undercurrent build

[justabegginner]

hello people i'am planning on building one of these system my plan is to use
5/26 gallon totes for the build

1 for the res

4 for my net baskets

2" pvc pipe

3/4 pvc pipe

900gph mag drive pump
gh air pump

this is my plan i'am going to plumb 2" pvc pipe from the res to my 4-26 gallon totes with 6" baskets in them 4 baskets per tote iam going to have

the res in the center and 2 totes on each side 2" pvc to each tote and then a t at the end and the 3/4" pvc going back down the middle inbetween the totes to the res only concern i have is that the 26 gallon totes are too big and won't get enough water movement what is your guys thoughts about this set up or should i use smaller totes and more of them

 

[donutpunched]

26 gallon totes are for tree's my man,,, What are trying to get off each plant? 13 gallon modules with the right light you will be pulling a pound per easily.... How much light are you usiing? If you want each module to move more water put in a top feed system, this helps with recirculating the nutes.... 2 inch pvc for such big totes I feel is a little too small.... I would go with 3"

 

[nixusr]

hello people i'am planning on building one of these system my plan is to use
5/26 gallon totes for the build

1 for the res

4 for my net baskets

2" pvc pipe

3/4 pvc pipe

900gph mag drive pump
gh air pump

this is my plan i'am going to plumb 2" pvc pipe from the res to my 4-26 gallon totes with 6" baskets in them 4 baskets per tote iam going to have

the res in the center and 2 totes on each side 2" pvc to each tote and then a t at the end and the 3/4" pvc going back down the middle inbetween the totes to the res only concern i have is that the 26 gallon totes are too big and won't get enough water movement what is your guys thoughts about this set up or should i use smaller totes and more of them

Those buckets are HUGE! Why so big? I'm building my diy 9 site under current using 10 gallon totes made by Great Solutions found at Home Depot.

 

[justabegginner]

26 gallon totes are for tree's my man,,, What are trying to get off each plant? 13 gallon modules with the right light you will be pulling a pound per easily.... How much light are you usiing? If you want each module to move more water put in a top feed system, this helps with recirculating the nutes.... 2 inch pvc for such big totes I feel is a little too small.... I would go with 3"

i only thought of the totes because i have them kicking around i was thinking of going to hydro store and buying some 5 gallon pails and 6" net pots with lids but the pails are round i don't think the uniseal i have will work what do you think

 

[nixusr]

i only thought of the totes because i have them kicking around i was thinking of going to hydro store and buying some 5 gallon pails and 6" net pots with lids but the pails are round i don't think the uniseal i have will work what do you think

The uniseals will work on round surfaces. Check out bulk reef supplies demo video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjlH8JkUz0Q
I got all my uniseals from this site.

Depending on how much your local hydro store charges you may want to grab 5 gallon pails from home depot, lowes, or grab the rectangular 10 gal great solutions totes from home depot.

I went with the 10 gallon Great Solution totes so that I could mimic the cch20 under current 8 gallon totes. (Keep in mind the quality is no where near cch20's but works just as good.)

 

[justabegginner]

The uniseals will work on round surfaces. Check out bulk reef supplies demo video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjlH8JkUz0Q
I got all my uniseals from this site.

Depending on how much your local hydro store charges you may want to grab 5 gallon pails from home depot, lowes, or grab the rectangular 10 gal great solutions totes from home depot.

I went with the 10 gallon Great Solution totes so that I could mimic the cch20 under current 8 gallon totes. (Keep in mind the quality is no where near cch20's but works just as good.)

what are your thoughts about ebb and grow systems compaired to undercurrent someone told me that ebb and grow is way way more easier not so easy to mess up

 

[nixusr]

what are your thoughts about ebb and grow systems compaired to undercurrent someone told me that ebb and grow is way way more easier not so easy to mess up

I dont have any direct experience with ebb and grow systems. I was actually going to go that route b4 discovering UCDWC. But yeah, they will be much easier to manage and you can expand them and move them around. Even ebb and flow is a good option although you will be working with a res and a table.

Youtube has a ton of diy ucdwc setups on there for reference. Theres some ebb and grow ones on there too.

 

[RL420]

use 3'' pipe

 

[justabegginner]

I dont have any direct experience with ebb and grow systems. I was actually going to go that route b4 discovering UCDWC. But yeah, they will be much easier to manage and you can expand them and move them around. Even ebb and flow is a good option although you will be working with a res and a table.

Youtube has a ton of diy ucdwc setups on there for reference. Theres some ebb and grow ones on there too.

tha pails at homedepot are orange can use them or do you think the light penetrate through the pail and cause problems

 

[hellraizer30]

Dont use the orange one light will get through!

Ebb&grow systems work great but so do uc systems so pros and cons there about eve, but the uc will kill it in yield

 

[justabegginner]

I dont have any direct experience with ebb and grow systems. I was actually going to go that route b4 discovering UCDWC. But yeah, they will be much easier to manage and you can expand them and move them around. Even ebb and flow is a good option although you will be working with a res and a table.

Youtube has a ton of diy ucdwc setups on there for reference. Theres some ebb and grow ones on there too.

what are you using for a pump i was looking at a 900gph mag-drive pond pump the guy from the hydro store they don't work well as inline pump also can give some advice on adding nutes should i mix the nutes in a 5 gallon pail and then add to the res or should i mix right in the res also how do i know if my plants are taking nutes or just water really appreciate any help thank you

 

[justabegginner]

thank you for all info

 

[nixusr]

For my uc setup I am using a Danner mag-drive 950gph pump. My specs are mainly based on cch2o's. For their 9 site they recommend a 500gph pump but I decided to just upsize mine. The cch2o setups come with danner pumps that are mounted inline.

For adding your nutes you do it directly in the res (control bucket) and ph the water right there. It will evenly circulate throughout the system. In terms of knowing what your plants are taking up, its mandatory to get a ph combo meter. You will always want to know what your ppm levels are in which will tell you what your plants are doing throughout their growth. Plus you also want to keep an eye on the water's ph levels.

 

[justabegginner]

thank you for all the info hope i can pick your brain in the near future as i'am going to try to build one these systems

 

[akuhn235]

ever get around to building?!

 

[GreenThumbSucker]

hello people i'am planning on building one of these system my plan is to use
5/26 gallon totes for the build

1 for the res

4 for my net baskets

2" pvc pipe

3/4 pvc pipe

900gph mag drive pump
gh air pump

this is my plan i'am going to plumb 2" pvc pipe from the res to my 4-26 gallon totes with 6" baskets in them 4 baskets per tote iam going to have

the res in the center and 2 totes on each side 2" pvc to each tote and then a t at the end and the 3/4" pvc going back down the middle inbetween the totes to the res only concern i have is that the 26 gallon totes are too big and won't get enough water movement what is your guys thoughts about this set up or should i use smaller totes and more of them

I am running the same setup except I have one plant per tote. I have one lamp per tote and pull in 1 - 1.5 lbs per tote, per cycle. The biggest issue with this system is aeration. I would suggest you use a 110 liter per minute air pump with 8" round flat air stones and use 3/8 tubing for your air lines.

Another problem is warm solution temperatures. I would suggest getting that rolled up metallic bubble wrap insulation and wrapping all your totes including the reservoir AND covering the lids with it. That way you can cool the reservoir by putting it outside the grow room or using frozen water jugs.

You do not need heavy duty circulation, just a small pump will do. As long as it circulates completely every hour or two you will be fine.

 

[oceangreen]

sqydro's udwc diy is an impressive setup and easy to build. do that...