Blumat auto watering

[rrog]

Well, soil moisture is measured in kPa. KiloPascals. That's the system a Tensiometer would use. The ones I linked earlier. The soil moisture level really depends on the soil medium. The MLT Tensiometer is scaled to accommodate high drainage soils with coco and peat.

You are generally in the 2-10kPa range

 

[Lathund]

So I've set up my blumats a couple of days ago. Did as it said, soaked the soil thoroughly before I inserted the blumats, then 2 notches back when a drop clinged to the dripper.

Problem is, how do I know where the good spot is? The plants are small at the moment, so I can't really measure the level in the res, they don't drink big amounts yet and it's a big res.

The top level of the soil is drying up, I see moisture under the dripper line, but I never see any drops on the driplines.

 

[Canniwhatsis]

Addressing maxis in large pots, I just pulled a large blackberry out of a 15 gallon smart with a single maxi with 5 distributors. Everything went fine, but one thing I noticed when I root pruned to re-vege was that the roots were only in the top about 18" of soil. Leaving nearly 5" of soil that was nicely moist but pretty much devoid of roots.

Don't know where I was going with that... Just an observation.

 

[Lathund]

I just had a tiny flood... Not easy dialing blumats when using smartpots.

 

[Budwhyser]

There should be no difference in dialing in with different pots. You would have had the flood with a reg pot. If you have floods something is wrong. Check the carrot and make sure it's full of water. Most of my floods occur when the water supply to the carrot is interrupted. This happens mostly if there is a clog somewhere, an air bubble in the line from not purging frequently or the res goes dry. Follow the directions and read this forum. These things are pretty reliable

 

[ak-51]

I think it takes time, or maybe some hands on guidance, to really get the feel for it and get them running right. Mine have been running pretty well lately.

 

[stonedstoner]

so this is my first run with blumats. i had a shorty plant that was in the middle of my tray get shaded out by bigger plants that were around it. so i had to chop it down cause it didn't even reach the trellis, and was dying cause it couldn't get any light. so now what do i do with that blumat without fucking up the rest of the blumats? cause i can't take it out without fucking up the calibrations of the others right? should i just put it in a cup of water or something? cause from my understanding...if any of the cones dry out then you can fuck up the calibrations right? and i can't turn off the water source going to them without fucking up the calibrations?

 

[Lapides]

so this is my first run with blumats. i had a shorty plant that was in the middle of my tray get shaded out by bigger plants that were around it. so i had to chop it down cause it didn't even reach the trellis, and was dying cause it couldn't get any light. so now what do i do with that blumat without fucking up the rest of the blumats? cause i can't take it out without fucking up the calibrations of the others right? should i just put it in a cup of water or something? cause from my understanding...if any of the cones dry out then you can fuck up the calibrations right? and i can't turn off the water source going to them without fucking up the calibrations?

Just completely close the valve on the cone from the plant you killed off.

 

[Budwhyser]

so this is my first run with blumats. i had a shorty plant that was in the middle of my tray get shaded out by bigger plants that were around it. so i had to chop it down cause it didn't even reach the trellis, and was dying cause it couldn't get any light. so now what do i do with that blumat without fucking up the rest of the blumats? cause i can't take it out without fucking up the calibrations of the others right? should i just put it in a cup of water or something? cause from my understanding...if any of the cones dry out then you can fuck up the calibrations right? and i can't turn off the water source going to them without fucking up the calibrations?

Or you can remove the water line and simply tie a small knot at the end and remove the cone. Next run just cut the line right before the knot and reuse

 

[stonedstoner]

Just completely close the valve on the cone from the plant you killed off.

so i can just close the valve and leave it in the tray? will that cone drying out affect the rest of the system or no?

 

[Eighths-n-Aces]

so i can just close the valve and leave it in the tray? will that cone drying out affect the rest of the system or no?

yes to the first question

no to the second

 

[Maj.Cottonmouth]

I use an 18oz party cup with tin foil over the top. Fill the cup with water, put the tin foil over the top, poke a small hole in the center of the tin foil and stick the blumat in it. I put them all the way in until it rests on the dark green part at the top of the blumat. And adjust the knob all the way down of course.

 

[ak-51]

What I usually do in that situation is unscrew the carrot part of the blumat and throw it back in with the rest of the blumats in a bucket of water where I store them. I leave the top half on the line and just tighten it until it stops dripping. This keeps the ceramic part wet. I like to keep them wet at all times.

