How much air pump Min. for 5Gal DWC bucket ?

I am building (2) 5 gal 6" pot DWC buckets i was planning on using a 4" round airstone and a 55 gal. rated airpump for each bucket or a dual 100 gallon rated for both any comment, opinons or advice would be appreciated.

I'd use as much airstone as you can fit. I find the long wand kind make better bubbles but the long ones won't fit. I assume you are not using a water pump and feeder tubes so you need good bubble action to create the splashing and mist to feed your netpots. If you get a round one get a big one. On pumps, if you don't already have one I'd get a large one, it will power 2 large stones easy. Try discounthydro.com, they have one called o2 easy for under $40.

yeah, your better off getting one really big pump than acquiring a dozen small over time.

spend more upfront to save in the longrun. i got a box full of airpumps now.

i don't even want to add up all the wasted money i got layin round from years of upgrading and changing etc.

cantoke said:

I am building (2) 5 gal 6" pot DWC buckets i was planning on using a 4" round airstone and a 55 gal. rated airpump for each bucket or a dual 100 gallon rated for both any comment, opinons or advice would be appreciated.

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You dont need a real big air pump fo those buckets. You can go to your local hydroponics store and get a dual air pump for around $20, or you can go to walmart and buy two single aquarium bubblers (1 per bucket will do the job).

Fill ur buckets up to a level just under ur netpots. The bubbles will splash oxygenated water on the roots. Soon ur roots will grow and as they grow so does ur plant.

newweedman said:

You dont need a real big air pump fo those buckets. You can go to your local hydroponics store and get a dual air pump for around $20, or you can go to walmart and buy two single aquarium bubblers (1 per bucket will do the job).

Fill ur buckets up to a level just under ur netpots. The bubbles will splash oxygenated water on the roots. Soon ur roots will grow and as they grow so does ur plant.

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Can i drip feed them from the top or do i need an air stone and if so will the small dual one work.

obsocal said:

Can i drip feed them from the top or do i need an air stone and if so will the small dual one work.

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You do not have to feed them from the top. You need an airstone for reasons other than feeding but until the roots get in the water you need lots of bubbles, the more the better. That means a bigger airstone and a bigger pump are desirable too.

obsocal said:

Can i drip feed them from the top or do i need an air stone and if so will the small dual one work.

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You could drip it from the top, but its less hassle if you just put a small bubbler inside the bucket. Walmart has small ones for around $8.

I don't know if my air stones are clogged or what, but I soaked them in pH 5.9 water for a few hours then let them dry and 2 days later I'm using them. They produce very few bubbles, well once produces more than the other. I got the big round 4" disc ones from petsmart. I wonder if my pump is too weak, I got a cheapie $10 pump off ebay. Now I know better...

SmokeDoggy said:

I don't know if my air stones are clogged or what, but I soaked them in pH 5.9 water for a few hours then let them dry and 2 days later I'm using them. They produce very few bubbles, well once produces more than the other. I got the big round 4" disc ones from petsmart. I wonder if my pump is too weak, I got a cheapie $10 pump off ebay. Now I know better...

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make sure that the seam at the bottom of the air stone is sealed all the way if it leaks a little the stone wont work. i had the round ones and had to silicone the bottom of every one.

You know, I noticed a lot of air leaking from the black plastic surround!! THANKS!!

over kill is much better then not having enough ... i always like to have 2 air pumps at least tho.. what if one stops for some odd reason then you have your other one for backup.. even is that means getting one good pump and a cheap small one and spit them both so each bucket gets an airstone from each pump ...

I stopped using airstones after my first grow, they never produced like I wanted them to do. I now use 3 or 4 foot flexible airstones that produce a large amount of bubbles. At the end of the airstone so much air comes out of it that the water actually rolls as well and they are the most important piece of equipment besides my lights as far as I am concerned. They are awesome, eventually the holes clog in the tubing clog also, but after 10 minutes soaking in warm soapy water, they are like brand new. I just used some Dawn and warm water. Now I just let them clog, rinse them and wipe down when doing water changes, and put it back in the bucket and make sure the water is rolling..works great!!

Here is a link of what they look like:

http://organic-hydroponicsupplies.thebigtomato.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?CS=tbt&StoreType=BtoC&Count1=519649684&Count2=436790108&Keyword=flexible+air&Target=products.asp

Also I use a commercial air pump that supplies 8 valves. Here is what it looks like.

http://organic-hydroponicsupplies.thebigtomato.com/shared/StoreFront/default.asp?CS=tbt&StoreType=BtoC&Count1=44613063&Count2=961753487&CategoryID=10&Target=products.asp

Sup LonghornFan - That is good insight - I was wondering myself if anyone used that flex airstone. Seems more "usable" but I had no idea if it actually worked - glad to hear it does. I will give it a shot if I can't seal my round airstones and get them working properly!