# Combination Drip/ DWC system



## CasualGrower (Dec 17, 2008)

Hey Guys.. I came up with an idea today.  DWC is a great way to grow, but let's face it, IF you are growing more than just a few plants, those waterchanges and daily PPM and PH monitoring and adjustments are a real Pain In the Arse.  So I thought, Hmmm , what can I do to tie all the buckets together into one system, incorporate a resevoir for ease of adding nutes and Ph adjust and a way to remix the solution.  This way, EVERY plant you are growing is in the exact same solution. take the variables of OOOPs  I put too much in that one and so on.

My solution is kinda neat, at least I think so.  We are gonna combine a WaterFarm type of setup with a Ebb and Flood type system.  Now if I am thinking right, the watefarm system does not circulate the solution through the entire system, it just adds wate to the buckets to keep them at the right level, but it might, I am not sure.  Growdude can chime in here to set that straight.  If it does recirculate the solution, then I just reinvented the watefarm LOL.

For the grow buckets in this system you could use the Ebb and Grow 6 bucket add on, all the holes and hardware are already with the system and it will all tie in nicely.  You can just use another bucket or any sturdy container can be used for the resevoir.  Just have to do a lil math to figure out how many nuts or what to set the resevoir PH to get the PH you wat through the whole system.

Set your air pump to run 24/7 and set your watepump to run a few or seveal times a day... you could run it 24/7 but don't need to.  As water is being pumped out of the resevoir, water is returning at the same rate back to the res, so the whole system will have the same water level at all times... During the pumping the new solution is being mixed and refreshed in the buckets, Uptake and nute usage may be different between plants, but with the wate exchange the entire system will stay the same EC and PH....

Anyway take a look at the pics, they should speak for themselves....

Any questions  just ask away.  I am going out tonite but will be on most the day tomorrow to answer.


Hmm pics not showing up.... but says attachment in progress.... might show up heh.. I f they dont show up late I will repost.


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## WeedHopper (Dec 17, 2008)

Hydro Store where I live,,the guy just made what your talking about. Setup like a DWC but it has a drip system. Each bucket has its on water that is circulated by a small sub Pump from the bottom of the bucket up thru the dripper and back down into the bucket. Also has a big Airstone in each bucket, ran by a Big air pump with 6 mannifold for up to 6 bucket setup. He doesnt have to change the water alot that I know of.

Andy52,,,do you have to change your DWC water often?


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## CasualGrower (Dec 17, 2008)

OK.... will get the pics up tomorrow...


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## city (Dec 18, 2008)

I am def. Interestes. I have been thinking of the same thing. I will be watching. Thanks


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## andy52 (Dec 18, 2008)

i change my water weekly.you could go longer,but, the plants drink lots when they get bigger and deplete the nutes.by topping off you weaken the nute strength some.also after adding back the amount of water you started with,its best to change out.also you can get salt build up which is not good.its easy to change out and be sure.some go for long periods of time without changing their res,but they keep an eye on the tds and ph,adding as called for.i prefer what works for me and i do not have to second guess my nute solution.also i do not constantly monitor my nute solution.i have yet to have any fluctuation in ph or a rise in tds to be concerned with.


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## CasualGrower (Dec 18, 2008)

Grrrrr It is not letting me post pics..... frustrating....  I hit the submit reply and NOTHING happens....


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## CasualGrower (Dec 18, 2008)

pic


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## CasualGrower (Dec 18, 2008)

andy52 said:
			
		

> i change my water weekly.you could go longer,but, the plants drink lots when they get bigger and deplete the nutes.by topping off you weaken the nute strength some.also after adding back the amount of water you started with,its best to change out.also you can get salt build up which is not good.its easy to change out and be sure.some go for long periods of time without changing their res,but they keep an eye on the tds and ph,adding as called for.i prefer what works for me and i do not have to second guess my nute solution.also i do not constantly monitor my nute solution.i have yet to have any fluctuation in ph or a rise in tds to be concerned with.


 
I would go every 2 weeks in my grows, but in this system you could just top off the water every few days, check you PPM level and PH and make adjustment accordingly to one res, rather than messing with 12-18 separate buckets... and I agree that water changes are healthy for plants and SHOULD be done, the frequency that it NEEDS to be done would go down in this system..... I would say IF you have a 9 week blooming strain,  do a complete change at 4 weeks and again at 8 weeks to flush the last week with straight water....

sound good?


