your splitting hairs, not growing um, lol5-80 microns is the ideal range with the bulk of the droplets being between 30 and 80. No nozzle puts out a single droplet size
Welcome Doctor, it's refreshing to hear you have enough enthusiasm in this to have done the homework. There's plenty more if you follow the threads this one attempts to summarizeHoly Crap that was a lot of reading! I finally got done catching up on the thread (read all 2,065 posts). I didn't want to join in before reading up on everything so I knew exactly what was going on with everybody.
I'm gonna be starting to build my setup here real soon, it's all drawn out on paper and I just need to finish gathering up a few of the components. For the most part, I've decided on all of my components and have received most of them or already had them readily available to me. I can't tell you how nice it is to run a hardware store
Really, the only parts I'm still largely debating over are the nozzles. I could very well order nozzles from work, but they are the Arizona Mist nozzles and I'm not sure what diameter orifice they have, nor the flow rates. Not to mention I have no idea what size the water droplets would be.
I'm kinda tempted to get a few nozzles from HERE. Someone on here posted to that site, but from what I remember nobody actually went through with purchasing them. They have a nice orifice to flowrate to psi chart on there. I can't attest to it's accuracy, and I sure wouldn't take their word for it, but at least that gives you some ballpark figures. They say that they can achieve 50 microns (although who knows how true that is). Even though I will have solenoids, the anti-drip feature does seem interesting to try in the interest of getting a little more control. I'd haveta get them and take some measurements to see how the anti-drip affects flow rate/droplet size. However, I'm only getting three nozzles (three nozzles in my chamber) and maybe a backup, so I should be able to get them and just experiment. Best part is, I can remove the anti-drip feature if need be since it unthreads.
I'm very on the fence with this one. I know Atomizer and others have found proven nozzles, but listening to TB's and other's problems with quality and such, I'd rather avoid problems if I can. The largest drawback that's making me unsure is the fact that if I use proven nozzles, that's one less variable I'd have to iron out myself. It's not like I can't go back and change out/tweak/try out other nozzles once I get the system working with proven ones.
Decisions, decisions!
. I've read it all and still have plenty more to learn, so it's non-stop, but sooner or later you just have to dig in, and get your hands dirty, be prepared for a few surprises despite all your dilligence and have fun most of all.Thats the filter
If you run the Hago at 550psi, the mist will be similar to the mist in the pic, except the Hago wont project it as far. It uses 20psi air and 7psi water pressure.
i guess it could work but i dont really know what type of rig you got going now. it takes a bit of work to get a 4x4 chamber filled correctly with hydraulic nozzles from my experience. it can be done but large chambers can present some problems. id only personally try large chambers with AA nozzles but i have no idea how mant plants you want to run and how much light your using and if your doing DTW. i personally like solid containers because i like to control the chamber temps, and drainage, and root growth patterns and im not sure how all these factors can be controlled properly in a non solid container. i guess it could be made to work but i have never tried it so cant offer much useful advise.
I'm running solar storm led and plan on doing 2-4 plants in that area. U might be right about the sealed container. It is dtw btw. Thanks for your input tf
Thanks! My new temporary chamber is 17 cu ft, one plant, plenty of room for root growth, and plenty of room to keep the nozzles from coming in contact with the roots. I will be playing with nozzle placement as the fuzzies start to develop. Any insight on how long it will take roots to transform, and have you ever taken a well established plant from a DWC (or other) & put it in one of your rigs? I imagine the roots are going through somewhat of a shock right now, and that I shouldn't expect to see them fuzz up immediately. I'm treating em like babies though & overwatering by about double the on time I was used to. I can't wait to see how big I can get this thing.
You want to turn the entire footprint of your rig into an aero chamber? Are you planning on droppin in Mission Impossible style on a rope to tend to your plants? I'm just clownin. I would divide the 8' length into 2 chambers 3' x 4' leaving you a 2' isle down the middle. As for the building of the chambers themselves... I could probably think up a dozen different ways to do it, and that's a modest number. Building a chamber is easy. Holding up a plant, aiming nozzles & drainage are the real things to think about.
