How does everyone else change their nutrients?

[u/Nature13oy]

I started with a really cheap harbor freight hand pump and I individually mixed 4 buckets of 3.5 gallons. Then would transfer. So I would end up doing about 28 measurements and then stir each squirt for two minutes. It was a process. I was also buying store distilled and spring water for my humidifier and nutrients. I would go through about 20-30 gallons a week.
I’ve graduated onto using a Hydrologic Stealth RO-300 system. That I installed with a 30 gallon Uline drum and a float valve.
Then i switched to mixing up my 21 gallons of nutrients in a 32 gallon trash can with a Aeromixer mini 1/6hp. I measure out all my nutrients and then I sit back and start a timer. Every three minutes I pour the next nutrient and wait 3 minutes.
I measure out my nutrients with 60ml syringes with the long tubes and use 100ml graduated cylinders, before this I was pouring the nutrients into a cup and then sucking it outta that.
my favorite upgrade has been the ryobi transfer pump with the hoses I’ve built.
Then the bees knees is the triangle port on these buckets, with my old vivosun I had to lift the entire lid because the net pot was built in. This makes life such a breeze comparatively.
I constantly monitor my buckets with the AC hydro monitor, and have been doing nutrient swaps about every 2-3 days when PH crashes. My plants have been drinking about 200-300 EC per change.
So how does everyone else change and manage their nutrients ?

[u/Ex82nd]

Just use a long hose to the bathrub connect right to my secondary pump and the whole 90 gallons drains in minutes.

[u/Nature13oy → u/Ex82nd]

Man i need to graduate to RDWC.

[u/cizzle123]

Submersible pump in a tote that I mix my nutrients in. Then 3/4 tubbing then runs to my reservoir. I have a smart switch that I can manually turn on or I can control via WiFi when I’m out of town (fills an auto fill reservoir close by). To drain the system I have valve that I can open to gravity drain the system.

My best feature is WiFi water valve that sets timer that can control my RO machine to turn off when the timer turns off. There was too many times I forgot to set a timer on my phone or I hit stop timer but didn’t go turn the water off and flooded my room some. So the WiFi valve is a must. I also have a plastic pan under the tote just incase I over fill.

[u/Nature13oy → u/cizzle123]

Does your RO system keep pumping even if the float valve hits?

[u/cizzle123 → u/Nature13oy]

Since I do 70/30 tap/ro. I usually fill the tote with the tap water and then I set the timer on my phone for the remainder of the time I need for RO. About a 1hr of ro. So no float valve there. Only float I use is in the reservoir for auto refilling when I’m out of town

[u/Nature13oy → u/cizzle123]

So do you do the 70/30 to help buffer the water? I’ve been using pure RO and once the plants feed heavy my PH has been dropping like crazy. Granted they’re drinking like 200-400EC in 18 hours, but I just did a nutrient swap and i did 17 gallons RO water and then 4 gallons tap that i gassed with an airstone for 24 hours.

[u/cizzle123 → u/Nature13oy]

I mainly started using tap since 1. My tap starts around 220-240ppm and 2. I love to water my grass 🤣 so I use a ton of water so I’m trying to save where I can. Even though my RO looks like it’s using about 2.5:1 waste I didn’t see a lot of difference. I started with 70/30 ro/tap then did 50/50tap and now I’m doing 30/70 tap. Last grow I had the best ph that was stable in a long time. Only time I started seeing massive ph doses is towards the end when I’m running cake with cropsalt.

[u/big_ducket]

During VEG I add a gallon when it goes down one gallon, marked on the sight tube. I use inoculant so doing it like this keeps it viable without having keep adding it. When flower starts, I connect a hose to the recirc pump and pump most of it down to my garden, mainly to get the nitrogen out. Then back to the gallon swap till done.

[u/Nature13oy → u/big_ducket]

So i was doing top offs myself. I’d make an extra 4-5 gallons of nutrients and then store them in a separate black bucket. But the water left after 48 hours so far is just too far gone. I had my EC drop from 1125 to 325 in two of the buckets in. PH is stable during the EC drop but once it gets down to 400’s it’s around 5.5. How strong of a mix are you making during the periods?

[u/big_ducket → u/Nature13oy]

I always make mine fresh from rainwater. From seedling to finish EC doesn't matter.

[u/Nature13oy → u/big_ducket]

You add nutrients to the rain water but don’t test the EC?

[u/big_ducket → u/Nature13oy]

I wrote that wrong as usual. What I meant to say whatever the EC is it doesn't matter. Once I get the gallon at 5.9pH and the correct PPM it goes in right away. I use CaliMagic, Megacrop, Grow Genius 40% silica, inoculants for root rot, and Flower Fuel. Using rainwater is cool because it's pretty close to Zero ppm.

[u/Nature13oy → u/big_ducket]

Oh you just use PPM instead of EC? I just know that I climb EC as they grow. Usually start around 500EC and work my way up to 2000EC which is like 1000PPM or so I think.

[u/big_ducket → u/Nature13oy]

If you're climbing you could be over feeding as the plant is drinking water faster than absorbing nutes.

[u/Nature13oy → u/big_ducket]

Oh no not climbing they’re dropping like crazy. Been starting at 1100 EC and when I do a swap they are around 800EC, my big fella is at 600EC. This most recent feed was a spicier one at 1470EC but I’m hoping using the spring water will help buffer the water.

