Bangaman
Active Member
I thought it would be cool to share some nick-nacks, gizmos, rare tools and grow room tricks I've come up with, borrowed and modified over the years. If you have any cool ones, please do share.
That said, please do not knock what others say works for them and please share opinions on how to improve ideas or why to stop a certain practice.
These are in no order of importance as they are all of equal importance. The list is no exhaustive but its what I can think of as I write this.
1) Water recycling system:
a) Dehumidifier equipped with an internal pump
b) 60 gallon barrel to collect water from the humidifier
Why? The humidifier hooked up to a humidity port on an atmospheric controller not only captures your evaporation, it allows you to save h2o by reusing it, it saves time - no lugging buckets through the house etc. It helps you know how much h2o is going in and out--The rate of Respiration is a good measure of plant growth. By having the same weight soil in each pot, I am able to know exactly how much water per pot just when first signs of runoff. There is always excess runoff no matter what I do. The good news, and second best thing about this setup is that in the same way the pot runoff contains things we should not dump down the drain too much, the water vapor in your grow room does too. So, I pour any excess runoff from watering right back in the barrel. I only water from that barrel.
2) Electronic pH meter. $39
Why? Like a pilot must know his bearings at ALL TIMES, I must know my pH. The pH in your grow medium (pot) changes as you add nutrients throughout the grow time. One misstep in pH and you are in for a cascading set of trouble. Wrong pH can manifest as anything from nute burn, over watering, light burn, a nute deficiency or even excessively dark leaves as if the plant were healthy when in fact its going to die.
So as you see, I measure pH at every turn and any other method will get in the way literally. My electronic pH meter is not on the dot accurate, but it puts me in the ballpark. Stay away from cheap shit!
3) 5 pounds pool grade pH up and 5 pounds pool grade pH down.
Why? I like my pH to stay put like my dog Roscoe. Master your pH Mathematics, 7 Waters + 4 Soils = 5.5, and 8 Waters + 5 Soils = 6.5.
Know by heart how many teaspoons of pool grade pH down or up per gallon to change your pH up or down by 1 pH point and by 0.5 pH point.
4) Light Intensity reader. $9.99
This gizmo is awesome. If your reading is not in the blue, move the plant, or change the bulb.
5) Battery operated siphon pump. $6.99
Why? I measure cups/plant and actually cup-feed them with a 4 cup container one container of water at a time. This can get tedious, but I must know how much water i put in each as each plant dries out at a different rate. With this thing, I measure the water in a bucket and suck it out with the pump into the pot. It also has a hose for even distribution of water around the plant. The hose allows me to water the plants without soaking my flowers.
6) Bathroom Scale
Why? Weight is my primary measure of plant thirst. Like patients in a hospital, all my plants have Bedside notes.
More to come
That said, please do not knock what others say works for them and please share opinions on how to improve ideas or why to stop a certain practice.
These are in no order of importance as they are all of equal importance. The list is no exhaustive but its what I can think of as I write this.
1) Water recycling system:
a) Dehumidifier equipped with an internal pump
b) 60 gallon barrel to collect water from the humidifier
Why? The humidifier hooked up to a humidity port on an atmospheric controller not only captures your evaporation, it allows you to save h2o by reusing it, it saves time - no lugging buckets through the house etc. It helps you know how much h2o is going in and out--The rate of Respiration is a good measure of plant growth. By having the same weight soil in each pot, I am able to know exactly how much water per pot just when first signs of runoff. There is always excess runoff no matter what I do. The good news, and second best thing about this setup is that in the same way the pot runoff contains things we should not dump down the drain too much, the water vapor in your grow room does too. So, I pour any excess runoff from watering right back in the barrel. I only water from that barrel.
2) Electronic pH meter. $39
Why? Like a pilot must know his bearings at ALL TIMES, I must know my pH. The pH in your grow medium (pot) changes as you add nutrients throughout the grow time. One misstep in pH and you are in for a cascading set of trouble. Wrong pH can manifest as anything from nute burn, over watering, light burn, a nute deficiency or even excessively dark leaves as if the plant were healthy when in fact its going to die.
So as you see, I measure pH at every turn and any other method will get in the way literally. My electronic pH meter is not on the dot accurate, but it puts me in the ballpark. Stay away from cheap shit!
3) 5 pounds pool grade pH up and 5 pounds pool grade pH down.
Why? I like my pH to stay put like my dog Roscoe. Master your pH Mathematics, 7 Waters + 4 Soils = 5.5, and 8 Waters + 5 Soils = 6.5.
Know by heart how many teaspoons of pool grade pH down or up per gallon to change your pH up or down by 1 pH point and by 0.5 pH point.
4) Light Intensity reader. $9.99
This gizmo is awesome. If your reading is not in the blue, move the plant, or change the bulb.
5) Battery operated siphon pump. $6.99
Why? I measure cups/plant and actually cup-feed them with a 4 cup container one container of water at a time. This can get tedious, but I must know how much water i put in each as each plant dries out at a different rate. With this thing, I measure the water in a bucket and suck it out with the pump into the pot. It also has a hose for even distribution of water around the plant. The hose allows me to water the plants without soaking my flowers.
6) Bathroom Scale
Why? Weight is my primary measure of plant thirst. Like patients in a hospital, all my plants have Bedside notes.
More to come
