Blumat auto watering
- Thread starter sunnydog
- Start date
-
- Tags
- blumat drippers irrigation watering
F
Folate
Hey Sanjuan!
Thats the exact stuff I used initially. I'm using translucent silicon from Amazon now, and you say it may cause mold? Or did you think the red stuff was a bit translucent?
I've used it/blumats off and on for a while and will always replace that black 8mm with flexible silicon. Its the dogs bollocks!
Folate
Thats the exact stuff I used initially. I'm using translucent silicon from Amazon now, and you say it may cause mold? Or did you think the red stuff was a bit translucent?
I've used it/blumats off and on for a while and will always replace that black 8mm with flexible silicon. Its the dogs bollocks!
Folate
sanjuan
Member
I saw someone else using the black split loom over the red tubing. I was having problems with white mold clogging the 3mm lines. Finally, I figured out it was coming from my pH probe because I was using inferior storage solution. Now I add a little Clorox and test with a Hanna HI711 colorimeter for total chlorine. The meter reads up to 3.5ppm and that is about where I want it.
Before the white mold, I had brownish slime on the reservoir walls which I blamed on the sugar in Veg+Bloom. Hydrogen peroxide fixed that but encouraged the white mold. I haven't had any clogs using Jack's or Maxibloom with a little bleach. If you bleed your 8mm line every day that might be enough to discourage stuff growing in there.
I don't think much light penetrates the red tubing, if any.
Gloomshade
Member
Hello peoples. I'm in the process of penciling out a shopping list... A lot of changes planned for my grow room, and i'm not the most experience grower as it is, only just nearing the end of my second crop.
I have been growing autoflowers in DWC under 1700watts of LED in a 2x2x2.2m tent.
My new plan is to switch to photoperiods, incorporate a 1.2x0.6x1.5 Veg tent, using my current tent to flower, switching from DWC to coco with blumats, and to top it all off going perpetual, with 8 plants total 4 in veg 4 in flower 2 weeks between clones...so in the end, start and harvest a plant every 2 weeks.
Tossed around some ideas on how to incorporate bluemat watering to the system and have come up with this...
For the first 2 weeks the clone will be in a small pot with coco hand watering.
For the next 2 weeks it will be in a 10 gallon smartpot, again hand watering.
So at 4 weeks old it will move up the line in the veg tent, with 2 troph blumats per pot and a 30 litre reservoir.
And then move on to the next spot again with blumats and finally into spot 1 of the flower tent.
So as you can imagine, there will be 6 plants in 10 gallon smartpots all at varying stages of growth, each requiring their own level of nutrients, and their own reservoir, + the 2 babies being hand watered.
I think I will set it up so that the blumats stay in the same place as the plants move up the line which from what I've read shouldn't be a problem to pull them out dunk them in water move the next pot in and set them back down in the coco.
Shopping list starts off with this (does it really only come with 1 t-branch connector?)
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/121383457206
12 Tropf-Blumat
7 m water supply tubing
1 elbow connector
1 end piece
1 branch connection
1 T-branch connector
1 hose union
1 elevated tank connection
And its my understanding that each of my pots will require an 8mm feed line running to it, 2 x t branch connectors to drop it from 8mm down to 3mm to run to the 2 x blumats themselves, and i should probably end each run of 8mm with a shutoff valve to enable bleeding.
So on top of the pack i linked I will probably need
6 X Raised tank connector
11 x T-branch connector
13 x Shut off valve (I'd like to have one up high on each rez too plus one for the rotation rez)
Am I forgetting anything? Anyone see any reason why this wouldn't work?
I'll probably have a spare 30 litre rez, when one of the rez's drops below 10 litres, make up 20 litres in the spare, pour whats left in the rez being changed into the new rez and pop it up on the shelf.
I have been growing autoflowers in DWC under 1700watts of LED in a 2x2x2.2m tent.
My new plan is to switch to photoperiods, incorporate a 1.2x0.6x1.5 Veg tent, using my current tent to flower, switching from DWC to coco with blumats, and to top it all off going perpetual, with 8 plants total 4 in veg 4 in flower 2 weeks between clones...so in the end, start and harvest a plant every 2 weeks.
Tossed around some ideas on how to incorporate bluemat watering to the system and have come up with this...
For the first 2 weeks the clone will be in a small pot with coco hand watering.
For the next 2 weeks it will be in a 10 gallon smartpot, again hand watering.
So at 4 weeks old it will move up the line in the veg tent, with 2 troph blumats per pot and a 30 litre reservoir.
And then move on to the next spot again with blumats and finally into spot 1 of the flower tent.
So as you can imagine, there will be 6 plants in 10 gallon smartpots all at varying stages of growth, each requiring their own level of nutrients, and their own reservoir, + the 2 babies being hand watered.
I think I will set it up so that the blumats stay in the same place as the plants move up the line which from what I've read shouldn't be a problem to pull them out dunk them in water move the next pot in and set them back down in the coco.