i usually go from a lp cloner to an HP rig and it usually takes a week for them to start transitioning over to the finer mist. the roots dont ever really become HP roots they just grow new HP roots off the DWC or lp aero roots and engulf the whole mass. i posted a pic in aerojunkies AA thresd of a really sad looking dwc plant that i put in the AA test rig and it only took about 2 weeks to overtake the dwc roots completly. your right in keeping them a little wet through the transition otherwise those nice dwc roots will brown up before then become engulfed. you might also expieence some things that look like nute def. issues as you lower the nute strength to the HP levels. the plant will usually just grow out of it as it gets going. sometimes it takes a couple weeks though and sometimes a couple days. have never really figured it out just know it happens. this is why having a HP cloner would be ideal.(something on the long list of things to do)
Well, I am thinking this aerolife rig is going to be a perfect hp cloner if nothing else... I'm about to try to start proving it to myself in the next few days...
Whew, got a little busy there for a few days, but back on track.Welcome Doctor, it's refreshing to hear you have enough enthusiasm in this to have done the homework. There's plenty more if you follow the threads this one attempts to summarize
So I see you are planning on running 3 nozzles, what is your chamber going to be made of/volume? To be honest you need to decide on the nozzles somewhat as an extension of the chamber, because the air volume will dictate the maximum flowrate of the nozzles you need (everything is interconnected and only your mist timings can be a buffer to smooth it all out). I still advocate the biocontrols more than any other brand. I definitely had a few duds, but tree farmer told that was to be expected. They also were happy to replace my bad ones, and it's only my own laziness keeping that from happening at this point. If you have seen the proof tree farmer shows in his pics, you should be quick to follow his lead, as far as you should be concerned his and Atomizer's advice will always supercede mine. I can only post my logic and experiences, and have my own road to go down -as we all do. Just keep in mind the basic principles, and don't veer too far off track or try to re-invent the wheel before you have tried to follow the path that has been proven to work first. Look forward to hearing from you and your build.
Sounds all good and I think your logic is sound. I tend to think as long as the orifice on the nozzle is smaller (and you only have one nozzle per solenoid) that you'll be fine. I can't remember the orifice size off the top of my head, but it's a needle hole and definitely smaller than your solenoids pass through. They have 2 types, make sure you get the "ultra low flow" rated one.
<------^ ^ ^ He's an Atomizer~~!
Thanks for the tip on the nozzles, in my tired mind I was actually calculating using the larger 0.08 oz/sec nozzles, so using the lower flow nozzles should give me even more control over the misting cycle.
Trichy, Mike, and Atomizer, thanks for the confirmation on the solenoid specs. That puts my mind to ease, I'm going to go ahead and and place my order then. I think the only part I have left to get is the pump! Just for the sake of noise concerns, I'm going to go with the Aquatec 8800. Since the aquatec is a booster pump, will a small primary pump (such as a small pond pump) be necessary for it to operate correctly? I'm not too familiar with booster pumps so I wasn't sure if a small gravity feed from my reservoir would suffice or if that a primary pump would be necessary. If my memory serves me correctly, nobody using an aquatec 8800 ever mentioned having to use a primary pump in conjunction with it.
The 8800 is probably the cream of the crop, nice choice! It's just called a booster pump because it's main purpose is to boost the pressure for r.o. systems or r.v. water pressure. All these pumps are similar and can handle around an 8 foot draw if I remember correctly. They push alot more than they can pull, but a few feet of gravity is no issue.
Even if you can keep the nozzles from clogging, who knows if they have the throw and mist to really grow plants. The bios are well proven and I still like his decision and logic to follow tree farmers suggestions. Compare the mist to what? He doesn't have any experience growing plants to know what's to look for. I will say one thing- those nozzles you sent me aren't anything like the bios, and I doubt they'd do much but humidify the chamber after understanding things a little better. I bet if you would have tried some proven nozzles you would be happy too. I also think Mike should try them again. The thing is, we imagine this fine floating mist as the right mist, but it's actually a little different that grows the plants better. The red cloudtops are a little too fine and light too, so it really leaves the bios as the best choice in my book after running a full circle. Just buy more than you need, they do have quite a few duds. Luckily they are happy to trade them out for free. Based on my experience almost half were bad (I think I just got unlucky), but even with the price, it's worth having success after all the rest we put into it.
I'm going to pass on the stainless nozzles I was looking at before, I'm just going to opt for the proven biocontrol nozzles and order a few extra just in case I get a few that are broken/defective.