Pruning roots for mother plant in DWC

So after this harvest ill be doing quite a large update on my grow system. i want to have a mother plant that is kept in DWC at all times. i will also have a DWC that will be 24 5 gallon buckets. does anyone have any pics on how to trim the roots? im not sure if i should only cut a little at a time, or take a good chunk off of them when i prune. any help would be appreciated as i want to be ready for this in about 4 months.

I personally cannot picture a long term mother plant in a DWC bucket. By the time I chop the roots have totally filled the entire 5 gallon area. To the point they dry quickly after watering because so little water will fit. I have had to water more than one DWC plant twice a day. There are real experts on here though who might say differently.

hotrodharley said:

I personally cannot picture a long term mother plant in a DWC bucket. By the time I chop the roots have totally filled the entire 5 gallon area. To the point they dry quickly after watering because so little water will fit. I have had to water more than one DWC plant twice a day. There are real experts on here though who might say differently.

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Solution is to use bigger buckets that allow for more root space & water volume. Try a 25gal tote with around 12 to 15 gallons of water and low nute doses. That should have them still growing quick but not ideal compared to normal growth rates.
To OP I've never done root trimming. But have kept mothers alive for 6mos+ before dwc in the 27 gall totes with yellow tops from home depot. The root mass was absurdly huge, engrossed 3 large air stones, as well as covered the entire bottom of the totes. With regular upkeep it isn't too bad. Just be prepared for huge growth and plenty of clones!

I have moms in 5 gal dwcs, been going for 6+ months now. I don't have any issues, top up every other day or so with RO or a weak nute mix depending on what they are doing. I do a complete change out every 2 weeks, or when i start to see lower leaf changes. Bigger res will mean less maintenance. My 5 gals hold about 3 gals of solution with a root ball taking up half the bucket. I grow them Bonsai style, keep em short and trimmed, both moms are wider than the bucket but under 12" tall, both moms have well over 30 tops/ clone sites on them. I plan on replacing the moms once a year from cuttings and then I'll flower out the old mom. I'd like to eventually have a 4-6 site rdwc system for moms.

I haven't root pruned my dwc plants, but I've done soil plants. I'm no expert but I only remove about an inch around the ball( 2" total off the dia.) and 1" off the bottom. In soil I loosen up the root ball before replanting..don't think it will matter in DWC.