4x8 flood table ?'s
- Thread starter 619Sativa
- Start date
Just my two cents, do what you please:
A 4X8 is a big awkward SOB, I found two 4X4's much easier to transport, move and clean, and hide. I got 8 of them instead of 4 4X8's and have been very happy with them. If you chip a corner it's also half the cost to replace.
Downside is another pump and 2 more hoses, not a big deal really. I use a 115g res for 2 4X4's and 2/3 of it at least gets pumped to the trays, not a lot of excess there. I like to keep all of my pumps submerged so they don't overheat. I use an 800gph per tray (way overkill, but they fill in about 5 minutes now.) I like the fast flood, less submerge time for the roots so they stay in contact with more oxygen. I aerate with about 100lpm and 3 big air stones, but I should have more. A float valve is hooked to a timer so it refills daily. Plumb in an overflow line into your drain line (T in after you shutoff valve!) so it will never flood your room, and never runs dry.
What medium and pots are you going to use?
A 4X8 is a big awkward SOB, I found two 4X4's much easier to transport, move and clean, and hide. I got 8 of them instead of 4 4X8's and have been very happy with them. If you chip a corner it's also half the cost to replace.
Downside is another pump and 2 more hoses, not a big deal really. I use a 115g res for 2 4X4's and 2/3 of it at least gets pumped to the trays, not a lot of excess there. I like to keep all of my pumps submerged so they don't overheat. I use an 800gph per tray (way overkill, but they fill in about 5 minutes now.) I like the fast flood, less submerge time for the roots so they stay in contact with more oxygen. I aerate with about 100lpm and 3 big air stones, but I should have more. A float valve is hooked to a timer so it refills daily. Plumb in an overflow line into your drain line (T in after you shutoff valve!) so it will never flood your room, and never runs dry.
What medium and pots are you going to use?
mikeross
Member
^^^ some great info there.
I am currently planning a grow using 4x8's as well. From my research a 70gallon reservoir will do the trick but I would splurge and go with a 100 or 115 gallon reservoir. If you up the size your ppm and ph will be even more stable and you won't have to add back to the res as much.
I am currently planning a grow using 4x8's as well. From my research a 70gallon reservoir will do the trick but I would splurge and go with a 100 or 115 gallon reservoir. If you up the size your ppm and ph will be even more stable and you won't have to add back to the res as much.
DonkeyPunch
Member
Lazyman - does not mean an extra pump - you could have one pump feeding several tables if you get creative with the plumbing.
True, but if your 1-2 pumps fail, 100% can die. With one pump per small tray, a dead pump in my setup means a max loss of 12.5%.
Pray for sunshine, prepare for rain.
Oh yeah, for giggles last night I turned on all 4 pumps in each res simultaneously, pumps were sucking air in about 30 seconds. Funnier than shit!
JustanotherDave
Member
How about a hybrid of DP's suggestion and your setup Lazy? For a room that is left unattended long enough that a pump failure = plant death.....use the 2 pumps but have both plumbed to both tables then just configure the timers to use alternative pumps every other time. No death from a dead pump.
It would then be "double safety" and no 12.5% loss for that reason ever
It would then be "double safety" and no 12.5% loss for that reason ever
O
ogatec
sorry a 70gal will not do the trick..t ttakes that much to fill it up.
100gal will be the bare min.(for the big white ones)
How about a hybrid of DP's suggestion and your setup Lazy? For a room that is left unattended long enough that a pump failure = plant death.....use the 2 pumps but have both plumbed to both tables then just configure the timers to use alternative pumps every other time. No death from a dead pump.
It would then be "double safety" and no 12.5% loss for that reason ever
Only problem with that is sometimes I need to shut down a table or skip a flood on a table, I think you could maybe manage it with a shitload of shutoff valves inline but it would still be more complicated than I like. I also noticed a lot more gurgling noises when draining when I had my pumps plumbed like that, and they were much slower to fill too.
I dunno, no perfect solution really but we're making progress!
Hey thanks for the tips guys. I am currently growing in the 12 site ebb and flo, and will be for the next few months, but just wanted to learn as much as I can before I get my new setup. I like the idea of 2 4x4 so I could start a perp. I was planning on getting 2 1000w lights and sealing the room. I want to try out that new medium sure to grow in some 6 inch square pots. I will keep you guys posted.
lighting question
lighting question
So here is what I am thinking. 1000w lights cover a 4x4 pretty decent, so 2 1000w would cover the 4x8, but I plan on upgrading to a 8ft x 16ft area at some point. I don't want to have to rebuy equipment, so I want the best setup the first time. I'm thinking either 8-1000w lights= 8000w, or 15-600w lights=9000w which is 1000w more, but better coverage. Or to go completely overboard 15-1000w=15000w, the more light the better, but would having 15 lights over 4 4x8 tables increase yield very much, or is it just a waste. I'll draw out a sketch to show you guys what I'm thinking.
lighting question
So here is what I am thinking. 1000w lights cover a 4x4 pretty decent, so 2 1000w would cover the 4x8, but I plan on upgrading to a 8ft x 16ft area at some point. I don't want to have to rebuy equipment, so I want the best setup the first time. I'm thinking either 8-1000w lights= 8000w, or 15-600w lights=9000w which is 1000w more, but better coverage. Or to go completely overboard 15-1000w=15000w, the more light the better, but would having 15 lights over 4 4x8 tables increase yield very much, or is it just a waste. I'll draw out a sketch to show you guys what I'm thinking.
mikeross
Member
A little overkill in my opinion. Your 8x16' area would 4 4x8 tables. If you are planning to run the lighting stationary I would go with with either 2 1000's on each table or 3 600's each table. That would equal 8-1000w lights or 12-600w lights. Any more than that is just overkill in my opinion.
Good to go. I think I'll go with 8 1000watters. I thought anything more would be overkill, but it doesn't hurt to ask.
mikeross
Member
Nope is doesn't hurt to ask but a lot of members these days think it does lol. I have read many threads were members will just reply saying "use the search function"
Nope is doesn't hurt to ask but a lot of members these days think it does lol. I have read many threads were members will just reply saying "use the search function"
So true. So here is another dumb question, if I want a sealed mother/veg/clone room, would I want a dehumidifier or a humidifier or neither? Would the humidity ever rise over 60%? Sorry if this is a stupid question.
mikeross
Member
remember no stupid questions IMO.
What is your main purpose to have a sealed mother/clone room? I can't answer the rest of your questions without an estimate of what your RH will be. I feel its ok for your veg room to have a higher than accepted RH... Your clones will love it. Your best bet would be to set everything up and see what your environment is looking like. Its very possible that the humidity can go well over 60%... like I said it totally depends on where your growing and what the specs of the room is.
W
Warpainted
If it's sealed, then you shouldn't need a humidifier. The plants, water, clone spraying, and all that shit will create enough humidity. It'll be like your car after the prom, where the windows get covered with moisture. You'll need a dehumidifier, or just add an exhaust fan with a humidistat deal that turns on when the humidity gets too high. Or play around with a timer, and have the fan come on from time to time to keep it a little even.
E
Eminem
I say go with the 1000's. I am not all that happy with my 600's and had better results using 1000's and am going back to that
I just like the whole concept of a sealed room. If everything is dialed in, you have a constant abundancy for the plants to thrive. And it will eliminate almost all problems with bugs and diseases. I'm still not sure what the specs of the room will be. I have been thinking about that too.
That's true. I already have a hydrofarm humidifier and cap humidity control, so I'll probably put that in the room. And I don't want to exhaust any of the air out if it is sealed.
