Auto Drip Irrigation For CoCo

[Troy01]

I am documenting my first attempt at setting up an indoor drip irrigation system inside my 4 x 4 x 7 grow tent. All are welcome and no topic is restricted so join in and have some fun.



Supplies to be used (additions may be added as she comes to live).

Drip Irrigation System for 7 Gallon Fabric Pots (Diameter 13 inches)

1 50' TOLL OF 1/4" drip line
6 each 27" drip rings line ¼" cut in 4 pieces (18 each 6.5" drip lines)
18 each Orbit Mulit-Stream in-line Water Dripper Emitter
6 barbed T ¼ drip connectors
1 each Timer Switch Outlet, Hgrope 15A/1800W Infinite Loop Programmable Digital Timer Socket 1 Second Minimum interval
1 each Bayite 12V DC Fresh Water Pressure Diaphragm Pump with Hose Clamps Self Priming Sprayer Pump with Pressure Switch 4 L/Min 1.0 GPM 80 PSI for RV Camper
10 Foot 3/8" tubing — between reservoir and pump and pump and Manifold
12 Volt Power Supply with at least 3A
RainBird 6 port manifold with ½" pipe fitting
3/8" ID x 1/2" MIP connector

12 Volt 3A Power Inverter. I used an old left over one I have from my Security Cam System.

 

[Troy01]

Step 1 - Wiring the Pump

The pump comes with just 2 wires and you need to supply your own 12V 3A DC power inverter. I used a left over one I had from my Security Camera system but they can be purchased at any electric store or just check your box of left over power inverters.

You could use twist on wire connectors but I decided to solder mine to make sure they don't accidently get disconnected. Couple days without water would be a recipe for disaster.

On this pump it doesn't matter which wire is attached to + or- wire from the inverter.

Before going any further I tested the pump. It worked perfectly and pumps about 1 gallon per minute and has about 80 pounds of pressure.

 

[Troy01]

One problem I found is that the PVC 3/8 inch line curls to the shape of the roll.

I googled and found that if you bring a pot of water to boil and submerge the tube in the water for 5 minutes it will soften and if you then stretch it out it will stay straight.

Another problem I found was the supply line would pull out of bucket. I found a heavy 90 degree cast iron fitting and shoved the PVC line through it to use as a weight.

The water on floor was caused by not having the clamps attached and when I put my finger over end to test pressure I blew the hose off. So make sure you put the clamps on and tighten.

 

[Troy01]

Attaching the Manifold to the waterline.

I attached the 6 port manifold to the 3/8 to 1/2 inch adapter. I was wanting a straight connector but all Home Depot had was the 90 degree one. I used Teflon Tape between the connector to avoid leaks.

 

[Troy01]

Installing Manifold in Tent

Connect the water output 3/8 inch to the manifold and clamp in place. I ran the tubing through one if the vent ports and then connected with twists to a pole inside the tent. I also wrapped the tube around the pole to give it support.

Now it is time to run the 1/4 drip tubing to each pot. You may want to soften your drip line in boiling water. I just wrapped mine around the tent poles and the poles along the floor of the tent.

 

[ondercuver]

I think the pump you have makes too much pressure for those drippers.. there are ways around it though.

I played a bit with water last grow when hand feeding was getting old , do you know about "blumat" watering system? I'm going to do one soon for the motherplants, no pumps,no electricity,no timers... gravity feed and proved to work . Blumats Retail, Professional and Wholesale

 

[Troy01]

I think the pump you have makes too much pressure for those drippers.. there are ways around it though.

I played a bit with water last grow when hand feeding was getting old , do you know about "blumat" watering system? I'm going to do one soon for the motherplants, no pumps,no electricity,no timers... gravity feed and proved to work . Blumats Retail, Professional and Wholesale

Thanks for information. I will be checking it out.

The emitters I have coming today aren't like regular drip (e.g 1 gallon per hour). They are like a 8 pronged sprinkler. I use them on my hanging baskets direct from faucet. Will be an interesting test. Each emitter is also adjustable.

The pump also has a pressure adjustment. Hopefully it will work or I may substitute a submersible fountain pump.

The emitters arrive today so will post an update when I test her. Hopefully I don't have water all over the garage.

This is what emitters look like.

 

[ondercuver]

testing should make it clear ...

I have a HP pump in the mail and some other gadgets ... after the almost fiasco of rdwc , I "m going to try high pressure aeroponics at least for cloning

 

[Troy01]

Got most of the drip system installed today. So far so good. Pressure seems fine but I have to fine tune each emitter. I also put an on 1/4 inch control valve on each line. I need to run to the store tomorrow to get some 1/4" sticks to keep the rings in place. After I get it finished tomorrow I'll post some pictures and a video.

So far I'm happy with the performance.

 

[SOG001]

Lookin forward to seeing how your drip system works

 

[Troy01]

I need to do some tweaking. 4 of the rings are working well and the other two aren't putting out any water. I'm going to play with it some more this weekend.

