Bought a Autopot system

TomatoGrower123

TomatoGrower123

Active Member
Hey Growers, I just bought an Autopot system and I was wondering which mixture of soil or coco I should use. I browsed around but I found that there are multiple opinions on which is better or not. That's why I wanted to ask you, people, for any advice. Another thing I want to ask is, How do I feed the plants in an autopot system?. Oh and before I forget I wanted to ask what I can do to increase EC or decrease it.

I would really be happy for any advice :D
 
jondamon

jondamon

Well-Known Member
As for the auto pot system isn’t this a bottom feeding device?

never used one so will refrain from commenting about applications.

I am a coco grower though and feeding from the bottom is a bit of a no no with coco as you need to ideally create runoff out of the bottom.

that’s not to say you can’t do it with a bottom feeding setup though.

As for EC.

EC stands for electrical conductivity, dissolved salts (nutrients) can be measured using PPM TDS EC.


To increase EC you simply add more nutrients.

To decrease EC you simply add more water.
 
O

oill

Well-Known Member
TomatoGrower123 said:
Hey Growers, I just bought an Autopot system and I was wondering which mixture of soil or coco I should use. I browsed around but I found that there are multiple opinions on which is better or not. That's why I wanted to ask you, people, for any advice. Another thing I want to ask is, How do I feed the plants in an autopot system?. Oh and before I forget I wanted to ask what I can do to increase EC or decrease it.

I would really be happy for any advice :D
Click to expand...
I had a couple of these and sold it after one grow. Don't use coco... use soil.

The issue with autopots is that the medium doesn't dry. Its not great for weed. Maybe better for plants that like wet feet. I also had loads of salt build up problems and had to take the plants into the bath to flush them loads.

If you can... my primary advice would be to take it back and swap it for a drain to waste system.

Secondary to that would be used soil and see if you can hook up some sort of water timer... kinda defies the point of the thing though.

(Sorry to be a party pooper... I honestly found out the hard way....)
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
jondamon said:
As for the auto pot system isn’t this a bottom feeding device?

never used one so will refrain from commenting about applications.

I am a coco grower though and feeding from the bottom is a bit of a no no with coco as you need to ideally create runoff out of the bottom.

that’s not to say you can’t do it with a bottom feeding setup though.

As for EC.

EC stands for electrical conductivity, dissolved salts (nutrients) can be measured using PPM TDS EC.


To increase EC you simply add more nutrients.

To decrease EC you simply add more water.
Click to expand...
I did the DTW with coco until I switched to Blumats and no runoff. Runoff is not needed. But proper feeding is very important with a drip system like Blumats. If you feed low EC it's not a problem. In fact I'll never do DTW coco again. The Blumats make it so easy in a 4x4 tent. No worries about removing the waste nutrient solution. Just keep a reservoir filled and walk away.

I've done some research on using a capillary mat, fabric pots, and coco which is a bottom feeding method. There are many misnomers regarding growing in coco. You don't have to water daily until runoff. There are other ways to grow in the substrate that don't require a DTW approach.

I think capillary mats are going to be one of the next crazes that hits the cannabis scene despite the fact that the technology is decades old. There will be this brand and that brand all claiming 50% increased yields with results backed up by some so called world renowned scientist. When all you need is a piece of felt.

You might find this interesting.

gpnmag.com

Going Capillary on Cannabis - Greenhouse Product News

With many cannabis production operations in non-traditional spaces such as warehouses, cultural guidelines can be constantly in flux. Even in greenhouse operations, cannabis cultivation requires the careful attention and detail that all indoor growing crops require. For many cultivators...
gpnmag.com gpnmag.com
 
R

rollyouron

Well-Known Member
oill said:
I had a couple of these and sold it after one grow. Don't use coco... use soil.

The issue with autopots is that the medium doesn't dry. Its not great for weed. Maybe better for plants that like wet feet. I also had loads of salt build up problems and had to take the plants into the bath to flush them loads.

