Fallponics RDWC reviews

SundaeFloat88

SundaeFloat88

Member
I'm new at this and I am in the process of making Gary's system, I found someone local for the food ez stor containers (about $20 each) rest of the parts I have from a failed attempt at trying to connect my round buckets, the curve kept causing a leak.. I checked homedepot and the size didn't work for me. Anywho I am switching to 3 in so I dont have to worry about clogging. Does anyone have a opinion on uniseals vs bulkheads? I can get the uniseals way cheaper so I am leaning that way. TIA

Plants are 1xSundae Float and
2xPurple Punch x DoHo
 

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ms_sucks

Member
The bulkhead fittings are part of what make this style expensive. They are proud of those things. But if you're going to build it right, that's the way to go. My 4 bucket setup with res top off kit shipped from Gary's (PA Hydroponics for the search engines) yesterday.
 
SundaeFloat88

SundaeFloat88

Member
Ok guys. I appreciate the input I will pay the extra, I am definitely worried about leakage and could use the peace of mind. I have another question I can't find the answer to, if I have a 8" net pot do I need to just cut a 8" hole or smaller?
 
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jon5542

Member
It's not entirely important either way if you drill 3 small holes through the top by each netpot and run a zip tie through the netpot and your hole on the top. If you aren't going to fasten with zip ties I would make the hole 1/8 to 1/4 inch smaller than the netpot for a snug fit. Gary's got a good video where he does the zip tie thing here:

 
SundaeFloat88

SundaeFloat88

Member
jon5542 said:
It's not entirely important either way if you drill 3 small holes through the top by each netpot and run a zip tie through the netpot and your hole on the top. If you aren't going to fasten with zip ties I would make the hole 1/8 to 1/4 inch smaller than the netpot for a snug fit. Gary's got a good video where he does the zip tie thing here:

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Sweet . Exactly what I needed. Thank you appreciate the link !
 
SundaeFloat88

SundaeFloat88

Member
bdt1981 said:
Why doez everyone bash every price tag? It seems like its about 25% the cost of current culture. How much you sell ur bud for? What was the cost to produce it?
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I ended up buying the system from Gary , priced everything out he isnt making very much off of it. It was alot easier for me , we are tight on space over here. Figured I watched enough of his videos it's also a support thing.

His system is Amazing , took me a minute to figure out some things as Im new to growing but after I got my temperature solid she has been running smooth. I bought the 4 unit 13 gallon system and I attached a reservoir top off system with it. I have a 1/4 hp ecoplus water chiller attached.
 
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Okiedog

Active Member
SundaeFloat88 said:
I ended up buying the system from Gary , priced everything out he isnt making very much off of it. It was alot easier for me , we are tight on space over here. Figured I watched enough of his videos it's also a support thing.

His system is Amazing , took me a minute to figure out some things as Im new to growing but after I got my temperature solid she has been running smooth. I bought the 4 unit 13 gallon system and I attached a reservoir top off system with it. I have a 1/4 hp ecoplus water chiller attached.
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I’m new to this but do the plants just sit in the water? Get germinated how big elsewhere? No airspace between baskets and h2o in beginning or do plants have to be top fed until they dangle their roots??? Thanks
 
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Ifusayso68

Member
I've also built one of these, using the same containers, lids, and 2" bulkheads/pvc between sites, with 3" for reservoir return. The buckets Gary uses are not cheap, and you have to purchase lids separately at almost 4 bucks each. For anyone knocking the price, the guy is in business to make money, and I can say from experience, he isn't making much on these. The bulkheads are expensive, but awesome, and the whole system works great!
 
myke

myke

Well-Known Member
5g pails free-$5.Bulkheads $5.Hose to connect $25.Tote for res $18.Circulation pump $30.air pump and stones $30.feed hose $20.Net pots and leca $10.

Before the internet we just used what we had/could find.Had to make our own calmag.
Are people just that lazy or just hung up on the newest things?
 
SundaeFloat88

SundaeFloat88

Member
myke said:
5g pails free-$5.Bulkheads $5.Hose to connect $25.Tote for res $18.Circulation pump $30.air pump and stones $30.feed hose $20.Net pots and leca $10.

