This has by far been the longest thread that I have ever read, really good stuff guys. I am in the process of converting to SIPs and want to get your opinions. I'm going to try out "Alaska grow buckets" because I am a broke student and can scavenge most of the pieces needed. I really couldn't find much of anything about using them for cannabis though.
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They are basically 5 gal buckets with a plastic colander in the bottom, air holes cut into the walls, and lined with fabric to simulate a fabric pot. These are watered from a float valve controlled res. I'm in the process of scavenging parts and pieces and am going to try out 2 in my 2x2 as a test run to see how they do. After reading through the entire thread, I've run into some questions that I hope have answers. Any advice/help is appreciated! Also, I grow autos for now so any tips on autos in SIPs are welcome.
The premise is that the colander sits on the bottom of the bucket, allowing some of the soil to be submerged and be the wick. With this setup, from what I've read, this seems like it would be easy to waterlog the soil. Any thoughts on this? Other options I've thought of:
- Just keep a very low water level
- Put perlite in the colander to create space between the soil and water, and act as a wick
- Flip the colander over, pack soil along the curve and walls to act as the wick, and have the colander be like an air dome above the water
I really liked
@Tim Fox approach, simple and straight forward with the FFOF & tomato tone (2 cups, right?), water only. I plan to go this route, unless you think it would be too much for autos. I saw a more recent ingredient list he uses, but I have to go with his earlier mix for budget. I have some Dr. Earth Flower Girl that I can use. Would you recommend mixing it in as well? Or top dressing later? Or using in teas? I also have some EWC. I'm also hesitant on doing a trench with autos, but what do I know?
And do I need to put in an overflow hole in the air gap area with this kind of setup to keep the air fresh? Or would the upper air holes provide enough?
Again, awesome thread. It definitely has my wheels turning, thanks to all who have shared their knowledge, triumphs, and failures. An old Eskimo once told me, "Learn from your mistakes, but also from others', life is too short to make them all yourself."