DIY self watering pots

[Craven_au]

What do you guys think?

It's a fairly simple concept One 10 litre bucket sitting inside another. Food grade. About a 50mm water Reserve in the bottom bucket costing 1 doller each. The buckets seal together nicely so my thinking is that far less water will be lost to evaporation like your normal self watering pots.

Potentially I may have to add a wick and larger holes for roots to grow though for better water transfer. And paint/cover buckets if mold is a problem.

 

[goingrey]

Yeah the wicking thing is the challenge, as there will probably be a gap between the bottoms of the buckets. Store bought self-watering pots have like thin-slitted net pots in the bottom so the media is in contact with the water in the reservoir until it's dry.

 

[Craven_au]

Yeah the wicking thing is the challenge, as there will probably be a gap between the bottoms of the buckets. Store bought self-watering pots have like thin-slitted net pots in the bottom so the media is in contact with the water in the reservoir until it's dry.

Thx mate if a wick is needed I know of the perfect material to use. My biggest problem I see is the soil it's self. I'm trying to keep it as cheap as possible but can see that perlite maybe needed for good aeration and a more even moisture level throughout the soil. I do love to experiment it will be fun.

 

[goingrey]

You will want well aerated soil for sure. If perlite is too expensive where you live maybe there would be cheaper alternatives: LECA, pumice, even sand..

 

[Craven_au]

You will want well aerated soil for sure. If perlite is too expensive where you live maybe there would be cheaper alternatives: LECA, pumice, even sand..

Yep what ever I can get for free, only grow vegetables at the moment so not worth spending to much cash on grow food cheap or free organic is my main goal.

 

[Ca++]

The RH in such a sealed environment will let the roots reach the 50mm of water. There, you will have a hydroponics situation. So you might need to use a soil like Terra that is fed every time. Along with a feed suited to both soil and hydro. Floranova perhaps.

I have used such bucket arrangements. The inner had to be kept out of the res, or the roots in the constantly submersed substrate would rot. Yet, they would happily pass from the inner, through the air, to the outer bucket/res. No problem at all. Pebbles/coco/soil it made no difference. It's a stagnant DWC with active bio system if you leave just the bottom dipped in. It's going to rot, by design. There were no exceptions. People using flood/drain buckets soon learnt to make stands, before they were available to buy them.

Look at the multiflow system. It's the buckets you describe. Only plumbed together. Which might suit your plans.

 

[Craven_au]

Good points thx.

I will be having fun experimenting I want to keep it as simple as possible for now, but yes your right the sealed Reservoir would get stagnant with out a wet and dry period. I've got some options to play with air stones and hand watering sounds easiest but I can connect a single autopot valve to all the pots and see how that goes if needed.
All pot are on stands off the ground now for eazy access.

 

[Craven_au]

First test line up is cabbage lol

 

[Bmac1]

SIP Self-Watering 5 Gallon Bucket Tutorial: Sub-irrigated Garden Planter -AlboPepper.com

This improved self-watering Bucket system has a larger water reservoir without losing any soil capacity! It's an easy DIY garden project, perfect for urban or small-scale gardeners.

albopepper.com

 

[Craven_au]

SIP Self-Watering 5 Gallon Bucket Tutorial: Sub-irrigated Garden Planter -AlboPepper.com

This improved self-watering Bucket system has a larger water reservoir without losing any soil capacity! It's an easy DIY garden project, perfect for urban or small-scale gardeners.

albopepper.com

Not bad mine are half the size that's about it. Had more or less the same wick idea but I'm not sure it's needed with the smaller pots. So far my soil is damp enough without a wick but as plants get bigger that can change. If things starts to dry to fast I can change the bottom pot to 20L with out needing spaces. But with such a large reserve like that I would definitely add an air stone. with the benefit of mine being sealed that means no bugs and no mosquitoes air stone would still do the same. If I was using 20L pot outside I would consider digging the Reserve pot into the ground, not a bad idea reducing water competition with other plants and with their unsightly nature and potential tipping hazard the pots being buried would solving them problems.

Thx for the ideas man.

 

[Bmac1]

I used the 30 gal tote build idea from that same site and built SIP'S out of 45 gal totes and have been running them as no till beds for over 2 years now I think. The reservoirs hold about 6-6.5 gallons of water and I water about once every 6-7 days. No air stones either. I am a huge fan of how efficient and easy sub irrigated planters are.

 

[Craven_au]

Nice

I used the 30 gal tote build idea from that same site and built SIP'S out of 45 gal totes and have been running them as no till beds for over 2 years now I think. The reservoirs hold about 6-6.5 gallons of water and I water about once every 6-7 days. No air stones either. I am a huge fan of how efficient and easy sub irrigated planters are.

Nice and your not have any mold problems or drown root.

 

[goingrey]

Nice

Nice and your not have any mold problems or drown root.

Not if you respect the wet/dry cycle (which will take longer), and are careful not to water too much when the plants are still small and haven't established themselves in the soil yet.

 

[Bmac1]

When the plants are first transplanted i water from the top for about the first 7 days. Then you can really notice once the roots get to the reservoirs. No issues at all with mold.

 

[Craven_au]

Not if you respect the wet/dry cycle (which will take longer), and are careful not to water too much when the plants are still small and haven't established themselves in the soil yet.

That's my thoughts. Thx for the reassurance.

 

[rXrebel]

What do you guys think?

It's a fairly simple concept One 10 litre bucket sitting inside another. Food grade. About a 50mm water Reserve in the bottom bucket costing 1 doller each. The buckets seal together nicely so my thinking is that far less water will be lost to evaporation like your normal self watering pots.

Potentially I may have to add a wick and larger holes for roots to grow though for better water transfer. And paint/cover buckets if mold is a problem.

Seems adventurous! Are you not messing with the autopots anymore? I know back in 2010 you had many great posts that were very helpful.