What size Hydroponic Buckets to buy?

[Lord-Xanthor]

I decided when I get my shed up, to grow via hydroponics instead of soil. I read the websites information on the topic, but one thing I couldn't find was what size bucket/pail to get. When it came down to soil, it stated to use 3 to 5 gallon flower pots. What I would like to know is what size hydroponic pail I should get. There wasn't any mention if there was a benefit to getting a 3 gallon pail or a 5 gallon pail. Any feedback would be appreciated. Oh, once I install the hydroponics system. Can you transfer a soil grown plant that's 4 to 6 weeks old into a hydroponics system?
One other thing. I see the pails have either one spot for one plant, while other pails have spots for 4. Can you grow multiple plants or is it better to limit one per pail?

 

[DW2]

No Title

Good day My Lord-Xanthor,
I'm on My fifth hydroponic grow. I use a 10 gallon Sterilite tote box with six 3 3/4 inch net pots in the top (similar to, and one of them is, a "Bubbleponics" set up). I use 'bag seed', so I always have about a 50/50 loss of seedlings (male plants). I have noticed that when I have had two or more plants in the same planter, that one of them seems to become 'dominate' over the other(s) plant and either stunt, or kill it.
A problem with the multiple site grow is when the male plants are 'culled out', invariably some of the root mass is left behind in the reservoir to rot, and this is not the best situation, but is manageable.
There are lids with built in net pots, sized for the five gallon buckets, available and most likely, also for the three gallon size. You could do as I did and get the tote and an adjustable hole saw and cut how many sites that You want. I also, added aluminum angles bolted, with stainless steel screws, on the underside of the tops for support, the top gets very flimsy with the holes cut out.
I have not transplanted anything for soil to hydro, but I would not recommend it unless you could completely rinse off all of the soil from the roots. There are a lot of 'things' in the soil that in a hydro setup, would cause a bunch of problems for You.
Here's a photo of My set up, if it will help out.
Good luck with Your grow.

 

[furrysparkle]

So leafy!!

 

[DW2]

Yeah, I'm not a big fan of the defoliation. I do some defoliation, but mostly I just kinda train the leaves by tucking and weaving them out of the way, after all, they are there for a reason. I do remove any damaged or 'wilty' looking leaves as needed, and some that just wont train.

 

[William and Sue Ashley]

5gal with side spout so to see the level of water.....1 plant per bucket.....6" baskets and nutes and air pump and tent. O'Yeah exhaust fan...floor fans.....O'Yeah (LIGHTS)......MMMMMMMM.....But its really really cool....LOL.....I did leave alot out believe it or not....Did I....MMMMMMM

 

[gbauto]

My first attempt used generic 5 gal buckets with a 18gal rez. I did have some cracking with bulkhead fittings for the return line and that did create some leaks or floods so containment is a concern for me. This system uses 3 gal buckets because I can use the extra headroom and I now use a simple grommet/pipe to make the drain line. On the transplant-I guess it should work. Get all of the soil out of the root ball and then figure out how you are going to secure the plant in your medium-that's the biggest challenge I see. I've gone the other way without to much damage but not what you propose. Let us know how it goes.

 

[Lord-Xanthor]

5gal with side spout so to see the level of water.....1 plant per bucket.....6" baskets and nutes and air pump and tent. O'Yeah exhaust fan...floor fans.....O'Yeah (LIGHTS)......MMMMMMMM.....But its really really cool....LOL.....I did leave alot out believe it or not....Did I....MMMMMMM

I have 2 1200w and 2 1000w led panels. Once I move everything to the shed im going to need more panels. I saw 2000w panels so might get those unless someone knows a better version.

 

[PigSquishy]

To try to best answer your question as to the number of plants to grow in hydro per a bucket type of system... The more plants you have the faster you will be able to grow them in veg to the point of switching to flower, so you will cut you veg time down for the sake of more harvests sooner. However as some people are limited by the number of plants they can grow legally they would then take into account the number of total plants they have. In the end when you look at the spaced used to grow your plants and the lighting used you will commonly find whether you grow fewer or more plants the end yield will be about the same every time, because its not based on plant counts. Just the amount of time you need to spend in veg is what the plant count will matter most in regards to.

Now if you want to talk the height and width a plant can grow that is seriously influenced by the size of a pot, so for an example if you wanted to grow a 4-5 foot tall plant 2-3 foot wide I would recommend you look at a 5-gallon pot, but you should also note that if you keep your water temps 60-68 degrees and lower root pathogen potential, your plant could easily fill that 5-gallon bucket with roots and block the drain with no issue before harvest.

