Vertical Goodness and Other Batshit Craziness

[Lanestrainley]

This makes the most sense to me, too. It makes sense to shade the growing sites to keep them from overheating but trying to actually refrigerate them is a bridge too far. Placing the reservoir underground makes use of ground cooling without costing a bunch of energy. Episodic pumping of water to the growing sites is smart and I would go so far as to make sure there's some amount of absorbent substrate so plants have constant access to moisture. Gravity fed drainage would be relatively foolproof while allowing for that moisture to remain. Covering everything related to roots and irrigation with some kind of insulation will help a great deal with thermal management, which I think would be the biggest threat to the success of the system.

For my cucumbers I just bury my 50gal barrel 3/4 underground and do a kratky with a 6x6 screen, the cucumbers just hang under the screen and I just pickem off, the water never gets changed and stays around 18c, only filled once with a rez dump. This method works so GD good I tried it with a bunch of different veggies and basically it’s set and forget. I’m building a flood and drain for my peppers and burying the tote, the peppers didn’t do as well in the krakty barrels as I hoped for so I’ll go back to the outdoor tables for them, the scorpion peppers are soooo hot they make peeps cry, lol. Shaded buried rez’s rock, in my zone at least.

 

[m4s73r]

Dis you include the cost of replacing bulbs? Don't you have to replace all those bulbs once or twice a year?

I bet that can vary. Amazon has Viviosun DE bulbs for $30 or EYE Hortilux for $85. I replaced my Ipower bulbs every 6 months.

 

[ttystikk]

I added it all.up both ways and couldn't justify the start up cost of LED. The savings in power really would not offset the cost for a couple years. We may convert over time but you have to recoup your start up losses to stay a float. I'm sure people that sell flower can recoup after the first grow and not really care that they are still making money over time to still pay for those shiny new lights. LED is more efficient , there's no arguing that. By how much is really the question.

That's the same calculation I made, too. By themselves, LED lights don't save enough energy to be worth their cost. They need something else to boost those energy savings.

the way I see it, there's three kinds of money in the cannabis game right now. There's "gray market" which is concerned with the next crop and no further. Then there's the people who built up their own bankroll and went legit and they can improve their facilities incrementally but they don't have the really deep pockets. Finally, there's the real money; Wall Street types who want in on the fastest growing industry in the country and they give no fucks how much it costs because they've got money to burn.

Of the three, the Wall Streeters are the ones who will end up with most of the market because they can buy everything; facilities, access, lobbying, campaign contributions for politicians, name it. It's this third group who are in it for the long term and they have been looking at balance sheets and ROI calculations since they were in business school.

That third group has the money and they're my target customers.

 

[ttystikk]

For my cucumbers I just bury my 50gal barrel 3/4 underground and do a kratky with a 6x6 screen, the cucumbers just hang under the screen and I just pickem off, the water never gets changed and stays around 18c, only filled once with a rez dump. This method works so GD good I tried it with a bunch of different veggies and basically it’s set and forget. I’m building a flood and drain for my peppers and burying the tote, the peppers didn’t do as well in the krakty barrels as I hoped for so I’ll go back to the outdoor tables for them, the scorpion peppers are soooo hot they make peeps cry, lol. Shaded buried rez’s rock, in my zone at least.

What are kratky barrels?

 

[Lanestrainley]

Sorta like a passive dwc I guess.

 

[Lanestrainley]

What are kratky barrels?

Well now, I’m glad I said something then, since you use RDWC you have a bunch of rez dumps to handle, you can just fill a barrel with your dumps and pop some plants in there and never mess with them again all summer long, they’ll have enough food and water. You get to use your dumps, you don’t have to deal with slugs n bugs from the ground and the fruit is easy to pick. It’s basically the same as rdwc minus to “R” and the air stone, I just bury the barrel and the D.O seems to be fine with no air stone.

 

[ttystikk]

Well now, I’m glad I said something then, since you use RDWC you have a bunch of rez dumps to handle, you can just fill a barrel with your dumps and pop some plants in there and never mess with them again all summer long, they’ll have enough food and water. You get to use your dumps, you don’t have to deal with slugs n bugs from the ground and the fruit is easy to pick. It’s basically the same as rdwc minus to “R” and the air stone, I just bury the barrel and the D.O seems to be fine with no air stone.

Hmmmmmm... I think I need more info.

 

[Lanestrainley]

Hmmmmmm... I think I need more info.

