vertical uc winter 2010

xeasyx · Jan 11, 2011

whatching with interest thinking of going u/c what i your overall thought of the system so far and whats it like compared to others you have done anyway take it easy as and stay lucky cheers EASY

growbigtrees · Jan 25, 2011

Any updates?

Tonka · Jan 30, 2011

Here are some updates @ Day 62. Getting ready to harvest in the next few days!! It's a time of conflicting feelings!! :ying:

Excited to be harvesting and putting in the next round. Dreading to be spending hours upon hours looking down and cutting trying to get comfortable with an achey back.

Day 62 Pics:

Tonka · Jan 30, 2011

The next round:

Aerohead · Jan 30, 2011

Wow, look at all those buds, Nice!!
Congrats on the harvest, Any plans for changes next round?

Tonka · Jan 30, 2011

Aerohead said:
Wow, look at all those buds, Nice!!
Congrats on the harvest, Any plans for changes next round?

Thanks Aerohead! As of right now my I'm thinking about two changes. First I am going to upgrade the return pump to move water faster. I've used the current pump twice and it slows down when the rootmass gets large and/or when tiny hydroton gets stuck in the return line. I'm hoping it helps keep the water moving fast in late flower. I also may add another vertical light into the mix.

growbigtrees · Feb 1, 2011

Tonka said:
Here are some updates @ Day 62. Getting ready to harvest in the next few days!! It's a time of conflicting feelings!! Excited to be harvesting and putting in the next round. Dreading to be spending hours upon hours looking down and cutting trying to get comfortable with an achey back.

Day 62 Pics:

Looking amazing, great job! Glad to see this one turn out awesome

Tonka · Feb 1, 2011

xeasyx said:
whatching with interest thinking of going u/c what i your overall thought of the system so far and whats it like compared to others you have done anyway take it easy as and stay lucky cheers EASY

For the most part I like the system. This is my second run and I've noticed a few issues. The water doesn't move incredibly fast so I'm upgrading the pump to a 1200gph I think... Out of the box it comes with a 550gph.

The occasional leak is annoying but is to be expected with any water system IMO. My bio-bucket system used to flood all the time.

fredflintstoned · Feb 1, 2011

Great thread. Hope you hit your goal on weight.
Can you post some info on the room size? What's the dimensions on the system, plant center to center, etc.
Bigger pumps seem to be a recurring theme on these systems.
Thanx,
Fred

down2grow · Feb 3, 2011

Tonka,

On your DIY UC system, is it necessary to have an air stone/diffuser in each bucket? I would think that where the T let's water back in that it would provide enough DO. What if I had a taller res and set the return water higher(waterfall). Would that be enough DO? I'm fumbling between Heath's autocad and a DIY UC. Thanks!

D2G

guest8905 · Feb 4, 2011

Wow I really am starting to see that vertical is the way to get large yield out of little wattage. Great job

much inspiration!

StickKy :rasta:

Tonka · Feb 6, 2011

fredflintstoned said:
Great thread. Hope you hit your goal on weight.
Can you post some info on the room size? What's the dimensions on the system, plant center to center, etc.
Bigger pumps seem to be a recurring theme on these systems.
Thanx,
Fred

Thanks Fred, heres to hoping for a bumper. The larger room is approximately 6.5' x 9'. The system is customized so that it fits snugly in the provided area. Plant centers turn out to be approx. 50".

Definitely needs a bigger return pump. The return pump that comes standard is good at first, but once everything is added, roots, net baskets, and hydroton, the slow down is noticeable after a week or so. Hydroton is the worst slow-down culprit because the smaller peices fall into the system and gets stuck in the intake of the return pump.

Tonka · Feb 6, 2011

down2grow said:
Tonka,

On your DIY UC system, is it necessary to have an air stone/diffuser in each bucket? I would think that where the T let's water back in that it would provide enough DO. What if I had a taller res and set the return water higher(waterfall). Would that be enough DO? I'm fumbling between Heath's autocad and a DIY UC. Thanks!

D2G

D2G, It's hard to say whether or not the waterfall would provide enough DO. Would I use this sytem without an airstone in each bucket? No, I would not. I did run a waterfall system (bio-buckets) for a few years and my waterfall was fast moving and about 16" above the water line. With the bio-buckets, I was able to keep high DO levels without the use of airpumps and only using the fast moving waterfall to oxygenate the solution.

The uc is different in that it should always be used with a large air pump and diffusers in each bucket. The waterfall does not appear to be fast enough or high enough to promote optimal rootzone environment (this is just an assumption from experience and is completely un-scientific). Also, the return pumps will naturally slow down during the grow and that slow down will lead to lower DO levels.

I'm not saying it can't be done if you have the right return pump or low enough rez temps, but my medicine is too valuable to risk.

hope this helps
tonk