Hydro is great and something a lot of people over look in hydro is the need to keep your water temps cool otherwise you open yourself up to pathogens like root rot and algae, etc... Bulkhead fittings work great on flat surfaces, but look at something called a UniSeal that is similar to a bulkhead for those places a bulkhead may not work for you. As more commercial companies turn to hydro for massive yields there is an increasing amount of information out there on hydroponics, hydro cooling the air in the growing area, as well as using a chiller to cool your nutes to optimal temps for amazing growth results. The more you oxygenate your water the more plants can suck up nutes and take off, likewise once the water hits around 82-84-degrees the water doesn't hold oxygen anymore and plant roots will get slimey and plants can die. Which is important to take into account when planning your hydro system size because the more water you have the more heat that water can suck up out of the room and the harder it can get to cool it.

A tip I tell others on this is to see the point of water temps, sit out a glass of water and throughout the day watch how the temps of the water will change, put it by a heat source and watch how that too will affect it. Because your lights and heat of your grow will change the water temps.

I went back and grabbed the article from this site to try to show you something similar to try to help you out:
http://www.growweedeasy.com/high-yield-bubbleponics-technique

 

[Lord-Xanthor]

To try to best answer your question as to the number of plants to grow in hydro per a bucket type of system... The more plants you have the faster you will be able to grow them in veg to the point of switching to flower, so you will cut you veg time down for the sake of more harvests sooner. However as some people are limited by the number of plants they can grow legally they would then take into account the number of total plants they have. In the end when you look at the spaced used to grow your plants and the lighting used you will commonly find whether you grow fewer or more plants the end yield will be about the same every time, because its not based on plant counts. Just the amount of time you need to spend in veg is what the plant count will matter most in regards to.

Now if you want to talk the height and width a plant can grow that is seriously influenced by the size of a pot, so for an example if you wanted to grow a 4-5 foot tall plant 2-3 foot wide I would recommend you look at a 5-gallon pot, but you should also note that if you keep your water temps 60-68 degrees and lower root pathogen potential, your plant could easily fill that 5-gallon bucket with roots and block the drain with no issue before harvest.

Hydro is great and something a lot of people over look in hydro is the need to keep your water temps cool otherwise you open yourself up to pathogens like root rot and algae, etc... Bulkhead fittings work great on flat surfaces, but look at something called a UniSeal that is similar to a bulkhead for those places a bulkhead may not work for you. As more commercial companies turn to hydro for massive yields there is an increasing amount of information out there on hydroponics, hydro cooling the air in the growing area, as well as using a chiller to cool your nutes to optimal temps for amazing growth results. The more you oxygenate your water the more plants can suck up nutes and take off, likewise once the water hits around 82-84-degrees the water doesn't hold oxygen anymore and plant roots will get slimey and plants can die. Which is important to take into account when planning your hydro system size because the more water you have the more heat that water can suck up out of the room and the harder it can get to cool it.

A tip I tell others on this is to see the point of water temps, sit out a glass of water and throughout the day watch how the temps of the water will change, put it by a heat source and watch how that too will affect it. Because your lights and heat of your grow will change the water temps.

I went back and grabbed the article from this site to try to show you something similar to try to help you out:
http://www.growweedeasy.com/high-yield-bubbleponics-technique

Thanks Greenthumb . I'm licensed up to 99 plants, but until I get my shed up stuck with 25 and 11 cuttings if they take. I might lose 6 of them because I left the cover off and accidentally fell asleep for 12 hours. Been sick all week and 6 of the 11 wilted due to drying too much. My automated system I'm installing I am revising because I'm going Aero Hydroponics and because it will be in an enclosed shed, I never once thought about water temperature. Depending on what system I get, I still need the water to be at a certain temperature and I think the best way to do that is to use the heating mats hooked to thermostats. Growmax had one of the best Aero systems I have researched but is no longer making them, though trying to see if hell sell me the schematics for his system. The aero system he had handled 12 five gallon buckets at a time with one large tank that would disperse water to all 12 buckets. I would need at least 3 sets, and only thing that worries me is the fact that should one plant get sick, it will most likely effect the other 11 plants. By the way, if anyone has seen really good hydroponic Aero systems, please, post the links here. I have been researching many systems, and the most annoying thing is finding something that sounds great, to find out they are trying to squeeze 12 plants into one 5 gallon bucket. The grow max 12 system I have seen videos for, the other thing I wasn't too happy about was that there were no bubblers and very little in way of getting oxygen in the water. As good as the system looks, that one missing part looks like it could result later on in root rot.

