Mad HattersWrld
Member
go 70/30 perlite to coco and break up the coco good with no clumps and one last thing don't use rapid rooters in these things they act like sponges and roots dont grow
HYDROJUNKIE
Active member
my very first grow was with the autopot valve..lol..but instead I used a cement mixing tray from home depot(3.5ftx2ft) with 4-2 gallon pots with a mesh bottom.
I placed a piece of mesh screen on the bottom of the pot and filled the pot with only perlite,.....this was all done in a cabinet,...in the center of the mixing tray is where I placed the valve and an air stone,.....one thing about those valves are that you must put something heavy on top of them as they like to float and could cause an overflow if you have a huge res.
I used a 3.5 gallon bucket as my res for that reason alone.....the res must be higher than the valve of course for it too work right also I might add.....
I had little knowledge of growing back then being that I probably should of used bigger pots and a better medium but I still managed to get 9 oz dry from 4 plants with good pruning and 1k watt lamp,......also this method isnt an ebb n flow but known as a ''passive'' system as it always keeps about 1-1.5 inches of standing water in the res and the plants wick it up.....
so in general how was the system?,....well it went pretty good except that in the first couple weeks of veg I had to handwater the pots untill the roots grew down far enough to feed themselves which is the drawback of the system,.......60-70% of the top half of your medium will remain dry.....in bloom growth exploded when I started hand watering through the top of the pots every other day....
its a good sytem for a newbie and I learned alot from it,..but I there are much better system's id recomend.....
I placed a piece of mesh screen on the bottom of the pot and filled the pot with only perlite,.....this was all done in a cabinet,...in the center of the mixing tray is where I placed the valve and an air stone,.....one thing about those valves are that you must put something heavy on top of them as they like to float and could cause an overflow if you have a huge res.
I used a 3.5 gallon bucket as my res for that reason alone.....the res must be higher than the valve of course for it too work right also I might add.....
I had little knowledge of growing back then being that I probably should of used bigger pots and a better medium but I still managed to get 9 oz dry from 4 plants with good pruning and 1k watt lamp,......also this method isnt an ebb n flow but known as a ''passive'' system as it always keeps about 1-1.5 inches of standing water in the res and the plants wick it up.....
so in general how was the system?,....well it went pretty good except that in the first couple weeks of veg I had to handwater the pots untill the roots grew down far enough to feed themselves which is the drawback of the system,.......60-70% of the top half of your medium will remain dry.....in bloom growth exploded when I started hand watering through the top of the pots every other day....
its a good sytem for a newbie and I learned alot from it,..but I there are much better system's id recomend.....
Mad HattersWrld
Member
any more stories on autopots?
cheetos
Member
not really. I was gonna try them just for shits and giggles. But opted to stick with my bubblers for the moment till i get some stash up just in case these autopots flop. But im gonna try them neverless sooner or later. But if anyone else has any input please chime in and let us know. It'll be a pleasure to hear from you!
i think they kinda waste of time as u can build system to do the same thing bottom feeding is not new , also i think air in water would be better . also nutes cost alot so why waste them . a better system i think would be a 3 layer squar pot ebb n flow set up , build them so u feed top layer pots, and drill hole in conner of each pot to feed the lower plants this way u could get 3 crops in one space . im gonna try building this set up soon as i get the funds up will post pics give u better idear how its gonna look .i think this method best suited to the closet grower with one light make the most of that 4'x4' space
Mad HattersWrld
Member
Cid I don't understand what you mean, how do you go three layers high and use only one light?
Point for autopot is no electricity needed
one thing I've seen is you need many plants transpiring to use enough water so the water is not stagnant and moving a little so it defeats being left alone for a long times even if you just need to fill 20-50 gallon tank. once a week fill 20 gallon wouldnt work with anything over 10 stations.
Point for autopot is no electricity needed
one thing I've seen is you need many plants transpiring to use enough water so the water is not stagnant and moving a little so it defeats being left alone for a long times even if you just need to fill 20-50 gallon tank. once a week fill 20 gallon wouldnt work with anything over 10 stations.
