydro choice right now but CC's prices are crazy high. I would have just happily bought one of theirs but I was totally motivated by the cost to do DIY,
Dee
I got 3 active aquas,the 1/4 hp and they will do 100 gallons easy.never had any issue out of any of them.got em from hydro Ebay store out of Miami for 350 shipped.not aure the exact seller but there good.Picking up Artica 1/3hp chiller for 350 tomorrow, fair price, seems so from research but I really have no clue?
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