So right Shiska,
Octopots have an air gap rather than a air stone. You control the Gap.
Small is Beautiful. Simple tech rules. This just works.
-Grouchy
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2 things:
- I love tinkering
- I dislike dogma.
I am well aware what Chris from Octo says about growing in his product/design. I am not interested in disputations of "x says this, Y says that.
I was told short sleeves donât work. They do. seen it.
I was told airpot style pots donât work. They do. seen it
I was told plastic pots donât work. They do. seen it
I was told airstones donât work. They do. seen it
We need to move away from dogma and toward empiricism I think.
- on the left 0.5 gallon sleeves over 1gallon ”octo.
- on the right, 3 gallon sleeve over 1gallon ”octo.
all were fed the same 3 to 4 gram of 15-5-15 per gallon throughout their life.
draw your own conclusions.
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The differences as I see them between what Chris at Octopot says and what others have done are âworks out of the boxâ versus âworks if youâre okay with some level of tinkeringâ; âworks with larger internal water capacityâ versus âworks with smaller internal water capacityâ; âit worksâ versus âit works exactly the sameâ.
Octopots work. Autopots work. And SIPs like earth boxes that use amended soil with plain water work too. Iâd assume the wick-based watering trays from AC Infinity work as well. They all use the same base principles of wicking water to provide a way to water/feed from below the plant, but each is slightly different and has different recommendations/requirements in order to have the best success with them.
Using different products put together to achieve a similar purpose doesnât and wouldnât necessarily have the same requirements or recommendations. Itâs kinda like buying a stock Jeep versus going to the junkyard and getting a decent frame, then building a Jeep-like vehicle using your preferred engine, suspension, and other parts. At the end of the day it may look like a Jeep and drive like a Jeep, but youâre not going to follow a factory manual for it because you built it yourself. But if youâre driving a stock Jeep, the factory manual is probably pretty spot on.
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i have succesfully germinated a fem auto seedling in a (albeit micro but should still work) octopot without using a dome or anything. i walked by it 20mins before and the middle wasnt completely bone dry yet, came back and it was and this guy was poking through. outside in 85F/40RH baking in the sun.
applications for autoflowers in these (and obviously the 3gal octopots) seem very interesting, especially given some breeds not liking to be transplanted.
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I have a question about Octopots for those who have done a couple runs - do they allow for organic amended soil? Would I have to switch to nutes + the soil mix they recommend?
Your plants all look monstrously awesome. 
@SaintAliasKnife what size tent are you using?
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Not recommended by the manufacturer.
What kind of growing media should I use with Octopot Grow Systems?
Octopot Grow Systems require a high quality well-aerated growing media that promotes high air capacity. SunshineÂź Mix #4 is a professional growing media that works well right out of the bag. The perfect blend of growing media for Octopot Grow Systems has 60/40 ratio, specifically 60% high quality soilless mix (peat moss, bark, etc) with 40% perlite. Perlite creates spaces between soil particles allowing air, water and nutrients to flow to plant roots. Perlite should be blended throughout the soil. Never layer perlite and soil or fill any part of the Grow Sleeve with perlite alone. Octopot Grow Systems may also be used with sustainable Coco coir blends such as Foxfarm Coco Loco. Peat moss and coco blends also work well, but Octopot recommends every blend include 40% perlite.
WARNING Do not use super Soils with Octopot Grow Systems. Super soils are generally too heavy and hold too much moisture limiting air exchange which damages roots. Nutrients in super soils tend to be used up too early and run out too soon in the growth cycle.
Most of us run a fairly inert soil mix and let the plants consume their nutes via the reservoir. YMMV, of course. I donât believe Iâve seen reports of anyone who has tried it
Edit to add a pic:
NL x Super Skunk @ week 5, and I just moved the two Consumption x Chocolate Thai plants in this morning.
Thatâs in a 4x8 tent. I donât consume as much bud as I grow, so Iâm cool with giving the plants tons of room and having fewer of them. I use ProMix HP with a little more perlite added.
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thanks. its a 3x3x6. No, Iâve only ever used sterile media. No dirt inside the house.
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I tried adding 10-20% organic supersoil along with promix & perlite on some of my early octopot experiments even tho it isnât recommended. It worked all the way to harvest, but not in comparison to the suggested mix. The plants were smaller and way slower for the roots to hit the reservoir.
@Nagel420 also did a micro octo run with pure enriched soil and I think it also worked, just not as well.
âNot worth exploring furtherâ was my conclusion. 
FWIW,
-Grouchy
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If youâre looking for organic amended/super soil, check out some of the SIP threads. Earthbox, City Picker, DIY, etc. methods have the same principle as octopots but with organic amended soil versus peat/perlite + soluble nutes.
Hereâs a thread about SIPs with a healthy summary and lots of other links included. https://overgrow.com/t/crunchberries-probiotic-sip-thread/78727
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going to assume the 6gal octos dont require a glue strip for the orange part of the depth guage as it didnt come with any⊠guess i can just use gorilla glue.
Alright gotta ask. My self Iâve been using the 13 gal grow bags Chris did for like a year. Well now he doesnât make the bags that size anymore. By chance anyone snagged a few for them selves that would be willing to part with 6 lol. I guess I could re stitch them myself but Iâm thinking after a few years running them indoor,then outdoor,then Indoor, then outdoors,t hen indoors, then outdoors has taken its toll.
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Octopot still sells the 12 gallon(not sure about the 13) pots.
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The Orange part just pushes on it wont go anywhere. I wouldnât glue it. I take the depth gauges out when cleaning etc. so they donât get damaged.
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Iâve lost the orange ball gauge still works fine.
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Thank you. Been a minute since Iâve looked. Guess itâs 12 gals.
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Just go to the store and get a similar one in the fishing dept.
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Hey there, what type of lights are these? I donât recall seeing these type of lights before.
Nice 
sheâs a beast and a beauty
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