building a new room, waterfarm drip ring 10x10 3600w co2

[The Hemp Goddess]

Yeah, I have been doing this a longgggggggggg time. You do pick up good tidbits here and there like not lighting from underneath--it is one of those things that does sound like a good idea, but isn't.

The T5s kick butt for vegging. I just think that their uses in conjunction with HPS are limited, the T5s having to be so much closer than the HPS.

 

[cmd420]

Yeah, I have been doing this a longgggggggggg time. You do pick up good tidbits here and there like not lighting from underneath--it is one of those things that does sound like a good idea, but isn't.

The T5s kick butt for vegging. I just think that their uses in conjunction with HPS are limited, the T5s having to be so much closer than the HPS.

lighting from underneath was one of the first questions I asked on this site..

shows that u're thinkin'!

I agree with everything from the Hemp Godess especially about vegging under floros..

The plants get way more even growth in veg with floros, fuller foliage, and almost as importantly, no cooling required, so less noise and PITA all around..

I have vegged under MH, and HPS, and floros blow them both away by far for vegging..

 

[Budking]

Nice good to know, I've been so stuck in my ways lol. If I'm going to be evening with 3 1k mh do u think its worth putting up the t5s above during veg. Or ditch them all togther.

The room is 9x9 but the foot print of the buckets is around 7x7 if it makes a difference.
Thanks for everyone's input, its going to be super helpful when I start.

Update, still waiting on the light controller so no clones yet.

Spent yesterday rinsing everything with a 10:1 water and bleach mixture.
And tested out how big of a pita it will be too fill and drain everything.
The concluding was that I'm adding a few more through fittings to the new bigger upper rez (28gl and a better shape) so I can drain and fill easier.

 

[cmd420]

Nice good to know, I've been so stuck in my ways lol. If I'm going to be evening with 3 1k mh do u think its worth putting up the t5s above during veg. Or ditch them all togther.

The room is 9x9 but the foot print of the buckets is around 7x7 if it makes a difference.
Thanks for everyone's input, its going to be super helpful when I start.

Update, still waiting on the light controller so no clones yet.

Spent yesterday rinsing everything with a 10:1 water and bleach mixture.
And tested out how big of a pita it will be too fill and drain everything.
The concluding was that I'm adding a few more through fittings to the new bigger upper rez (28gl and a better shape) so I can drain and fill easier.

I notice that you have the flow through the buckets, rather than in front of the buckets like they are designed..

any particular reason? I tried this and found that it made draining and filling take about 10 times as long and didn't improve flow or anything..

I put individual airstones in each bucket connected to a commercial air pump so every plant gets its own frothy mini res..

 

[Budking]

I notice that you have the flow through the buckets, rather than in front of the buckets like they are designed..

any particular reason? I tried this and found that it made draining and filling take about 10 times as long and didn't improve flow or anything..

I put individual airstones in each bucket connected to a commercial air pump so every plant gets its own frothy mini res..

The first 8pack I bought in 2008 before gh changed the buckets. I ordered the second 8pack a few month ago and it came from gh pre drilled through on both sides wth a recculatimng system. I was surprised when I realized this. I set up my old 8pack like the new one with the Gh reciculating add on kit they sell separately for anyone that bought the buckets before they changed them. Then I tweaked the system my own way. I'm using a pump that recirculated the entire lower system in about an hour. This way my ph , ec and ppm are all consistant.

 

[cmd420]

The first 8pack I bought in 2008 before gh changed the buckets. I ordered the second 8pack a few month ago and it came from gh pre drilled through on both sides wth a recculatimng system. I was surprised when I realized this. I set up my old 8pack like the new one with the Gh reciculating add on kit they sell separately for anyone that bought the buckets before they changed them. Then I tweaked the system my own way. I'm using a pump that recirculated the entire lower system in about an hour. This way my ph , ec and ppm are all consistant.

I bought mine in '09, so I didn't know that's how they used to do it..crazy

I run mine straight through as well but I enlarged all the holes to 1"..

what kind of pump do you use to re circulate? I ended up putting in an inline 250 gph water pump to force circulation around all 8 buckets in a few minutes.. the short re circ time was only possible when I enlarged all the holes to 1"

How did you perfect the art of drip ringing if I may ask?

It is always helpful to exchange info with an experienced water farmer like yourself.. I've already learned something new!

 

[Budking]

I bought mine in '09, so I didn't know that's how they used to do it..crazy

I run mine straight through as well but I enlarged all the holes to 1"..

what kind of pump do you use to re circulate? I ended up putting in an inline 250 gph water pump to force circulation around all 8 buckets in a few minutes.. the short re circ time was only possible when I enlarged all the holes to 1"

How did you perfect the art of drip ringing if I may ask?

It is always helpful to exchange info with an experienced water farmer like yourself.. I've already learned something new!