Shopping list starts off with this (does it really only come with 1 t-branch connector?)
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/121383457206
12 Tropf-Blumat
7 m water supply tubing
1 elbow connector
1 end piece
1 branch connection
1 T-branch connector
1 hose union
1 elevated tank connection
And its my understanding that each of my pots will require an 8mm feed line running to it, 2 x t branch connectors to drop it from 8mm down to 3mm to run to the 2 x blumats themselves, and i should probably end each run of 8mm with a shutoff valve to enable bleeding.
So on top of the pack i linked I will probably need
6 X Raised tank connector
11 x T-branch connector
13 x Shut off valve (I'd like to have one up high on each rez too plus one for the rotation rez)
Am I forgetting anything? Anyone see any reason why this wouldn't work?
I'll probably have a spare 30 litre rez, when one of the rez's drops below 10 litres, make up 20 litres in the spare, pour whats left in the rez being changed into the new rez and pop it up on the shelf.
M
maestroman22
Gloom,
You should also look into purchasing one of the blumat filters. I only have experience with the external filter, but it works great. Hell, if it can filter my bat shit it should have no problem with salt based nutes.
You should also look into purchasing one of the blumat filters. I only have experience with the external filter, but it works great. Hell, if it can filter my bat shit it should have no problem with salt based nutes.
Did you run a pump/air stone in the res to keep it mixed? Did the PBP stay ph stable in the res? I'll be setting up my res in a few days, and I'm curious how you did it.
I'm using a gravity res for sure, may/may not run a pump/ airstone.
I've used them with a scrog extensively. What I do is wait on putting the screen in place until after the plants are pretty well-established, at which point the blumats should be set properly. After the screen is in installed, I just keep an eye on making sure that they are still dripping sporadically and if things look suspicious, I use one of the commercial moisture testers (like from Ace Hardware for about $9......GreenLeaf maybe?) and make sure that the coco stays about as wet as the meter will read without runoff.
F
Folate
I put a 4 gallon tote on-top of my tent and piped in thru one of the ducts down to the floor. I did not use a air stone to keep the nutrients mixed. Everything was stable for me. I used the formula I mentioned, with no ph adjustment. I did use tap water, and the tote was topped off daily, consuming maybe up to 75% of its capacity.
Due to the height of the tent, even if the water level was low there was enough pressure thru the tube to keep the blumats running smooth. I will say that I did check all the blumats after a top up as there is a sudden increase in pressure.
Water quality, growing styles, and PH are a fickle thing. What works for one situation may not be the best for another. I am happy to give you my perspective, but thats all it is.
I will say that once you get it dialed in you may need to find excuses to spend time with your plants!
Folate
Due to the height of the tent, even if the water level was low there was enough pressure thru the tube to keep the blumats running smooth. I will say that I did check all the blumats after a top up as there is a sudden increase in pressure.
Water quality, growing styles, and PH are a fickle thing. What works for one situation may not be the best for another. I am happy to give you my perspective, but thats all it is.
I will say that once you get it dialed in you may need to find excuses to spend time with your plants!
Folate
How many plants? What size tent?
F
Folate
These days I run a DR120 Twin. So its 4x4x5. I place a piece of, slightly larger than the measurements of the tent, sheetrock over the top.(supported with 2x6's) This allows me to put rez and fan/filter on top rather than inside the tent. It also provides the illusion of an attempt at fire safety.
I use 1 and 2 gallon airpots. I usually run around 3-8 plants depending. GPW is easy.
Folate
I use 1 and 2 gallon airpots. I usually run around 3-8 plants depending. GPW is easy.
Folate
What is the opinion on using blumats for these pots?
http://www.groworganic.com/tree-growing-containers-treepots-tall.html
There over 3/4 of a gal. or 3.5 liters
4X4 X 14 inches tall
http://www.groworganic.com/tree-growing-containers-treepots-tall.html
There over 3/4 of a gal. or 3.5 liters
4X4 X 14 inches tall
The pot's top dimensions can be a problem. I used the 1-liter Air Pots (about 4" in diameter) for quite a while for my bonsai moms and you need to put up a backstop for the drip line to hit if you run the standard length from the spike, and significantly shorter lengths change the blumat's response. Also, if the blumats get a minor blockage and the plant gets a bit too dry, and then starts a steady stream instead of a drip, they can overshoot the far side of the pot. This will drain the reservoir because the media just keeps getting drier while the blumat tries harder to moisten it.
I stopped using the small pots because of the problems with them.
skyview
Member
In tall pots like those, you might want to try putting the Blumat in the side horizontally instead of in the top. That way you could position it under the main part of the root ball.
Poke a hole?
Poke a hole?
If your saying to poke a hole the pot, that would eliminate the spill over talked about above.
Poke a hole?
If your saying to poke a hole the pot, that would eliminate the spill over talked about above.