G
Guest
Only way to go for me
Only way to go for me
I use the Autopot and would never go back to anything else. I used the autopot first, then tried aeroponics and a drip system and went back to the autopot. They are the easiest sytem to use IMHO. They automatically water your plants for weeks at a time if you wish.
They smartvalve fills the bottom of the autopot unit with about an inch of nutrient solution from the reseroir v.i.a. gravity. When the Autopot is completely dry, the Smartvalve refills it an inch. It works like a toilet, but doesn't refill until it's completely dry, so it doesn't oversaturate the roots.
I have a 31 gallon reservoir with a shutoff valve on the outside, then a 1/2" inline filter with the 1/2" feed line running off of that. Then I use 1/4" feed line with shutoff valves that run directly to the autopot. I use an aquarium powerhead in the reservoir to continously oxyginate the nutes so they don't become stagnant.
Nothing easier to use. All you do is fill the rervoir with the nutes, check the pH once and let the Autopots do the rest.
I bought some autopots a couple years ago and recently bought another module. The current version has different kind of 10" pots which I don't like as much becuase I think it is less quality then they used to be. It still does the job, so I can't complain too much.
The root mass gets huge in this setup and can grow a very large plant. I grow to about 4'-5' tall and have absolutely no problem. For the media I use a 60% coco coir to 40% perlite.
If you are lazy, busy or are trying hydro for the first time this is an excellent setup.
The pics are of the setup. The plants in the pic are Rez's D39 at 5 days flower.
~impatient~
Only way to go for me
I use the Autopot and would never go back to anything else. I used the autopot first, then tried aeroponics and a drip system and went back to the autopot. They are the easiest sytem to use IMHO. They automatically water your plants for weeks at a time if you wish.
They smartvalve fills the bottom of the autopot unit with about an inch of nutrient solution from the reseroir v.i.a. gravity. When the Autopot is completely dry, the Smartvalve refills it an inch. It works like a toilet, but doesn't refill until it's completely dry, so it doesn't oversaturate the roots.
I have a 31 gallon reservoir with a shutoff valve on the outside, then a 1/2" inline filter with the 1/2" feed line running off of that. Then I use 1/4" feed line with shutoff valves that run directly to the autopot. I use an aquarium powerhead in the reservoir to continously oxyginate the nutes so they don't become stagnant.
Nothing easier to use. All you do is fill the rervoir with the nutes, check the pH once and let the Autopots do the rest.
I bought some autopots a couple years ago and recently bought another module. The current version has different kind of 10" pots which I don't like as much becuase I think it is less quality then they used to be. It still does the job, so I can't complain too much.
The root mass gets huge in this setup and can grow a very large plant. I grow to about 4'-5' tall and have absolutely no problem. For the media I use a 60% coco coir to 40% perlite.
If you are lazy, busy or are trying hydro for the first time this is an excellent setup.
The pics are of the setup. The plants in the pic are Rez's D39 at 5 days flower.
~impatient~
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amsterdame
Member
Yeah, no problem growing in autopots. One of the most lowest maintenance system going, and yields big results. This was taken 2 weeks ago and this White Gold gal is even bushier now.
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Smallthyme
Member
I've had great results using autopots. Biggest thing I have found that you need to watch is the variation in ph levels from Res to Tray. Your ph in your res will be spot on, but you will be burning your ladies in the tray. The maintence is next to nothing, and you can leave them for a few days if needed and rest peacefully knowing your ladies are getting everything they need. Usually pull about 2.5 ounces dry per plant in a 400watt scrog with my autopots.
J
JackKerouac
Thanks impatient! You are the first one to mention the refilling.
I am doing patio tomatoes in a dual autopot setup in coir/perlite at the moment and it is so easy. I used to be afraid to leave on vacation, but I can leave this up to a week without paranoia.
I am doing patio tomatoes in a dual autopot setup in coir/perlite at the moment and it is so easy. I used to be afraid to leave on vacation, but I can leave this up to a week without paranoia.
Smallthyme
Member
Ph can fluctuate up or down. I found that I was better off with less solution in the res, so if there was a problem, I can easily drain and correct.
anonymiss12345
Member
And that is exactly what makes it different.impatient said:
I think a lot of people were/are assuming it works the same as a simple auto-top-off valve that keeps a constant level.
