# DIY Smart Pot



## deadkndys

Saw this on ICMag surprised it hasn't been posted here yet.

Pretty neat imo.



> Here are some pics of how we build our DIY smart pots.
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> We are constructing a 10 gallon smart pot
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> Tools to get the job done.
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> 25 inch X 50 inch piece of geotextile fabric unfolded
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> fold in half into a 25 x 25 inch square
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> glue or stitch the two open sides. Here we use PL glue. this stuff is rock solid
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> smooth out the glue
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> really work out any bubbles and smooth that mofo out!
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> Repeat on the opposite side
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> You let the bag sit flat for 48 hours so the glue can dry/cure and expand. The glued edges will not break loose. PL premium is rank stuff.
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> This is what you end up with..
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> Now fold the bag inside out
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> make the corners touch each other inside the bag
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> All done!
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> So cheap to make and easy as can be
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> here is the data for the size of pots and cut size
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> no more ***** around, ran the numbers through a spreadsheet
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> size accounts for 3/4 inch of glued edge, and the gallons are at 85% of pot capacity
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> bag dimensions in inches
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> seam width: 0.75 / fill percentage (80-100%): 85
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> cut size: height x width / folded size: height x width / filled size: diameter x height / volume in gallons / volume in ml / volume in litres
> 4 x 8 / 4 x 4 / 2.1 x 2.2 / 0.03 gallons / 102 ml / 0.1 litres
> 5 x 10 / 5 x 5 / 2.7 x 2.8 / 0.06 gallons / 227 ml / 0.2 litres
> 6 x 12 / 6 x 6 / 3.3 x 3.5 / 0.11 gallons / 429 ml / 0.4 litres
> 7 x 14 / 7 x 7 / 4.0 x 4.2 / 0.19 gallons / 724 ml / 0.7 litres
> 8 x 16 / 8 x 8 / 4.6 x 4.8 / 0.30 gallons / 1129 ml / 1.1 litres
> 9 x 18 / 9 x 9 / 5.3 x 5.5 / 0.44 gallons / 1664 ml / 1.7 litres
> 10 x 20 / 10 x 10 / 5.9 x 6.2 / 0.62 gallons / 2345 ml / 2.3 litres
> 11 x 22 / 11 x 11 / 6.5 x 6.8 / 0.84 gallons / 3191 ml / 3.2 litres
> 12 x 24 / 12 x 12 / 7.2 x 7.5 / 1.12 gallons / 4220 ml / 4.2 litres
> 13 x 26 / 13 x 13 / 7.8 x 8.2 / 1.44 gallons / 5448 ml / 5.4 litres
> 14 x 28 / 14 x 14 / 8.4 x 8.8 / 1.82 gallons / 6894 ml / 6.9 litres
> 15 x 30 / 15 x 15 / 9.1 x 9.5 / 2.27 gallons / 8575 ml / 8.6 litres
