TheCapn's - Not So Simple - Aeroponics

Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

Subbed for sure! Hey Capn, can I make a minor suggestion? Being as though you already elected to mount your drain hold on a side, I think it would better serve the purpose if you slightly raised the opposing side either by adding a 2nd 7" net pot onto the existing one, or, take away the 7" pot from the side below the drain hole. The latter would cause the upper tote to lean towards the drain, but not so much that it would overpower the lower tote's ability to keep it centered. I don't know if that remaining 1/4" of water concerns you at all, but most of it can be drained out as well.

Looking forward to picking a lot of intel from this grow. +REPs for seeking to work out the kinks of another 'iffy' grow system.
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

Dude, you're killing me! I don't think you get enough credit for what you do here man! Honestly! I usually say "there is never enough to learn" BUT with you there are endless amounts of information, all gathered through intense research, spewing form your head! Just a testimony to how you've helped me find my way into hydro! +Reps for sure!

Now this Low pressure system is definitely a step up form the grodan cubes, but I am intent on learning more about the availbe hydro systems that you 'simplify' for the not-so-savvy hydro grower as myself!

Can't wait to know the strain! I'll be guessing along the way :thumb: unless it's not even on the market yet
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

my guess was gonna be the ww/sk as many people are growing it now and giving great reviews, but then he said it was a 50/50, so now I'm lost for a guess again. Man I hope he is able to really simplify this method as water temps appear to be a key factor when using free water hydro. I wish there was a simpler way to chill water w/o a chiller. If I owned my own land, I'd bury about 100 feet of pex tube in the ground and cycle my res through that.
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

If I owned my own land, I'd bury about 100 feet of pex tube in the ground and cycle my res through that.

Always thinking outside of the box mate!

I doubt it could be the ww/sk, just from the sheer growth characteristics so far. I'm following 3 or 4 different ww/sk grows on here, and at least the genetics from herbies show a more sativa dominant plant. This here looks to be a dead even mix, maybe even slightly on the indica side based on stature and overall growth. But we will have to be patient, as I know the Capn is not telling!
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

Dude, you're killing me! I don't think you get enough credit for what you do here man! Honestly! I usually say "there is never enough to learn" BUT with you there are endless amounts of information, all gathered through intense research, spewing form your head! Just a testimony to how you've helped me find my way into hydro! +Reps for sure!

No kidding A.G--- My wife, see's me unloading the truck,"jesus, the cap'n must be at it again, what are you building now" "cant you stay with one system for more than a run??" lmao
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

Subbed for sure! Hey Capn, can I make a minor suggestion? Being as though you already elected to mount your drain hold on a side, I think it would better serve the purpose if you slightly raised the opposing side either by adding a 2nd 7" net pot onto the existing one, or, take away the 7" pot from the side below the drain hole. The latter would cause the upper tote to lean towards the drain, but not so much that it would overpower the lower tote's ability to keep it centered. I don't know if that remaining 1/4" of water concerns you at all, but most of it can be drained out as well.

Looking forward to picking a lot of intel from this grow. +REPs for seeking to work out the kinks of another 'iffy' grow system.

No kidding A.G--- My wife, see's me unloading the truck,"jesus, the cap'n must be at it again, what are you building now" "cant you stay with one system for more than a run??" lmao

>>>Dude, you're killing me! I don't think you get enough credit for what you do here man! Honestly! I usually say "there is never enough to learn" BUT with you there are endless amounts of information, all gathered through intense research, spewing form your head! Just a testimony to how you've helped me find my way into hydro! +Reps for sure!

Funny stuff. Thanks all, for joining up and the support. I'm going to need it with this one. We will all be learning together. Yes, I've been planning this for 3 months, but at the same time, I'm winging it. So I wouldn't make a trip to the hardware store until this thing gets a few weeks under it's belt. Who knows if it will even work. I'm worried about the entire thing filling up as a massive rectangle of roots. Sky, I actually do have a very slight decline to the side with the drain. Still, there is a tiny bit of water... sort of like a "thin film" on the bottom of the tray, because I am moving a lot of water thru it.