Kratky Method: Beginner-Friendly Passive Hydroponics (With Pictures)

The Kratky Method is an approach utilized for cultivating plants in a hydroponic setting.

whyfarmit.com

 

[Lanestrainley]

I’m sure with a half second look at a pic you’re going to have it figured out if you haven’t already, I’d bet money you’ve done it before, kratky is just the guys last name that “came up” with it, makes it sound fancier than it is, but it works well and rez dumps are a super good source for free water/nutes, instead of just dumping on the garden or down the drain. Anyways, I just bury the barrels 3/4 ways to keep the temps cool, the burying rez talk is what made me think of this, you should try it this summer with some tomatoes or cucumbers, it works super good for vines, and you could invert the screen vertical instead of horizontal to appease your vertical tendencies, hahaha

 

[ttystikk]

@Heisenbeans

Because it's the topic of conversation, here's some shots of my RDWC in the "big veg" room;


All grow sites in both pics are part of the same system. Aeration and circulation are all handled by just one pump in the control bucket, I think it's 1100gph. All main return and manifold supply lines are 1" flexible hose. 1" x 1" x 1/2” barbed tee fittings for every site, feeds 1/2” line to a smaller 1/2” x 1/2” x 1/2” tee that helps the splash and churning action in each site. This system handles 14 sites.

No PVC means no cutting, no gluing, everything is reusable and reconfigurable, all the fittings are plastic irrigation fittings or 1" bulkhead fittings.

 

[Heisen]

@Heisenbeans

Because it's the topic of conversation, here's some shots of my RDWC in the "big veg" room;
View attachment 106133View attachment 106134
View attachment 106135
All grow sites in both pics are part of the same system. Aeration and circulation are all handled by just one pump in the control bucket, I think it's 1100gph. All main return and manifold supply lines are 1" flexible hose. 1" x 1" x 1/2” barbed tee fittings for every site, feeds 1/2” line to a smaller 1/2” x 1/2” x 1/2” tee that helps the splash and churning action in each site. This system handles 14 sites.

No PVC means no cutting, no gluing, everything is reusable and reconfigurable, all the fittings are plastic irrigation fittings or 1" bulkhead fittings.

Looks ggood.alot going on but if it works that's all that matters

 

[ttystikk]

This is also an RDWC, notice all the same parts, just in a different configuration. In this case there is no need for a control bucket so the circulation pump is in the middle tub. You can see the manifold on top. These are the same tuffboxes with 4 holes for return lines, they're just connected together underneath with short bits of hose.

 

[ttystikk]

Looks ggood.alot going on but if it works that's all that matters

Bigger systems are easier because the larger water volume is more stable in terms of temperature, pH and EC. The waterfalls splash inside, which the plants love. That splash means that as long as water is flowing, they don't care what the water level is. That allows me to spread out the top off intervals, often weeks.

 

[m4s73r]

So would a larger volume of water make things easier? like why not just have a large tank, a pump in the middle pumping water to the top to waterfall back in?

 

[ttystikk]

So would a larger volume of water make things easier? like why not just have a large tank, a pump in the middle pumping water to the top to waterfall back in?

You could but I fear inadequate oxygenation in the tank. Besides, I prefer you keep the bulk of the water under the plants where they can access it.

 

[m4s73r]

You could but I fear inadequate oxygenation in the tank. Besides, I prefer you keep the bulk of the water under the plants where they can access it.

Yeah with the plants growing in it. Something thats like 3' wide by 8' long' 16-20" tall. Then a lid with 12-16 net pots. Pump waterfalls in at each site. 12-16 waterfalls across the surface should be enough right?

 

[ttystikk]

Yeah with the plants growing in it. Something thats like 3' wide by 8' long' 16-20" tall. Then a lid with 12-16 net pots. Pump waterfalls in at each site. 12-16 waterfalls across the surface should be enough right?

Sure, as long as the waterfalls create some splash under every netpot.

 

[Heisen]

Sure, as long as the waterfalls create some splash under every netpot.

My issue with using the buckets the plants are in to create the DO Is they are so filled with roots surface area would be limited. Creating the DO is a separate bucket and pumping it to the roots is a fail safe. I'm not a fan of using small hoses as they could possibly clog. I like big pipes to to let gravity keep every level and use the small stuff to direct the water

 

[treefarmercharlie]

So would a larger volume of water make things easier? like why not just have a large tank, a pump in the middle pumping water to the top to waterfall back in?

Larger volume always makes anything that relies on water chemistry easier to manage. Same goes for things like fish tanks. When I was into salt water reef tanks keeping my 125 gallon reef stable was so much easier than a 30-40 gallon.

 

[oldsilvertip]

@TreeFarmerCharlie I'm happy to discuss politics and I think Americans badly need the practice of discussing contentious issues without being disagreeable. We Also badly need to discuss politics because so much has gone wrong.

There are lots of people out there who work hard to make politics as disgusting and nasty as possible, precisely because they're trying to drive reasonable people away. We must not let them succeed.
@bk-og @twentyeight.threefive @m4s73r and anyone I haven't mentioned are more than welcome to discuss your views with me here. I WANT to hear them because otherwise I'll get stuck in my own echo chamber.

My political philosophy is this; the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Universal healthcare is therefore a no brainer. Bringing corporate power and the rich to heel is another. Yes, I want hardcore right wingers to benefit from free college like everyone else because critical thinking skills are badly needed when dealing with the Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley and Marco Rubio crowd.

i have to agree ttystikk!