Blumat auto watering
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DHF
Gladta see folks on public forums showin upgrades and DIY skills for the absolute most maintenance free setup ever built IME....
I mean....All that`s needed ta dial down a cone is a plant saucer underneath each container and maybe a week max to get the flow to each plant down to a cling ftw and then...
It`s off to the races....Now....I see folks puttin the ends of the driptube right on top of the main stem to supposedly give better overall container/medium coverage ,and maybe it`s workin for yas with minimum juice drippin near the mainstem , but......
As a rule .....It`s always better to keep the feedjuice away from the base of the stem to prevent dampin off/stem rot , and ......
What a lotta folks don`t understand is that by putting the feed tube across from the cone to the other side of each container GIVES yas the proper container moisture once dialed even though the top layer may look drier , it`s what`s underneath that counts and I assure yas......
If the container`s not kept continuously "moist" underneath in each container the runaway cone will be showin up on your doorstep....guaranteed....
The tops will look dried out from transpiration and evaporation from the lights blastin at em , but if yas set em up properly in the beginning with the plant saucers to determine how far down the cones needta be dialed for all but no runoff and cling while under the big lights , then there`ll never be a chance of runaway cones .....
Blumats and bare bulbs....Bet on it...Sky`s the limit....
Peace...DHF...
......
I mean....All that`s needed ta dial down a cone is a plant saucer underneath each container and maybe a week max to get the flow to each plant down to a cling ftw and then...
It`s off to the races....Now....I see folks puttin the ends of the driptube right on top of the main stem to supposedly give better overall container/medium coverage ,and maybe it`s workin for yas with minimum juice drippin near the mainstem , but......
As a rule .....It`s always better to keep the feedjuice away from the base of the stem to prevent dampin off/stem rot , and ......
What a lotta folks don`t understand is that by putting the feed tube across from the cone to the other side of each container GIVES yas the proper container moisture once dialed even though the top layer may look drier , it`s what`s underneath that counts and I assure yas......
If the container`s not kept continuously "moist" underneath in each container the runaway cone will be showin up on your doorstep....guaranteed....
The tops will look dried out from transpiration and evaporation from the lights blastin at em , but if yas set em up properly in the beginning with the plant saucers to determine how far down the cones needta be dialed for all but no runoff and cling while under the big lights , then there`ll never be a chance of runaway cones .....
Blumats and bare bulbs....Bet on it...Sky`s the limit....
Peace...DHF...
......I have had runaway cone before. I use the superoots pots, they have ALOT of air. Unfortunately they do not allow for a tray underneath, because of the root pruning, if you look carefully, each pot is on rollers, 2 rows of 8 on each side, they move one row a week. Finish under MH Digilux 1000's with the mini split blowing cold air on them for colorGladta see folks on public forums showin upgrades and DIY skills for the absolute most maintenance free setup ever built IME....
I mean....All that`s needed ta dial down a cone is a plant saucer underneath each container and maybe a week max to get the flow to each plant down to a cling ftw and then...
It`s off to the races....Now....I see folks puttin the ends of the driptube right on top of the main stem to supposedly give better overall container/medium coverage ,and maybe it`s workin for yas with minimum juice drippin near the mainstem , but......
As a rule .....It`s always better to keep the feedjuice away from the base of the stem to prevent dampin off/stem rot , and ......
What a lotta folks don`t understand is that by putting the feed tube across from the cone to the other side of each container GIVES yas the proper container moisture once dialed even though the top layer may look drier , it`s what`s underneath that counts and I assure yas......
If the container`s not kept continuously "moist" underneath in each container the runaway cone will be showin up on your doorstep....guaranteed....
The tops will look dried out from transpiration and evaporation from the lights blastin at em , but if yas set em up properly in the beginning with the plant saucers to determine how far down the cones needta be dialed for all but no runoff and cling while under the big lights , then there`ll never be a chance of runaway cones .....
Blumats and bare bulbs....Bet on it...Sky`s the limit....
Peace...DHF...
