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BEST DWC, DO YOU HAVE IT?
- Thread starter ellio187
- Start date
Hey guys, I have done several DWC cycles and I am currently with extra cash and trying to design the absolute best DWC system.
This is my Question
1) 5 Gal max, What would you do with no limit to cash to build the best DWC system including airstones, basket, bucket, and with low current or not? (simpler for my setup without).
Just a note I have a flower chamber and veg chamber. My veg chamber isnt very large and in-order to do large DWC and veg for longer I would need to tranfers between bucket sizes.
THANK YOU FOR ANY HELP!
this is the tent they will go in after this cycle. My plan is to take up half the tent.
I dont know if your working from clones or what. But I presume you want to transfer veg plants to fill in the flower room which obviously is much larger. It looks like your flower room is 5 x 10 and you want to fill 1/2 of it with Rdwc.
Your other tent is 4x4?
I would map out the flower room dimensions. Presuming 5x5, I'd probably try to find 2.5 - 4 gal buckets for flower room. I would use 5" netpots in flower room, maybe 6" if the bucket size allowed.
In veg room, using 3" netpots, I would probably go for 1-2 larger tubs with multiple plants according to the end count for flower room. Again RDWC since budget is open.
During veg, train, top, fim the hell out of them.
To transfer to flower I'd set up the larger netpots with a large center hole to allows setting roots from the 3's through. We're using larger strictly as support for big plants so they dont tilt out and shit. Once set in, support the outside of the 3" nets with hydronton, lava rock, your pool stuff, whatever.
My personal thought on the 5x5 space would be RDWC, 1 tub per plant, based on 24"-30" centers. Chiller outside tent, res outside tent. May only get you 6 plants, but they could be 6 monsters.
This isn't too far off from what I'm doing on my next grow after my current one finishes flower. I have 8 clones at 10-11" presently in 1 tub. They will all get their own tub in the flowering tent.
il19z8rn4li1
Member
edited for confusion on my own mind :-D
i've read more oxygen gets in the water from the surface than through bubbles...
and more oxygen is absorbed from the roots not in the water than those in... in other words, agitation on the surface does more for you than tiny airstone bubbles.i haven't cut the airstones yet, but i still plan on trying it...
il19z8rn4li1
Member
i've read more oxygen gets in the water from the surface than through bubbles...
i haven't cut the airstones yet, but i still plan on trying it...
Hum.. you know your right.. I have been mistaken, and i cant remember exactly why I had that in my mind.
Never the less... I've ran without airstones, and the roots just seem to get beat up and the noise of bubbles is almost impossible to silence.
BUT... as I have just done some quick reading lol.. just as I was thinking before and still do... that is why the saying goes..
"Can never have to many bubbles" ;-)
I look at it like this... You know those SUPER TINY root hairs.. that look like myceilium. Those hairs give the root
more surface area, so that means more room to bring in nutes.
I dont want to beat up my roots and prevent them from forming these SUPER FRAGILE fungus like root hairs.
SO i believe a 280watt pump with 18 buckets plus a water fall.. adds PLENTY of O2 :-D
BUT I do see now though.. that the bubbles are very ineffective and need to be applied at massive amounts to be worth it.
and im sure that if I had a longer water fall.. say a solid 12-14" drop, I wouldnt even need to have an air pump(ie: Bio-Buckets).
save myself on the 280 additional watts.
(that being said..I have just brain stormed what I am going to do to fix my problem and I could possibly remove
my air pump :-D, maybe ill do a comparison with and without it in coming months)
i've read more oxygen gets in the water from the surface than through bubbles...
i haven't cut the airstones yet, but i still plan on trying it...
Airstones are cheap,
Airpumps last forever (kinda)
Airpumps draw squadiddly in elect.
In reality, pumping the air directly into the res with stones in the res would be fine too.
Nice space you have there. Wish I had a complete basement to work with....I would go with a proven bulletproof set up like a undercurrent system. 8 gallon modules work well, the CC bulkheads don't leak and the system delivers very high yields if you know what you are doing. Use a chiller and go sterile rez. No reason to reinvent the wheel here. 2" pipes with a 3/4" return line. 1 pump and minimal fittings. Hook up a nice sized rez to it and you can let it go a week at a time if you have it dialed. I am running a little 3 bucket undercurrent /waterfall system now. Getting ready to change to a full undercurrent as I just got the buckets delivered yesterday. You will not be disappointed. I would build it yourself as well to have that satisfaction and be able to trouble shoot if you have any issues which is likely not to happen. Have a great day all!
Peace, negative.
Peace, negative.
Substitute
Member
Nice space you have there. Wish I had a complete basement to work with....I would go with a proven bulletproof set up like a undercurrent system. 8 gallon modules work well, the CC bulkheads don't leak and the system delivers very high yields if you know what you are doing. Use a chiller and go sterile rez. No reason to reinvent the wheel here. 2" pipes with a 3/4" return line. 1 pump and minimal fittings. Hook up a nice sized rez to it and you can let it go a week at a time if you have it dialed. I am running a little 3 bucket undercurrent /waterfall system now. Getting ready to change to a full undercurrent as I just got the buckets delivered yesterday. You will not be disappointed. I would build it yourself as well to have that satisfaction and be able to trouble shoot if you have any issues which is likely not to happen. Have a great day all!
Peace, negative.
That's pretty much what I just did, and it seems to be working pretty good! I built it myself and I'm not complaining! Cost about $350-450CAD. I'm able to keep pretty good water temperatures so I don't use a chiller. I use UC roots. No sign of algae or any bad stuff at all!
Hooking the system up to a big res would be the next step.
Having res was in my initial design until one day I grabbed the wrong one gallon container and added about 1/3 gallon of muratic acid to one bucket. It croaked the girls in minutes. I washed the girls out changed the hydroton and kept them in a high humidity environment.. They all croaked , acid pH downed to death I guess.
I learned 3 things:
When you have bulk size containers, use smaller bottles when working with the plants. Saves space and minimizes spills.
Don't move any chemicals /food without a lid. This way at least you are forced to look at the container before you open it.
Don't keep all your eggs in one basket. One mistake, disease etc will impact all your grow.
Sure its a little more work, but no where near the work to do a complete restart.
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alpo
Active member
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What are you compensating for??? No really that's a pimped out air induction system bro. Nice....D/O levels must be very nice there.
What size pump do you have hooked up to that? I am going to upsize my air system this next run. This gives me good ideas as my pump will be outside my epicenter this time. Have a great day all.Peace, negative.
alpo
Active member
What are you compensating for??? No really that's a pimped out air induction system bro. Nice....D/O levels must be very nice there.
Peace, negative.
I am using Alita 35lm air pump but I only have two plants/buckets plus the controller.
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