Blumats
- Thread starter bigunyun
- Start date
bigunyun
Well-Known Member
How should I clean the system?
Flowki
Well-Known Member
Remember you only need to do it after every cycle unless you are real ocd or have very sludgy nutrient line that will block. If you clean a res mid cycle you will likely have to reset blumats and that's not good for the established roots nor is it any fun. I should add, if you use blumats for veg also that could be quite a long cycle depending on your flower time. Prob is with blumats you can't just turn them off as you please to clean down, not without doing damage to the exposed root mounds. You may want to look into drip clean as a preventative. Not all blumat users do this but check the details for yourself.
Warm water and a cloth, give the res a good scrub clean out over a sink or bath tub etc, the build ups are not always so visable but it's there. You may also want to invest in a black res so algae doesn't grow inside. At the very least cover that see through res with a blanket or something, so it gets no light. The blumat line once disconnected, you can hold up to the tap with your fist clenched around it to make a seal, this will force warm water down the pipe at quite a high psi and should break away any internal build ups if you hold it there for 20 seconds or so. The 3mm connector pipes/plastic fitting can be done in the same way separately. It's a pain yes but unfortunately part of keeping a clear system. If you keep your res topped up often and also use a small pond pump inside to keep the res moving this can help stop build ups on the sides of the res. The build ups normally happen when nutrients are able to dry on the side of the res or are able to settle at the bottom of the res over time prior to making their way down the line.
I don't use bleach or any such agent that is toxic during clean down but this can be your own choice.
Warm water and a cloth, give the res a good scrub clean out over a sink or bath tub etc, the build ups are not always so visable but it's there. You may also want to invest in a black res so algae doesn't grow inside. At the very least cover that see through res with a blanket or something, so it gets no light. The blumat line once disconnected, you can hold up to the tap with your fist clenched around it to make a seal, this will force warm water down the pipe at quite a high psi and should break away any internal build ups if you hold it there for 20 seconds or so. The 3mm connector pipes/plastic fitting can be done in the same way separately. It's a pain yes but unfortunately part of keeping a clear system. If you keep your res topped up often and also use a small pond pump inside to keep the res moving this can help stop build ups on the sides of the res. The build ups normally happen when nutrients are able to dry on the side of the res or are able to settle at the bottom of the res over time prior to making their way down the line.
I don't use bleach or any such agent that is toxic during clean down but this can be your own choice.
Last edited:
bigunyun
Well-Known Member
Great info! You're so right... drip feeding is another whole learning curve; just when I thought I'd learned about overwatering and overfeeding LOL. Now it's underfeeding. This grow my plants don't seem quite as robust, at least in terms of stem thickness... I don't think I had the blumats turned up enough. So much to dial in. Thanks for the info about the res. I think I'm going to go back to plain old manual water every day or two until there's runoff. Only have 3 plants so it's not that bad. I think I'll still use the res, tho, since i have the chiller hooked up to it and mixing up 10 gal batches will save me time. I think if I had crowded tents with 8 plants in coco the Blumats would make a lot more sense. Maybe the next grow I'll try 'em again.
bigunyun
Well-Known Member
I'll give it another try but I think they'll work better in just coco instead of dirt... next grow!
Flowki
Well-Known Member
Yeah possibly, good luck.
bprestoner
Active Member
did u ever try them in coco? that was my plan. im in soil now, but need to reliably water for a week or so. thinking blumats in coco, which cant get overwatered? or so i read...
WintersBones
Well-Known Member
I just finished my first flower cycle using blumats, in coco, and it is working great. Had a couple of 5gal pots with 2 drippers and a couple 2 gal pots with one dripper each all running off the same 5gal res. Using GH flora trio. Did have some minor issues with bacteria growth in the res when I tried adding organic additives, so I kept the res to the base nutes+bloom boost and gave an extra fertilization with organic/microbial enhancers once or twice a week, which is how often I would need to top off the reservoir anyways.
As for cleaning I just run a little water with florakleen agent through the lines and give the res a quick wash and scrub every couple if months. Doesn't hurt giving the plants a small flush once in a while with this system either.
Oh and I've got a small airstone in the res to keep it aerated and prevent settling/built up etc ...
I'm still dialing it in but so far it's worked well for me.
As for cleaning I just run a little water with florakleen agent through the lines and give the res a quick wash and scrub every couple if months. Doesn't hurt giving the plants a small flush once in a while with this system either.
Oh and I've got a small airstone in the res to keep it aerated and prevent settling/built up etc ...
I'm still dialing it in but so far it's worked well for me.
bprestoner
Active Member
thanks for the feedback!
calvin.m16
Well-Known Member
Looks great. I personally opted for AutoPots and my first run was extremely successful. Huge yields using CNS17 Grow Ripe & Bloom.
calvin.m16
Well-Known Member
You would just water by hand at that point.
guitarguy10
Well-Known Member
I recently bought this cheap and kind of shit DIY drip irriagation kit (https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B088M15C5D/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and I now wish I had known about this bluemats thing.
calvin.m16
Well-Known Member
Look into AutoPots. I just did a run with their 4 pot XL system under a Growers Choice ROI-E720 LED and pulled 1.5 lbs off 4 plants feeding Botanicare CNS17 Grow, Bloom & Ripe base nutrients per feed chart.
guitarguy10
Well-Known Member
2Pot XL System | AutoPot Watering Systems Canada
2Pot XL System includes: 1x 47ltr tank, lid & 6mm top hat grommet 1x 6mm golf filter 1x 6mm cross connector 2x 1Pot XL trays & lids 2x 25ltr pot 2x 6mm inline tap 2x AQUAvalve 1x 2 metres of 6mm pipe 2x root control disc
www.autopot-canada.ca
$140 for one 2 pot system? so much money
looks like a decent system but I mean unless someone wants to donate this cripple some money, yeah sadly not gonna happen lol.
calvin.m16
Well-Known Member
2Pot XL System | AutoPot Watering Systems Canada
2Pot XL System includes: 1x 47ltr tank, lid & 6mm top hat grommet 1x 6mm golf filter 1x 6mm cross connector 2x 1Pot XL trays & lids 2x 25ltr pot 2x 6mm inline tap 2x AQUAvalve 1x 2 metres of 6mm pipe 2x root control disc
$140 for one 2 pot system? so much money
It costs to be lazy thats why medication is more expensive at the convenience store than the supermarket. If you want to be lazy it costs.. Trust me you get what you pay for man. If I had the extra cash I would help you out. I personally went back to mostly hand watering in bigger pots. I run 15 gallon pots now soo the 6.6 gallon aren't big enough other than for my LEDs.
You literally do get what you pay for though. I started out with eBay/Amazon lights and ended up investing in $800+ LED and they do what they say. I get way bigger returns and way better quality with them.
Star Dog
Well-Known Member
What $ 140? No there's something far wrong with that price for the autpots, £30 is nearer the mark.
https://groworks.co.uk/products/aut..._content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic
https://groworks.co.uk/products/aut..._content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic
calvin.m16
Well-Known Member
That is for 2 pots, 2 trays, 2 AquaValves and a reservoir with lines & fittings.. What you linked is just 1 pot, 1 tray & 1 aquavalve (built into tray).
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