One thing for sure... it's not possible without a chiller. I was using the poor man's chiller for a couple days, but I was losing so much water to evaporation, and my humidity was too high. it was silly.

I'm posting an update now. Stay tuned.
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

So far, the aero unit is working well. I hooked up the chiller last night. I've got the water temp down to 65 and humidity under control. From the added pressure of the chiller, the 396gph pump wont cut it. I'll order a eco plus 1056.

PPM: 500 (is this good for aeroponics at this stage?)
PH: 5.9
Water Temp: 65F
Air Temp: 65-76F
Humidity: 55%

I'd like to point out that this is not the first aero unit I made. In the last few months, this is the 3rd one. Building one of these is easy. Designing it is not. There is so much to think about, and just when you drill a hole, you realize it's in the wrong place!

One of the things I promised in this grow is some time lapse photography. I mounted up the camera last night; I've got software running to grab a picture a day. This will give us a great perspective of growth rates.

Here is the first picture from the mounted camera. Now you have a little window into the capn's 4 x 6' veg closet. I have way more going on in here than usual.

WEED CAM!

aeroPlant11-08.jpg


And here's a reference for roots, taken today.

ROOT CAM!

GoodRoots3.JPG


I wish I could give you guys a URL to the camera... too bad UNCOOL people would find it :-(
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

the roots will def cover sprayers but they will stull put the feed out, it will work for def. u will get a good result with that set up, as i said earlier i saw great grow with fraction of the sprayers.

I like the sound of this.
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

whats 500ppm in e/c? i dont use ppm so have no idea? around 1.2 - 1.4 e/c is spot on at this stage. Def no need to go higher than that. If anything u get away with weaker solutions in aero and still give fantastic growth rates. i may have missed it but what nutes are u using? ph 5.9 seems a tad high to me, i'd go 5.5 -5.8 range in veg. i now its only 0.1 but details are what count.
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

whats 500ppm in e/c? i dont use ppm so have no idea? around 1.2 - 1.4 e/c is spot on at this stage. Def no need to go higher than that. If anything u get away with weaker solutions in aero and still give fantastic growth rates. i may have missed it but what nutes are u using? ph 5.9 seems a tad high to me, i'd go 5.5 -5.8 range in veg. i now its only 0.1 but details are what count.

I need to start thinking in terms of EC as well (lazy americans). My meter is a .5 conversion. To convert, I divide PPM by 500. So 500PPM is an EC of 1. You're saying 1.2-1.4 which is 600-700. In the rockwool I am in your range. I'll hang at 500ppm (EC1) for a week and if I don't see any curling leaves, I'll bump it to 1.2.

Here's my general hydroponics nutrient recipe right now. I start with a 5 gallon bucket of RO water:

Florablend: 15ml/5gal
Cali-Magic: 15ml/5gal
FloraBloom: 5ml/5gal
FloraMicro: 10ml/5gal
FloraGrow: 15ml/5gal

And then I diluted to ~500PPM (EC1)

The only other additives I'm using is Orca at 1ml/gal and Aquashield at 2ml/gal. Good point on the PH, I'll lower it down to 5.6ish.

Thanks for the advice, cult!
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

>>>The only other additives I'm using is Orca at 1ml/gal and Aquashield at 2ml/gal.

Will a live environment survive at those low temps, or is oxygen and food all that you require to keep beneficial bacteria striving?
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

fantastic DIY setup +reps , very nice details. I wouldn't go higher than 500 ppms especially till you see how they react to the colder temps and higher O2 levels. ph of 5.8 should be your target


the vortex sprayers in my system, i'm not sure if they would be considered low or high pressure but since roots are submerged DWC style I don't worry about root ball dry out.

subed for sure :thumb:
 
Re: TheCapn's "not so simple" Aeroponics

Will a live environment survive at those low temps, or is oxygen and food all that you require to keep beneficial bacteria striving?

They will slow down but def still work. i use beneficials in all my hydro grows. they work more efficiently at warmer temps but absolutely work in this temp range. i'd actually run it at 68f for that very reason but 65 is fine.
 
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