Fog Film Technique

ok...Here's a technique I thought I would share that works great for cloning in rockwool. Using a typical propagation tray with a humidity dome, ( I just made one from a clear plastic tub from wal-mart) attach a hose to the dome from a humidifier set on a timer. I have mine in a closet, currently empty :( I use a ultra-sonic humidifier that is extremely quiet.
A 5/8"od x 7/16"id plastic hose is connected to a humidifier. First drill a hole in the slit where the mist comes out, big enough to insert your grommet tightly. I used a metal grommet since that is what I had on hand. After inserting your grommet into the drilled hole in the slit, use a waterproof silicon to seal the slit and around the grommet. I actually encased the grommet in silicone....:) as you can see below in pic #2.

I had to sand down the end on the plastic tubing in order to get it to fit in to the grommet. 1/2"Od tubing will work, but is not snug enough for me so I sand down a 5/8"OD tube. 1/2"od will leak a bit in a 1/2" grommet. I don't need the humidity in my closet any higher and I want a good seal at the point of entry into the humidifier. Pic #3

The last pic shows the chamber setup. Chambers are required to control the RH in the dome. The humidifier will raise the RH too high...too fast without these chambers. I started off with four coke bottles and I kept removing them until I got the RH correct. Using clean, disinfected bottles, I set up the chambers as seen below. 2L coke bottles are thin plastic. Heat up a 3/8" bolt and pierce two holes in each bottle, opposite of each other, one high and one low. Insert your grommet and silicone around your grommet to seal. Allow 24 hrs to dry...48 if you lay it thick like me!

I used 1/2"od tubing to connect the bottles, the bottle plastic is too thin to apply the necessary pressure to insert a 5/8"od tube. Add addition silicone around leaks if necessary. Also, I should note that the ends of the tube need to be cut at less than a 45 degree angle in order for droplets that have formed in your line to run out and not plug the end of the line. Water droplets will plug the line when using a 90 degree cut. Plus it will help you insert the tube end into the grommet.

I used velcro strips to hold the bottles in place on a board with semi-cirlces cut in it for the bottles to rest in. I didn't have a big enough board to make full cirlcles so I used some fabric ( the blue strip you see) to close the circle. Bottles are upside down to facilitate easy draining. Condensation develops and slowly fills the bottle. The first bottle is the foggiest and therefore collects the most water. I installed an overflow tube in the lid that runs down and collects in a plastic mayonaise jar. If you use grommets and seal with the silicon on the lid and grommet of the first bottle, it won't leak, and I ran the tube down thru a grommet in the lid of a mayonaise jar. This way I don't even have to worry about dumping the water from the bottle every day! Sometimes I'm forgetful. I just wait until the clones are ready to be removed from the humidity dome. I run the humidifier for 30 min. every 1.5 hrs. This keeps it at a nice 92 - 93 RH and I use an air pump to constantly provide fresh air with the air tube running into the dome near the fog tube.

Obviously, the last tube from the last bottle runs into the dome. Pic #1. Be sure not to let the tubing sag in a spot, as water droplets will eventually clog the line. I also recommend using a good humidity gauge. The synthetic hair hygrometer (Adorini) like the ones they use for cigar cabinets, work the best. The cheap ones at dept stores lose their tolerances at levels above 75 RH. $30 - $40 is what I paid for mine, something like that, its been a while. Check out cigar shops for one. Also, I suggest installing a drip shield, mounted at an angle to catch the water droplets that have formed on the lid. Plexi glass works great and allows for good light penetration. Condensation keeps the light from being too bright on the new clones. The drip shield will keep the droplets on the lid from falling on the little clones.

I have absolutley no troubles cloning. This setup makes it a cinch and my clones typically root in 48 hours, but I leave them for 72 in the humidity...like clock work. I use R/O water and a vitamin additive, B-1 and others (Superthrive).

Here's my next project. Using a similar setup, I'm going to grow in 5 gallon buckets, similar to a DWC bucket system but no bubbler. Water will continuously run out a hole in the bottlom and a fog hose will be attached using grommets and silicon to constantly feed the roots with tiny floating droplets. One humidifier, like mine. (Honeywell, $35 Wal-mart) would easily fog the roots in 4 buckets. I would use this in conjuction with my current drip system.
Here's a problem I see. My ultra-sonic humidifier has a nebulizer to form the fog. This nebulizer can become corroded, since it picks up dissolved solids in water. I suppose one could clean it periodically. But my point is that it may infuence the concentration of foggy nutrients you add to your roots.

So, with all that being said, does anyone have some ideas for a nutrient solution to add to the humidifier during vegging? I won't use this fog film bucket technique, or whatever you want to call it, during flower. The drip system runs 24/7 during flower, I don't see the point in adding additional humidity to a root system that is already constantly being fed.

Someone in an earlier post commented that a fog film technique is the wave of the future in hydroponics. The future is here my friend.

I hope all of this makes sense. Cuz...you know.....:jointsmile: