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Blumat auto watering
- Thread starter sunnydog
- Start date
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- Tags
- blumat drippers irrigation watering
wiesser
Member
Lathund-
Yeah your adjustments are causing your problems. Give the pot a good watering, plug the carrots in the soil, adjust till you get a hanging drip, tighten two arrows, walk away. That is all you need to do for a few days. If you feel like you need to make an adjustment, adjust a few "ticks" at a time. Now when I say "tick" I mean the very small "tick" lines on the side of the adjustment dial, the small lines between the arrows!
It is very important to remember when making adjustments that it is a slow process. Wait two to three days after making an adjustment to see any results, or make any more adjustments. I think about it like driving a boat slowly. If your boat is traveling off course your first reaction is to steer hard the opposite direction, however since your in a boat and not a car it is going to take some time for the boat to actually start turning. Once the boat does start turning you've already cranked the wheel way too much and the boat is turning a lot more than you expected. Now you have to crank the wheel hard the opposite direction to adjust from your previous miscalculation, and the cycle continues down the line until you are driving in zig zag circles, constantly over-correcting yourself.
This is the key to making adjustments. How can you tell when you need to make an adjustment? Look at your plants first, they will tell you, then lift up the pot to check the weight. Should be pretty heavy, like you watered the day before. If you think it is too light, adjust the dial 3-4 ticks only, then leave it alone for a few days. Check the weight of the pot each day and you will see a difference. You should also see the "wet patch" on the surface of the soil where the blumat is dripping increase. Patience is key to dialing these in. When you do, you'll never run a crop without them.
Yeah your adjustments are causing your problems. Give the pot a good watering, plug the carrots in the soil, adjust till you get a hanging drip, tighten two arrows, walk away. That is all you need to do for a few days. If you feel like you need to make an adjustment, adjust a few "ticks" at a time. Now when I say "tick" I mean the very small "tick" lines on the side of the adjustment dial, the small lines between the arrows!
It is very important to remember when making adjustments that it is a slow process. Wait two to three days after making an adjustment to see any results, or make any more adjustments. I think about it like driving a boat slowly. If your boat is traveling off course your first reaction is to steer hard the opposite direction, however since your in a boat and not a car it is going to take some time for the boat to actually start turning. Once the boat does start turning you've already cranked the wheel way too much and the boat is turning a lot more than you expected. Now you have to crank the wheel hard the opposite direction to adjust from your previous miscalculation, and the cycle continues down the line until you are driving in zig zag circles, constantly over-correcting yourself.
This is the key to making adjustments. How can you tell when you need to make an adjustment? Look at your plants first, they will tell you, then lift up the pot to check the weight. Should be pretty heavy, like you watered the day before. If you think it is too light, adjust the dial 3-4 ticks only, then leave it alone for a few days. Check the weight of the pot each day and you will see a difference. You should also see the "wet patch" on the surface of the soil where the blumat is dripping increase. Patience is key to dialing these in. When you do, you'll never run a crop without them.
skyview
Member
Hi Wiessr. Not SunnyDog and far, far from that level of experience but I’ve been testing some of these things you asked about and would like to share my thoughts:
-3 mm hose line length – one of the issues here is “capillary action” – how far moisture spreads out below the surface. In soil mixes in shallow pots, this is about 4” (10 cm). I’ve been experimenting though in half cocoa/half perlite in a 15 gallon fabric pot. I’m using just one Blumat Maxi going horizontal from the side bottom. 11” (28 cm) from the 3 mm drip, the moisture level is lower but still seems fine.
-Vapor lock – for one stretch there when my cooling systems was broken down, my greenhouse was over 100+ degrees F all day. Probably trashed my nutes but no vapor lock. I’m using white 8 mm tube that probably helps and open the valve in the middle of my loop from time to time to make sure no air bubbles.
Closed loop system- I’ve done both and both work fine. I think the loop system is like an insurance policy. In the unlikely event something falls on the tubing and stops the flow or something clogs it up, you still get water from the other direction. The loop system also makes it easier to flush air bubbles and sediment. You can do the same thing with single lines but takes a little longer and you need more valves.
