Anyone tried ultrasonic fogger-type aeroponics?

Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
I don't know how many people even know about this method, but if anyone does and has used it, I'd like to hear back. There are pre-built nutrient delivery systems available, but they are way expensive (like $1000), so I opted to just buy a 6-head fogger from mainlandmart.com, and build a system around it using 2" hose and a small muffin fan (computer fan) to blow the fog through the sealed reservoir where it was being created into the table. I also bought a pump and all the accoutrements to create a hybrid flood & drain/aeroponics system - from the research I've done, supposedly the most productive method out there. Though I don't have everything I need yet, I bought the stuff I do have for it almost 3 years ago now, and due to various things haven't set it up yet. I've never grown even hydro before, though I've grown both indoors and out in soil, so maybe it wasn't the greatest idea for a first system, but I really wanted to see what a cutting edge system would deliver. Knowing how much more efficient than hydroponics a regular aeroponics system was as far as nutrient uptake and root aeration goes, and discovering that the particles created by ultrasonic foggers are far smaller (5-20 microns), translating to far more efficient nutrient uptake - not to mention how much more oxygen is made available to the roots this way - I couldn't resist. Visions of dense bushes of bud grown with days-long veg periods (after rooting, of course) were dancing in my head. Anyway, I'm hoping to set it up this fall, and am hoping there's someone out there who can maybe help me avoid any issues before encountering them. Any help's appreciated.
 
orzz

orzz

Well-Known Member
I have a 100 gallon fish aquarium and the first time I saw the foggers was at the fish store. Talked with the owner and he said that the foggers ge Very HOT! I think they would be too hot to use.

just my 2 cents -- good luck
 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
orzz said:
I have a 100 gallon fish aquarium and the first time I saw the foggers was at the fish store. Talked with the owner and he said that the foggers ge Very HOT! I think they would be too hot to use.

just my 2 cents -- good luck
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Was this guy talking about the foggers themselves, or the unit that runs them (presumably a ballast, but which isn't even in the system at all)? I got the idea actually a long time ago from a 'cool mist' vaporizer my parents had. You know, the kinda thing made for when you have a cold typa deal? To keep the air humid? Anyway, it worked on the same principle - a vibrating piezoelectric disc made out of a crystal of some sort that vibrated at an ultrasonic frequency when electricity was passed through it. The disc was immersed in just the right depth of water to allow it to break the surface molecules above it into fog by adding enough energy through these vibrations to cause the surface tension to break down. Anyway, I messed around with that thing a bit, and it never got even warm, to my recollection. That's actually the first I've even heard of heat being an issue. And if he was talking about the ballast, I can't see it being much of an issue - not any more than with, say, an adapter which is run for long periods of time. And that's not even in the system anywhere, but just sitting on the floor somewhere in the growroom. And it wouldn't be running all the time, anyway. I have to do some more research before setting it up, but it will only be running intermittently - maybe 5-6 times an hour for 5 minutes a pop, since I'll be flooding probably that many times an hour, anyway. There are units made specifically for aeroponics applications, so I don't know what this heat thing's all about. And the unit I have now works the same way as the ones made specifically for aeroponics - in fact, aside from the teflon coating on the plates to prevent salt buildup, they're the exact same thing. Though I could see extreme heat being an issue with the nutrient solution, and maybe fucking that up somehow if it was the fogger itself that got hot, it's nowhere near the roots themselves (it would actually be in the reservoir), and the fog produced remains right around room temperature, so there wouldn't be any issue with too-hot fog hitting the roots.
 
orzz

orzz

Well-Known Member
Yes I know the type of humidifiers u speak of.
I have a Vick's cool mis nad a Vick's warm mist. Summer and winter use respectively.
I look forward to hearing if it works.
good luck
 
M

Major Tom

Well-Known Member
What do think of Fogponics systems?
I think the key to this technology working is that the fog is the right consistency to carry the nutrients.
Thanks for your input


NUTRAMIST 16 Plant Producer
Complete system for producing 16 plants in a 3'x3' area. Use with a 400-600W Grow light for best results and use an adjustable, short-cycle timer for extra control.



The aeroponic fogger / hydroponic fogger operates by oscillating at a frequency of approximately 2 MHZ which is two million vibrations per second. At this frequency, water is nebulized into a cold fog / dry fog which can support the needs of plants using an ultra low volume / ULV of water and nutrients.

 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
Tom, what exactly were you referring to with 'consistency'? Proper % nutrient content (ec/tds levels kinda thing)? I do know that with aeroponics this must be lower than when growing hydroponically in a medium, the same way that in hydroponics it has to be lower than in soil, though I haven't taken the time to find exact information on that yet. Or fog density/amount of fog ending up in the chamber at one time? I'd have to go dig out the box with my fogger unit in it to check for sure (and I'm not doing that because it's in some unlabled bigger box with other stuff amongst a huge bunch of boxes packed away in my parents garage), but I think the unit I bought has a regulator with it so I can adjust how much fog is produced at a time, and also, the muffin fan (PC fan) I'm using to push air into the fog system has an adjustable adaptor for it from (I think) 2v up to 12, so I can control flow as well.
 
