stands for smart pots

[grass hopper]

Your soil draws air to the roots/microbes when you water. No need to worry, if you are using good soil.

They make all different sizes of saucers. I have ones big enough for 5 gal. Smart pots that has room to spare.

The ones i have fit quite snug. I usually have a packed tent. could go a little larger, 1 inch, 2 inch larger may be too large. not worried duck. just trying to get the max. efficiency out of felt pots. again, i love how much quicker the felt pots dry on the elevated stands. these need watering almost twice as often as others.

 

[sMACkaddict]

mac, u r asking alot there.

hahah :rofl:

I guess I am, I was just hoping some one here had figured the perfect solution out... I really like idea of bbq grills elevated using golf balls! good one hacker!

woah, the plant lift is pretty awsome, not gonna buy it, but looks like a pretty solid solution...

what abotu a cheap version of this: http://www.harborware.com/harborware-plastic-grate-decking-panels-3-x-4/

 

[sMACkaddict]

one more thing...


what about these? not too bad pricewise: [ame]http://www.amazon.com/Wilton-2105-459-Excelle-3-Tier-Cooling/dp/B00030CGKY/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1456159415&sr=8-10&keywords=large+cooling+rack[/ame]

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

one more thing...


what about these? not too bad pricewise: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00030CGKY/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Make sure they will hold the weight. Larger containers can weight a whole bunch when full of soil and just watered.

 

[sMACkaddict]

ahh good call THG

just read through the questions/answers and one said they are very wobbly... so definitely a no go!

 

[grass hopper]

Your first thought is ideal if not for the price. The 3 tier is wasted tiers, money, labor etc. Also need between 9 x 9 and 10 1/2 x 10 1/2 size, perfect for 5 gal. felt. Or able to cut somewhat easy. But again, you are on the track I was looking for. Thank you for your ideas mac!! There must be something someone has found or just lucked into. These pots have been around for sometime. Either my thinking is wrong as they will hurt, not help vs help like I think and a solution is out there somewhere. Thanks Mac.

 

[sMACkaddict]

the tiers rack separate into 3 individual racks, which makes the price very attractive. Unfortunately it looks like they wouldnt be able to support plants really.

I get what you are saying about maybe it not helping... like if the solution isn't around, maybe its because it isn't a good idea... haha

Either way, I'm right there with you man, im gonna keep looking around for a good solution. I will post here if I find anything worth discussing.

 

[Bongofury]

I searched amazon for cooling racks. There are a bunch to choose from.

 

[Hackerman]

Ya know.... I hate to throw a monkey wrench into the works but after some thought... and some experiences lately with my first grow in smart pots... I don't think you should try to drain the bottom. In fact, I believe you should be trying to do exactly the opposite.

I was watering my smart pots today and I noticed how the water runs out of the sides and down into the saucer that I have my smart pots in. It made me think of something THG said about my grow a while back.

I never used saucers. Whatever the plant didn't take as the water passed through, ran out the bottom and into the drain. Add to the fact that I was using my own mix of soil that had a ton of perlite and vermiculite in it so it drained like crazy. As THG put it... probably too fast.

Since then, I have been using saucers and I find I have much better control over the pot and I waste a lot less nutes.

Some mixes drain really fast. And, these smart pots drain even faster because they drain from everywhere. LOL

Now, I let mine run though and sit in the saucer until the plant has had a chance to suck it all back up and use it.

Whatever is still in the saucer a few hours later..... I just bend the plastic saucer down to the ground and the remaining water drains out of the saucer into the floor drain system.

So.... with that in mind, I believe I will go against the pack here and suggest that you stop looking for a way to drain the bottom and start using saucers.

JMO JME

Why am I always the bad machine. LOL

 

[WeedHopper]

Yep,,thats what i always did when i grew in dirt. My runnoff fed the plant till dry. Makes the roots stretch. Ive had roots coming out the holes in the bottom of the pot. Lol

 

[Rosebud]

You don't need to worry about smart pots hanging on to moisture..they are smart pots. I like having mine in saucers and water just like Hackerman does. I thought you just wanted them raised... you don't need to have a stand...really.

 

[grass hopper]

When my gals are halfway thru flower, they suck up ALOT of food/water. From what ive been told, I over feed, water, but wanna make sure every root is fed. After a 20 minute runoff time, I vacuum out tent., all sacks are saturated at this point. What ive noticed is the gals on stands dry much faster than plants on the tent floor. Stand plants need water in 3 days. Others will need water in 5 to 7 days. I heard, read shorter is a desired effect. Also air can get to the bottom as well as all sides. Again, this APPEARS to be a better case. I use mostly fox farm soils. I just remembered, :huh: the reason I stopped using the tight saucers Htg sold me was my plants were taking forever to dry. (My over watering, feeding.) Especially mid to late flower.

 

[Hackerman]

OK, my bad. I was not aware that your plants were soaking in the runoff for 20 minutes.

How will they do that if they are on stands?

I do agree with a faster wet/dry cycle being better, overall. So, trying to achieve that is a good thing.

Although, I don't understand how they will soak in runoff if they are on stands.

OK, how about this......

Use regular, good quality saucers. at least a few inches deep and slightly larger than the base of the smart pot.

Put a small lift, like the 1/2" light grids mention earlier, into the bottom of the saucer under the smart pot.

Poke tiny, pin-sized holes in the bottom of the saucer. Start with one or 2 and adjust as needed.

When you water, the runoff will go into the saucer and the plant will soak it up. However, the tiny holes will allow the water to drain so that in 20 minutes, the saucer is empty and the smart pot is 1/2 inch off the bottom of the saucer so it will dry.

You don't think of stuff like this without cannabis. LOL

 

[grass hopper]

hey hack, i have had the edge runoff as well. i slow feed more now and all plants are soaked when done. gonna ask, read somore and let u know what i find out next week. thanks hack.

 

[WeedHopper]

I was talking about watering to you get SOME runoff. With small amounts of runoff there should be no problem with your roots sucking that up.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

If you raised them up with something solid, like the pieces of insulation that duck and I mentioned, then they would not dry out as fast. The reason that they dry out faster is that they are draining out of the bottom of the bags and also have air flow all the way around. If they were sitting on something solid like a slab of insulation instead of something like a rack, then they would all dry out about the same time.

I still recommend drain trays.

 

[Hushpuppy]

I have to agree with THG, WH, and Hackerman (at least in principal as I don't grow with that method), that you shouldn't HAVE to lift them to allow the level of drying that you are seeming to need. One thing that always helps, if you aren't using it already, is to aerate your water for a good 24hrs before using it. This allows lots of oxygen to get dissolved into the water. That will help protect the roots after watering.

 

[grass hopper]

You guys are probably correct. Will learn more. Thanks

 

[Hackerman]

One thing that always helps, if you aren't using it already, is to aerate your water for a good 24hrs before using it. This allows lots of oxygen to get dissolved into the water. That will help protect the roots after watering.

My aerator is on 24/7. It's only a tiny 2 line fish pump so it's not eating electricity. I keep about 20 - 1 gallon jugs filled. I run air stones into 9 jugs (3 stones on each line from the pump). When I water, Usually use 4 or 5. Sometimes 6. Then, the stones go into more jugs for the next time.

I can't say I notice a difference but I never really did any side by side testing on it. Seems like it would help dissipate the chlorine.

One thing to remember, aerating your water changes the pH. Watch for that.

 

[bud88]

GH,
I was just at one of the hydro stores that I frequent and came across this.....Only one problem...They are currently on backorder...

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