 

[ondercuver]

that's what I was talking about, the dripers are hard to adjust , I used 10 bottles and tried to match them but it's futile, maybe yours will be easier to tune.

I gave up with the adjustable drippers and got measured one 8 liters per minute that also close under 2 Bar .

I just got the pump in the mail today, they sent me 2 pumps instead of one

 

[Troy01]

I decided to give up on using emitters and instead decided to use barbed "T's". I have a on/off flow valve on each ring and it does a good job of balancing.

I also found the 6 port manifold wasn't diving enough water so created a L shaped PVC line with 4 raisers. I put a 2 prong manifold on 3 of them and a 3/8" to 1/2 connector to the pumps water line. Finally I turned the cut off pressure from 90 PSI to about 40 PSI.

So far I'm happy but have some final additions. I purchased a in-line filter and some drip line stakes to hold the rings in place.

Here's a video of it pumping at about 5 liters a minute.

YouTube

 

[SOG001]

Very cool Troy I'm gonna use the "T" idea in my Auto drip system I like it good job!

 

[Troy01]

I shot a couple more pictures this morning to show the PVC hook up.

At the front corner I have the water pump 3/8" hose connected to my 1/2" L shaped water pipe. Make sure to use a clamp as the pressure is strong enough to blow the hose off.

On the line I used 1 T (Slip x Slip x Threaded)
1 corner (Slip x Slip x Threaded) and 1 L ( Slip x Threaded). I attached a raiser and a 2 port manifold to each and a line with adjustable valve to each line going to each pot.

 

[415friendly]

I like the T's. I did some drip feeding with Coco last year, and I found that sometimes the drip emitter would get clogged. I never go around to trying different emitters, but it's always in my mind for a project.

I like projects.

 

[Troy01]

I like the T's. I did some drip feeding with Coco last year, and I found that sometimes the drip emitter would get clogged. I never go around to trying different emitters, but it's always in my mind for a project.

I like projects.

415Friendly - I've had the same trouble in the past with emitters getting clogged. Unfortunately a clogged emitter can prove fatal to a plant if not discovered on time. I currently have a foam filter around the input suction hose and I have an inline filter that is suppose to be here today or tomorrow.

I am lucky that I am now retired and am home most of the time to check in on them a couple times a day. I just can't help myself. One of the main reasons I working on a drip system is I have to be away from home next month for 4 days. In addition to travel plans the pots in the back of my tent are hard to get to and will only be more difficult once the front plants grow in.

 

[SOG001]

I think the "T"'s are a good solution to clogging the system I'm designing will be gravity fed. I will growing in coco and I want to have 30%-40% runoff. My thinking is I'll need a high flow volume to help pull oxygen into the coco. I currently water by hand with a wand connected to a pump it's hard on an old fart like me to get to the plants in the back without having to move some of them out of the room. The next grow is scheduled to start in April so I will do some testing to get the flow to each of the pots
balanced. My thinking is separate lines from the main reservoir to each of the pots with a flow control valve.

 

[Troy01]

I think the "T"'s are a good solution to clogging the system I'm designing will be gravity fed. I will growing in coco and I want to have 30%-40% runoff. My thinking is I'll need a high flow volume to help pull oxygen into the coco. I currently water by hand with a wand connected to a pump it's hard on an old fart like me to get to the plants in the back without having to move some of them out of the room. The next grow is scheduled to start in April so I will do some testing to get the flow to each of the pots
balanced. My thinking is separate lines from the main reservoir to each of the pots with a flow control valve.

Sounds like me. I'm growing in 7 Gallon Bags and let me tell you they aren't light. I had to pull 3 of the pots out to install my drip system. My girls are all just seedlings at this time so no lateral growth to speak of yet. They are also all Autos so won't be fighting height issues. My last grow was 1 DWC and 1 Soil and the plants were huge.

Not sure how much Oxygen you need to add into the CoCo as it drains so quickly and retains lots of air space. One option for you might be to put a bubbler in your reservoir to increase the o2 absorption. I haven't tried a gravity fed drip system but I have a good feeling the T's would work well with a gravity feed.

I am close to your design with the individual flow control valves. In my case I have the water flow into a 1/2 inch pipe wrapped around the tent. For 6 plants I have 3 raisers with a 2 port manifold on each. Each line to the "T" from the manifold has a control valve. I moved the valves for the rear pots up to the pot just before my drip ring. I will still have a problem getting to the rear plants to re-adjust the flow if needed. I'm hoping that the adjustment won't be needed once it is place.

I'm going to be doing my next grow in April also. I will probably have to start my seeds a bit earlier in my second tent as I have to complete my grow and have it jarred up no later than July 1. That is the main reason I'm growing Auto's. Like a squirrel trying to get enough put away for the winter.

 

[415friendly]

I would think an air stone in the reservoir should add enough oxygen.

That's what I ended up doing; and I think I eventually removed the emitters.

I was also in a situation where I was going away for a couple of weeks at a time and needed to set up some watering system to cover my absence.

I like the idea of auto watering, but I still like to pull the plants out of the tent once in a while to look them over and switch their positioning in the tent.