big plant ppk

[delta9nxs]

ok, that's it. thank you! should i insert names here?

so what we got was just a little over 6 oz's. the drained water represents the air space in the medium after a pulse. 6/18 is .333 so we got a little more than 33% air filled porosity. i would say right at 34%.

this was achieved with turface by screening over an aluminum window screen.

i think that somewhere around 30% is good for use in the ppk. the atami loose fill is 30% right out of the bag.

 

[SecondAttempt]

I feel this is directed at me... thanks D9, I'll get on it.

 

[FlowerFarmer]

Awesome. Thanks for the demonstration.

Going to try this on the ~6mm lava rock that I posted over in Dave's thread.
I'll report the findings this evening in my PPK thread.



You the man delta

 

[delta9nxs]

I feel this is directed at me... thanks D9, I'll get on it.

not you specifically but for all that don't know how to do it. no matter how you grow unless you are medium-less this will help you make informed choices and guide you while putting together a custom mix of locally available materials.

it is the mechanical properties that are most important.

 

[otis33]

Quik question, how do you attach the Carlon liquid fittings to the pvc? drill a
1/2"hole and insert the hose end and seal out with goop?

 

[otis33]

By hose end, I mean the end that is not threaded

 

[DaveTheNewbie]

legendary

 

[delta9nxs]

Quik question, how do you attach the Carlon liquid fittings to the pvc? drill a
1/2"hole and insert the hose end and seal out with goop?

no, the threaded end goes into the pvc pipe. i drill it and tap it with a 1/2" pipe tap which threads the pipe.

using pipe you cannot get at the back side to tighten the nut or even put it on so the nut and o-ring are discarded.

amazing goop on the threads and run it down hand tight. it will never ever leak. there's really no pressure in this system.

looking back at the picture of the carlon fitting you can see a spiral ridge molded into it. a 5/8" id garden hose has to be forced onto those. it takes some effort.

below the spiral ridge you will see a raised concentric ring going all the way around it. this is the water seal.

i think they wouldn't leak without the clamps but i'm a belt and suspenders man.

i don't like wet rooms. i still have no leaks anywhere.

the right way to do the fittings for a pressure installation would be to install t's and reducer's at each juncture with a threaded reducer for the carlon fitting.

but screw that as the fittings are 2 bucks each and i'm a cheap bastard.

it would have driven the cost for my little system up another 200 bucks for sure.

a pipe tap cost $10 and you have it forever. very easy to use in pvc as they are designed for steel.

 

[delta9nxs]

http://hand-tools.hardwarestore.com....aspx?utm_source=pla&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=

this is just a quick picture of one. walmart has them online. lowes and hd's do not stock them at all and a lot of the tool places like northern tool want you to buy a big set of them that you will never use.

i got mine at an old time hardware store but plumbing supply places all have them too.

 

[zeke99]

http://hand-tools.hardwarestore.com....aspx?utm_source=pla&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=

this is just a quick picture of one. walmart has them online. lowes and hd's do not stock them at all and a lot of the tool places like northern tool want you to buy a big set of them that you will never use.

i got mine at an old time hardware store but plumbing supply places all have them too.

^ that

I ran all over the fucking place trying to find one. Can't remember where I finally did but it's weirdest thing (to me anyway) that so called big hardware stores such as Lowes and Home Depot don't stock them. I might have purchased at either a Sears or a Grainger store...

 

[noyd666]

any shop that sells speedway gear will sell them.

 

[otis33]

I actually bought pipe taps for the push fittings on the manifold of my last ppk but the biggest one I have and can find is 1/2 inch, and the threads on the fittings I have, the 1/2 inch ones, look way bigger than the 1/2"tap. The threads actually measure 3/4", I've been to Lowes, menards, harbor freight with no luck. I am ready to just connect all the buckets directly to the res. 18 different hoses to maneuver around will be a pain in my ass, especially with the three donut layout I am doing.

 

[noyd666]

don't you have pipe shops over there that will do the job on the spot, taps over here are dear, plumbers shop? sounds like a lot of pipe around feet.

 

[delta9nxs]

I actually bought pipe taps for the push fittings on the manifold of my last ppk but the biggest one I have and can find is 1/2 inch, and the threads on the fittings I have, the 1/2 inch ones, look way bigger than the 1/2"tap. The threads actually measure 3/4", I've been to Lowes, menards, harbor freight with no luck. I am ready to just connect all the buckets directly to the res. 18 different hoses to maneuver around will be a pain in my ass, especially with the three donut layout I am doing.

hey otis, the 1/2" pipe tap is correct, it just doesn't look like it fits. the threads use the same space interlocking.

 

[real ting]

D9 was there any reason you decided to use the 5/8" hose over say 3/4" ID vinyl tubing that is more common in hydro? Was it just availability at hardware stores? Also, did you ever have any problems using the 5 way hose manifold with the valves? Seems like it would be just the ticket for being able to adjust the flow individually on a setup like what I'm going for (4 big plants).

