DIY E Z Clone with pics

So my cloning has not been good using Rockwool cubes/root roots under a seedling dome. And I have used this method for 20 years. Here lately, not sure if it’s environment or something else but failures are too many. Seems like too much moisture or not enough.

The final straw was the other day when I had to work long hours and came home to a bunch of clones drying out and wilting. My fault really for not checking the root root moisture more frequently.

well, I started looking for a different solution and came across the EZ clone. Not willing to spend that much, all I got on Amazon and found a pump and manifold. I already had the Home Depot HDX 12 gallon tote that I use for vegging. And of course I already had an air pump and airstone.

so for roughly $50 I created my own. If you needed to buy everything it could easily be done for under $100.

Here is the pump and manifold being tested in a sink.


Here is the pump and manifold placed in the tote. And filled with with water & airstone.






and finally the clones in place. Don’t laugh at the OG Clones, they are the ones who suffered the near death experience. They are looking better 12 hours later.

the copper chem clone in the back left was a fresh clip for 12 hours ago. Looks exactly how she looked when I took her.



and one more video in action.


I will document the progress here. Oh and it does leak a bit, but nothing I am overly concerned about since I have a tray under it.

I forgot to mention the neoprene inserts you will need those also. I had already bought a bunch of 2 inch net pots, so I had a bunch of them.

here’s the rest of the veg area, getting very crowded lol

ChemDogLover said:

Oh and it does leak a bit, but nothing I am overly concerned about since I have a tray under it.

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I made my own first too but finally got the TurboKlone T24. Because the leaking finally started to bug me

curious2garden said:

I made my own first too but finally got the TurboKlone T24. Because the leaking finally started to bug me

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If mine doesn’t leak anymore than it is I’ll be fine with it.

i put these two things together and finally got rid of algae problems i had everytime with bubble cloners. i ditched aeration pump completely and just used the canister filter to suck water from one side and it has a long pipe attachment with multiple holes on its body which drops the sanitized water from the other end of the container. best results i had water cloning so far. dont have pics though i will post some when i set it up again.

crimsonecho said:

i put these two things together and finally got rid of algae problems i had everytime with bubble cloners. i ditched aeration pump completely and just used the canister filter to suck water from one side and it has a long pipe attachment with multiple holes on its body which drops the sanitized water from the other end of the container. best results i had water cloning so far. dont have pics though i will post some when i set it up again.

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Do you have a link to the cannister?

would love to see your setup when you use it again

ChemDogLover said:

Do you have a link to the cannister?

would love to see your setup when you use it again

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its an aquarium canister filter with an integrated 5w uv lamp basically. nothing special i am sure you can find on amazon and many different brands and models too. yeah i’m gonna do a thread when i set it up again man. it was my most succesful water cloning experience for sure.

not 100% or anything but more like 80%ish probably and some cuts rooting in just 4-5 days. before this setup i got only nubs on the stem and they would just get covered with slime and algae and it would stop growing. nothing helped not h2o2 not calcium chloride not bleach nothing kept those roots growing.

crimsonecho said:

its an aquarium canister filter with an integrated 5w uv lamp basically. nothing special i am sure you can find on amazon and many different brands and models too. yeah i’m gonna do a thread when i set it up again man. it was my most succesful water cloning experience for sure.

not 100% or anything but more like 80%ish probably and some cuts rooting in just 4-5 days. before this setup i got only nubs on the stem and they would just get covered with slime and algae and it would stop growing. nothing helped not h2o2 not calcium chloride not bleach nothing kept those roots growing.

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Cool thanks, that’s what caught my eye in your picture, UV !!!!

ChemDogLover said:

Cool thanks, that’s what caught my eye in your picture, UV !!!!

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that 5w of uv helped me so much

crimsonecho said:

that 5w of uv helped me so much

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I’m thinking about buying one for my flower room lol. I Run DWC with a reservoir plumbed to all totes. I could easily use a submersible UV light in the reservoir. I also have a submersible pump in there to mix my water equally among my totes.

ChemDogLover said:

I’m thinking about buying one for my flower room lol. I Run DWC with a reservoir plumbed to all totes. I could easily use a submersible UV light in the reservoir. I also have a submersible pump in there to mix my water equally among my totes.

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yeah for a big reservoir i’m sure you can attach an inline uvc tube or just drop a submersible uvc tube as you said but its a bit tricky as i understand because if you are using uvc you cant add chlorine based solutions because uv lamps have a glass casing and chlorine fucks that up so reduces the effectiveness of uv lamps.

plus i am not sure how well it would go with dissolved salts and stuff eventhough i think it will not cause problems its not an educated guess even

but yeah uvc rocks in sterilization applications ime. you would definitely see benefits.

crimsonecho said:

yeah for a big reservoir i’m sure you can attach an inline uvc tube or just drop a submersible uvc tube as you said but its a bit tricky as i understand because if you are using uvc you cant add chlorine based solutions because uv lamps have a glass casing and chlorine fucks that up so reduces the effectiveness of uv lamps.

plus i am not sure how well it would go with dissolved salts and stuff eventhough i think it will not cause problems its not an educated guess even

but yeah uvc rocks in sterilization applications ime. you would definitely see benefits.

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Thanks it’s on my list of future projects.

ChemDogLover said:

I’m thinking about buying one for my flower room lol. I Run DWC with a reservoir plumbed to all totes. I could easily use a submersible UV light in the reservoir. I also have a submersible pump in there to mix my water equally among my totes.

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You shouldn't use UV on nutrient solutions. It will destroy the chelating agents and cause precipitation of micronutrients (especially iron).

Also I don't see the point in the air pump? The mist from normal action has plenty of surface area and should aerate just fine.

Lou66 said:

You shouldn't use UV on nutrient solutions. It will destroy the chelating agents and cause precipitation of micronutrients (especially iron).

Also I don't see the point in the air pump? The mist from normal action has plenty of surface area and should aerate just fine.

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Yea the more I researched the UV light I decided not to use one.

And I figure more oxygen can’t hurt. I had the extra pump and airstone so I threw it in the Rez.

Leaking continued to be an issue, nothing that the tray couldn’t handle but more of an issue with the water level in the tub. Got some marine weather striping, had to slice it in half as it was too thick, and lined the rim of the tote. Should help will report back

Switch all components to a five gallon bucket and lid
No more leaks

Herb & Suds said:

Switch all components to a five gallon bucket and lid
No more leaks

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Yea the additional height would help, but it would require adding water more frequently imo. My manifold sits only 3.5-4” off the bottom of the Rez. In my current setup I use 2 gallons to get right to the bottom of the manifold.

good news is I have no dripping in the usual spots after installing the weatherstripping. Will continue monitoring

So upon looking under the lid it was apparent it was gonna leak again eventually.



then I looked under the lid and found each corner needed a small strip. There recesses allowing splashes to get on the rim. After I did this, no leaking and no buildup on the weather stripping. Not gonna say it’s completely fixed but looking much better.



clones looking much better too. Have added a few more

So unfortunately leaking continues.

but the good news is roots on an og kush after 7 days.

ChemDogLover said:

So unfortunately leaking continues.

but the good news is roots on an og kush after 7 days.

View attachment 5343039

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Yeah it's why I moved up from my homemade to a TurboKloner but since I use it about every other month I didn't prioritize it. I just put my homemade cloner in a larger tub to contain the dripping until it rose to the top of my list.