fogponic-aeroponic

Nutramist makes foggers and Futuregardens sells them. There are several on ebay under hydroponics fogger system. The more spendy ones pump the fog thru a tube to the container. I've seen from 1 head to 12 head foggers that set in the reservoir that are more econimcal. I would suggest using RO purified water so chemicals in the water don't clog the foggers.

 

Depending on how large your set-up is, and what you are doing besides the fog, you can save money and just start with a cheap-o pond fogger from Lowes. They sell them in their fountain accessories. They have blue LED lights, not sure if that matters, but since I don't want any light in my root area, I would paint them over with some glass paint, or duct tape them.

I have built, but not yet tested (waiting... sigh) a fogponic/hydroponic drip system. Because it's a small system, 4 plants, in one enclosed bin, the cheap fogger fills the entire container so well that I can't imagine I'd have better results with a more expensive fogger. The trick was getting my drainage hole to basically stop the escape of fog as the water drained from the drip system, so the fog has nowhere to go but in the bin or up through the grow medium, which is just where you want it.

Anyway, just on moisture levels alone, I was skeptical that the fog would feed my plant unless there was no grow medium at all (just exposed roots), so that's why I made mine a hybrid. Once the roots grow down through the grow medium and out the sides of the net pots, they will be fully exposed to the fog, but until then they will gain the benefit of the drip. I've seen this done online and it seems to work quite well.

As for gallons, the fog is supposed to be the most efficient method, so I am thinking you can get away with a smaller reservoir than some of these bubble bucket or similar setups. I am using a 7 gallon reservoir, and a 14 gallon bin "fog reservoir." My bin sits above the reservoir at an angle, so the drip recycles to the reservoir, as well as the water I pump to the bowl the fogger sits in. I'm using a cheap 155 gallons per hour fountain pump from Lowes to pump water to both my fogger (by way of 3 four GPH drip emitters) as well as my top drip system. I am using adjustable drippers for the top drip, rather than a timed drip cycle.

If that made any sense whatsoever.

To summarize, unless you plan to tie your plants to the pot and allow their roots to be exposed, as in pure aeroponics, you mights want to consider a hybrid hydro/fog system. The fog does not really penetrate a medium well, hardly at all really. I'm using very airy gravel in net pots, and still the fog doesn't seem to penetrate. The gallons you choose for a reservoir really just depends on how often you are willing to change and adjust your water.

As for PH, no matter what water you use you should have PH up and down to get it to the optimal level, and an accurate PH meter and EC meter. You can;t really do any hydro or aero system without these things.

 

id like to see more of this setup

 

Actually, the fog from ultrasonic foggers does not travel upwards on its own, it goes downward like the fog generated by dry ice. The only way it will go up is if a large quantity of it is trapped in an enclosed space, such as if you were to put it at the bottom of a bucket with just enough water for the fogger to run, or if it is blown by a fan. Systems with fans have the added benefit of giving the fog a bit more penetration in grow mediums, because the fog is suspended in air and it creates a vacuum effect that pulls to air through the grow medium.

I question the use of sprayers to mist in addition to the fogger, though. The fog creates a 100% humid climate, and the sprayer would essentially be pulling some of that water out of the air because of the falling larger drops of water. But I guess I'd have to see it in action before getting too judgmental.

As for my setup, I'll be posting detailed pics just as soon as it's ready. I'm still waiting on shipping to get a few of my parts. I'll also be starting a grow journal with this system which will ultimately show it's success or failure.

 

Oh yeah, and you'd have to change your water at least once during the grow, between veg and flower phases. Other than that, you will need the ability to check the water levels (PH, EC, etc.) and add water as it is used by the plants, evaporates, and such.

This is one of the reasons I did my setup the way I did. I had originally connected the reservoir to the fogging bin with a pipe, allowing the pipe to sit just barely above the lid of the reservoir, but every time I tried to move the reservoir to dump the water in my test runs, I ended up hitting that pipe and bunting it off (since it was just held to plastic via silicone). I came to the conclusion that I would be better off without the pipe there, and re-planned my system around that.