Sorry if this one has already been asked, I browsed through and didn't see.

Hell of a show you got going here!

ok, that's it. thank you! should i insert names here?

so what we got was just a little over 6 oz's. the drained water represents the air space in the medium after a pulse. 6/18 is .333 so we got a little more than 33% air filled porosity. i would say right at 34%.

this was achieved with turface by screening over an aluminum window screen.

i think that somewhere around 30% is good for use in the ppk. the atami loose fill is 30% right out of the bag.

I would throw in a word of caution about coco for large plant ppks. I was running about 2/1 coco/perlite mix in 8 gallon ppk tubs and still had a lot of problems with drainage, in some tubs the pwt would not have time to drain by the time of the next pulse, spaced 30-45 min apart. I think the watering and root growth compacted it over time. The mix came out to about 35% air porosity when I did the above test. This time around I'm going to be running screened turface, it already seems to drain a lot better but we'll see how they do once I get them in the big tubs.


edit: one other question for ya D9, it looks like you just plugged off the tire valves in your 3.5 gallon buckets, did you just thread on the cap or did you plug them up with something like sillicone first? Any leak problems with that?

 

[otis33]

Thanks delta, I will be packing my new ppk thread up and moving it to vertville, where it belongs. I'm very exited about this build. Next one will be my basement at home. I'm switching to a 6 tree ppk set up, I'm not in a med state and I would asleep better with out the clone factory in my basement.

 

[delta9nxs]

quick pipe tapping tutorial for the rookies. total elapsed time 4 minutes.

1/8" bit pilot hole

3/4" hole for 1/2" npt pipe tap

start the tap by hand trying to keep it straight. this is the hardest part.

 

[delta9nxs]

a 5/8" box wrench fits neatly over the square end of the tap

a few turns in, cutting as you go, and then back it out a little to keep it clean

repeat until you get the tap threads even with the surface and back it out

do not tap all the way through the wall of the pipe or you will have a hell of a time getting the tap started back out.

that's it, thread your fitting in hand tight with amazing goop, plumbers edition. you do not use the o-ring or the nut

 

[delta9nxs]

I actually bought pipe taps for the push fittings on the manifold of my last ppk but the biggest one I have and can find is 1/2 inch, and the threads on the fittings I have, the 1/2 inch ones, look way bigger than the 1/2"tap. The threads actually measure 3/4", I've been to Lowes, menards, harbor freight with no luck. I am ready to just connect all the buckets directly to the res. 18 different hoses to maneuver around will be a pain in my ass, especially with the three donut layout I am doing.

do you have a floor plan?

 

[delta9nxs]

D9 was there any reason you decided to use the 5/8" hose over say 3/4" ID vinyl tubing that is more common in hydro? Was it just availability at hardware stores? Also, did you ever have any problems using the 5 way hose manifold with the valves? Seems like it would be just the ticket for being able to adjust the flow individually on a setup like what I'm going for (4 big plants).

Sorry if this one has already been asked, I browsed through and didn't see.

Hell of a show you got going here!



I would throw in a word of caution about coco for large plant ppks. I was running about 2/1 coco/perlite mix in 8 gallon ppk tubs and still had a lot of problems with drainage, in some tubs the pwt would not have time to drain by the time of the next pulse, spaced 30-45 min apart. I think the watering and root growth compacted it over time. The mix came out to about 35% air porosity when I did the above test. This time around I'm going to be running screened turface, it already seems to drain a lot better but we'll see how they do once I get them in the big tubs.


edit: one other question for ya D9, it looks like you just plugged off the tire valves in your 3.5 gallon buckets, did you just thread on the cap or did you plug them up with something like sillicone first? Any leak problems with that?

hey! i used the 5/8" garden hose because it fits really tight over the 1/2" carlon fittings. in fact, it fits better than the carlon flexible conduit designed to be used with them. it is incredibly tough hose.

and i bought a 100' piece of hose at tractor supply for 33 bucks.

but there no reason you can't use the 3/4" vinyl if you want. i would take a piece of the hose down to lowes or hd's and try it on the 3/4" carlon fittings.

if you do go to the 3/4" and use 3/4" garden hose you will pay a lot more for it per foot than the 5/8". i've never tried 3/4" garden hose for fit so i don't know if it will work or not.

the garden hose manifold is working fine and in your situation with four grouped around the light the easiest thing for you to do is to duplicate my veg system.

working with new hose can be a bitch as it doesn't want to behave after taking a set from being rolled up.

but it has a molecular memory and wants to return to the shape it was extruded.

cutting them to length and soaking in hot water helps a lot.

coco can trap fine particle and form a plug. it should be used alone.