Spliffious

Spliffious

Well-Known Member
GreenThumbSucker said:
SmartPond Fountain Fogger $54.95 at Lowes

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=8435-60167-FTNFG&lpage=none

I noticed this fogger on the shelf when I was buying a cheap birdfeeder fountain at Lowes to use in my aero cloner (I got the fountain head for 11$ and it works on 60 gph pump).

Anyone ever try this? Im always on the lookout for cheap solutions.
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yah dude, I went to PetsMart. got a single node ultra sonic fogger and submerged it in PH balanced Distilled water and let it cycle 12 on 12 off. My roots are crazy pretty white, clean and spread out. The Fogger really helps with root repair as it provides ultimate advantage in water absorbtion. The teenie tiny micro water molecules that creates a film around the roots and makes that baby grow nice and big.... but it does heat up the rezevoir for it puts off heat with the high humidity and droplets over inside of my Rez..... I love it.... heres a pic of it.... in action:mrgreen:
 

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Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
Oh, and yeah Tom, to answer your question, as for the Nutramist systems, that's where I actually got the idea of making a hybrid system like the one I have (most of) the parts for now. In my other thread on oxygen enhancement in the root chamber (https://www.rollitup.org/hydroponics-aeroponics/182929-injecting-0xygen-aeroponics-root-chamber.html) the pic I posted was actually from their site. It would be really nice to have one of their systems, since all the bugs have already been tested out of their earlier prototypes (unlike mine will be, though I hope I don't run into any serious ones, and don't think I will), but I priced one at a dealer in Montreal Quebec (I live in Canada), which was the closest one I could find, and it was like $999 + tax and shipping or something really close to that. And I suspect the shipping cost for something that big crossing the roughly like 730km (450miles) would drop your jaw, you know what I mean?

But, if you have any mechanical ability, and some ingenuity, I think prebuilt systems are kind of a waste of money. I got the fogger unit I have - a six-head with adjustable output (I think), 6 replacement discs and a float for like $125. I paid like $15 for a big reservoir for flood and drain, and maybe $8 for the smaller one for the fogger. The 2" hose cost me less than $10, the 12v muffin fan to push air from the fog reservoir into the root chamber was like 12$ and the 2-12v adaptor for it was $20. The table was $100, the cover (precut for 5" pots) was $50. The pump for flood and drain was like $150, and the mushroom valve and tubing came to maybe another $12. I'll have to spend a few bucks on 2x4 to build a stand for my table, say $8, since I don't have one designed to fit on top of the reservoir like the Nutramist one, and of course there's the time to assemble it all. BUT...if you add that all up, it comes to $510. With tax and shipping on the unit from Nutramist added on, I'd be looking at probably 12-1,300 bucks for essentially the same system. And I'd still have to buy net pots, neoprene discs for covers, a light & ballast, bulb, hood, ducting, a ventilation fan and one for airflow in the room, a carbon filter, probably a dehumidifier and an air conditioner, poly & mylar, an aero cloner (or the parts to build one), timers for the pump, light, and fogger, and probably 10 more things I'm not thinking of right off the top of my head. That extra $7-800 I would have spent on the Nutramist system would cover a fair amount of that stuff, you know what I mean? The convenience of it would be nice, and if I was selling pot wide open and making a fair amount of money, I'd probably go that route, but I'm not selling pot wide open, and I certainly wouldn't use the phrase 'hand over fist' to describe how much money I make. It all comes down to economics I think, really. If you can afford it, go for it. If money is more of an issue, doing it yourself makes more sense.
 
GreenThumbSucker

GreenThumbSucker

Well-Known Member
Spliffious said:
yah dude, I went to PetsMart. got a single node ultra sonic fogger and submerged it in PH balanced Distilled water and let it cycle 12 on 12 off. My roots are crazy pretty white, clean and spread out. The Fogger really helps with root repair as it provides ultimate advantage in water absorbtion. The teenie tiny micro water molecules that creates a film around the roots and makes that baby grow nice and big.... but it does heat up the rezevoir for it puts off heat with the high humidity and droplets over inside of my Rez..... I love it.... heres a pic of it.... in action:mrgreen:
Click to expand...

So the fogger is the only source of liquid for those roots? that is quite impressive.

So it gives off heat? Sounds like it would work nicely for rooting cuts. Perhaps one of these days Ill make a fog-cloner and see how it goes.
 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
GreenThumbSucker said:
SmartPond Fountain Fogger $54.95 at Lowes

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=8435-60167-FTNFG&lpage=none

I noticed this fogger on the shelf when I was buying a cheap birdfeeder fountain at Lowes to use in my aero cloner (I got the fountain head for 11$ and it works on 60 gph pump).

Anyone ever try this? Im always on the lookout for cheap solutions.
Click to expand...
You already know I havne't tried this yet, but if you're looking for cheap solutions, here's the site where I bought mine from. http://www.mainlandmart.com/foggers.html

There's info on output and such for the products on there, and they have a very wide selection of products, too.
 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
GreenThumbSucker said:
So the fogger is the only source of liquid for those roots? that is quite impressive.