. There are 8 hoods run by Micromole Ballasts. All Digilux bulbs. 6 HPS ,2 MH The reflectors are on a flipper so every 2 hours the light rotates every other hood. Plus CO2. Seems to work really well. I however am going to take your advice and move the dripper tube to the other side of the pot. I bought the extra rolls of dripper tubing and manifold so that I could experiment with them.Hey thank you very much, took 3rd place this year with some querkle in the Maine Cannabis Cup. People seemed to like it;0that is fucking legit.
ItGrowsHerb
Member
Blumats obliviate need for perlite?
Blumats obliviate need for perlite?
Congratulations on your win vwgtiron! You are doing things right.
I have a question. I amended my recycyled soilless mix and am cooking it now. I typically wait to add perlite until after it is done cooking and as I up pot. But... with blu mats there is no need for perlite is there? Perlite is a non nutritional amendment for moisture control purposes, right?
With the blu mats the pot is watered as well as it can get. It doesn't dry out, which is where perlite comes into play for the purposes of alleviating that.
Since perlite can make a considerable volume of the pot, I have elected to not add it to this batch of cooking soilless mix. Maybe I can get a full flower cycle out of it (5 or 3 gallon smartpots) without needing to topdress or salt out since the perlite will be replaced with that much more organic goodness?
Make sense?
Blumats obliviate need for perlite?
Congratulations on your win vwgtiron! You are doing things right.
I have a question. I amended my recycyled soilless mix and am cooking it now. I typically wait to add perlite until after it is done cooking and as I up pot. But... with blu mats there is no need for perlite is there? Perlite is a non nutritional amendment for moisture control purposes, right?
With the blu mats the pot is watered as well as it can get. It doesn't dry out, which is where perlite comes into play for the purposes of alleviating that.
Since perlite can make a considerable volume of the pot, I have elected to not add it to this batch of cooking soilless mix. Maybe I can get a full flower cycle out of it (5 or 3 gallon smartpots) without needing to topdress or salt out since the perlite will be replaced with that much more organic goodness?
Make sense?
Well perlite also gives the roots an easier time getting through the soil, adding air. But your premise is correct, IMO, also perlite "wicks" so that there is a more even distribution. TBH I wouldnt go without it, I use the advanced Mix #4. Its already in there, and I also do not reuse the soiless, but I should. Give it a go with one plant and see what happens. My guess is the soiless will compress and cause stunting, but maybe not.
?have you ever used SOS? Super Organic Stimulator. I like this stuff, have seen no salt buildup with it. I use it at 1ml per gallon in the res. GOODS STUFF mainerd.
ItGrowsHerb
Member
I am going to give it a go with two plants, and I agree that compression/compaction is a concern because I can already sense how dense the mix is in the storage tote. This time I will be trying a maxi in each pots versus two or three regular blu mats.
I might make an impression in the surface where the drip is and at day 25 or so place a 4" puck of compressed fresh mix, maybe spiked with some Happy Frog dry ferts? This might help add some food to get it through those weeks...
...I haven't heard of SOS... I used Liquid Karma to getting the cooking going and I used salts very little in the last year or two. I will keep it in mind for the next recycled batch. My approach to recycling is composting my kitchen/trim stuff directly into the bins as well as bone/blood/kelp/Happy Frog drys/LK/EWC and just whatever is healthy! I am on my 5th ot 6th run off this batch I imagine.
I might make an impression in the surface where the drip is and at day 25 or so place a 4" puck of compressed fresh mix, maybe spiked with some Happy Frog dry ferts? This might help add some food to get it through those weeks...
...I haven't heard of SOS... I used Liquid Karma to getting the cooking going and I used salts very little in the last year or two. I will keep it in mind for the next recycled batch. My approach to recycling is composting my kitchen/trim stuff directly into the bins as well as bone/blood/kelp/Happy Frog drys/LK/EWC and just whatever is healthy! I am on my 5th ot 6th run off this batch I imagine.