Lol I probably haven't perfected it lol, just something I wrote because everyone else seems to have something on theirs. Sounds like we are on the same page, circulating the lower system makes all the difference. Do u run the drip 24/7? I do, I use a 185 gph to circulate with a value to slow down or increase the flow. I like the idea of 1" fitting and hose, that's solid I might do that next run. I have 3 outs from the upper rez. One to the float valve, one directly to the lower rez (so when I drain each week, I can fill it back up quickly instead of waiting 4hours for it to go through the float valve). Last fitting on the upper rez is a feed into it from the circulating pump with a shut off valve so if I need to I can redirect the flow into the upper rez if I needed to temporarily drain the lower system without getting rid of the nutes. also have on off valves on each bucket so i can mess with stuff if i need to with the nutes in. i would really like to pick your brain aswell. what kind of nutes

 

[cmd420]

Lol I probably haven't perfected it lol, just something I wrote because everyone else seems to have something on theirs. Sounds like we are on the same page, circulating the lower system makes all the difference. Do u run the drip 24/7? I do, I use a 185 gph to circulate with a value to slow down or increase the flow. I like the idea of 1" fitting and hose, that's solid I might do that next run. I have 3 outs from the upper rez. One to the float valve, one directly to the lower rez (so when I drain each week, I can fill it back up quickly instead of waiting 4hours for it to go through the float valve). Last fitting on the upper rez is a feed into it from the circulating pump with a shut off valve so if I need to I can redirect the flow into the upper rez if I needed to temporarily drain the lower system without getting rid of the nutes. also have on off valves on each bucket so i can mess with stuff if i need to with the nutes in. i would really like to pick your brain aswell. what kind of nutes

yeah..I've experimented with running the drip intermittently, and I find that my girls like it on all the time...

I do the exact same thing with a valve to adjust the flow from the pump.. If I cant slow the flow down, as the roots grow into the bucket, it overflows..

I love having 1" hoses to run a strong flow through.. For the first few weeks, I can run full blast without closing the valve at all because there isn't a huge root mass in the bucket (yet) to block the flow..

When I thought up and tested the system, after learning that I had to go to 1" hoses (I tried one run with 3/4" and I couldn't get a good flow) I set it up in the backyard. I connected the inline water pump and let 'er rip.. I put in red food coloring in the rez and it took about 70 to 80 seconds to fully circulate through all the buckets.. sweeet!

I have a connecter to the hoses so I can just fill the system directly instead of going through the res.. I hear ya' that would take 4 ever..

I just use GH as a base and some Advanced suppies.. (Hammerhead, Bud Candy and Big Bud).. pretty simple.. (oh, and there's the silicate, Hygrozyme, and Root Xceleratur as well)

I have a big 30 gallon garbage can that I converted to a giant rezzy.. GH wants an arm and a leg for those extra rezzes.. (more than $150 if memory serves)..

what size rockwool cubes do you use when you plant your baies in the WF's?

 

[Budking]

haahhahaha awsome i was litteraly thinking the same thing with food coloring. yeah i really like the inch hosing im gonna do it next time around.

 

[cmd420]

I'm looking at your diagram..

what if you made it in to two separate systems of 8 buckets each? Easier to manage maybe?

Just thinking aloud

 

[Budking]

Well you were right if I run any kind of inline pump I will have to increase the size of my through fittings and hose. I resorted back to GH original solution for circulating the lower rez. I will post a pic. gh essentially added another driper without the actual ring inside the controller attached to one side of the through hose (the end) pulling water or forcing it up the tube and into the controller with a single air pump included with the new 8pack. Gh claims that I will circulate the entire system in 4 hours, although I have 16 buckets so I used a much strong air pump which has visibily increased the flow from the original air pump they included so hopefully this will compensate for the additional buckets

 

[Budking]

I'm looking at your diagram..

what if you made it in to two separate systems of 8 buckets each? Easier to manage maybe?

Just thinking aloud

The t fitting and pulling from the middle was me hoping to reduce the flow from a single bucket. Like you said after testing you went with a 1". I was seeing the same problem. I found a inline pump at PETCO that was rated 150 gph and I tried to tone it down with a valve but its was still to much

 

[cmd420]

The t fitting and pulling from the middle was me hoping to reduce the flow from a single bucket. Like you said after testing you went with a 1". I was seeing the same problem. I found a inline pump at PETCO that was rated 150 gph and I tried to tone it down with a valve but its was still to much

that's where the 1" comes into play.. you won't need to reduce the flow much with big fatty 1" tubes.. the water can flow as fast as it wants through.. I use a 500gph inline pump on one of my systems and I don't have to close the valve to slow the flow at all..wide open and flowing fast... that is, until the 4th or 5th week when the roots start to fill the buckets.. then I reduce the flow with the valve but I still get great circulation..

I missed the CO2 part of your title.. eager to check that out when you get it going.. I've never done CO2 before..