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## andy52 (Dec 18, 2008)

agreed,if you have the space for a separate res.i personally would rather have plants than a bigger res in my veg or flower area.especially with my set-up.its very easy and simple to change out buckets.takes me about 10-15 minutes after i get my nutes mixed and my ph dead on.also using a separate res for more than one bucket is detrimental to what i've been talking about.each plant has different nute needs and you can not do that with the res for more than one plant.


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## Growdude (Dec 18, 2008)

Its not really an re-invention of the waterfarm but as you say more of a recirculating drip/DWC system.

It is cool and should work, the hoses could be run out of the grow area to a remote rez and it would not waste grow space as well as keep the rez temps down.


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## ozzydiodude (Dec 18, 2008)

:watchplant: :farm: I have just started my first DWC the growth rate is incredable:banana: . 

 What is the most ladies to put in a 5 Gal bucket? IMO 4 would be max.

:48: :tokie: :48: 


:headbang2: :bong1:


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## WeedHopper (Dec 18, 2008)

ozzydiodude said:
			
		

> :watchplant: :farm: I have just started my first DWC the growth rate is incredable:banana: .
> 
> What is the most ladies to put in a 5 Gal bucket? IMO 4 would be max.
> 
> ...


 

1 Lady 1 Bucket.


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## CasualGrower (Dec 18, 2008)

one plant per bucket..... Each plant will take up to about 1-1.5 sq feet or more.. depends on how much you veg them...so it could be  a LOT more too.. depending on your growing style and the strain.


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## eastla_kushsmoka (Dec 18, 2008)

do waterfarms work good was thing of owning 1


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## Growdude (Dec 19, 2008)

EASTLA_KUSHSMOKA said:
			
		

> do waterfarms work good was thing of owning 1



I think so, check out some of my grows.


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## playaction (Jan 12, 2009)

Is your controller bucket lower than your grow buckets?  That is do you have your grow buckets raised up above the controller ?

Is a air stone in each bucket needed?  Isn't the drip ring in each grow bucket enough to bring oxygen to the water along with an air pump in resevoir? 

You have a great idea.  I've seen massive results from  a similar system.  Maintenance is greatly reduced.


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## CasualGrower (Jan 12, 2009)

The controller bucket would be the same level as the grow buckets.....

When you see the water drop in the rez/controller you know that the plants are drinking it up, the level in all the buckets would be identical.....

I would still use an airstone 24/7 in all the buckets... and the water pump would only be run a few times a day to redistribute and level out the nute levels in all the buckets.....You could run it 24/7, but would be a small waste of electricity IMO.


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## Tater (Jan 14, 2009)

I got what you need.  I'm build I a recirculating auto top up dwc system as we speak.  All I need is the rez (a big ol rain barrel) and a 5 gallon bucket with a good lid.  Here's what you do (or what I did).  I got 6 tubs in two rows with a single drain line running down between the two rows.  Each tub is T 'd into the drain line and raised 4" off the floor.  The drain line runs to the bottom of the 5 gallon bucket.  Another nipple runs from the 5 gallon bucket to the bottom of the reservoir.  The bottom hole in the reservoir is controlled by a float valve like in your toilet.  There is a pump in the 5 gallon bucket pumping water into the top of the reservoir.  Now as the pump refills the reservoir from the dwc tubs I have the level of solution drops, as the reservoir fills the float valve is pulled (just like flushing the toilet) and the solution rushes out the bottom of the reservoir into the 5 gallon bucket and back into the tubs.  When it finishes filling the tubs if the level of the water is below the second float valve (like the one that fills your toilet) it tops up the system and the cycle starts again.  I have it set so that there is always 4 inches of water in the bottom of my tubs.  This single drain setup simplifies the plumbing and ensures the solution is the same across the board.  The trick is you need a res that can handle all the water in your system.  Another nice thing about this is that at each tub I have a ball valve.  I can turn the ball valve, remove the tub from the system for maitenance or cleaning or whatever and the system will adapt and auto level itself.  Not only that but now I will only need to check one reservoir to know that all my plants are receiving what they need.  I'll post pic's and a diagram explaining it asap.


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## andy52 (Jan 14, 2009)

of all the different strains i've grown,they all have different needs.i just feel uneasy having the same nute level for all my plants at the same time.as all of you have done before,you start 10 seeds and they all pop at different intervals.they also grow at different rates.to me it just makes sense to adjust the nutes accordingly.i know that growdude has had some outstanding grows,hes gotten the waterfarm licked.i personally like to give individualized care to each individual plant.everyone has their preference on the way they grow and the systems they use.thats why this is a unique science we offer to our ladies.we strive to make the best situations possible for the ultimate outcome of our efforts.


