10 min $10 DIY aerated compost tea ACT brewer

SmokinErb22 · Jul 30, 2015

Was intending to hit 'em with a nutrient tea - got some plants in 7 gallon containers that should probably be in 15 gallons that have been showing signs of deficiencies for a little while now - started hitting them with bottled organic nutes about a week ago and they're starting to look better, they've had nothing but water for the last couple of waterings so I wanted to give 'em a little something.

EWC and molasses will be an "every watering" tea. Betting my brewer ends up running 24/7 pretty much unless I run it in my 55 gallon barrel. Don't really like using bottles (but I keep a set on hand, just in case) and my plants have been over-sized for a few runs now, wanting to see if I can't push the plants to perform in only 7 gallons of soil.

Spent less than $100 on my brewer and that's what I spend for a set of bottles. Can't hurt.

xmobotx · Jul 30, 2015

as a bottled nute replacement, i could see one doing much worse & i commend that approach

similarly, i am trying to lengthen the stint in 1 gals for some clones & applying something like that but i still tend to top-dress {fish meal or NSM} and my teas are micro-life reinforcement ~one could tend to wonder what the difference is between watering CTs through a top-dress just like one might wonder why not just water through an EWC mulch {vs CT} moreover, an EWC mulch does accomplish both when it's homemade castings & you've nutrient-cycled

heady blunts · Sep 19, 2015

finally got a pic of my v2.0 20 gallon airlift.

Cbytheriver · Sep 27, 2015

Very interesting

Cbytheriver · Sep 27, 2015

I've read these articles with interest for awhile. In the picture of the twenty gallon, does the black tube go into the tee? Where exactly?
Does it have a diffuser?
What size Sweetwater diffuser for the elemental 1744, with the 1.25 ID?
I keep getting hung up on the diffuser.
Thanks

lostenspace · Sep 27, 2015

Hello fellow tea lovers, what are people using to clean your pvc after a brew? Thanks

Bmac1 · Sep 27, 2015

Ive just been taking mine apart and giving it a good rinse and wipe down under just tap water. Its been fine so far.

Mr.DeLaLippa · Sep 27, 2015

After few times brewing i use dish soap and a brush

50YardLine · Sep 27, 2015

Been using my brewer for two outdoor seasons now. Just water at high pressure after each use and she is good to go.

kowhite · Nov 2, 2015

Heady mutha fuckin Blunts I would like to thank you my good sir...and may I humbly say you are the fucking man. I've been up since 230 in the AM (its now almost 700) trying to put together a properly functioning airlift style brewer...was having some difficulties to say the least so I came here to ask a few questions and all it took was one look at the pic you posted of your design and BOOM!!!! got that shit flowing like a fountain. I made a few mods I think are benificial that helped with increasing the pressure within the design (very similar to yours...thank you again) I put together. Excited but too tired to post pics now but I will if you do not mind. And for any who are taking in the info found posted in this thread who do not know the extraordinary power of compost tea I emphatically employ you to experiment with making and using properly brewed AACT and experience the awesome benifits...trust me your plants will love you for it.

peace and CBD grease.

kowhite · Nov 2, 2015

****the 20 gallon V2.0 design is the one that helped....particularly the bit of inserting the air tube into the middle T.****

heady blunts · Nov 2, 2015

please share pics KW!

glad to hear you got a nice flow going. you can always hit me up in those frustrating situations i'm happy to offer whatever help i can.

cbytheriver---

i don't use a diffuser. the air hose plugs into a brass barb that i threaded into the PVC tee piece.

MM would like you to know that brass fittings greatly restrict airflow, so if you can keep the inner diameter of the airhose flush you'll have the greatest efficiency.

that said, my air pump is overpowered so i can get away with a bit of efficiency loss i hope.

edit for a bit more explanation: i dont use a diffusor for the air lift because the air lift raises DO levels not so much in the column as when the water splashes out of the lift back into the tub. something about disturbing the surface tension creates excellent gas exchange and raises DO levels. i'll leave a more detailed explaination up to someone who has a better understanding of the physics and chemistry at work.

if you wanted to improve the air lift system, it would be a good idea to add a bubble ring or a couple airstones to the bottom to agitate any potential dead spots.

lost---

yup, just tap water and a bit of elbow grease works perfectly as long as you clean it immediately.

if you get lazy and wait to clean it then hot water with a mild dish soap and a rag or scrub brush should do it, but it's a lot more work that doing it right away!

