help with Dr.Bud watering technique

[richirich_99]

I am wondering how you guys that water like the dr using the submerging method, how do you go about water large numbers of plants in a small sog. I am growing in 24oz aquafina bottles with the top few inches cut down. Currently when i water them i have to do it everyother day and can only dunk one at a time, and when i do they want to float. Anyone got any tips or any thing to use to water large numbers of plants? I plan to have about 24 plants total when my cab is completely full.

I have one idea, and wanted some thoughts on it. I was going to buy a rubbermaid tub and use it to fill with water/nutes mix, then put the plants into some small plastic baskets that have slits and water can flow thru, then put as many plants in a basket til they are snug and wont float up, then put it in the rubbermaid when i begin filling the fub with water. how you guys think something like this will work?

 

[mexilandrace]

if they don't tip over just let them float till they sink themselves

 

[richirich_99]

if they don't tip over just let them float till they sink themselves

what would you suggest if they do begin to tip over?

 

[Charg5152]

If you look in Dr. Buds most recent thread (every 48 hour) you'll see he has all of the bottles packed into a large Rubbermaid container at the bottom of the cab. From what I gather, he uses a water pump to pump his organic tea into the Rubbermaid slowly until all plantlets are submerged. Lets us soak for a few and then pumps it out. I think that because the bottles are packed into the Rubbermaid rather snuggly combined with the fact he adds the water slowly they do not tip over.

In my micro sog, I do not have a Rubbermaid in the bottom of my cab yet. I take 4 or 5 plantlets (or as many as I can fit) and put them into a 3 gallon bucket . I then fill up the bucket with my nutrient mix. I do have to remove them one by one to put back into the cab, but its the best option until I can find a rubbermaid to fit the demensions of my cab bottom. I'm sure there are other ways and this is just the process that I use with my micro sog.

 

[richirich_99]

Thanks Charg, i saw that thread and read it, and wasnt sure if thats what he was doing. I will be doing the same thing i think, but may use smaller baskets to put the bottles into then set those into the tubs and fill with water. I have been doing just one at a time in a large pitcher that i have. Thanks for sharing your way as well. give me more ideas of what to do. I should have something rigged up by the end of the week.

 

[Thundurkel]

Shit man I'm tryin to find a rubbermaid tub that will fit my cab cuz I have to use 2 liter bottles with 1/4 cut off to dunk my 20oz bottles and I use 2 of them so I can water 2 at a time and I just let them sink, I've been wanting to design a system with the 2 liters with the 20oz bottles glued in them so the are stuck and then have tubing running through them to a water pump and pump water into them and then back out..

 

[Hydro-Soil]

I'm leaning toward ebb & flow myself. (essentially what DrBud has set up now, only with dirt and more labor intensive)

Skip the dirt and go with lavarock. (Dirty and cheap but also no need for hydrostore)

I'm working out the details for a mini ebb & flow where everything just drains back to the res. 1/4" open drip tubing to a maximum of 6 buckets.

Personally, I'm using the lighting parameters of DrBud's setup and scaling it down to a 6 plant perpetual. (I'm seriously not interested in going over the SB420 limits).

Should be interesting.

*Edit* Oh yeah..... dropping a couple river stones in the bottom of each plant should stop your floating issues.

 

[richirich_99]

i have tried adding some small decoractive rocks to the bottom but it wasnt enough to hold down the containers. I just got back from walmart and lowes, just built a small watering tub. I'll take pics if anyone wants them. I just used a 10 gal rubbermaid and got two small baskets with holes/slots in it that hold the containers snugly then i can submerge them into the rubbermaid. I added a small drain valve to the bottom so i can just open it up and drain out the excess water. I could add the pump like your talking thundurkle, but for the time being i want to keep it as simple as possible. I really like your idea of the glued down two liters also. Good luck with that. what do you guys do with the runoff excess water from the submerging? should i just throw it out down the sink or use it to water mothers with?

 

[DrBudGreengenes]

place you "Containers"
all of them if you like in "Something" that will hold them ....
get yourself a "Turkey Baster"....
now slowly fill your container until the plants start to become Neutrally Buoyant ie start to move a lil' NOT float....stop adding water and go to work with your Baster suck some water up and squirt it into the top of the bottle....
after ya do that add more water and you should be fine.....
if they start to move again ....
hit them with water from the top again....
I hope this helps ya'​

 

[richirich_99]

that does help doc, thank you very much for stopping in and sharing your amazing knowlegde. I will be trying out my new watering box in another few days, just watered today and will wait at least 2-3 days to water again.

also would adding gravel or something else heavy to the bottom of the containers do any damage or harm to the roots growth? i may try that with some of the new plants giong into bottles.