NEED HELP! Buds are too big and falling over

[Situation420]

• Here's my problem.
  
  I grow my plants in individual 5 gallon dwc buckets in a 9' by 8' area and each plant gets 2 sq feet to grow in.
  
  To replace the nutrients I simply lift the plant out of the bucket, clean it out, and refill it with the new solution. The plant is in a net pot and rests in a hole that is cut into the top of the bucket lid. Above the plants my lights are moving back and forth on light rails across the canopy so i cant hang anything from the ceiling. Having to lift out the lids means that any support i use has to be attached to the lid or the plant itself and a net cant be used because the plants have to be moved around to have the nutrients changed out.(any other places to attach it i cant think of or way to change my nutrients)
  
  I have tried using pipe hangers and bamboo stakes fastened to the lid but the pipe hangers bend and break eventually and are a bit flimsy now that they are made in china instead of the US. The buds are so heavy they are weighing the branches down to the point that they break and fall on each other and limit air circulation through the canopy increasing my risk for mold and mildew issues.
  
  Does anyone have any ideas of how i can support these plants. They are too big to tie to themselves (tried that as well)​
  
  
  
  

 

[xxENOCHxx]

create a brace from a wall / make an open box around them using 2x4's and time them girls or run a net. or buy some concrete wire and cut to size to make a cage that will support them.. use zipties to tie it off.. got that from high times ultimate grow i think.. or if u dont want to use wood u can make a frame easily out of 1/2'' thick pvc and a few elbow connectors man and run nets or strings off of that! and thats a cheap way to do it

 

[ThorGanjason]

Have you ever seen those clothes racks on wheels? They have 4 verticle poles on wheels, and then like a square made of poles that attaches the to the top of the poles and helps them support weight. You could try and either convert one of those, or try building your own. Like take some 1" PVC pipe and some of the 3-way/cube corner fittings or whatever and have the four verticle poles at whatever height you would hang the stuff from. You could run a couple tight lines across the top that wouldn't block too much light, and then hang strings from those to tie to the buds/branches that are too heavy. That way you could lift them without undoing anything or doing damage.

Hell, you could put the plants on pulleys clipped to the tight strings running across the top. If you have one string coming off of the pulley, and then that one string evenly pulls the plants weight from like 6 or 7 different strings and not have to lift from the plant. That would probably be cool, but too much work and too much risk.

 

[Bakatare666]

Have you considered a way to make a frame above the plants to fasten them to, and when you need to change out your buckets, move the bucket, not the plant?

 

[ThorGanjason]

Hah, ninja'd!! Pretty much the same idea, lol.

 

[Situation420]

Thank you for your input. I thought about that but heres the read with that. The plants have to be lifted up and changed out of their buckets so being woven into a net i cant change my nutrients. All i have left is one more change and the next time time building a recirculating system where i can attach poles to the buckets or do the net over the top. its also too late for those i need something that is more of a support that i can put in now. Do you have any ideas that are like this?

 

[ThorGanjason]

BTW, just wanted to mention--thats an awesome problem you're having

 

[Situation420]

yea i thought about making a frame but they have to be lifted out of the buckets so whatever support i use has to be able to move with the bucket lid and the plant.

 

[Situation420]

this is what I'm dealing with.. the pictures are on this link https://www.rollitup.org/grow-journals/676886-day-42-flowering.html#post9253992

 

[Situation420]

Have you considered a way to make a frame above the plants to fasten them to, and when you need to change out your buckets, move the bucket, not the plant?

The lights move back and forth above the plants so what can i do to build a frame above them?

