I`m new to this forum and I am about to start my first RDWC grow, but like many other first timers I do need some help... My setup will be: 9 15 liter buckets 1 74 liter resorvoir And it will be in a 3x3 row The questions I do have so far is what kind of air and water pump should I use + how do I fill it up and how much????
How big is your grow space? What lights do you have? What grow buckets will you use? Do the 9 buckets include the storage reservoir, leaving 8 buckets to grow in? Do you have ppm and pH pens? What fertilizer will you use? RO water of tap? If tap, what is its ppm?
Grow space is a 4x4 tent with a 1000 watt led. No it is 9 15 liter buckets to grow in with a 74 liter reservoir. Using Advanced Nutrients... But the question that I need an answer to is what kind of size on the water & air pump???
first things first. new to LEDS? the only reason i ask is that there are no 1000 watt leds. high end producing stuff is in the 600 range. the 1000 watts is a "equivalent to" rating... sadly probably made up by a cheap manufacturer, usualy chinese. one thing you want to find is the actual power draw from the wall, and preferably the diode manufacturer (diodes are the led light chip itself, rather than the fixture maker.) but most important is power draw. most 1000 watt equivalent would hit the 200watt wall draw area. which woudl put it in the bare minimum range for good buds like 12 watts per square foot. youd definatly want to atleast double that. flowering might be sub par with just the one light, especialy having 8 plants jammed into a 4x4. thick canopy it will definatly be VERY tight.
Some LED makers give "HPS equivalent" watts instead of true watts, so you might have less light than 1000 watts. About 25 actual watts per sq ft is the minimum with today's best LEDs. 9 plants in a 4 x 4 ft tent is about twice what most people would try, especially in DWC. My experience is that to reach its potential, a plant needs at least 4 sq ft. Sorry I can't help with pump size, but I'll try to talk you out of using a pump at all. This is a system that has a 5 gal storage res with a float valve on the bottom, and a 13 gal storage reservoir on top. The system can be left alone for a few days, depending on how much the plants eat and drink. Gravity instead of a water pump tops off the buckets. There are probably lots of DIY versions on the internet. GH Controller Complete
theres no shame in running cheap ass leds. some people are first timers on budgets. im just saying, if its really a 1000w draw LED setup in a 4x4 its overkill. if its a 400-600 thats doing good. if its a 200 draw thats not going to cut it.
theres no shame in running cheap ass leds. some people are first timers on budgets. im just saying, if its really a 1000w draw LED setup in a 4x4 its overkill. it also probably cost you 2000 dollars sooo..... if its a 400-600 thats doing good. if its a 200 draw thats not going to cut it.
How in the hell are 9 plants going to fit in a 4×4 tent? I understand trying to fill as much space as possible to maximize yields, but I had 2 plants in a 4×4 tent and they filled it up. And that was with RDWC also. You're going to need a BIG water pump to push all that nutrient to 9 buckets. And I'd use a minimum of 2 air pumps if you have airstones in each bucket. I'd seriously consider only having 2-4 plants max in that tent, but if you're dead set on 9 then I hope it works out for you. Good luck! Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk
May want to check my math, but that's like 52 GALLONS of water to fill that system. I really hope you have everything sealed up good to prevent any leaks cause that would be a nightmare trying to find out the hard way. Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk
it's hard to say what kind of pump to use unless we know more about the systems piping in and out of the buckets. it's easy to pump in way more water than your buckets can drain back if you have small return lines. I also don't see how you can "work" 9 RDWC buckets in that small a space. the buckets would be touching and fill the space entirely. attached plumbing doesn't allow that in a RDWC. PS I run a 400 watt LED (on a light mover) and the plants think they are at the equator. I have a 6 bucket RDWC.
Don't use air pumps and stones.. buy yourself an inline pump and draw water back in from the reservoir and top feed the buckets to create surface agitation which in turn oxygenates the water. There are plenty of YouTube videos showing you how to build a 'rdwc with waterfalls' so less noise then running a noisy airpump. 9 pots would be ok in a 4x4 a bit tight in a 3x3. If you are building this yourself I'd recommend connecting your buckets and return pipes to the reservoir with at the very minimum 50mm pipes or they get blocked with roots easily. If you are planning on using uniseals.. then buy some 'aquarium safe' silicon also to ensure water tightness.. or buy the more expensive tank connectors with rubber fittings. Good luck. Keep the thread updated. JG Sent from my SM-G935F using Grasscity Forum mobile app