> 16 x 32 / 16 x 16 / 9.7 x 10.2 / 2.78 gallons / 10510 ml / 10.5 litres
> 17 x 34 / 17 x 17 / 10.4 x 10.8 / 3.36 gallons / 12716 ml / 12.7 litres
> 18 x 36 / 18 x 18 / 11.0 x 11.5 / 4.02 gallons / 15212 ml / 15.2 litres
> 19 x 38 / 19 x 19 / 11.6 x 12.2 / 4.77 gallons / 18013 ml / 18.0 litres
> 20 x 40 / 20 x 20 / 12.3 x 12.8 / 5.59 gallons / 21140 ml / 21.1 litres
> 21 x 42 / 21 x 21 / 12.9 x 13.5 / 6.51 gallons / 24608 ml / 24.6 litres
> 22 x 44 / 22 x 22 / 13.5 x 14.2 / 7.52 gallons / 28437 ml / 28.4 litres
> 23 x 46 / 23 x 23 / 14.2 x 14.8 / 8.64 gallons / 32643 ml / 32.6 litres
> 24 x 48 / 24 x 24 / 14.8 x 15.5 / 9.85 gallons / 37246 ml / 37.2 litres
> 25 x 50 / 25 x 25 / 15.4 x 16.2 / 11.18 gallons / 42261 ml / 42.3 litres
> 26 x 52 / 26 x 26 / 16.1 x 16.8 / 12.62 gallons / 47708 ml / 47.7 litres
> 27 x 54 / 27 x 27 / 16.7 x 17.5 / 14.18 gallons / 53604 ml / 53.6 litres
> 28 x 56 / 28 x 28 / 17.4 x 18.1 / 15.86 gallons / 59966 ml / 60.0 litres
> 29 x 58 / 29 x 29 / 18.0 x 18.8 / 17.68 gallons / 66813 ml / 66.8 litres
> 30 x 60 / 30 x 30 / 18.6 x 19.5 / 19.62 gallons / 74162 ml / 74.2 litres
> 31 x 62 / 31 x 31 / 19.3 x 20.1 / 21.70 gallons / 82032 ml / 82.0 litres
> 32 x 64 / 32 x 32 / 19.9 x 20.8 / 23.93 gallons / 90439 ml / 90.4 litres
> 33 x 66 / 33 x 33 / 20.5 x 21.5 / 26.30 gallons / 99402 ml / 99.4 litres
> 34 x 68 / 34 x 34 / 21.2 x 22.1 / 28.82 gallons / 108938 ml / 108.9 litres
> 35 x 70 / 35 x 35 / 21.8 x 22.8 / 31.50 gallons / 119066 ml / 119.1 litres
> 36 x 72 / 36 x 36 / 22.5 x 23.5 / 34.34 gallons / 129802 ml / 129.8 litres
> 37 x 74 / 37 x 37 / 23.1 x 24.1 / 37.35 gallons / 141166 ml / 141.2 litres
> 38 x 76 / 38 x 38 / 23.7 x 24.8 / 40.52 gallons / 153174 ml / 153.2 litres
> 39 x 78 / 39 x 39 / 24.4 x 25.5 / 43.87 gallons / 165844 ml / 165.8 litres
> 40 x 80 / 40 x 40 / 25.0 x 26.1 / 47.41 gallons / 179194 ml / 179.2 litres
> 41 x 82 / 41 x 41 / 25.6 x 26.8 / 51.12 gallons / 193243 ml / 193.2 litres
> 42 x 84 / 42 x 42 / 26.3 x 27.5 / 55.03 gallons / 208007 ml / 208.0 litres
> 43 x 86 / 43 x 43 / 26.9 x 28.1 / 59.13 gallons / 223504 ml / 223.5 litres
> 44 x 88 / 44 x 44 / 27.6 x 28.8 / 63.43 gallons / 239753 ml / 239.8 litres
> 45 x 90 / 45 x 45 / 28.2 x 29.5 / 67.93 gallons / 256771 ml / 256.8 litres
> 46 x 92 / 46 x 46 / 28.8 x 30.1 / 72.64 gallons / 274575 ml / 274.6 litres
> 47 x 94 / 47 x 47 / 29.5 x 30.8 / 77.56 gallons / 293184 ml / 293.2 litres
> 48 x 96 / 48 x 48 / 30.1 x 31.5 / 82.70 gallons / 312616 ml / 312.6 litres
> 49 x 98 / 49 x 49 / 30.7 x 32.1 / 88.07 gallons / 332888 ml / 332.9 litres
> 50 x 100 / 50 x 50 / 31.4 x 32.8 / 93.66 gallons / 354017 ml / 354.0 litres
> 51 x 102 / 51 x 51 / 32.0 x 33.5 / 99.48 gallons / 376023 ml / 376.0 litres
> 52 x 104 / 52 x 52 / 32.6 x 34.1 / 105.53 gallons / 398921 ml / 398.9 litres
> 53 x 106 / 53 x 53 / 33.3 x 34.8 / 111.83 gallons / 422731 ml / 422.7 litres
> 54 x 108 / 54 x 54 / 33.9 x 35.5 / 118.38 gallons / 447471 ml / 447.5 litres
> 55 x 110 / 55 x 55 / 34.6 x 36.1 / 125.17 gallons / 473157 ml / 473.2 litres
> 56 x 112 / 56 x 56 / 35.2 x 36.8 / 132.22 gallons / 499807 ml / 499.8 litres
> 57 x 114 / 57 x 57 / 35.8 x 37.5 / 139.53 gallons / 527440 ml / 527.4 litres