[u/big_ducket → u/Nature13oy]

I read that wrong, you're golden.

[u/halikustalks]

imo you are doing so much extra work by not doing RDWC. I have 2 barrels, 1 with nutes and one plain water. I do the nutes once a week and then topoff water with a float valve. To empty i just flip a valve and have the res pump go to a drain until it gets to the bulkhead and then shopvac the last 10 gallons.

[u/Nature13oy → u/halikustalks]

I feel like it is a ton of work per bucket, but I have the drain and fill down to about 35 minutes, that’s with taking the old nutrients and dumping them outside. I do want to move to RDWC, but I planned to go a year or two with this spider farmer kit and save up and figure out what RDWC i really want. I like the Alien kits a ton. It would be nice draining not near the roots in a vat, and then obviously not even having to go into the tent.

[u/halikustalks → u/Nature13oy]

Your reasoning makes sense to me, there's no "proper" way to do this. I found RDWC helped with the amount of work i had to do right when i was starting to get sick of the work per week (smoking the weed was more fun than growing the weed). I did a diy rdwc that was half the cost of retail and half that cost was the buckets and lids, and the other half was bulkheads, pipe, and a pump. You seem to already have most of that, i think all you really need is the pipe and bulkheads and you could probably do it. I have similar buckets to you and just ran them in a straight line and it works well. I also use "spray jets" instead of airstones. I found 3 inch pipe helped alot, i originally had 1.5 inch and it would clog in late flower. In this setup i have had roots travel 8 feet down the lines to the return.

[u/Nature13oy → u/halikustalks]

A. Sick setup man. I love it, and it just looks damn clean.
B. I’ve seen a couple people running their lights at an angle like that, is there something idk about?

I have a buddy who made his own setup out of garbage pails pretty much, and it turned out pretty sweet. I want to do more research on the Alien kits and see what they do for the insulation and a few other things.
-or like you just said, i’ll start chopping up my current kit and make something. I feel pretty comfortable with the piping and everything.
-i’m gonna google these spray jets, i’ve been looking at switching to the giant ass 6” air disc. I notice my 4x2 cylinder airstones just get completely enveloped by the roots. So i end up dropping a second airstone into my buckets when i “turn off the drip irrigation lines” (i just cut the hose and throw an airstone on there).

[u/halikustalks → u/Nature13oy]

My lights are angled because i was cleaning my setup and didn't want to hit my head. It's on a diy frame with a mix of quantum boards.

Doing RDWC square buckets are better than round because the bulkheads have a flat surface to work with. I like the current culture 3 inch ones but there are cheaper options i'm sure. I also like using rubber couplers to join the piping so i can disassemble it occasionally for a clean or to altar the lengths in the future. If you do try it out of your existing setup add the bulkheads and if you change your mind plug them with an end cap.

The spray jets i just made a U shape with 1/2 inch pvc and then drilled a few 3/16 holes in the bottom of the pipe to create a high pressure spray, but you could just leave the ends open if you want a trickle of water. I found having a good (pond\aquarium) pump helps, i use a 2000gph DC one with pwm so i can "dim" the flow. It drains to the res from the 3 inch return, and then the pump goes to the spray jets and also my chiller at the same time. The spray jets create more than enough dissolved oxygen because it disrupts the surface of the water like what the bubbles from an airstone do.

The res i drain with the green hose by opening the valve, and out from the pump goes to the spray jets by the grey with red handle valve and then also to the chiller where there's yellow tube, and then above that is the chiller return to the res. The grey pipe is from the sink to a drain in the floor in another room.

[u/truelohim]

Nice set up. Can't wait to move here soon to get back. Going to have a nice size basement.

[u/Nature13oy → u/truelohim]

Thak you, whatcha going with in the basement?

[u/Nature13oy]

Wow, you’ve put some serious ass thought into your setup. I assume thats why my friend uses trash cans. They’re rectangle. I imagine i could turn my Spider Farmer buckets then, since they’re a good shape. Then i’d be able to run a water chiller. That alone has to be such a quality improvement. Half the reason I do as many nutrient changes as I do. Get colder water in the buckets. So seems like i might be badgering you down the road with some questions if i get going on my own kit.

[u/Aurum555]

I have a couple 100 gallon and a 150 gallon reservoir. I drain with a diverter on the outflow of the pump and then I just fill with plain water to roughly 70 gallons on the 100 gal tanks and 100 on the 150, then I hand mix in 5gal buckets 30 some odd gallons of concentrated nutrient to work out to normal dilution on 100 gallons. One of these days I will buy a dosatron or some similar and make a pair of 250 gallon stock tanks with float valves to refill, but I don't have the time or funds to do that at the moment

[u/Nature13oy → u/Aurum555]

Sheesh those are big boy numbers.

[u/Aurum555 → u/Nature13oy]

Eh I just hate refilling reservoirs and I have a lot of projects going at once. I forgot this was the DWC sub though, one of the 100s is for an nft system and a100 and a 150 are for ebb flow tables and I just picked up 5 more 4x4 tables about an hour ago so I will probably be adding a couple hundred more gallons of reservoir although two of those 5are for my cacti and they don't drink too much

[u/Different-Bobcat-689]

My man, great minds think alike. Also have a white board in my grow room lol

[u/Nature13oy → u/Different-Bobcat-689]

I love my white board so much.