I am often asked the questions "which pump should I use?" and "when should I remove the water pump?"
Here I would like to discuss the use of the water pump in the single Deep Water Culture reservoir tank. StealthHydro offers 2 different manufactured submersible water pumps. The ActiveAqua Pump offers sizes of 40 gph, (gallons per hour) 160, 250, 400 gph. They also offer the Sunleaves DuraPump, that is larger, stronger and comes in 160, 245 and 600 gph. The 400 gph and 600 gph larger pumps are only for small outdoor ponds and very large hydroponics systems that use multiple tanks from one pump. I am privileged to be a member of a group of over 100 Deep Water Culture growers that meet daily on a web site and discuss and compare our experience with the Deep Water Culture Systems and using different pumps. We have all agreed that the smaller the pump the better. It is better to have a smaller trickle of water mixed with bubbles than to have a solid hard stream of water from a larger pump. We also agreed that the smaller pumps do not produce as much heat, and they cost less, but they are not as durable. I have used the SunLeaves 245 gph pumps in 4 consecutive grows, and they are still pumping strong. Both brands are easy to disassemble to clean. When and if I ever have to replace a water pump, I will go with the more economical 160 gph SunLeaves Pump or ActiveAqua Pump because either provides the right amount of water and bubbles and it runs slightly cooler.
When should the pump be removed? Look at these pumps, after they were used for 4 weeks and I removed them.
a nasty pump
Pump with dead roots in it
Nasty looking after 4 weeks of use, aren't they? Allow me to stress or emphasize this; a submersible water pump can harbor dead debris, dead roots, and possibly mushy yukey slimey stuff that really jacks up the pH. After two weeks of use, you should give your water the sniff test to determine if the water pump is possibly spoiling the water. It should smell like fresh cut iceberg lettuce or alfalfa sprouts, and not have a bad odor. Most all water pumps have a filter in them that needs cleaning after three weeks, or get the pump out of there after 3 or 4 weeks or when the roots are well established in the deep water. A nasty filter is why you notice the need to increase the use of the pH Down after 3 or 4 weeks.
After the first two weeks, and then daily, your pH will normally climb from 6.0 to 7.0 in about 18 to 24 hours because the plants are eating the nutrients and the water level is going down, and becomes more acidic. If the water jumps to a pH of 7.5 to 8.0 in a day, you have a problem, and 99% of the time it is dead debris, dead roots or dead leaves in the tank or trapped in the water pump. Remove and clean the filter in the water pump after two or three weeks, or after the roots are established in the deep water, or get that water pump out. Then the pH will be more stable.
I have looked and looked for replacement filters for the pumps and I can not find any. I have learned they can be soaked in bleach for several days and the bleach just melts the decaying roots away. Then I use vinegar to rinse the bleach away.
Or you can replace the filters with these plastic pan scrubbers:
2 plastic scrubbers
a plastic mesh pan scrubber
Simply clean your water pump, and replace the filters with one, two or three of the mesh pan scrubbers, depending on the size of your pump.
An alternative to disassembling and cleaning the pumps is the use of the SunLeaves Submersible Water Pump Bags offered by StealthHydro. I'll never do another grow without them.
SunLeaves Filter Bags for submersive Water Pumps
Here I would like to discuss the use of the water pump in the single Deep Water Culture reservoir tank. StealthHydro offers 2 different manufactured submersible water pumps. The ActiveAqua Pump offers sizes of 40 gph, (gallons per hour) 160, 250, 400 gph. They also offer the Sunleaves DuraPump, that is larger, stronger and comes in 160, 245 and 600 gph. The 400 gph and 600 gph larger pumps are only for small outdoor ponds and very large hydroponics systems that use multiple tanks from one pump. I am privileged to be a member of a group of over 100 Deep Water Culture growers that meet daily on a web site and discuss and compare our experience with the Deep Water Culture Systems and using different pumps. We have all agreed that the smaller the pump the better. It is better to have a smaller trickle of water mixed with bubbles than to have a solid hard stream of water from a larger pump. We also agreed that the smaller pumps do not produce as much heat, and they cost less, but they are not as durable. I have used the SunLeaves 245 gph pumps in 4 consecutive grows, and they are still pumping strong. Both brands are easy to disassemble to clean. When and if I ever have to replace a water pump, I will go with the more economical 160 gph SunLeaves Pump or ActiveAqua Pump because either provides the right amount of water and bubbles and it runs slightly cooler.
When should the pump be removed? Look at these pumps, after they were used for 4 weeks and I removed them.
a nasty pump
Pump with dead roots in it
Nasty looking after 4 weeks of use, aren't they? Allow me to stress or emphasize this; a submersible water pump can harbor dead debris, dead roots, and possibly mushy yukey slimey stuff that really jacks up the pH. After two weeks of use, you should give your water the sniff test to determine if the water pump is possibly spoiling the water. It should smell like fresh cut iceberg lettuce or alfalfa sprouts, and not have a bad odor. Most all water pumps have a filter in them that needs cleaning after three weeks, or get the pump out of there after 3 or 4 weeks or when the roots are well established in the deep water. A nasty filter is why you notice the need to increase the use of the pH Down after 3 or 4 weeks.
After the first two weeks, and then daily, your pH will normally climb from 6.0 to 7.0 in about 18 to 24 hours because the plants are eating the nutrients and the water level is going down, and becomes more acidic. If the water jumps to a pH of 7.5 to 8.0 in a day, you have a problem, and 99% of the time it is dead debris, dead roots or dead leaves in the tank or trapped in the water pump. Remove and clean the filter in the water pump after two or three weeks, or after the roots are established in the deep water, or get that water pump out. Then the pH will be more stable.
I have looked and looked for replacement filters for the pumps and I can not find any. I have learned they can be soaked in bleach for several days and the bleach just melts the decaying roots away. Then I use vinegar to rinse the bleach away.
Or you can replace the filters with these plastic pan scrubbers:
2 plastic scrubbers
a plastic mesh pan scrubber
Simply clean your water pump, and replace the filters with one, two or three of the mesh pan scrubbers, depending on the size of your pump.
An alternative to disassembling and cleaning the pumps is the use of the SunLeaves Submersible Water Pump Bags offered by StealthHydro. I'll never do another grow without them.
SunLeaves Filter Bags for submersive Water Pumps