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## Tater (Jan 14, 2009)

True enough, but without a way to replenish water at any time you run the risk of creating a nutrient lock or burning your plants.  Plants don't feed at regular intervals, sometimes they won't feed all day when the lights are on but then in the middle of the night BOOM they will hammer your res and start transpiring water.  It isn't understood why this happens with few theories being put forward, all we know is that it does happen.  As far as burning plants go and nutrient requirements, all the advice seems to lean towards giving them as much as they can take, which makes little sense to me.  If you can prove to me the overall gain outways the risk of burning your plants and halfing your harvest in one go then I will believe you.

So in closing, I suppose on a small enough scale with a large enough reservoir to draw from individual plant care wouldn't be to bad.  On the other hand, if you want to fill a room checking each bucket quickly becomes a GIANT PITA.

Auto top up setups are far superior to anything that requires you to manually check the solution.  That is unarguable.  Are they worth the effort for everyone, personally I think so but thats up to the grower.  Especially since it would cost about 30 dollars to make a simple setup.  Heck I could show you how to make a top up system for a single 5 gallon bucket that would cost less than 50 cents.

Good advice though andy on watching nutrient requirements of different strains.


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## CasualGrower (Jan 14, 2009)

Tater said:
			
		

> I got what you need. I'm build I a recirculating auto top up dwc system as we speak. All I need is the rez (a big ol rain barrel) and a 5 gallon bucket with a good lid. Here's what you do (or what I did). I got 6 tubs in two rows with a single drain line running down between the two rows. Each tub is T 'd into the drain line and raised 4" off the floor. The drain line runs to the bottom of the 5 gallon bucket. Another nipple runs from the 5 gallon bucket to the bottom of the reservoir. The bottom hole in the reservoir is controlled by a float valve like in your toilet. There is a pump in the 5 gallon bucket pumping water into the top of the reservoir. Now as the pump refills the reservoir from the dwc tubs I have the level of solution drops, as the reservoir fills the float valve is pulled (just like flushing the toilet) and the solution rushes out the bottom of the reservoir into the 5 gallon bucket and back into the tubs. When it finishes filling the tubs if the level of the water is below the second float valve (like the one that fills your toilet) it tops up the system and the cycle starts again. I have it set so that there is always 4 inches of water in the bottom of my tubs. This single drain setup simplifies the plumbing and ensures the solution is the same across the board. The trick is you need a res that can handle all the water in your system. Another nice thing about this is that at each tub I have a ball valve. I can turn the ball valve, remove the tub from the system for maitenance or cleaning or whatever and the system will adapt and auto level itself. Not only that but now I will only need to check one reservoir to know that all my plants are receiving what they need. I'll post pic's and a diagram explaining it asap.


 
Pretty much what I had in mind by the way I read it....  I just wouldn't have the big old rain barrel and mix in the bucket where the pump is....  A little math neds to be done, but I am good with numbers... or you can bump it a lil, run the pump and mix up the buckets and then recheck to see if you are where ya want to be....Somewhere in the drainline I would have a T-valve with a hose so I could drain the system for the complete wate changes.


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## CasualGrower (Jan 14, 2009)

andy52 said:
			
		

> of all the different strains i've grown,they all have different needs.i just feel uneasy having the same nute level for all my plants at the same time.as all of you have done before,you start 10 seeds and they all pop at different intervals.they also grow at different rates.to me it just makes sense to adjust the nutes accordingly.i know that growdude has had some outstanding grows,hes gotten the waterfarm licked.i personally like to give individualized care to each individual plant.everyone has their preference on the way they grow and the systems they use.thats why this is a unique science we offer to our ladies.we strive to make the best situations possible for the ultimate outcome of our efforts.


 
True enough on that Andy, this system would probably not work for you vey well....  You like to grow seveal diffeent strains at a time.  This system would be for someone to run a continous grow with say 6 clones the same age.....


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## Tater (Jan 14, 2009)

The system I outlined above is going to have 48 plants in 6 tubs.  5 different strains and a tub of bagseed lol.  If you keep your nutes on the low side the plants will still get what they need and you shouldn't burn any of them.  Some are finicky but those don't get grown the next time.  Crazy high ppm's, like 1600 and what not are just ridiculous and asking for trouble.  Mine don't go over 1100 or so and even then they only hit that for one or two weeks.  Nutrients are expensive, and just because the plant can handle it doesn't mean it needs that much.


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