DIY Ebb & Flow for under 100$

[jcj77d]

Here my DIY Ebb & Flow I built pretty easily for under 100$, & everything was found at lowes or other hardware stores, & the pet store.
Well ill go ahead & post up my Ebb & Flow Setup, its not 100% done, prob like 98%, just got to hook up the tubing, wash my hydotron pebbles, & get some screen for my tray to keep debris out of the res, & mark my stick for the water level in res. All this stuff was bought for around ~100$, & everything was bought @ lowes & the pet store. This is my setup, so not everything is needed, this is just how i did it.

Parts:
1. Flood Tray (36x24x8) - 14$
2. 18gal Rubbermaid Tub - 9$
3. 100-155gph pump - 25$
4. 18' 1/2" vinyl tubing - 9$
5. 1/2" female adapter (2) - 1.34$
6. 1/2" nylon barb to mip adapter (2) - 3$
7. 1/2" nylon hose barb splicer (2) - 2$
8. Mini 3 Stage Filter Pump - 10$
9. Piece of 1 1/2" PVC pipe (21") - 5$
10. 1 1/2" PVC end cap - 1$
11. 1/8" dowel rod - 1$
Total cost: ~80$

Parts I already Have:
1. 20gal air pump
2. 3" round air stone
3. air hose tubing
4. zip ties & foil tape


not everything is listed on the receipt.

Take flood tray & drill out 2 hole to fit the 1/2" female barb adapter, 1 for flood, & 1 for drain. then screw in the barb adapters on the bottom side, then secure them w/ the male adapters on the inside. Then seal the fittings w/ silicone on both sides, (i also took some water proof foil tape, & taped around the bottom side fittings to ensure no leaks) & on the flood fitting (male part, on the inside), i drilled 4 1/4" holes around the bottom so all the water can drain out.
Heres pics to illustrate things:

inside of tray

bottom of tray

close up of fittings on the bottom side

shot of fittings taped up w/ water proof foil tape

fittings on the inside of tray (1 of them will be cut down some, wont know which one till up & tested, the other will hold a 6" piece of 1/2" tubing for the high-end drain)


shot of the inside fittings, notice the 1/4" holes drilled near the bottom for complete water drainage (screen will go around those to keep depris out of pump & res)
Thats it for the Flood Tray

Now the Res:

Drill two 1/2" holes for the flood & drain tubing

cut a space out for the cords & air line

do the same for the lid, but dont remove the piece, this will help keep light out.


this is what it looks like w/ lid on the res

Now take lid & cut out 1 1/2" hole for my DIY water level meter (props to Osho for the idea)

1 1/2" hole cut out for PVC pipe

Now measure the depth of your res (mines 17") & add 4" or so to that = 21", this will be the length you need to cut your PVC to.

21" piece of 1 1/2" PVC pipe w/ end cap


end cap w/ a ~ 1/4" hole drilled to fit the 1/8" dowel rod

take other end of PVC & cut or drill holes @ the very bottom to allow water to enter the pipe

Now find your choice of material that is water proof & floats, i picked Neoprene Foam, then cut it to fit inside the PVC pipe w/ some extra space to ensure it can move freely. a ping pong ball will work as well.

Neoprene Float for my DIY water level meter


take float & place & secure the 1/8" dowel rod to it w/ silicone

cut dowel rod down to size, put into PVC pipe, & put something (light) on the end so it cant fall back through, i used clear tape.


Now put lid on the res, push the PVC pipe through the hole till it hits the bottom,

then secure the lid & PVC pipe together, i used the water proof foil tape, so it doesnt lose its position.

Not done yet, but you need to mark your dowel rod w/ a marker as you fill your res up. this will tell you how much water is in your res, b/c as you fill the res, the Neoprene will float, pushing the dowel rod up, & when the water gets used up, it will lower. I plan to mark my dowel rod @ 3gals, 6gals, then every gallon after that.

Thats it for the res, now all I have to do is install the pumps, air stone, & tubing from res to tray.


pump to keep res clean & to circulate the water around

res flood pump

18' of 1/2" black vinyl tubing

10-20gal air pump

3" round air stone

fitting packages for reference.

Well got the hydro setup res filled w/ 14gals of PUR Filtered water, & now is being filtered again w/ the 3 stage mini filter pump, all while being oxygenated w/ the 10-20gal air pump & 3" air stone. tested everything, no leaks, but it doesnt drain all the way, im left w/ about ~1/2" of water left in the bottom of the tray, so i got to do some tweaking.
the mini filter pump has a spray bar i attached w/ 10 holes to circulate the water in a circle around the tub, to keep the water constantly moving. ill get a video up of it running soon.



well its up & running, got 12 plants in there, 3 auto ak47 x hindu kush, 2 diesel ryder, & 7 short stuff under the 600w hps. heres pics of it, & pics of my super cropping. & i got my 8 DR replacement seeds today too
any tips or suggestions welcome

[superultramega]

cool. I used the same type of tub in my first E&F grow. looks great.

A couple suggestions based on my experience.

