View attachment 2866971I didn't read through the entire thread but your setup looks a LOT like mine... perhaps when you re-do it next time maybe you might modify a few things tho: Note how my pump is centered outside the two Rubbermaid tubs, this is for two big reasons: heat & aeration... I've done hydro a while and when I'd loose a tomato due to root rot, well that's a few tomatoes...but loose a primo cannabis plant 4 weeks into flower and one gets pretty pissed; esp when that equals over 2oz of primo bud.... IMHO airstones suck: the back pressure ruins diaphrams and moreover diaphram pumps suck..... also, having the external pump REALLY cuts down on ambient sump temps; basically you aren't using your sump water to dissipate pump heat, instead the air is
(I'd rather have the leaves deal with heat than my roots) ... I also like the continual ppm/pH monitoring thing, I have a Gro-Check but also use a Neptune Apex controller for automating a few task (its has programmable integrated task dynamics; long explanation) ...given the cost vs. reliability vs. cost for weed, if it saces ONE grow the $200 is worth it.... anyway, hope I didn't deviate from your thread but contributed ...peace
Your setup looks great, brother. And, don't worry about the triple post. Sometimes I want to throw my phone against the wall after typing out a 5 paragraph response only to get locked out of edit, find out later that it didn't post after I suffered the indginity of 2 sets of captchas.
I did consider an external pump for those exact reasons you stated. I went with a sub because I had originally planned on getting a nice used 1/10 chiller. When I set everything up for a test run, it turns out, that in my super ventilated tent, res temps peak out at 64F on the hottest day. 75F is the hottest I let the ambi's go anymore. Usually, res temps hover from 60-62F during lights on. Also considered an airstone alternative myself. I was thinking about a 2 gallon pan-head air-compressor under the house would be great paired up with a modified "soaker hose" coiled in the res. Felt it was a little excessive. May just add a pond-aerater setup. A little smaller than the compressor.
One thing I think I'll for sure try and add, here, next harvest, will be another 30g remote bucket to mix a pre-prepared batch of nutes in, then time the pumps for an automatic res drain in the control bucket, and then a re-fill from the remote bucket twice a month. May need a digi-timer to work it out just right, but combined with the pH control, all I would have to do is adjust the lighting. Could let her sit practically 2-3 weeks without even laying my fumble-fuck hands on her. Never heard of Neptune Apex. I'm already doing research on it. I was going to use a remote wifi switch, and something similar to Neptune for my AC, heat, and fan speeds that would be controlled from my smart phone. But, you may have me sold on trading-up. Thanks for what was, in all actuality, a great contribution.
