Top drip DTW (drain to waste)

Everyboby that uses dtw or would like to know more please chime in,
looking to get a new sub forum placed! As it does
fall under hydro seems fitting. Kinda wondering who
interested?

go ahead and post a comment.

I like the idea and think it would be useful.
I recently switched to coco and drain to waste and I really want to nail this grow. But I cannot find any info about dtw or coco for that matter. I see dwc and aero as sub forums why not add a drain to waste. I'm hoping 1 does get put up and some info gets posted up.

what exactly is D2W?
water though to a tray and drain the water off after so no water sits?

polyarcturus said:

what exactly is D2W?
water though to a tray and drain the water off after so no water sits?

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Automated feeding/top drip that drains to waste perfect for coco users and many other
mediums.

but with coco and a feed cycle timer you can speed feed and blow away most if not all forms of hydro!

i just do flood and drain through peat moss. shit i dont even change the res water(just add more with nutes) or pH... lol i dont think im qualified to vote
personally it sounds wasteful as a method effective and healthy/ good fo the plant, yes, but wasteful.

i would have to vote no on the basis its a variation of an existing hydroponic method, thats like making a forum for hempy or hydrofarms.
that and you could just make a thread on it and sticky it.....

polyarcturus said:

i just do flood and drain through peat moss. shit i dont even change the res water(just add more with nutes) or pH... lol i dont think im qualified to vote
personally it sounds wasteful as a method effective and healthy/ good fo the plant, yes, but wasteful.

i would have to vote no on the basis its a variation of an existing hydroponic method, thats like making a forum for hempy or hydrofarms.
that and you could just make a thread on it and sticky it.....

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Theres wast in all system after your week or 2 you dump your res theres waste!
dtw when dialed in is about the same just new nutes every feed zero ph flux.
and in this setup you can have a life outside your grow

hellraizer30 said:

Theres wast in all system after your week or 2 you dump your res theres waste!
dtw when dialed in is about the same just new nutes every feed zero ph flux.
and in this setup you can have a life outside your grow

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i wasnt kidding when i said i dont dump my res. more like once every 8 weeks.... errr lol

and i use a promix typse sub with dol lim so my ph is wtfe it is and then i got it to flood 8x a day which might actually be a bit excessive but so far so good. i really dont have shit to do any mroe besides fuck shit up by being involved. i do more with veg than anything. i run my NFT setup the same almost, well its almost tthe same design as my F&D just not as powerful a pump.

been running a run to waste on soil for a while and seems in flower at about 3 weeks when i up the nutes above 600ppm all hell breaks loose.... curling leaves nute burn the works..... i water automatically once a day for 10-15mins... anyone got any thoughts????

5footgreenfinger said:

been running a run to waste on soil for a while and seems in flower at about 3 weeks when i up the nutes above 600ppm all hell breaks loose.... curling leaves nute burn the works..... i water automatically once a day for 10-15mins... anyone got any thoughts????

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Are you flushing your medium between veg and flower? Maybe don't 'up' the nutes if the plants can't take it?

Hi Folks,
I've got a lot from PS so it's time to contribute. I haven't seen any tutes or even any threads on Run to Waste (RTW) systems so I will attempt a tute of my own.
I believe that RTW systems are an excellent choice for the novice hydroponic grower to start on. That's not to say, they should only be done by the novice grower. RTW systems are good for novices and experienced growers alike.

What is a Run to Waste (RTW) system
A RTW system is where nutrients are not recycled. They usually use a growing medium that has similar moisture retention properties to that of soil. They retain a high degree of moisture for an extended period of time. This allows smaller feeds that are not as frequent as; for example a flood and drain system using expanded clay as a medium.
Nutrient solution is added (either via hand watering or an automated system) until a small amount drains from the medium. The waste is then collected or drained away and never fed to the plants again. (Your vegetables or garden will love it, so it isn't really wasted after all)

Advantages of RTW system
There is no nutrient exhaustion or imbalances as the plant receives a fresh nutrient solution every feed.
RTW systems offer ph stability compared to recirculating systems
Nutrients are less prone to bacteria and pathogen problems. This is due to the fact that the root zones of each plant are isolated from each other. In a recirculating system if one root zone is infected you can bet the farm that they all will be.
Less maintenance
Dependant on growing medium the root zone can be well insulated from heat.
Moisture retention gives a degree of security in automated systems. Any experienced hydroponic grower will know how easily pump and equipment failures can result in failure.

