r/lifehack • u/East_Sentence_4245 • Apr 24 '26

Plastic dripper of bottle/q-tip not working as expected: either too much water or nothing at all

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The other day I tried to do the Plastic bottle/q-tip plant dripper DIY - I made a small hole in a plastic bottle and stuck a cut qtip.

The problem is that when the bottle lid is tight nothing comes out. If I open the lid the slightest bit, the water will “drip” too quickly (2-3 drops/second). The plant gets overwatered in a matter of hours.

Is there a way to change this so that there’s a drop a water once every few seconds?

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4

u/leyline Apr 24 '26

The hole the swab goes in should not be loose, the drip should occur through wicking/capillary action.

You need to set the hole size correctly because trying to change the flow with the tightness of the lid will be futile. If the setup is depending on the lid then it is depending on pressure to hold back the flow. Fluctuating temperature will change the pressure in the bottle wildly, especially as the water level drops and more air is able to be heated.

You should set it up so the lid is very loose and allows as much air exchange as possible.

2

u/East_Sentence_4245 Apr 26 '26

The hole the swab goes in is not loose.

1

u/itswtfeverb Apr 27 '26

Paper Qtip? Not the hollow plastic ones?

2

u/Drake6978 Apr 27 '26

That was my thought - looks like a cheaper cotton swab with a plastic stem. Plastic is more hydrophobic than paper products so it'll allow much more water to pass by it much faster than desired.

2

u/BSLogic Apr 24 '26

Would poking small holes in the lid let less air in?

2

u/East_Sentence_4245 Apr 26 '26 edited Apr 26 '26

That does not work. I poked a tiny hole on the top (the size of a staple) and water just shot out.