 

[xxENOCHxx]

pvc pipe start with a frame that just stable enough to stand up the be creative and run cross beams as u can fit with ur garden. if u realy want to file the ends down ( using sand paper ) that u place into the collar of the connector and dont use any glue so that its a quick release frame also get some actual plant yoyo's so u can quickly disconnect all supports to disassemble the frame ( or if u only have to change water 1 more time what cutting and running all new string 1 time ?? )

 

[Situation420]

pvc pipe start with a frame that just stable enough to stand up the be creative and run cross beams as u can fit with ur garden. if u realy want to file the ends down ( using sand paper ) that u place into the collar of the connector and dont use any glue so that its a quick release frame also get some actual plant yoyo's so u can quickly disconnect all supports to disassemble the frame ( or if u only have to change water 1 more time what cutting and running all new string 1 time ?? )

Yea theres alot of plants 16 with anywhere from 5-8 colas. Almost every cola is bending over and there is a sea of green goin on so they are all touching and i have to be very careful. So according to you im going to need 64 to 150 feet of 1/2 inch pvc . You idea gave me an idea for a collapsable support using pvc just to rest the buds on and when i need to switch out the nutes i can take slide out the poles for that row and change them and then when im done i can put the plants back and slide back in the cross beam supports

 

[Crankyxr]

A tomato cage fastened to the bucket.

 

[kinddiesel]

get 4 poles / well dall rods or those bamboo poles. place them around the plant. and wrap it up loosly with wire. all the way around. tie it to the 4 poles . and problem gone. and by the way that's a very good problem to have well done ! congrads

 

[jondamon]

Have you thought about running string around the canopy to hold the canopy together more.

This should eliminate the hanging down for the time being until you can setup your RDWC.



J

 

[sandjsdad]

I had this same problem...what I did to change the water in my buckets was I bought a small pond pump and dropped it into the bucket I put a tube on the end that went into another bucket...turn the pump on, the water gets pumped out into the empty bucket. Dump that bucket out, fill with new water and nutes...put the pump into the bucket with the clean water and nutes, stick the tube into the original bucket and then it fills with the new water. simple and you just have to lift the lid on the bucket a little bit to do all this.

 

[Indagrow]

Make a grid for the plants as suggested.. You need to think of a way to get the nutrients out without moving the plants.. For this simply put a hose in like sands suggested.. If you don't want to get a pump just siphon the water in and out.. As if your stealing gas from someone in a parking lot.. Let fluid dynamics do the work for you!

drill a hole in the buckets at the lip.. Slip your hose in.. Start the flow of water and wait.. It will leave some behind but this will be minimal would you rather a little left over water or broken buds?

 

[Situation420]

I had this same problem...what I did to change the water in my buckets was I bought a small pond pump and dropped it into the bucket I put a tube on the end that went into another bucket...turn the pump on, the water gets pumped out into the empty bucket. Dump that bucket out, fill with new water and nutes...put the pump into the bucket with the clean water and nutes, stick the tube into the original bucket and then it fills with the new water. simple and you just have to lift the lid on the bucket a little bit to do all this.

This gave me the idea to just hookup a tube to each bucket that can be connected to an inline pond pump and just move it from bucket to bucket. For now i'll just hook up one and vacuum out the nutes in each bucket then reverse the pump to refill them. Never thought of that being a possibility before this thread. Thank you for your help!

 

[Situation420]

Make a grid for the plants as suggested.. You need to think of a way to get the nutrients out without moving the plants.. For this simply put a hose in like sands suggested.. If you don't want to get a pump just siphon the water in and out.. As if your stealing gas from someone in a parking lot.. Let fluid dynamics do the work for you!

drill a hole in the buckets at the lip.. Slip your hose in.. Start the flow of water and wait.. It will leave some behind but this will be minimal would you rather a little left over water or broken buds?

Haha I would have do that 20 times. Im just gonna buy a pump. That water looks nasty and isn't going in or around my mouth

 

[sandjsdad]

This gave me the idea to just hookup a tube to each bucket that can be connected to an inline pond pump and just move it from bucket to bucket. For now i'll just hook up one and vacuum out the nutes in each bucket then reverse the pump to refill them. Never thought of that being a possibility before this thread. Thank you for your help!

Thanks! It made a messy and difficult task easy!