Your fill and drain fittings have a very good chance of getting clogged with roots. I ended up building some different tables w/ 4" pvc pipe drilled with a lot of holes over the drain/fill fitting and put a fernco cap on top of it above the top of the gorwing media so I can pull the cover, reach down and clear out any roots trying to kill themselves by blocking the nute flow.
Second, those silicone connections have a very good chance of leaking. That might be a problem for you, maybe not. You can buy o-ring fittings specifically for this for likely cheaper than the pvc parts from the local home center. Like these:Ebb and Flow Fittings - Interior Gardens

Other than that, you've saved yourself a lot of cash on an overpriced E&F table.
good luck

[jcj77d]

Originally Posted by superultramega

cool. I used the same type of tub in my first E&F grow. looks great.

A couple suggestions based on my experience.

Your fill and drain fittings have a very good chance of getting clogged with roots. I ended up building some different tables w/ 4" pvc pipe drilled with a lot of holes over the drain/fill fitting and put a fernco cap on top of it above the top of the gorwing media so I can pull the cover, reach down and clear out any roots trying to kill themselves by blocking the nute flow.
Second, those silicone connections have a very good chance of leaking. That might be a problem for you, maybe not. You can buy o-ring fittings specifically for this for likely cheaper than the pvc parts from the local home center. Like these:Ebb and Flow Fittings - Interior Gardens

Other than that, you've saved yourself a lot of cash on an overpriced E&F table.
good luck

thanks, we'll see how things play out, not shown in pics is screen covering both the flood & drain fittings, & the reason i went w/ a 155gph pump, which should push the roots away from the drain, b/c when it kicks on, it almost acts like a fountain, pushing the hydroton rocks away from drain & water shoots up, & i did think about the leaking, thats why i reinforced the bottom side w/ water proof foil tape (this stuff is the bomb), have used it for all my hydro fittings, etc, & no leaks, even on my 3yr old hempy buckets. good tips though +rep

[superultramega]

The screening will keep the hydroton out but not the roots. The pump won't be enough to blow them out. Just keep an eye on it. Make sure you SEE a cycle every couple days. When you change over make an accomodation in your setup to allow for cleanout. Most tables don't have this because you can see the fittings between the pots and easily clear them of roots. This is a problem particular to a large bed technique.

[jcj77d]

Originally Posted by superultramega

The screening will keep the hydroton out but not the roots. The pump won't be enough to blow them out. Just keep an eye on it. Make sure you SEE a cycle every couple days. When you change over make an accomodation in your setup to allow for cleanout. Most tables don't have this because you can see the fittings between the pots and easily clear them of roots. This is a problem particular to a large bed technique.

i do, i watch it cycle a few times a day, im real particular about my plants/grows, so ill just check the drain everyday to clear roots away, might even box the drains off, so roots cant get in it. i think next round will be w/ net pots filled w/ hydroton for the ease of moveing plants around, removing males, & clean-up, etc

[superultramega]

climbing under the table to clean out the fitting was a PITA. Ridding myself of this aggrivation led to my redesign so I could clear out the roots from above. I DO still like growing in large tables with several plants. This problem seems to be the only drawback.
I've never felt the need to move plants around. They get tied/trained to fill the space. If one plant doesn't perform it gets overtaken by a stronger plant looking for light. Once the roots start to grow out of the pots you really don't want to be moving them much anyway. (I know, I know a lot of you do especially moving from veg to flower rooms, but if it can be avoided...)
I just chop the males.

[BrickCitySmoker]

Thanks for the thread...it was very helpful. =)

[Wharfrat74]

+rep for the set up, the quick tut. & of course for the DIY.


hey if you can get em. A great tray are Bus tubs for restraunts..pretty sturdy and normally less then 10 bucks at a restraunt supply house.

and roots grow through anything porous enough .. I had em growing into my pumps sponge filter in my RF 36..and into the drains in my home made EnF... but I use pots (regular single gallon pots work very well)so I can actually get to my return with out digging or moving the plants much. although I can damage the roots pretty good if I move em as they get all locked together...suppose I could use mats huh ?


at anyrate wanted to see your set up and say "high! it looks good."

[Lord Sativa]

Love your setup man, but forgive me if this sounds crazy. Did you break a few of those plants so they lean over to the side? Looks bent/pinched to me.

[jcj77d]

Originally Posted by Lord Sativa

Love your setup man, but forgive me if this sounds crazy. Did you break a few of those plants so they lean over to the side? Looks bent/pinched to me.

yes i did, its supercropping.

[Riddyck]

Love ur setup mine is very similiar to urs check it out in my sig + rep for the hard work.... keep it up

[xpatrick]

Inspiring DIY!
I'm planning a DIY similar while I never thought the bill would go below 100.
Thumbs up, +rep

[Wharfrat74]

hows it runnin ?

[jcj77d]

Originally Posted by Wharfrat74

hows it runnin ?

its running nice, gotta make a few tweaks after harvest

[BakedAtAMileHi]

This is a great set of instructions but I can't see the photographs. I'm interested in putting something like this together: do you have the instructions complete with pictures? Thanks!