Based on the picture of your proposed system, changing the water would be a bit of a bitch. You'd have to syphon the water out, because you wouldn't be able to move that reservoir. You'd also have to be super careful not to shift your larger bin when dealing with your plants for fear of messing up the pipes.

 

Here's a quick sketch of my setup. The side of the top bin with the drain hole sites 1 inch lower than the other side, so the water drains. The drain hole itself has a 5" tall pipe extending up from it (inside the top bin). The bottom of the pipe has a crescent shaped hole cut out of it to allow the water to drain. Once the water is draining, that hole is completely plugged by the draining water, so none of the fog (or very little anyway) can escape that way. The fog has to build up the entire 5 inches of the pipe before it can escape through there.

The hemp string goes down through the crescent shaped hole and into my reservoir. The draining water follows the string once the string is wet, due to the principal of water cohesion. So this eliminates the sound of draining water and makes the setup very quiet.

 

I'm afraid I didn't explain that very well. It's not a DWC system, just a traditional recycling drip system with the addition of a fogger. The drippers in the bowl of water inside the top container keep the bowl full (overflowing at a slow rate) so the fogger is always at the correct water level. When the bowl overflows, it goes down the slope to the drain hole at the reservoir end. Likewise, the dripper drainage goes down the slope to the drain hole.

The only reason the pipe is there at all is because without it, a lot of fog simply flowed out of my top container along with the water drainage. So I put a 5 inch tall pipe (nearly the height of the interior of the top container) over the drain hole. I then cut a small hole at the base of the pipe, just large enough for the water to drain through. This blocked the escape of the fog, because the space is occuppied by the water draining out. So now, the fog builds up the entire height of that pipe before it can overflow the edge of the top of the pipe and flow out of the drain hole. You only see isolated wisps of fog coming out of the hole occasionally now, and the entire top bin is filled with dense fog.

 

If I had made my drain hole smaller, the pipe would be unnecessary. But it gives me something to mount the hemp string to, and I think the water drains better with it there than it would with just a small hole because it provides a back vent for the water.

 

Hey,
i am fairly new to the forums besides just reading threads i just registered so i can post and offer/share knowledge i have as well as ask for help.
so i would like to know... is it cool to post a new question on this thread?
if not pls send me in the right direction.
well i just started My first LeD grow.i am about 5 weeks in veg at 8 or 9 inches tall.(a little bit of a N issue stunted my groth) using a stealth box 4 ft high 2 sq feet wide. and i know the lights i have will not be very good for flower.(they might of even of added to the stunted growth as well). i got one of those common 14 watt half blue half white panels and one 7 watt led bulb. i definetly learned quick that cheap leds are not worth while because i had to buy a whole new led light to support flowering. so as im rounding the corner to flowering and i got a 90 w triband ufo light. is their any spacific way i should make the switch. im worried ill stress them out too much because of a new schedual and much better lights . should it be before or after i switch from 24/7 light to 12/12 or is their any better schedule for my situation. i should increase distance. right?
well thanks guys i will greatly appreciate any help anyone can offer.

 

It would be best if you posted your question as a new thread in the Indoor Growing forum rather than in this thread. This one is about fogponics, so people who know the answers to your questions probably won't see it here.

From what I understand, heat will stress your plant, but increasing light or the quality of light will not stress it, only allow it to grow better. So there shouldn't really be any need to ease the plants into a the new lighting change.

Also, LED lights have a tendency to stretch your plants in the first place, so don't increase the distance. Keep those suckers as close to the plants as possible without losing even coverage. Otherwise, you'll end up with tall, spindly plants.

But like I said, if you want more feedback from other people (who may have direct experience with this issue, which I do not), post the question as a new thread.

 

thanks for the advise. it is most appreciated.