drain to waste question

[demidragon]

I have seen many people who water plants sitting on the floor to allow for the plant to wick up some of the water before it evaporates. Or does the water runoff just evaporate before the plant can wick it up? To me it seems on the floor, if i water in the morning, all of the drain water is gone by the time lights go out. Is it better to have the pots sitting a couple inches off of the ground so that I am really running "drain to waste" instead of "drain to catch"? would the actual draining help from salts building up in a soil-less or peat-lite medium?

 

[MHHSP]

Drain to waste 100% and yes it will help buildup.

 

[Conchstoner]

I agree with MHHSP, you want all the water that drains though to go away.

 

[demidragon]

hmm, i guess i got to build something to raise the pot up a inch or so. I think sitting on the floor the pots are wicking up the drain water.

 

[Dutchgrown]

Drain to waste....what drains out is waste (not to be used/reused). So yeah, you don't want them sitting in it, especially not for any length of time. In soil, although I use pot saucers to catch the runoff...there's a minute amount of drain off that is absorbed back up from the saucer...but is within a cpl minutes of watering/feeding, and if not watering/feeding heavily this tiny amount is ok. To water heavily, enough to fill the saucer...then that amount should be emptied out.

Run to waste is often used in a hydro system, usually rockwool medium, with drip emitters run by a timer, table on a slight incline to allow drainage into a channel that takes the waste away.

Both the same principal....what comes out should not be allowed for the medium to re-uptake in quantity.