Grow Mediums Dutch passion Auto X DWC + Royal Cheese Coco Autopot 690w LED

[Groff]

That is what I call determination!! I'm subbed and in for the show! I'm sure you're going to rock it!

'Ya know Vic, no matter how hard I try to resist, I'm starting to think maybe DWC is the best for me too. But I wont make the switch anytime soon... Anyways, I'd love some some detail on how you guys do the pH reading/correcting in the rez, and how to do rez change without removing the whole plant! Still kind of a mystery to me...

I know its a bit soon, but if you'd take a few snaps and show us your procedure, that would be awesome!!

 

[DWCocha]

Hey Groff... I do remove the plant once a week to do a res change & think thats pretty essential with a sterile system ... Thats why Id LST to a frame fixed to the lid maybe .Instead of try to add a net/scrog & not be able to remove the plant ... Im still trying to think of a way to scrog ect with DWC but only came up with 4 poles attached to the bucket lid & the net fixed to the top of them !!! ... then you can still remove the plant for the res change/bucket swap ,scrog included :booya:

I have a spare oxypot/bucket & make this ready a day before res change by bubbleing it with spare pumps & an airstone ect .Work out the res you want... up 100ppm from last week & what supps to add ect .. Then make that res up with the hottest nutes 1st ,let them mix ... add the base last to make up the ppm to exactly where you want it(50ppm less as it will go up once properly dissolved) ... let it mix some more ... then set the PH ,wait an hour to stabilize & check again ... check fresh res temps are in range ... remove plant from cab ... lift bucket lid with plant/netpot/roots from old bucket to new bucket & put plant back .... sounds like a right mission & it is a first !..but I gets easier every time & becomes routeen before long :group::group::group:

I love to here if there's any other methods/tricks to a res change :cough:

 

[vick]

Vira that's the exact plan to start out. Focusing on p in week 1. I do have rapid start but I need to look up the best feed strength for seedlings. I also have liquid karma sitting around doing for my coco pot. Not sure how that plays in dwc though. Haven't seen much of anyone's experience on it. Some say it causes sludge. I think I'll just start with 1/4 rapid start if anything.

As for changing my res, I have a siphon pump with a tube that I can just slide through the top and pump out the water. It's a handheld manual pump for aquariums. I'm also thinking of fitting a valve at the bottom but I'd have to raise the bucket with something to be able to empty it. I would lose about a foot of grow height with that method...

I'll get some pics up of the first procedure later today.

Dwc is challenging and that's why I dig it. No bugs attracted to run off either. I had gnats in my last organic coco run. I've seen some massive yields from the dwc experts. Gonna try to work my way to that level! :group:

Thanks for the good words guys

 

[komach]

As for changing my res, I have a siphon pump with a tube that I can just slide through the top and pump out the water. It's a handheld manual pump for aquariums. I'm also thinking of fitting a valve at the bottom but I'd have to raise the bucket with something to be able to empty it. I would lose about a foot of grow height with that method...

after you pumped everything from the bucket you still need to scrub it....

 

[vick]

after you pumped everything from the bucket you still need to scrub it....

Depends on the nutes and residue left over though. Right?

 

[DWCocha]

[video=youtube;zr-DD6fq3Vs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=zr-DD6fq3Vs#t=0s[/video]
sterile system wont stay sterile if you don't sterilize it :booya::smokebuds:

 

[DWCocha]

I really like the wire this dude has attached to the bucket lid :group:Vick I have not seen any of the top boys do a DWC scrog with an oxypot yet ?:buds:

 

[DutchPassionTony]

all the best with this one vick. Amazing spec on your growroom, this will be fun to see, enjoy!

 

[GROWNBITCHZ]

:thread:

 

[vick]

[video=youtube;zr-DD6fq3Vs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=zr-DD6fq3Vs#t=0s[/video]
sterile system wont stay sterile if you don't sterilize it :booya::smokebuds:

I really like the wire this dude has attached to the bucket lid :group:Vick I have not seen any of the top boys do a DWC scrog with an oxypot yet ?:buds:

Good point. I did notice that some lucas formula formula growers top off without ever changing the res and then work from there... But you never really know what minerals are in there when it's all mixed up while the plant is eating.. so I'd rather have the reassurance by switching the water out.. Here's one thread with the dwc bubble bucket/oxypot scrog user: Dwc scrog

The only possible ways to do water changes (you won't be able to scrub the bucket after scrogging starts) are:
Method 1: Fixing a valve to the bottom of the bucket then cutting an "inspection hole" onto the lid to feed a siphon tube through to refill it, that way you're not drenching your hydroton all at once with a 3.5L mixture. With this method, you need to raise the bucket, losing height space :/

Method 2: Fixing a powerhead/small pump to the very bottom of the bucket with a filter to prevent roots from getting sucked in. (a light powered powerhead will do fine because they are compact and very inexpensive)... Then attach a hose tightly with a clip onto the exit hole of the powerhead and run that hose outside through a small hole on the top side of the bucket. (make sure it's long enough to empty into a second bucket). The venturi type powerheads for aquariums usually have a 3/8"/about 10mm diameter exit hole for the water flow.. Refill the water through the hole on the lid using a siphon pump from one bucket to your res (obviously, plug the hose and hole when done. threaded pvc plugs with o-rings are probably the best way). I will write up a step by step tutorial with pics for this method.

Since I have an extra small powerhead laying around, I am going to try method 2.

I just read this quote by heisenberg, since I'm using beneficial microbes:
"Outdoors in nature, some microbes (bacteria and fungi) are present in the soil which help a plant eat and grow roots. You can use these microbes in a DWC to help keep roots protected and help minimize gunky build up. Once I finish a grow I give my bucket a quick two minute scrub and rinse and it goes right back into another cycle, so it gets scrubbed once every 8 weeks."

all the best with this one vick. Amazing spec on your growroom, this will be fun to see, enjoy!

Thanks for the support Tony! Gonna do my best with it!

:thread:

:group::buds::booya: