What's the best method to install sprayer heads into pvc?

disposition84

Well-Known Member
I've made a few cloning rubbermaid containers and my hands always hurt like hell after pushing in those sprayer heads to the pvc.

What method do you use for installing them, and do you like it? What size drill bit do you use for the heads?

Thanks
 

NewHiddenGrower

Well-Known Member
I've made a few cloning rubbermaid containers and my hands always hurt like hell after pushing in those sprayer heads to the pvc.

What method do you use for installing them, and do you like it? What size drill bit do you use for the heads?

Thanks

I like to wet the sprayers and it usually slides in alot easier. If that dont work drill in the same hole a few times.
 

gvega187

Well-Known Member
the ones i use were fairly delicate. I cracked the head on one with pliers somehow.

The almighty drill shall guide ye sprayers. It should be as easy as screwing them in like they have thread already.

Try your drill set on a test piece of PVC. Step up the drill hole size until you can thread it in smoothly. If you are to lazy 2 do that stinkbud lists ez-clone drill hole size pg. 75 "harvest a pound every 3 weeks"
 

morrisgreenberg

Well-Known Member
the bit size is 11/64, my god my thumbs hurts thinkin about this, vega you use ez clone heads? or the blue with red caps?
 

gvega187

Well-Known Member
*breaks out arthritis hand cream*

I use the green ones. I am pretty sure the design is basically the same on most of them, but some are not worthy at all.

Earl sent me a image gallery break down of a bunch of sprayers he was testing.

The green type (american agriculture I think) and one other worked well...the others failed.

It looks like people have good results with the ez-clone sprayers...I am going to try to get some of those for the next system.
 

morrisgreenberg

Well-Known Member
i went to BGhydro.com and picked up the 330micro heads cus they were designed the same and they had the quantity i needed, i think they are the same brand, anyhows i hooked them up and found i needed stronger pressure to get the spray i wanted, and did a side by side with the ez clone head and noticed the EZ spray hole was much smaller, requiring less power from the pump and this is important for DIY aero guys like us, you can use more heads per unit than the ones i got, your running a 2 channel systems right? you will notice a drop off in fine mist if you used 4 channels, for 2 posts you have plenty of power
 

morrisgreenberg

Well-Known Member
sorry to jack your thread dispostiton, but i must share this......rain drip makes 360 sprayers, they are pure garbage, they have the red caps that break easily, but 2 of 5 fail anyways, so i like to space my sites 9 inches apart, for a standard spray head this is too far unless you make it individually for each site a spray head, what i did was get a 1/4in barbed Tee, put it were i would have a spray head, directly between 2 plant sites, put about a 1inch peice of 1/4 poly tubing and put a sprayhead on each side missing the cap, so in both directions instead of a fine mist, i got a strong jet and i had unbelievable results, i may have achieved a faster vegg rate and hardcore root growth, the jets violently splash against the net pots, giving the aeroflo effect...i highly recommend this if you dont have enough sprayers and your plant sites are far apart, also the raindrip heads are dirt cheap compared to ez cloners for $1ea, i tried to save with BGhydro's for .60ea and wasted money
 

disposition84

Well-Known Member
Yeah, i've got green 360's and red 360's and they both drive me equally nuts.

I tried the pliers and ended up breaking a few as the heads are delicately attached to the bases. I heard a friend mention that they make an installation tool designed specifically for the sprayer heads, but he also mentioned those were more for plastic hosing as they have a "hole maker" on the tool as well.

I've tried bigger drill bits, but couldn't find one that worked well as one size up from what I was using the heads would shoot or fall out.

From the sounds of things it's just one of those things that's a PITA.
 

morrisgreenberg

Well-Known Member
PITA indeed, but once its done it works brilliantly, those hole punching tools are good to have, ever consider not using PVC and going with maybe 3/4" poly tubing? im a PVC guy but the poly can be done easily just need to make a large ring and get the matching Tee, i used this method recently to make drip rings
 
I use EZCloner 360 degree sprayers (red), and an 11/64" bit like morrisgreenburg uses. I didn't need pliers to screw them in, but I found that the more perpendicular you can get to the pipe when drilling the easier they are to screw in. I use 1/2" pvc for mine but just anecdotely it seems like thinwalled PVC would be good if you wanted to get them screwed into 1" PVC.

The hole is small, but if you drill it at a little bit of an angle it is harder to twist the sprayers in properly then if you try and make the hole as straight as possible. Just something I observed from my limited experience with the sprayers.
 

morrisgreenberg

Well-Known Member
santos is dead on, i use this technique when inserting poly tuning into the pvc for my manifolds, but when i need to do this i have to silicone, for a tub setup any leaks go back into the rez, nice observation+
 

budsky

Active Member
as fishman said i also use a 11/64 drill bit and tap the holes they go in and out like a charm.....
hope this helps..
 

ForbiddenFruit

Well-Known Member
Tip

Drill a hole with a 5/32 or 11/4 bit.. then simply put your E-Z cloner sprayer in an 11mm socket that you attach to your drill. It fits in perfectly. Then you just screw it right on in. No need to wear out your thumbs or thread the hole. It goes in smooth and tight.
 
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