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I used the large carrots and had two distributors per 7 gal pail. I also had a little pit under the drippers for compost and EWC. However I also top-dressed some amendments more broadly over the top and flooded it in. Did that a couple times, but not after 1/2 through flower.
The clover (companion plant) is digging the blumat also
The clover (companion plant) is digging the blumat also
ItgrowsHerb, you should include your perlite. Its role is to increase air porosity as well as improve drainage. I use a Peat/Lite mixture with my Blumats, and am quite happy.
ItGrowsHerb
Member
I am in the midst switching over to the pressure reducer as well, so reservoir amendments will be out of the question. Its all what can be found in the medium itself.
If grown healthily and vegged at least a week, good lights and air condition, the roots may be able to adapt to the lack of perlite. I may end up using perlite again though! It has made me happy in the past as well.
If grown healthily and vegged at least a week, good lights and air condition, the roots may be able to adapt to the lack of perlite. I may end up using perlite again though! It has made me happy in the past as well.
ItGrowsHerb
Member
Took out the reservoir, plumbed in the blu mat pressure reducer. The provided washer with screen deforms easily, and one must be gentle with it. I opted for a sturdier replacement hose washer, and am going to find an inline filter I have somewhere to put in there instead. The reservoir had sand silted up from the water supply, so I do need a filter.
The pressure is about two to three times greater than my reservoir, which was a 20 gallon tote bin. The unchecked flow shoots a stream that certainly extends greater than before. But the greater pressure does translate to easier dialing in. It takes less turn of the knob to get a change, where with the lesser pressure of the reservoir seems to take a greater range of turning to hone in on a drip rate. The higher pressure makes this more responsive, and what I set seems to hold very well.
The steady, known pressure rate and lack of air in the line, as well as freeing up space in my little spot are the wins for me.
The pressure is about two to three times greater than my reservoir, which was a 20 gallon tote bin. The unchecked flow shoots a stream that certainly extends greater than before. But the greater pressure does translate to easier dialing in. It takes less turn of the knob to get a change, where with the lesser pressure of the reservoir seems to take a greater range of turning to hone in on a drip rate. The higher pressure makes this more responsive, and what I set seems to hold very well.
The steady, known pressure rate and lack of air in the line, as well as freeing up space in my little spot are the wins for me.
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Just recently I was telling afom how THRILLED I am to have helped SO MANY people far and wide!
Always wanted to do that.
Thanks for changing all of our lives.
Handwater? bahahah.. I feel like its killing me just doing the few weeks of hand-watering early veg.. setup can be a pain (attn to each plant site), but aside from that these things are smooth sailing.
Been using for a few years and have turned on several (never grown before) friends. Coco/Blumats/Trellis ran w/ Maxibloom or Head Recipe and this is a no brain approach to instant success.
If I could only train a chimp to clone/prune/trim I'd be 100% hands off retired..
But it goes beyond the automatic watering ... these things keep a moisture content in coco that the plants thrive on. I can take a suffering garden and within days of blumats the ladies are perking straight up towards the sky.
...I am THRILLED to have helped SO MANY people far and wide!
Always wanted to do that.
You sure did that and more, I'd say.
R
Red Swan
Insecure
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A lot of the short 3mm pieces from my deck kits were kinked shut as well out of the box. Took me a second to figure out what was going on.
Some are now advising other methods of setup on here but I have always stuck with what the directions specify..
I hand water until run-off. Dial from open flow down to a cling...and then tighten about an arrow. This seems to work well in straight coco. 1.5 arrow seemed to keep em a tad too light. I don't touch them again until harvest.
..
Others are now saying to drench..wait a day..and dial to cling.
I'm sure either way works fine.
Some are now advising other methods of setup on here but I have always stuck with what the directions specify..
I hand water until run-off. Dial from open flow down to a cling...and then tighten about an arrow. This seems to work well in straight coco. 1.5 arrow seemed to keep em a tad too light. I don't touch them again until harvest.
..
Others are now saying to drench..wait a day..and dial to cling.
I'm sure either way works fine.
