How do you deal with your runoff? Would you mind showing some pics of your set up? I’m looking for a way to do this in DTW coco.
@Natea for long range shots, I just stick a piece of hose on the watering can spout 
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@HorseBadorites seems like most folks use something like this, I’ve been considering it for a DTW coco experiment in my near future:
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Interesting, thanks for that!
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Cool posts, a little expensive for my taste but good reference.
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I just use a watering jug. Mix in 5 gallon water bottles, fill the watering jug and pour, lol. I have a pump I have never set up as well as a watering system to auto water 4 plants still in it’s box It’s a bunch of extra work watering by hand but it get’s me closer to my plants 
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Bought a 4 pot autopot system last summer to see how it works and helps my old back…
I bought a second autopot system for a Christmas gift for myself.
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I grow in elevated 4x4 trays, so it’s easy in that respect as I’ve got a drain hose going to a bucket underneath. I have to empty the waste every 3-5 days, depending on growth stage.
So yeah, my $75 “no-brainer” solution becomes a bit more expensive if you need to add a stand and a tray. And you give up 18" of vertical space, which is problematic for some for sure.
Okay, nevermind!
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I probably should do more runoff, but this time around as long as I get a little bit to drip it seems fine 
. I just bout $3 boot trays and had oven grates as elevators, and the runoff dries up with the fans overnight
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Blumats and this large garbage can as a res. When I’m in the middle of stretch I’m going through 5+ gallons per day so I like having a large res. I don’t recommend for first time blumat users…runaways are real lol
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Great pictures and nice setup! Seems like a lot of work but after it’s setup I bet it’s so nice to have
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It does seem like alot of work, and at first it really is. But I’ve set up and torn down this system so many times now it’s really simple. Maybe 45 mins or so max to set up from scratch. I fill 6 jugs with ro water days in advance, that gets the res pretty full to begin with. From there i maintain it around 3/4 full.
The silicon hose is soooo much nicer to work with than the hard plastic they first included. Unfortunately my cats really like that silicon too and chewed a roll I had…so now I’m forced to use both types. They want wayyyyy too much $$ to ship another roll to me. Like 4x the value of the hose itself. No thanks.
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do you have pics or anything of your diy system i need to make one eventually
I use this.
Up to eight plants, no pumps, no electricity. No hassles.
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Mine is one of those overstuffed tents I’m afraid. LOL
First run with these. Easy to set up a gravity feed distribution system with a few other things.
They’re basically mini octopots. I have some of those too but going to use them outside.
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There is no running water in my space so I fill a 30 gallon trash barrel via a long hose from outside. From there I use an autosiphon that was leftover from my home brewing days to fill 5 gallon buckets.
They only cost $10-$15. It takes two pumps by hand to start the flow, then gravity does the rest. I mix nutes as the bucket fills. When it is ready I set the full bucket on a step stool and use the autosiphon again to water the plants.
I use a long funnel at the end of the autosiphon’s hose for extra reach. The funnel sits perfectly in the reservoir base of the Octopots I use. I can start one filling and leave it unattended since the Octopot rez can accommodate 6 gallons.
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Maybe will help. Please don’t shame me for how dirty my res is, it’s been a few weeks since I’ve cleaned it out.
You need a pond pump, preferably with a 1/4" output. Needs a fair amount of lift/pressure, that’s more important than GPH.
I use a 12" rainbird riser to attach pump to the rainbird manifold.
Rainbird manifold, I have an 8 outlet one but typically don’t use them all.
1/4" tubing and I also put valves on each hose (used for ro/di units).
There’s many ways you can run the tubes. I kept the manifold inside my sump because I figure that’s my most likely leakage point. The manifold works fine even if it is completely submerged. Here’s some pics, warts and all. All of these stuff, with the exception of the ro/di valves, can be purchased at any of the big box home stores in the USA, irrigation section. More questions, let me know.
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I’m like @DougDawson . Do it by hand. Sometimes not all your plants need the same thing. I’m like him. I believe touching and breathing on them makes them feel loved. Sounds good.
Some good tips up top. I have been looking into growing different. The octopods or a self watering system. Even hydroponics.
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Wow good work that setup seems pretty cheap to do
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