The other thing I might do is just stick the whole thing in an adjacent pot.

 

[sunnydog]

The other thing I might do is just stick the whole thing in an adjacent pot.

 

[Canniwhatsis]

I have a handful of short lines with knots tied in them, when I don't need one in line where it was I just pull it out.

Bucket of water is a good idea for storage.

 

[skyview]

so this is my first run with blumats. i had a shorty plant that was in the middle of my tray get shaded out by bigger plants that were around it. so i had to chop it down cause it didn't even reach the trellis, and was dying cause it couldn't get any light. so now what do i do with that blumat without fucking up the rest of the blumats? cause i can't take it out without fucking up the calibrations of the others right? should i just put it in a cup of water or something? cause from my understanding...if any of the cones dry out then you can fuck up the calibrations right? and i can't turn off the water source going to them without fucking up the calibrations?

You might also want to check out the Blumat sealing caps. They're only 10¢ each and when you take a carrot off line you can just pull the 3 mm line off and cap the tee with one of these. You can also use them to end a distribution dripper and to finish off an 8 mm line instead of using a carrot. Another use is to end a 3 mm line by putting in a transfer barb and one of these on the other side. Pretty versatile for 10¢!

http://www.sustainablevillage.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=59_69&product_id=112

 

[Budwhyser]

Or just pull it and tie a knot at the very end of the line. Simply cut the knot off when you're ready to reuse that spot. You'll lose 1/4 inch of line or less. Easy-peezy

 

[skyview]

I guess it depends how often you need to do that. If not often, tying a knot seems fine. For whatever reason, I keep moving my plants around, changing everything when I transplant... tying a knot that often would really be a pain.

 

[wiesser]

Blumat Questions

Blumat Questions

This question is for SunnyDog, but anyone that has any insight is more than welcome to chime in.

So I noticed a few useful links on the first page of this thread, not sure if they were added recently or I just missed them the first time I came across this thread. Couple questions regarding advanced blumat techniques:

-3 mil hose line length-

I've currently got mine at about 5-6 cm. I know SunnyD recommends ~8 cm. Thinking about increasing the length, however I've noticed that if you change the length of the 3 mil hose the drip frequency is altered. I've already dialed in my blumats and do not want to mess with them. Any issues changing the length of this hose after blumats have been properly adjusted?

-Vapor lock-

Really need some help with this concept. First I've heard of it. I'm guessing heat can cause vapor in the 8 mil line, which can cause issues. A little elaboration on this topic would really help.

-Closed loop system-

I noticed a drawing recommending a closed loop system. This is not what I'm doing. I have 3 separate 8 mil lines coming off my 55 gal res. Each one dead-ends at the pot at the end of the line. I'm not sure what the advantage would be to connect all lines together, possible redundancy?

-Purging the system-

First I've really thought about this, but I like the idea. I can see how connecting all your lines together could make this way easier. But since I'm using 3 separate lines, I'm thinking about just purging each one individually. I would like to have a valve at the end of each line to accomplish this, however my system is already up and running and I don't have the parts for that currently. Could I just remove the 3 mil line from the last fitting at the end of the line for a very brief period? 10-20 sec. maybe? Any issues with removing the 3 mil line from a "T" fitting or "L" fitting for a minute or two? Will this cause problems with the water level in the carrot?

-Additional notes-

I would also like to add some details about my setup, I am open to any suggestions:

-My res is a 55 gal drum, usually keep 40 gal. at all times.
-Res is about 3 feet off the ground, longest length of 8 mil hose is about 13-14 feet.
-I'm guessing I've got a little more water pressure than most using a passive system.
-I do use an airstone in my res. Doesn't make a ton of bubbles, but keeps things moving a bit. Haven't noticed any issues with this.
-I only run strait water through my blumats. In my experience trying to run a full nutrient program through these things is a bad idea.
-Room temps stay between 70 - 84F, res temp is between 65 - 72F.

I know this is a long post with lots of questions, I really appreciate any advice or suggestions. Thanks in advance!

 

[Lathund]

I absolutley hate these little fucking things!

I've had like 5 floods so far, and I don't know what I'm doing wrong! I have them soaking for a long time before I put them in the pots. I unscrew the head meaking sure there are NO airbubbles in the carrot, screwing it on under water, and then placing it in the pot.

When I adjust the flow of water I do it half a "tick" at a time. Still I'm having floods. Why?!