> 58 x 116 / 58 x 58 / 36.5 x 38.1 / 147.11 gallons / 556073 ml / 556.1 litres
> 59 x 118 / 59 x 59 / 37.1 x 38.8 / 154.95 gallons / 585725 ml / 585.7 litres
> 60 x 120 / 60 x 60 / 37.7 x 39.5 / 163.07 gallons / 616411 ml / 616.4 litres
> 61 x 122 / 61 x 61 / 38.4 x 40.1 / 171.47 gallons / 648152 ml / 648.2 litres
> 62 x 124 / 62 x 62 / 39.0 x 40.8 / 180.15 gallons / 680964 ml / 681.0 litres
> 63 x 126 / 63 x 63 / 39.7 x 41.5 / 189.12 gallons / 714864 ml / 714.9 litres
> 64 x 128 / 64 x 64 / 40.3 x 42.1 / 198.38 gallons / 749872 ml / 749.9 litres
> 65 x 130 / 65 x 65 / 40.9 x 42.8 / 207.94 gallons / 786005 ml / 786.0 litres
> 66 x 132 / 66 x 66 / 41.6 x 43.5 / 217.80 gallons / 823279 ml / 823.3 litres
> 67 x 134 / 67 x 67 / 42.2 x 44.1 / 227.97 gallons / 861714 ml / 861.7 litres
> 68 x 136 / 68 x 68 / 42.8 x 44.8 / 238.45 gallons / 901327 ml / 901.3 litres
> 69 x 138 / 69 x 69 / 43.5 x 45.5 / 249.24 gallons / 942136 ml / 942.1 litres
> 70 x 140 / 70 x 70 / 44.1 x 46.1 / 260.36 gallons / 984158 ml / 984.2 litres
> 71 x 142 / 71 x 71 / 44.7 x 46.8 / 271.80 gallons / 1027412 ml / 1027.4 litres
> 72 x 144 / 72 x 72 / 45.4 x 47.5 / 283.58 gallons / 1071915 ml / 1071.9 litres
> 73 x 146 / 73 x 73 / 46.0 x 48.1 / 295.68 gallons / 1117684 ml / 1117.7 litres
> 74 x 148 / 74 x 74 / 46.7 x 48.8 / 308.13 gallons / 1164739 ml / 1164.7 litres
> 75 x 150 / 75 x 75 / 47.3 x 49.5 / 320.92 gallons / 1213096 ml / 1213.1 litres
> 76 x 152 / 76 x 76 / 47.9 x 50.1 / 334.07 gallons / 1262773 ml / 1262.8 litres
> 77 x 154 / 77 x 77 / 48.6 x 50.8 / 347.56 gallons / 1313788 ml / 1313.8 litres
> 78 x 156 / 78 x 78 / 49.2 x 51.4 / 361.42 gallons / 1366159 ml / 1366.2 litres
> 79 x 158 / 79 x 79 / 49.8 x 52.1 / 375.64 gallons / 1419903 ml / 1419.9 litres
> 80 x 160 / 80 x 80 / 50.5 x 52.8 / 390.22 gallons / 1475039 ml / 1475.0 litres
> 81 x 162 / 81 x 81 / 51.1 x 53.4 / 405.18 gallons / 1531584 ml / 1531.6 litres
> 82 x 164 / 82 x 82 / 51.8 x 54.1 / 420.52 gallons / 1589556 ml / 1589.6 litres
> 83 x 166 / 83 x 83 / 52.4 x 54.8 / 436.24 gallons / 1648972 ml / 1649.0 litres
> 84 x 168 / 84 x 84 / 53.0 x 55.4 / 452.34 gallons / 1709851 ml / 1709.9 litres
> 85 x 170 / 85 x 85 / 53.7 x 56.1 / 468.84 gallons / 1772211 ml / 1772.2 litres
> 86 x 172 / 86 x 86 / 54.3 x 56.8 / 485.73 gallons / 1836068 ml / 1836.1 litres
> 87 x 174 / 87 x 87 / 54.9 x 57.4 / 503.03 gallons / 1901441 ml / 1901.4 litres
> 88 x 176 / 88 x 88 / 55.6 x 58.1 / 520.73 gallons / 1968348 ml / 1968.3 litres
> 89 x 178 / 89 x 89 / 56.2 x 58.8 / 538.84 gallons / 2036807 ml / 2036.8 litres
> 90 x 180 / 90 x 90 / 56.9 x 59.4 / 557.36 gallons / 2106834 ml / 2106.8 litres
> 91 x 182 / 91 x 91 / 57.5 x 60.1 / 576.31 gallons / 2178448 ml / 2178.4 litres
> 92 x 184 / 92 x 92 / 58.1 x 60.8 / 595.68 gallons / 2251668 ml / 2251.7 litres
> 93 x 186 / 93 x 93 / 58.8 x 61.4 / 615.48 gallons / 2326509 ml / 2326.5 litres
> 94 x 188 / 94 x 94 / 59.4 x 62.1 / 635.71 gallons / 2402991 ml / 2403.0 litres
> 95 x 190 / 95 x 95 / 60.0 x 62.8 / 656.38 gallons / 2481131 ml / 2481.1 litres
> 96 x 192 / 96 x 96 / 60.7 x 63.4 / 677.50 gallons / 2560947 ml / 2560.9 litres