Before the internet we just used what we had/could find.Had to make our own calmag.
Are people just that lazy or just hung up on the newest things?
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Yeah before the internet sounds like prices were great. None of those prices are accurate at all. Glad 5 gal buckets are free, with those round edges you cant have 2 inch + bulkheads therefore you will be clogging. Most prices you quoted are about 1/4th of actual cost. Im glad we have the internet because we can all share and improve and that is whats going on with this system, these buckets are taller and dont take as much space as the hdx totes. Great system, if you dont want to buy it from him hes got a list of materials and you can build it yourself. Much respect to the man
 
myke

myke

Well-Known Member
SundaeFloat88 said:
Yeah before the internet sounds like prices were great. None of those prices are accurate at all. Glad 5 gal buckets are free, with those round edges you cant have 2 inch + bulkheads therefore you will be clogging. Most prices you quoted are about 1/4th of actual cost. Im glad we have the internet because we can all share and improve and that is whats going on with this system, these buckets are taller and dont take as much space as the hdx totes. Great system, if you dont want to buy it from him hes got a list of materials and you can build it yourself. Much respect to the man
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No todays $ my hydro shop sells 1 1/4" bulkheads for $5 Cnd And don't tell me roots will clog those.
 
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Ifusayso68

Member
I don't know how many gph you are circulating, but I'm running a 1000 gph. Can't do that through 1-1/4 pipe. You only get about 50% of the flow volume 2 inch. My system recirculates 16 times per hour. Keeps everything happy.
 
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shabazz47

Member
Anybody else have issues with the water level indicator leaking? I can't figure out why mine is. I have attached it and reattached it and tried to flip the round locking piece on both sides to see if that helps the washer.. it seems to be laying flat... but somehow it is still leaking from the bottom. I ordered fairly recently and noticed that the piece seems to be different from the one in the video. Wondering if anybody know what I need to do to fix it?
 
SundaeFloat88

SundaeFloat88

Member
shabazz47 said:
Anybody else have issues with the water level indicator leaking? I can't figure out why mine is. I have attached it and reattached it and tried to flip the round locking piece on both sides to see if that helps the washer.. it seems to be laying flat... but somehow it is still leaking from the bottom. I ordered fairly recently and noticed that the piece seems to be different from the one in the video. Wondering if anybody know what I need to do to fix it?
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Yeah for a minute during covid he said he ordered a batch of bulkheads for that size and it has a molding manufacturer defect line around the piece , I took a nail file and went over the area, i was pretty pissed lol he had a video that went out about it but I didnt see it until after I called cause Ive seen all the other videos so I assumed I was go to go.
 
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shabazz47

Member
Update turns out I'm goofy and misplaced the second rubber washer, found it and added it now it works great. The new piece works and the system seems great so far. I had a somewhat difficult time putting it together, just mainly have to make sure all of the washers are laid flat and make sure washers are all flat. Trial and error :wall::dunce:
 
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iScrtAznMan

Member
I've been on the fence about buying from PA hydro. On the one end his system looks legit and the parts used look like they'll last. On the other, the cost seems too high. He probably can charge that much because enough people want it and will pay for it and no one is offering a pre-assembled system that's similar to his (the amazon ones look like crap, he has something similar called stir-ponics to presumably shut people up about cost). The EZ-stor totes and bulkheads are pricy if you don't buy in bulk (15-20 each). The net pots seem excessive but I think he's just trying to cover everything with 1 design with the least amount of hassle for end users. From my perspective, if it saves me 10-20 hours in research, labor, and debugging leaks it's probably worth it. If I was doing a massive grow over 4 plants, it would probably be more cost effective to DIY. His build also uses some specific tools but if you get rid of the absurd netpot it's probably not hard to DIY. Getting everything from one spot so you only pay shipping once is nice. Probably why everything is marked up, since finding places that sell the Current Culture bulkheads under $15 is hard to find. The EZ-stor totes definitely shouldn't be $30, but factoring shipping costs I don't think you can find them elsewhere under $20. You could replace with Lowes COMMANDER totes probably.

Assuming each bulkhead is $15, the buckets are $15. For a 4 plant system you need 5 buckets, 8 bulkheads minimum (he uses 10). With what you get that's around $225. That's not including the feed system, aeration, and pvc. Is it worth the $375 he's charging for this? I think short answer is no, but you aren't really paying just for parts and he probably has charged what the demand will meet. Maybe someone knows of cheaper alternatives and is willing to share or @fragileassassin will open his own shop, but I haven't seen something that offers the level of convenience he does.

$375 for DIY https://shop.pahydroponics.com/do-it-yourself-4-plant-13-gallon-fallponic-system-no-pvc-not-drilled/
$485 for https://shop.pahydroponics.com/pa-hydroponics-4-plant-fallponic-system-custom-built-for-a-4x4-or-5x5-gorilla-grow-tent-no-clay-rocks-13-gallon-grow-sites-with-reservoir-outside-of-tent/
 
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