Question about nutrients for DWC

I use $3 5 gal buckets from lowes. Are those grommets for those sight tubes(those blue things)? You could use them but are prolly only 1/2". Those might be prone to blockages. Especially if you dont have a chiller. Warm water breaks down and rots roots easier.

I hear ya on not eanting to cut a hole in the wall.

Some rdwc use air stones but its not needed with a waterfall. So I hear.

Pat666 said:

As for holes in the wall. In my garage I use a dryer vent attached to my ent fan to cool the light the. The exhaust goes out thru the attic of my garage if I used my room in the house is have to cut holes to the outside through wall and vinyl siding one for Intake then one for exhaust and I really don't wanna do that j case I ever go to sell the place.

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Couldnt you cut a hole in the ceiling and vent into the attic like youre doing now?

Use the undercut on the door for a passive intake.

My garage has attic my house doesn't it's a detached garage. And yeah the drain holes in bucket systems are 1/2 inch. So I'd have o drill out to 1 inch then get new geometry and hosing but I could keep the air pump and stones. If water is filling up buckets from bottom I wouldn't have a waterfall affect right? Idk maybe it's with it to hit keep what I have who knows

Bottom is for return line

Id use totes and maybe veg in those 4 site dwc. Leave it how it is.

Totes are flat and bulkheads/grommets fit them better.

$10 per tote. not bad. holds 100gallons for a 4 site.

In flower youll want that. I grow beast plants(as far as indoor plants) and they drink a gallon a day. Which means they empty a 5gal bucket in 3 days.

Ok I see well food for thought thanks dude

Pat666 said:

Ok I see well food for thought thanks dude

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No problem. I had a mentor when I started and im very thankful for the time he spent coaching me.

So I am just paying back the debt.

In your opinion can you use 5 gal bucket for a res? And what you you estimate it would cost to build from scratch a 4 site rdwc reason I ask is I'm looking online and found a 4 site rdwc system with a 5gal bucket for a res for $200 I haven't found many rdwc for sale most have alot of sites (6,12,24) and cost big$$$ I only can fit 4 buckets in my tent. I don't really wanna buy whole new setup since I have buckets and some of the stuff already. but just thinking about converting my current system and buying all the right parts doesn't sound fun to me. the more I think about rdwc the more I wish I had done that from the beginning seems like a better way to go. I don't have very much money invested in my current setup. So wouldn't be that big of a loss. I'm just not very handy and have a feeling id fuck up somewhere trying to switch this system to the rdwc.

http://www.clonebucket.com/aquabuckets-4-deep-water-culture-dwc-hydroponic-system/

Here is link to the system I found if you would check it out and tell me what's good bad about it. Thanks

Mine cost about $110 including the bits. But I made my supply manifold out of pvc and glued a union onto a ball valve without putting the nut over the side of the union, lol. Essentially wasted a $5 ball valve because the stubs hanging off the ballvalve was too small to put anything back over it.

If you grow smaller plants 5 gal isnt bad. I grow big plants and veg for 8 weeks. Probably could get away with 6 weeks though as I always overgrow my screen.

The biggest issue converting your already 1/2inch holes is lining up the 1-3/8" hole so that no signs of the 1/2inch hole is left. If that makes sense. You want a clean circle. The other issue is that you're drilling into a curved surface and a bulkhead is designed to have a flat surface between the compression fittings. But if your 5 gal buckets are thin enough the torque you apply by tightening the nut would flatten the bucket.

Pat666 said:

http://www.clonebucket.com/aquabuckets-4-deep-water-culture-dwc-hydroponic-system/

Here is link to the system I found if you would check it out and tell me what's good bad about it. Thanks

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Overpriced. Now if you arent handy, and you really dont have to be that handy to build that, and you had money to spend i'd say do it.

But you cant be poor and unhandy at this lol.

The pre-made shit is garbage and overpriced. Like your system you bought. Cheap $15 air pump, (4) $2 air stones, $3 worth of tubing, (4) $3 lowes buckets, (4) $3 netpot lids = $44

Those sight tubes are a waste of time and only leaves your system open to leaks.

So do you use totes for res and to hold your plants in or buckets for the plants. I found a YouTube vid and a guy makes a 4 site using buckets like mine looks legit except I'd. Need my res outside of the grow tent because I can't fit 5 buckets. Off subject but I have one seedling about 2 weeks old. Started 4 seedlings using rapid rooter plugs then put plug with seedling in net pot surrounded by hydroton 3 seedlings all have roots hanging thru basket and into water but this one seedling has no roots showing they yet. It's been growing and producing new sets of leaves but I just don't get why has no roots showing. It's weird the other 3 are about as even as can be root wise and plant height wise. This one seedling is slightly shorter but I feel it should have roots by now I'm wondering f I should replace it with another and maybe thro it in a pot out side. Any thoughts? By the way they are Jack Herrer auto flowers my first time using them got them for free with seed order

How far is your water level? Is it higher on the one thats not going to the res?

Once roots hit res the plants take off.

Do you have a pH meter and a EC meter?

Yea have both meters everything's good ph ppm. Water level 1/2 in over bottom of net pot and I hand water till roots are hanging into the res.

So are your plants in buckets or totes on SCrog ?

Put water level half inch to inch below the netpot.

K was just asking cause some people start hydro without that and its not good. Especially as a beginner. But even experts should have a meter.

Pat666 said:

So are your plants in buckets or totes on SCrog ?

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I have them in buckets now, but those netpot lids in the scrog pictures I showed you can be put into the totes.

I used a jigsaw to cutout holes the exact size of those netpots. So they just plop in like it were a bucket.

Alright this is my setup, sans the supply manifold.



Each tote has 3 spots to drain from. Some drain into other totes. They connect to the master tote in 3 different spots.

In the last picture you can see the chiller in the background the black thing on the knee wall.

A pump sits in that tote pumps up a few feet(not ideal), but this was the best place I could put the chiller that was out of the way and it was deadspace anyways.

So yeah it pumps up to the chiller pushes the water through and a supply line comes into the flower room and runs along that knee wall angled downward so its slightly above the totes bends 90 degrees and runs between the totes to the midpoint of the last set of totes and there are branch lines that tap off it to elbows that feed the top of the totes via a hole. Though I may just run it directly into the netpot. All that splashing over the rocks and the final drop into the res should make roots explode.

Hopefully that explains it.

Wow sweet setup those plants are fuckin beasts dude I'm jealous big time! Makes me wanna convert this spare bedroom so bad. Your killing me man. Growing is like a sickness I keep jonesing for more bigger better haha. Good thing my shallow pockets keep me grounded