Large scale DWC

purrrrple

Well-Known Member
How would I go about building a large sog dwc setup? How would i link the buckets together for fill/drain and how would I monitor the ph in each bucket? i probably won't be able to access some of the buckets in the back.
 

golddog

Well-Known Member
How would I go about building a large sog dwc setup? How would i link the buckets together for fill/drain and how would I monitor the ph in each bucket? i probably won't be able to access some of the buckets in the back.
1st build a small one to test your ideas....

I had an acquaintance tell me about his friends try at a large dwc. They had all the lingo, bullshit, talked trash....

Then there was the Powdery Mildew ...... What do I do? :dunce:

Then there were Spider Mites..... What do I do? :dunce:

The the cops came bye (had 83 plants and I Dr.s rec)..... What do I do? :dunce:

You need to understand all the pitfalls before hand, by trying it yourself.

Start a small one and you will learn what you can and cannot do. :joint::peace:
 

legallyflying

Well-Known Member
How large is large scale? Not trying to dissuade you, but if you don't understand the mechanics of a bucket DWC, you may want to re-evaluate if your ready to jump into a large scale operation.

But to answer your question... the buckets are all linked together via 1/2 or 3/4 hose to a control bucket. Gravity does the rest so when you fill or drain the control bucket, all the rest do the same. HOWEVER, when you start linking a metric fuck load of buckets together, you are going to start running into problems related to fluid dynamics... namely unequal fill and drain rates.
 

bestbuds09

Well-Known Member
Personally i would start off with one bucket or a plastic bin for 4 plants. Play with it and try it out to make sure you get the hang of it. What golddog said is 100% true. Questions will arise and so will problems. See how easy it is with one - four plants and then see how much time it will take you to take care of all of the buckets. Although a DWC is quite easy to grow it can get challenging on a bigger scale. The room part is always going to be an issue unless you have them growing in the middle of the room where you are able to get around all the buckets from each side. And personally i would just do each bucket individual even though it might cost more money buying small things for each bucket but at least you wont get any problems related fluid dynamics like legallyflying mentioned......
 
I don't know how big you are talking about when you say large scale but I have groups of four 5gal dwc buckets on a storage container resevior. It doesn't take long to check a few reseviors and top off.
 

reefcouple

Well-Known Member
Personally i would start off with one bucket or a plastic bin for 4 plants. Play with it and try it out to make sure you get the hang of it. What golddog said is 100% true. Questions will arise and so will problems. See how easy it is with one - four plants and then see how much time it will take you to take care of all of the buckets. Although a DWC is quite easy to grow it can get challenging on a bigger scale. The room part is always going to be an issue unless you have them growing in the middle of the room where you are able to get around all the buckets from each side. And personally i would just do each bucket individual even though it might cost more money buying small things for each bucket but at least you wont get any problems related fluid dynamics like legallyflying mentioned......

I concur, if you're asking how to set up a large one, its best to start small and learn the ropes first imho

best of luck
 

HowzerMD

Well-Known Member
My buddy made a giant DWC bucket using a plastic pickling barrel. Instead of air stones he used a couple pieces of PVC capped off on the ends with a bunch of tiny wholes drilled in them. He used the two beefiest air pumps he had for each air bubble tube. Made his own baskets out of vinyl coated wire mesh and pvc. The whole thing was hefty and I never thought it was very practical. Very cool, but not very practical.
 
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