Recommended growing medium
Although I have had great success with a perlite/vermiculite mix growing medium I have recently been converted to coco coir. Ensure that high-grade coco coir especially made for hydroponics is used. Cheaper brands can be high in sodium and require pre soaking before use.
Note
I am currently using coco coir made in Sri Lanka. I don't know if it is a good brand or not. It was the only brand available to me at the time. My hydroponic shop guy now stocks coco coir made by Canna. Next grow I will use that because I tend to trust Canna more than the other brand because I just trust the name more.

Rockwool can be used but I would not recommend it, as it is prone to algae forming on the top and can promote stem rot. This is because rockwool tends to stay evenly saturated where moisture in coco coir tends to gather towards the bottom of the container. This aids with the uptake of oxygen by the roots.
Coco coir offers excellent heat insulating properties for the root zone. This is especially important when growing in hot climates. At times when the ambient air temperatures are approaching critical levels maintaining the correct root zone temperatures can sometimes mean the difference between success and failure of the crop. The hotter the root zone temperature the less oxygen the nutrient solution can hold, which will result in root rot and death. (This is the main reason I use RTW and coco coir)

Nutrients for Coco Coir
Coco coir naturally contains large amounts of potassium. Potassium can affect the way calcium and magnesium is taken up by the plant. For this reason it is recommended that a nutrient solution specifically formulated for use with coco coir is used. This will ensure your plants will be well nourished.
Note I am not at the moment using such a nutrient solution. This is because when I started my current grow my hydroponic shop only had a cheap and nasty looking nutrient solution especially made for coco coir. Based on advice from my hydroponic shop guy and from somebody on PS (thanks to who ever that was) I opted to used a normal nutrient solution. So far I don't regret that decision. However my hydroponic shop now stocks a nutrient solution by Canna especially made for hydroponics. I will be definitely be using that when my current stock runs out. (I don't own stock in Canna)

Feeding Schedule
I can't prescribe what feeding schedule you should use. That will vary from set-up to set-up and indeed from what stage of growth your plants are at. The GOLDEN RULE is to LET YOUR PLANTS DECIDE. You can achieve this by MAINTAINING A 10-20% RUN-OFF. If you keep this in mind you can't go wrong. The reason it is the golden rule is because it always applies no matter how often you feed. The more often you feed the smaller the run-off will be(at each feed) and the less often you feed the bigger the run-off will be. As long as the run-off is 10-20% of what you feed them. If I am repeating myself I make no apology, LET THE PLANT DECIDE and MAINTAIN A 10-20% RUN-OFF. If you live in an area with hard water lean towards the 20% run-off. This will help avoid nutrient imbalances.

hey meta... nah i dont flush when i switch to flower i just keep the nute schedule the same but with flowering nutrients and i figured as the plants start getting larger in size bud wise i they would require more nutrients so i would increase the ppm buy 100... but yea maybe you're right will try and keeps the schedule the same throughout and see what results i get...
thanks

What are your feeding schedules? Do you feed every time or do you f-w-w-f schedule like alot of soil growers? Also what are you guys/gals opinions on using compost teas with coco? Do any of you amend your coco and if so with what?
Thanks

Well I use organic teas, compost, and guano's. I don't have the space to make or amend my own coco but once the weather break's I am going to outside. I top dress and only need to feed with a tea only once or twice a week or I get N overdose. So I just water every day pretty much.

Oh and because I don't have the chance to amend my own soil or make I use sunshine mix# 4 with good results so far. I think I am going to use it as a base for my coco I make as well. Im just going to use the super soil recipe pretty much and see what happens. I'm really just looking to have to water and that's it.

I'd like to see more DTW systems, and at least a sticky for the users.

It's definitely something I have considered for a future venture, but it isn't the right option for me right now. Coco + summer = training a friend to take care of the garden while I'm out of town for 2-4days.

i vote for this sub forum and also a hempy sub forum!

its already been made dawg...lol. last night they approved it.

Yep sub forums up and ready to go

Closing thread, new sub forum is up