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## Locked

Good stuff...thanks for sharing.


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## Dman1234

It is very interesting, but you can buy these things for 2-3 dollars a piece assembled and ready to use.  jmo


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## superman

Good DIY dude!!:aok: I think people sometimes forget that there's satisfaction in knowing you made something with your own hands and your own brain, not just saving money.
 Peace, Superman


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## 000StankDank000

Yea the PL glue is great for stuff that I ingest. I'm with Dman I'll spend the $2.5 and have handles and no toxins


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## MR1

I thought about the glue also but like he says you can sew it instead.


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## Locked

MR1 said:


> I thought about the glue also but like he says you can sew it instead.



:yeahthat:
My wife sews and she is always asking if she can help with the grows. Maybe now she can. 

Using glue sounds sketchy regardless though.


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## MR1

That sewing thing is something I will have to learn. I can get by sewing by hand but knowing how to use the machine would be best.


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## Dr. Green Fang

Nobody has said anything but I want to so here goes  

Ok, so before I say my point, I need to go off the path a bit here. I built this drying cabinet when I first started... $75.00 and 4 hours later, I had what I thought to be the bees knees of cabinetry; Then I posted my results here... What I learned next stuck with me to this day, and now I'm questioning your DIY pots, compared to my DIY cabinet. You see, I made the cabinet out of OSB plywood, and other wood that was pressure treated. People immediately started telling me about how the chemical wood would "off gas" and generally get the chemicals into the bud we smoke, and that it was horrible to do. People were nearly begging me not to use it! 

...this brings me to my statement for here. First thought I had was; "chemicals from that glue can EASILY leech into the soil and directly in and all through the plant. Actually, this seems even worse for chemical leech than what I had going on. Mine would've been through the air leeching, yours is going to be *direct* leeching. 

So there it is. I'm worried you're going to push unwanted/harmful chemicals through your plant, because of the glue (Liquid Nail?)...or I could be entirely wrong.

Just my $0.02!  Not trying to rip on your DIY, just the first thought that came to mind once I saw the glue


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## 000StankDank000

Bro I pointed that out. " you can sew it if you want" Time is $ spend the $2.5 CDN I'm sure it's like 2$ usd


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## Dr. Green Fang

Whoa.. whoops... erm, odd. When I went to reply there wasn't a single response. 

Sorry about my confusion


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## Locked

So I think the consensus is to sew these and not use something that might leach into your soil and ultimately make you sick.


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## 000StankDank000

I'm use fishing line if I was gonna sew these. I find the handles clutch when working with these


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## The Hemp Goddess

DO NOT USE GLUE TO MAKE THESE!

Thanks guys for bringing this up--it was my major concern with this DIY.  This cannot be stressed enough.  Please do not use any kind for construction adhesive (or anything else that could possibly be toxic) like this when making bags for cannabis or any edibles.  These all carry toxic warnings and can absolutely leach into the soil and the water and the roots of the plant.  Along the same lines is the reason that it is not a good idea to use the reusable store bags like those from Walmart to grow in.  The dyes and inks they use in the bags can be bad and leach into the soil and water.

I made a bunch of these for my friend last spring to go into milk crates--she has an artificial knee and needed a raised garden as she cannot kneel.  I used nylon thread--fishing line works well.  Cotton thread will break down.  Although I used a sewing machine, the sewing does not have to be neat, it just has to hold.  You can also staple them.  I used a heavy duty thick 4 oz landscape fabric that was woven.  The beauty of these is that you can make them any size you want.  A cubic foot is approx 7.5 gallons, so it is quite easy to figure gallons.