Agropop · Nov 4, 2015

Hi, can I use for brewing the ewc&guano tea white sugar or brown sugar, instead of molasses-which I cannot buy (out of stock for 3weeks

)?

heady blunts · Nov 4, 2015

pop---

i have no idea! i'm sorry.

if i had to guess i'd say dark brown sugar might work as a substitute for molasses at least as far as a feedstock for your microbes.

afaik guano tea is not a microbial culture, it's more of a nutrient soak, so i'm not sure molasses or ewc are necessary.

also afaik, adding guano to an ACT biological culture will drastically hinder your microbial life from reproducing. so it may be beneficial to split those ingredients into two separate teas.

hope that helps!

TheCatDaddy · Nov 10, 2015

My pump is only 44.3 Gallons per hour, I usually only have 6 or 7 smaller plants going at once.

1. Should I make a 1 gallon system as I think thatd be enough?

2. Would my 44.3 GPH pump handle that?

I was talking with someone who just uses a bucket with an airstone in it and puts his ingredientz directly in the bucket and bubbles it up..would that work?

Thanks guys.

kowhite · Nov 19, 2015

https://www.dropbox.com/s/i63l4vn3luturai/2015-11-11 00.45.28.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hehpw05o9x1kbpe/2015-11-11 00.54.12.jpg?dl=0

Before and after assembly respectively....

Finally getting around to posting the pics of that airlift I put together....I'm not quite sure I did it right with the whole copy and paste thing as I am not too computer savvy.

Anyways...the only mod to add pressure I thought up that actually worked out in practice and not just in theory was the addition of the four elbows at the bottom. Don't know the technicalities of exactly why it did but it did...it also added to the overall stability of the lift. The extra pressure allowed for me to add on a T at the top so that the downpour of water from the fountainhead would be evenly distributed at the top. Which, if I understand things correctly, adds to the amount of surface tension being broken and increases dissolved O2 levels...not to mention appeases my borderline OCD issue with symmetry.

Brewing my third batch of tea now with this setup and its working out pretty awesomely...I've had extremely satisfying results during veg using simply EWC and molasses but, being that I am relatively new to this whole organic gardening thing, have not yet been able to zero in on a decent recipe for a flowering tea. But all good things come with time. Thanks Heady for this thread...wouldn't be brewing quite so well without it.

peace and CBD gease...

heady blunts · Nov 19, 2015

awesome KW!

i wish it was easier to post videos. i wanna see that thing chug! take one on your phone so next time i see you you can show it to me.

how many gallons at a time have you been brewing with this bad boy?

Microbeman · Nov 19, 2015

kowhite said:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/i63l4vn3luturai/2015-11-11 00.45.28.jpg?dl=0

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hehpw05o9x1kbpe/2015-11-11 00.54.12.jpg?dl=0

Before and after assembly respectively....

Finally getting around to posting the pics of that airlift I put together....I'm not quite sure I did it right with the whole copy and paste thing as I am not too computer savvy.

Anyways...the only mod to add pressure I thought up that actually worked out in practice and not just in theory was the addition of the four elbows at the bottom. Don't know the technicalities of exactly why it did but it did...it also added to the overall stability of the lift. The extra pressure allowed for me to add on a T at the top so that the downpour of water from the fountainhead would be evenly distributed at the top. Which, if I understand things correctly, adds to the amount of surface tension being broken and increases dissolved O2 levels...not to mention appeases my borderline OCD issue with symmetry.

Brewing my third batch of tea now with this setup and its working out pretty awesomely...I've had extremely satisfying results during veg using simply EWC and molasses but, being that I am relatively new to this whole organic gardening thing, have not yet been able to zero in on a decent recipe for a flowering tea. But all good things come with time. Thanks Heady for this thread...wouldn't be brewing quite so well without it.

peace and CBD gease...

I did not see your photos but you are correct that breaking the surface tension contributes to the dissolved oxygen capacity. I would not worry about different recipes for vegetative or flowering. As long as you are not adding soluble nutrients, the microorganisms will straighten out what goes where.

This of course does not mean that you may not need to provide organic matter and perhaps some botanical teas additional to ACT.

kowhite · Nov 20, 2015

Heady - Video made....

My tea needs are super small right now so I'm brewing 4-5 gal at a time.....feed the girls a few houseplants, and the rest (the bulk of it) goes into this soil mix I have cooking when I turn it over. How long do you usually brew each batch? Does brewing with an airlift instead of using just an airstone shorten the length of the brew?

On a side note....I have a 110 liter/min air pump that I'm super excited about and have some pretty interesting plans for. I'll keep you posted.

MM - Can you elaborate more on botanical teas please?? It would be much appreciated.

peace and CBD grease...

Microbeman · Nov 20, 2015

Botanical tea is made with plant matter like alfalfa and kelp meals. I believe you can find recipes on this forum. They provide some soluble nutrients and hormones. For details about brewing you could look at my webpage. Just google microbe organics.

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