-Purging the system- I think purging with the 3 mm line is okay, just takes a little longer. At the end of the line with a carrot though, I prefer doing it on the output side. I look carefully at where the setting is, open two or three arrows until there is a steady stream and then go back to the previous setting mark.
One important note on that though: when you change a setting on a carrot, move the plants around, transplant or even just bump up against a pot; you can create an air gap between the carrot and your planting mix. I think this is the main reason people get run-aways - the air gap makes the Blumat "think" the soil is dry when it really isn't. So if any of those things happen, I think it's a good idea to pour a little water around the carrot and pinch the potting mix against the ceramic cone.
-3 mm hose line length – one of the issues here is “capillary action” – how far moisture spreads out below the surface. In soil mixes in shallow pots, this is about 4” (10 cm). I’ve been experimenting though in half cocoa/half perlite in a 15 gallon fabric pot. I’m using just one Blumat Maxi going horizontal from the side bottom. 11” (28 cm) from the 3 mm drip, the moisture level is lower but still seems fine.
-Vapor lock – for one stretch there when my cooling systems was broken down, my greenhouse was over 100+ degrees F all day. Probably trashed my nutes but no vapor lock. I’m using white 8 mm tube that probably helps and open the valve in the middle of my loop from time to time to make sure no air bubbles.
Closed loop system- I’ve done both and both work fine. I think the loop system is like an insurance policy. In the unlikely event something falls on the tubing and stops the flow or something clogs it up, you still get water from the other direction. The loop system also makes it easier to flush air bubbles and sediment. You can do the same thing with single lines but takes a little longer and you need more valves.
-Purging the system- I think purging with the 3 mm line is okay, just takes a little longer. At the end of the line with a carrot though, I prefer doing it on the output side. I look carefully at where the setting is, open two or three arrows until there is a steady stream and then go back to the previous setting mark.
One important note on that though: when you change a setting on a carrot, move the plants around, transplant or even just bump up against a pot; you can create an air gap between the carrot and your planting mix. I think this is the main reason people get run-aways - the air gap makes the Blumat "think" the soil is dry when it really isn't. So if any of those things happen, I think it's a good idea to pour a little water around the carrot and pinch the potting mix against the ceramic cone.
wiesser
Member
Thanks for the input skyview, my system has been up and running for a week and everything is looking great! Always looking for more insight regarding the blumats, I really love these things, making my life a hell of a lot easier. Just finished plumbing my buddies system, 150 gal. res, 5/8 hose off the res for a main line, transitions to 8 mil line with quick disconnect valves, feeding 18 plants in 7 gal containers, 6KW of lighting, sealed room w/co2. Needless to say my crew is all-in when it comes to the blumats. Please post any further insight, I will do the same.
I think this is a big deal, also. I always water my carrots into place. Same with my Tensiometers (which actually measures the moisture in kPa)
A
ak-51
The last several times I installed blumats I did this: water pots till they're pretty wet, install carrot, press coco tightly around the carrot, add more coco where you compacted it, water it in to seat the coco around it. It seems to be working well for me.
skyview
Member
I think that's the main reason for runaways (an air gap between carrot and medium). Another, less common one is probably air bubbles in the line. That can happen if the res gets too low, if you cut the line to add a new carrot, from disconnecting a carrot and then adding it back in later, or maybe from vapor lock. If any of those things happen, I think it's important to take ak-51's advice above. I've been doing that except not adding more coco. I think that's a really good idea though and will start including that in my Blumat reset schedule.
Remember when you're assembling the carrot underwater, look for and blow out hidden air bubbles in the top by the rubber diaphragm. Also way down in the carrot. I have found a lot of bubbles hiding before assembly. I use a cheap disposable bubble syringe to blow out the bubbles.
