Where do I put the air stones?

I built an aeroponic system that has a separate reservoir. I placed 1 air stone directly under the intake of the water pump. I was also thinking to add another in the reservoir as well just to keep things moving and full of air.

However, I am not sure as to whether or not I should also place a couple of air stones under the plants themselves? Any benefit to doing this?

thanks

bump.. want to get things going asap thx

I think this will depend on how much residual water you have under the plants in your aero system. Main reason for the air stones in DWC is to provide the roots with O2, since they are submerged in water. Since aeros have hanging roots which are sprayed, this isn't really an issue. If everything is draining to your sep res, then I would say no. If you are seeing more than 6 inches of water under the roots, then I would say yes.

Eat it.. Then you can fart the alphabet

Txclstmn said:

I think this will depend on how much residual water you have under the plants in your aero system. Main reason for the air stones in DWC is to provide the roots with O2, since they are submerged in water. Since aeros have hanging roots which are sprayed, this isn't really an issue. If everything is draining to your sep res, then I would say no. If you are seeing more than 6 inches of water under the roots, then I would say yes.

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Well, I am hoping it drains all the way down. But of course the root mass will hold a lot of it in. I doubt it will be anywhere near 6" of water though. Going to put it on a timer and give it time to drain. I would think that only the bottom would have water but at least half the root system should be in the air. My set up is 14" deep.

So assuming that a few inches of that might be sitting in water, would the plants be OK overall, since much of the roots will not be submerged in the water? Or will the parts of the roots that ARE in the water die (without an air stone)?

thank you!

XxNinjaxX said:

Eat it.. Then you can fart the alphabet

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I wish I understood the joke, but I don't.

in the resevior is enough.

Cissy said:

I wish I understood the joke, but I don't.

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Lol, if u eat the air stone then you will be full of air.. & wat happens when you are full of excess air??

But on a serious note place the airstone in the reservoir. Either place it in the middle so it reaches all corners of your reservoir, or close to the pump so that the oxygen rich water is wat is getting pumped straight to ur plants

Sometimes placing airstones directly under ur plants can cause damage to ur roots if it is too rough..

XxNinjaxX said:

Sometimes placing airstones directly under ur plants can cause damage to ur roots if it is too rough..

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ahh OK.. gotcha.

The air can damage the roots? Then what about a DWC set up?

I might make one of my (2) systems a DWC and was going to put a ton of air stones in there. Didn't realize that there was such a thing as "too much air"?

It's not 'too much air' as such, but the fizzing/spitting action of the air coming out of the stone is what has the ability to damage your roots.

XxNinjaxX said:

It's not 'too much air' as such, but the fizzing/spitting action of the air coming out of the stone is what has the ability to damage your roots.

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Where did you come up with that piece of info?

tom__420 said:

Where did you come up with that piece of info?

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I have physically seen it happen.
Also i believe i read it once upon a time in one of Roseman's Thread..

What damage does it do? What happens to the roots?
I have NEVER heard of this and to be honest it sounds like a load of bull
That guy roseman said that CFL's don't require exhaust fans so I usually don't take his advice all that often
Got a link to where you read that?
This is very very hard to believe I'm sorry bro nothing against you it is just that the roots need oxygen and to say that too much air is ridiculous
The bubbling and splashing of the bubbles popping on the surface is what DWC is all about

That's fine, if every1 believed everything they read then there wud b some very disillusioned ppl on here.
I honestly cant remember which thread it was (it was back wen all the threads on here used2 blend in2 1).
Dont require fans?? They have them inbuilt, lol.

As for wat damage it did, it actually snapped the roots, though they were very young roots, and we did have a ridiculous amount of air pumping in2 it.

Went with the old 'More Bubbles Less Troubles' saying and whacked in 2 air pumps with 2 air stones each and put em on max air output.. So it was probably a bit overboard, but u said u had 'Never' heard of it.. Now u have. Whether u believe it or not is entirely up2 u.

Well thank you for explaining it, what size air pumps are you using?
I am using two dual outlet air air pumps each connected to one 12 inch air stone and I am not having any problems

The air pumps are 400L/Hr each, i got em off Ebay, Air Pump.
I must admit im no pro @ DWC, this has been my first attempt and after the experience of almost killing this plant i almost gave it up.
Took out one of the air pumps and put the other on medium until it was older then moved it back to high and it was ok, bounced back well.

Interesting.. Especially since I am still contemplating switching from aeroponics to a very basic DWC set up. Not only will it simplify things for me, but I can also cut out the external reservoir and save at least a foot in height.

So while you guys are here, let me ask you: can I grow in the reservoir itself? I have these huge boxes that will hold 40 plants either way (DWC or Aero). Thinking to just take out the sprayers, return my water pump to the store, and then put about 20 air stones in there, fill it up with water and nutes and call it a day. What do you think? Would 20 stones be enough for 40 plants AND can I just use the grow box as one big DWC without needing a separate resevoir?

thank you

I use buckets and the 5 inch round stones you get from the pet store. you might check out something like this

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752989&lmdn=Product+Type

this one is only a 6 inch, but I know they make them in 9 inch and 12 inch sizes as well. They are somewhat heavy and you could prob get by with just using 2 or 3 of these.

Yes, you could just have one super sized box, but you are talking about a huge pain in the ass, especially if you don't have a separate res. The water will have to be changed at least every 10 - 14 days, and that is pushing it in my book. You'll also need to have access to check the pH, which rises constantly in DWC systems.

Wooden airstones. They put out very fine bubbles which move the water much better and add more of a fog to the air rather than a mist. Basically they aerate the water better and therefore the dissolved oxygen level will be easier to maintain at a higher ppm. If you have a table saw or a friend with a table saw simply go to a store that sells a good variety of hard woods and by a bass wood 3/4" thick board. Rip it down into 3/4" swquare pieces and cut thi ose to roughly four inch lengths. Go y to a quality pet store pet store and buy some airline fittings that can be pressed or screwed into holes you a hole you drill into the end of the wood blocks after you buy the paltic tubing fittings. Or just buy them premade. However they do clog up quicker than the coarser stones so you will get tired of buying new ones.

The bubbles coming out of the wooden air stones will be very, very, small in comparison to the typical mineral (sand) air stones. Just consider though: 1 cubic foot of bubbles that are extremely small have a much larger combined surface area than 1 cubic foot of big bubbles. That means the small bubbles will move more water and will bring more oxygen into contact with the water as well as creating a fog of high O2 water vapor rather than the larger water droplet sizes of lower dissolved O2 content caused by the bigger bubbles. It is sorta like comparing the difference between high pressure aero and low pressure aero.

My self, I do not use air stones in my nutrient reservoirs, however I have a wooden airstone inside each aero tube at the capped end just to keep a flow of fresh oxygenated air moving through the tubes.