 

[PigSquishy]

I have actually been digging deep into aeroponics as a matter of fact, and I have found that when it boils down to building your own aeroponic system to look at one of two high pressure water pumps... I think I may have that link... I do, but its not to this site... thus I will quote a few parts you may find of interest:

There are three types of Aeroponic Systems:
- Low pressure Aeroponic Systems (soakaponics)
- High pressure Aeroponic Systems (true aeroponic systems) (60-90 psi) to properly atomize the water
- Ultrasonic foggers

Which brings me to the point of the high pressure aeroponics, it brings out the need for a pressure tank, regulator, and the water pump they recommend is either the kind for soda machines or carpet cleaners, the carpet cleaner pump being the better pump of the two. I priced those pumps quickly on a search because someone asked for a quote on a system and the pump was only about $100 for the first few I found without any real looking that matched the exact pump(s) the article brought out.

When it comes to oxygenating your reservoir it doesn't have to have an air pump, all you have to do is to atomize the water in the form of a mist at a certain micron is best (I forget the number off the top of my head) and that in of itself is oxygenating the water. Just like plants have a certain micron of water you want to feed the roots, as it best absorbs the water/nutrients and air best. As long as you are thinking aeroponics, I seriously hope you plan to automate the entire system with full backups for everything. In soil you have 7-10 days to fix a problem in pH and nutes, hydro you get hours if there is a problem most of the time, but in aeroponics two hours after the problem everything is dead. I just sincerely hope for your sake you are an experienced grower with a lot of money and time because you are going to really need it in my humble opinion because that is quite some undertaking ahead of you.

 

[gbauto]

Thanks Greenthumb . I'm licensed up to 99 plants, but until I get my shed up stuck with 25 and 11 cuttings if they take. I might lose 6 of them because I left the cover off and accidentally fell asleep for 12 hours. Been sick all week and 6 of the 11 wilted due to drying too much. My automated system I'm installing I am revising because I'm going Aero Hydroponics and because it will be in an enclosed shed, I never once thought about water temperature. Depending on what system I get, I still need the water to be at a certain temperature and I think the best way to do that is to use the heating mats hooked to thermostats. Growmax had one of the best Aero systems I have researched but is no longer making them, though trying to see if hell sell me the schematics for his system. The aero system he had handled 12 five gallon buckets at a time with one large tank that would disperse water to all 12 buckets. I would need at least 3 sets, and only thing that worries me is the fact that should one plant get sick, it will most likely effect the other 11 plants. By the way, if anyone has seen really good hydroponic Aero systems, please, post the links here. I have been researching many systems, and the most annoying thing is finding something that sounds great, to find out they are trying to squeeze 12 plants into one 5 gallon bucket. The grow max 12 system I have seen videos for, the other thing I wasn't too happy about was that there were no bubblers and very little in way of getting oxygen in the water. As good as the system looks, that one missing part looks like it could result later on in root rot.

My experience with using a multi bucket system on a central rez is that it's no more trouble than running a single bucket. Clean practices and use of a root innoculant has kept me out of trouble so far. I'm also a firm believer in aeration. Each bucket has a stone as well as the rez and it makes a noticeable difference in growth.

 

[Lord-Xanthor]

Thanks for the info. I as everyone suggested looked around at many different systems and am already designing one as we speak. I noticed something missing in every system I looked at which I'm a bit surprised was never designed into them, especially the bucket systems that fill and drain. There was not a single strainer in the line. Doesn't roots break off and if not cleaned out clog things up, not to mention a great source for mold and root rot? I seen them as cheap as $10. Id rather use one strainer to clean all the gunk out then have to go fishing through the entire system. Just a thought.

 

[Lord-Xanthor]

My experience with using a multi bucket system on a central rez is that it's no more trouble than running a single bucket. Clean practices and use of a root innoculant has kept me out of trouble so far. I'm also a firm believer in aeration. Each bucket has a stone as well as the rez and it makes a noticeable difference in growth.

After I saw the griwmax system I realized it wouldnt be to hard to duplicate and improve. Strainer to catch broken roots and debris though not sure if there is something better than heating mats to keep the water at desired temperature, especially if the system will be about 40 buckets. Thats a lot of water to keep at least 68 degrees.

 

[PigSquishy]

Okay I am imagining that you have a central bucket where all the water comes back to... and it is here where you would want to do your heating and cooling... and unless you are living in the very cold parts of the world I would think you will have issues with cooling not heating. Water just sitting out wants to pull heat out of a room just because it is there, long science lesson short here, water will heat up because there is a heat source it can suck the heat out of from. When you run the lights for the plants and stuff, the water will absorb heat and you will be fighting in most cases to cool your water. Even when it comes to cooling an entire room think of using water, all in all there is companies out there now who use a chiller to cool nutes, the air a couple different ways one being your 6-inch and bigger size fans, and then they have an air conditioner run by a chiller, a dehumidifier also run by a chiller... The science behind all this stuff really working is true, its how they cool plastics to take shape and harden before they disfigure,from being to hot... all in all water wants to absorb heat.