I do all of the above, and have recently added an additional step. I use Botanicare ReadyGro Aeration mix, which has a pretty high percentage of large perlite in it. The perlite works well for making the mix porous & "loose", but that is the last thing that the spike needs to function properly. I picked up a bag of straight Canna Coco without any perlite. When I am installing the Blumat in a fresh pot, I insert and remove the spike a couple of times, refilling the hole with the Canna coco between insertions. This insures that the medium in contact with the spike is not only tightly packed, but also that it doesn't have any large chunks of perlite up against the ceramic.
wiesser
Member
Blumat Soil Drenching
Blumat Soil Drenching
So I wanted to ax 'yall,
I've had my blumats going great for a little over a week now, dialed in, the plants are friggin' lovin' it! So last night I gave them a little soil drenching, only a 1/4 gal each, 4 gal pots, first week of flower, good size plants. I used a product called sea-crop, it is the bomb. Sourced locally.
What do you guys think of soil drenching after installing your blumats? Any thoughts?
Blumat Soil Drenching
So I wanted to ax 'yall,
I've had my blumats going great for a little over a week now, dialed in, the plants are friggin' lovin' it! So last night I gave them a little soil drenching, only a 1/4 gal each, 4 gal pots, first week of flower, good size plants. I used a product called sea-crop, it is the bomb. Sourced locally.
What do you guys think of soil drenching after installing your blumats? Any thoughts?
It doesn't matter!
(Wish I could find audio of Beetlejuice saying that - "IT DOESN'T MATTA! IT DOESN'T MATTA!")
Anyway - the blumats will still keep your soil as moist as you told 'em to when you dialed 'e in, prior to the drench.
It's like nothing ever happened!
(Wish I could find audio of Beetlejuice saying that - "IT DOESN'T MATTA! IT DOESN'T MATTA!")
Anyway - the blumats will still keep your soil as moist as you told 'em to when you dialed 'e in, prior to the drench.
It's like nothing ever happened!
Hello everyone!
J have a question about the Blumat system.
I grow in pots of 11 liters ( 22 X 22 X 26 cm).
Before i used tropf Blumat "normal", but I've noticed with the blumat tensiometer that the soil
was dry after 10/15 cm so after reading this post i buy some blumat maxi .
i have installed this yesterday after a big handwatering and put my blumat has a depth of 19 cm.
After this i put my blumat tensiometer at the same depht and it indicate ( after 2 hours) 40 mbar, today i go to check and my tensiometer indicate 120 mbar, my soil is very wet a this moment and the blumat is off (thankfully)
Before with the "normal" blumat and my tensiometer in the middle of the pot i turn around 60 and 90 mbar maximum ( at 90 / 100 mbar the blumat begin to water and stop to watering at 50/60).
So i dont understand the value of 120 mbar today at 19 cm depht, do you think it is normal ?
With a 11 liter pot you use a maxi or a normal blumat tropf ?
Do you put all the blumat in the soil or just to the middle ?
Excuse my english I'm french ....
Have a good day !
J have a question about the Blumat system.
I grow in pots of 11 liters ( 22 X 22 X 26 cm).
Before i used tropf Blumat "normal", but I've noticed with the blumat tensiometer that the soil
was dry after 10/15 cm so after reading this post i buy some blumat maxi .
i have installed this yesterday after a big handwatering and put my blumat has a depth of 19 cm.
After this i put my blumat tensiometer at the same depht and it indicate ( after 2 hours) 40 mbar, today i go to check and my tensiometer indicate 120 mbar, my soil is very wet a this moment and the blumat is off (thankfully)
Before with the "normal" blumat and my tensiometer in the middle of the pot i turn around 60 and 90 mbar maximum ( at 90 / 100 mbar the blumat begin to water and stop to watering at 50/60).
So i dont understand the value of 120 mbar today at 19 cm depht, do you think it is normal ?
With a 11 liter pot you use a maxi or a normal blumat tropf ?
Do you put all the blumat in the soil or just to the middle ?
Excuse my english I'm french ....
Have a good day !
I amend the soil, and pour over top as a drench. No prob. I also keep a little well dug under the drippers. I add stuff there as well. Let it drip in over time.
