Water storage questions

I'm only going to be growing 2 maybe 3 autos in coco... i'm very new to this so i'm wondering A. What size bucket/tote i'm going to need to store my nutrient/PH water, and B. how long it can be left in the container before it loses potency or stability? I'm going to need something i can dip a watering can into some i'm leaning more towards a small 5 gallon tote over a bucket. Any suggestions? I know this is pretty cheesy lol.
 

Delztronics

Well-Known Member
I'm only going to be growing 2 maybe 3 autos in coco... i'm very new to this so i'm wondering A. What size bucket/tote i'm going to need to store my nutrient/PH water, and B. how long it can be left in the container before it loses potency or stability? I'm going to need something i can dip a watering can into some i'm leaning more towards a small 5 gallon tote over a bucket. Any suggestions? I know this is pretty cheesy lol.
I generally leave nutrients solutions for a week tops. Keep it out of the light!
 
I generally leave nutrients solutions for a week tops. Keep it out of the light!
Ahhh okay, yeah i imagine it would start to get icky lol. I guess that blows my plans of a clear tote... one more question if you don't mind. I hear people recommend using like 1/3 of the recommended dose on the bottle of their nutes. I'm running Canna A and B, should i follow it to the letter or reduced dosage? Thanks Del.
 

Delztronics

Well-Known Member
Ahhh okay, yeah i imagine it would start to get icky lol. I guess that blows my plans of a clear tote... one more question if you don't mind. I hear people recommend using like 1/3 of the recommended dose on the bottle of their nutes. I'm running Canna A and B, should i follow it to the letter or reduced dosage? Thanks Del.
hahahah, you would be surprised what can happen to a nutes mix when your grow light hits it. I've had nutrients solution turn dark brown in 2 days under my grow lights.

I don't have any experience with those nutrients. I'd start with a lighter feed and just pay close attention to your plant. I haven't followed recommended dosages on bottles for years.

Hope that's helps!
 
hahahah, you would be surprised what can happen to a nutes mix when your grow light hits it. I've had nutrients solution turn dark brown in 2 days under my grow lights.

I don't have any experience with those nutrients. I'd start with a lighter feed and just pay close attention to your plant. I haven't followed recommended dosages on bottles for years.

Hope that's helps!
It does, cheers! :bigjoint:
 

StareCase

Well-Known Member
... I hear people recommend using like 1/3 of the recommended dose on the bottle of their nutes ...
Delztronics does it. I do it. Decrease the dosage by more than 1/2 but feed every watering.

Fox Farm Grow Big and Tiger Bloom recommends 2 teaspoons per 3.8 liters (US gallon) of water every other watering. I cut that down to 1 teaspoon and increase the water to 4.5 liters (Imperial Gallon). Botanicare recommends 1 teaspoon Cal/Mag per US gallon - dropped to 1/2 teaspoon in an Imperial gallon.

They get fed every time I water. There's no burning ... no nutrient lockouts ... no droopy leaves, no funky colours from deficiencies. Week 4 of flower underway and little white crowns popping up everywhere.

Your girls will tell you when it's too much or too little.
 

Aladdin.khalifa

Well-Known Member
I'm only going to be growing 2 maybe 3 autos in coco... i'm very new to this so i'm wondering A. What size bucket/tote i'm going to need to store my nutrient/PH water, and B. how long it can be left in the container before it loses potency or stability? I'm going to need something i can dip a watering can into some i'm leaning more towards a small 5 gallon tote over a bucket. Any suggestions? I know this is pretty cheesy lol.
Hi Wolfmoom,

That's a good question. It really depends on the light and temperature. At 70f, as long as it's keept in the dark, your solution will reamin good for 10 to 14 days without any problem. Just make sure to use an air pump with an air stone to keep the solution well oxygenated. ;)

Organic ferts only store for 24 hours once you mix it with water.

Best,
 

mr_c

Well-Known Member
How many plants in how big a space you planning on running? The needs of your plants will vary quite a bit based on size of plant, temperature, relative humidity, grow style.

I use coco too in fabric pots. There is a ton of good information on this site. I'm not stating my methods are perfect, just offering information to help illustrate what I'm doing regarding water storage. Here are 2 examples you may find helpful:

Grow 1 (Oct-Feb) 6 decent sized plants in 5 gallon pots in a 4x8 space using drippers. I vegged them out for about 2 months. When they were stretching in the first 2 weeks of flower, they were consuming 3 gallons each per day. I have a 40 gallon Rez and was topping it off every other day and mixing half strength. I reset the Rez every 2 weeks except the flush which was a month.

Grow 2 (Nov-March) 3 medium sized plants in 3 gallon pots getting hand watered using DTW. I Mix up two 4 gallons buckets of half strength nutes every other day. Rez here is two 5 gallon buckets. Peak consumption was 1.75-2 gallons each per day, now its 1 gallon for flush.

I've found it easy to setup a 50 gallon water only reservoir fed by a RO filter with a float valve. I am using a heavy duty Rubbermaid garbage can on a wheeled coaster. Anything Rubbermaid is food grade plastic.
 
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