If you can... my primary advice would be to take it back and swap it for a drain to waste system.

Secondary to that would be used soil and see if you can hook up some sort of water timer... kinda defies the point of the thing though.

(Sorry to be a party pooper... I honestly found out the hard way....)
Click to expand...
I’ve been growing with them for 6 years. No problems
 
ComputerSaysNo

ComputerSaysNo

Well-Known Member
TomatoGrower123 said:
Hey Growers, I just bought an Autopot system and I was wondering which mixture of soil or coco I should use.
Click to expand...
I am using a 50/50 mix of coco coir (from bricks) and clay pebbles (a.k.a. Hydroton). The bottom of my pot is filled with about 1 inch of clay pebbles (this is according to the manufacturers instructions).

I have also mulched the top of the pot with clay pebbles, but that is optional.

There are various other options for the substrate (e.g. peat moss/perlite, coco/perlite, you name it). In my (limited) experience, the coco/hydroton mix works fabulously. Just remember to thourougly rinse the clay pebbles, and maybe soak them into low pH water overnight, because they tend to raise pH a little at first. I have had no problems in that regard, however.

I browsed around but I found that there are multiple opinions on which is better or not.
Click to expand...
Probably a lot of the options work equally well, and it's probably down to personal preference in the end. I have had great success with 50/50 coco/hydroton, and a hydroton layer at the bottom.

Another thing I want to ask is, How do I feed the plants in an autopot system?. Oh and before I forget I wanted to ask what I can do to increase EC or decrease it.
Click to expand...
The plant will continuously feed from the bottom. There is no "drain" and no "recycling" of the nutrient solution. It all gets used by the plant, evaporated by the plant or evaporates from the top of the pot.

You mix your nutrient solution in the attached tank. I am using GH tri-part nutrients plus supplements, and I'm feeding HALF the recommended strength. This is also recommended for top feeding this particular line of nutrients, so apparently it's nothing special about the AutoPot.

If you feel you need to make adjustments, make them directly in the tank. The plant will then feed the adjusted solution from that point forward.

I have also flushed my plant, with the AutoPot DETACHED, directly from the top into the pot. I have used FlashClean by GH in that case. You can supposedly (according to the manufacturer) also run FlashClean water from the tank for the desired number of days, but I have not tried that (to me it makes more sense to do this aggressive kind of flushing directly).

The system is practically a wick-system, the nutrients are wicked from the bottom of the pot, pretty much directly according to your plant's needs. Straight from the tank. So what you put in the tank will get to your plant, but only gradually. If you think you need to make harsh adjustments, you need to flush the substrate from the top, and replace the nutrient solution in the tank. This should not be necessary if you're careful, however.
 
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ComputerSaysNo

ComputerSaysNo

Well-Known Member
oill said:
I had a couple of these and sold it after one grow. Don't use coco... use soil.

The issue with autopots is that the medium doesn't dry. Its not great for weed. Maybe better for plants that like wet feet. I also had loads of salt build up problems and had to take the plants into the bath to flush them loads.
Click to expand...
I can not confirm your bad experience. I am growing in 50/50 coco/hydroton, and have had no issues at all, neither with salt buildup nor with overwatering. The substrate IS moist at all times, but only very slightly at the top of the pot. Pretty much exactly how it should be if you water well.

Plant growth is nothing but vigorous, and there are zero watering issues or anything related to over-watering (no mold or fungus at the soil line or anything).

(Sorry to be a party pooper... I honestly found out the hard way....)
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I have made sure that I set up my system more or less exactly to the manufacturer's recommendations. They make several suggestions regarding substrate, the bottom line appears to be: 50% of water holding substrate and 50% of air holding substrate. Incidentally this is what a lot of hydro growers use anyway (e.g. coco/perlite, coco/hydroton).

The instructions also clearly say that you have to fill the bottom of the pot with pure hydroton or perlite, up to about an inch, to ensure proper drainage and supposedly oxygen intake.
 
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