So it gives off heat? Sounds like it would work nicely for rooting cuts. Perhaps one of these days Ill make a fog-cloner and see how it goes.
Click to expand...
It's way better than traditional aero. Misters produce particles anywhere from roughly 80-500 microns, and foggers produce particles that range from like 3/4-20 or so. And the smaller the particle, the easier it is to be absorbed by the roots. More efficient nutrient uptake (therefore less nutrient consumption), aeration is way better too. No pump, no lines, and from what I've gathered, mister heads can have clogging issues. Especially with a cloner, where there's no nutrient solution and just water (presumably), there would be no issue with having to clean or replace heads in the fogger - at least certainly really infrequently. This heat thing I've only just heard of though. Might be fine for a cloner where they like a warmer rooting zone, but I don't think you'd want to make a system for veg/flowering where the fogger was right in the root zone. I could see roots getting burned, and maybe bacteria/algae/fungus problems developing over the much longer time period involved, you know what I mean?
 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
Hey splif...that last picture - is that just one plant? The growth density is fucking amazing! If that's the kind of growth one can expect from this technology, then I'm even moe hyped than I was about it. Are you just using this for cloning, or for a whole system?
 
Spliffious

Spliffious

Well-Known Member
Johnny McChroni said:
Hey splif...that last picture - is that just one plant? The growth density is fucking amazing! If that's the kind of growth one can expect from this technology, then I'm even moe hyped than I was about it. Are you just using this for cloning, or for a whole system?
Click to expand...

go to my sig and check my shizz out... I used it alot more during transplanting and during vegg.... I want to use it more but... I dont want to contaminate and damage the ginormous root growth that has now taken over in my 18 g. rubbermaid roughneck rez....:blsmoke:

p.s. that pic i posted was the jumbo sized male... it was a random bagseed that took off....!!!! roots were crazy....... i grinded into garbage disposal.....
 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
Spliffious said:
go to my sig and check my shizz out... I used it alot more during transplanting and during vegg.... I want to use it more but... I dont want to contaminate and damage the ginormous root growth that has now taken over in my 18 g. rubbermaid roughneck rez....:blsmoke:

p.s. that pic i posted was the jumbo sized male... it was a random bagseed that took off....!!!! roots were crazy....... i grinded into garbage disposal.....
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Went and checked it you...very nice looking! Posted, too.

I'm curious though, what do you mean you don't wanna contaminate/damage your root growth? In what way?
 
Spliffious

Spliffious

Well-Known Member
Johnny McChroni said:
Went and checked it you...very nice looking! Posted, too.

I'm curious though, what do you mean you don't wanna contaminate/damage your root growth? In what way?
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i used to be able and set a tubbaware dish in there on the bottom of my rez. and run the fogger in it's own mini rez, heating that water big time.at-least 90 degrees or so... the mist would definably ingulf the whole dome and do wonders for roots... theres a bed of roots in there now about an inch or 3 thick.... i could set it on top????:eyesmoke:
 
Johnny McChroni

Johnny McChroni

Active Member
Spliffious said:
i used to be able and set a tubbaware dish in there on the bottom of my rez. and run the fogger in it's own mini rez, heating that water big time.at-least 90 degrees or so... the mist would definably ingulf the whole dome and do wonders for roots... theres a bed of roots in there now about an inch or 3 thick.... i could set it on top????:eyesmoke:
Click to expand...
Ahhh, gotcha. I don't know why I never thought of that. Not that it would be an option in your current grow, obviously, but were the results you saw with the fogger a big improvement over the way you've got it going now? Like enough to warrant converting your system to something like I'm talking about using for a later grow? Or did you use it enough to really judge?
 
Spliffious

Spliffious

Well-Known Member
Johnny McChroni said:
Ahhh, gotcha. I don't know why I never thought of that. Not that it would be an option in your current grow, obviously, but were the results you saw with the fogger a big improvement over the way you've got it going now? Like enough to warrant converting your system to something like I'm talking about using for a later grow? Or did you use it enough to really judge?
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well, i learned a bit from it. The aerogarden 200 DWC machine was neat for roots also... I filled the 1 gallon tank easy when germinating for a month. I began fogger Idea after searching around on E-bay and Youtube... there's some cool DiY build your own drip system and fogger... I was impressed w/ that dude on u Tube... The fogger was used on and off for probably a month, getting giant root growth and swelling. More like dreadlocks.... I now have it in a DIY mini aercloner that I have built... It is getting me a great jumo on root growth during germ, I dont so much care about the upper leaf growth... I can imake a difference in the resevoir & better root growth tho.....its creative and experimental shit that I dig....;-)

watch this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brvJ2fGXusU
 

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Maybetomorrow

Maybetomorrow

Well-Known Member
Holy cow many that looks like you attached a wig to a net pot. Gonna look into them cause there are kinda cheap on eBay. My only things is nutes and how big there particles are in order to attach itself to the fog.
 
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