I have not been able to find them for 2-3 bucks and there are easy substitutes for the glue.  It is also easy to make handles for the bags.  I find that I want them in sizes that they don't come in.  I can make a ton of these from $30 worth of fabric...and some of us do have more time than money.


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## Lesso

THG, your friend uses them to line the inside of the milk crates? Do the bags completely fill out the inside of the crates? Im using these on my next flood and drain project. The milk crates and fabric are genius. Any chance for a diy from you?


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## The Hemp Goddess

I do need to get some landscape fabric ordered.  However, other than the glue, this is a nice tutorial.  However, I would be happy to put up something when I make some.  I will do it as an addendum to this Sticky though.  It gets too messy to get too many Stickies.  I will be sizing them to the space I am growing in.  LOL--I still have the sewing machine out.  I was making a quilt for one of my best friends for Christmas, but did not get it done until last week.  

I considered a lot of options before I set her up with the milk crates--raised beds, growing in straw bales, but decided that the lined milk crates would br best for her situation (and she needs a bit of pushing to actually get going on projects, so I made the mild crate liners for her).  It is quite easy.  The bags completely filled the milk crates and I filled with soil to about 2-3" below the top of the crate.  This would probably work well with a flood and drain set up.  

I like the heavier fabric and I am hoping that I will be able to reuse them.  Also all the info I read on making the bags recommends a woven poly that has been needle punched.  Here is the fabric I like:  [ame]http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000FNQ5R4/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=1HHYPCL51QYFW&coliid=I1V47DWUMZ0Z28&psc=1[/ame]  I will most likely also add some kind of handles to the ones that are to be freestanding.


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## Lesso

I hope you have time to post that. I have an upholstery stapler...do you think if i fold the corners 3 times and liberally staple them that it could work. They are aluminum alloy staples that wont rust. Im trying to avoid sewing anything...lol i suck at sewing.


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## The Hemp Goddess

I have sewn my entire life, so over the years, have gotten fairly proficient.  I know that a lot of people do not like to sew and few people anymore own sewing machines.  Yes, staples will work just fine.  Buy a heavy duty cloth and put the staples close together and maybe even run a second row of staples, staggered from the first row.

An ebb and flow with smart pots is an interesting idea that I may have to pursue.  It seems that these 2 could go together very well.

I ordered fabric the yesterday.  I will be making some pots to match the space I have to grow in now.  And I found a cord for my camera and I normally have plenty of time unless something weird comes up, so not excuses for me.


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## deadkndys

Do they make galvanized staples? I would use those to avoid rust.


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## deadkndys

The Hemp Goddess said:


> I ordered fabric the yesterday.  I will be making some pots to match the space I have to grow in now.  And I found a cord for my camera and I normally have plenty of time unless something weird comes up, so not excuses for me.


Cool post some pics when you're done.


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## MR1

I would stay away from galvanized, nasty stuff, use aluminum instead. Stainless would be best.


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## Lesso

Yeah...the zinc oxides in the presence of water.


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## The Hemp Goddess

I wouldn't worry about galvanized--there are still millions and millions of homes in the US with galvanized water lines.  Other than the fact that galvanized pipe are hard as [email protected]#$% to work on, there is nothing wrong with galvanized and water.


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## deadkndys

The Hemp Goddess said:


> I ordered fabric the yesterday.  I will be making some pots to match the space I have to grow in now.  And I found a cord for my camera and I normally have plenty of time unless something weird comes up, so not excuses for me.


So did you ever end up making those?


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## The Hemp Goddess

LOL, no.  I still have the fabric sitting there.  I have moved back to the mountains even though we still have a lot of snow.  I just got too homesick.  And then when I got here there just seemed so much to do.  I will get to it one of these first days....trying to get a quilt done for a friend of mine whose b-day is the middle of March right now.


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## jeritadamson

geotextile? landscape fabric? the amazon link didn't work. mum's the word on the "patented" material used to make smart pots, apparently. i've heard of ecofelt. anyway, i want to make 48 200-gallon smart pots. need an affordable, bulk material.  The manufactured 200-gallon pots are all too tall. i want to make one seven feet in diameter and a foot and a half high (7' x 18"). please, anyone, if you have undertaken large DIY smart pots (not 5-gals!) and succeeded, chime in! i need to find the cheapest bulk fabric that still breathes. anyone. weirdly hard to pin this down. $5/yard, by the way, is not cheap, not when making large pots like these. peace.

just found this:

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=201016


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