GH WATERFARM USERS: SIMPLE RECIRCULATING SYSTEM

Ok so I was at my hydro store yesterday and the BRAIN pulls out this kit from GH that makes your w/f set recirculating!! Ordinarily this isn't very exciting news EXCEPT......

Get ready.......:jointsmile:

It uses an air pump and drip ring set up to move the water through the system. You do NOT NEED A WATER PUMP!

Let me repeat that part:

YOU DO NOT NEED A WATER PUMP. IT RUNS OFF A BASIC AIR PUMP.

I bought one yesterday and already love it. It cost $60 and came with 2 drill bits, grommets, air pump, drip ring set up (minus drip ring) and tubing......basically everything you need except the drill itself.

The largest amount of work is drilling the holes to create a "daisy chain" effect in the w/fs. Everything else only takes a minute to set up.

Spread the news!!!!! :woohoo:

PS...tried to get some info on the web but couldn't find any.....my hydro man is always on the cutting edge....:D

look forward to hearing more about it! have you a name? maybe we can ALL start lookin' for info.

Its called the GH waterfarm 8 Pack Circulating Upgrade Kit and I can't even find mention of it on their website. The thing is....you can get all the parts and make one without buying the kit.

I need some damn photos though....and can't find ANY info.

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Originally Posted by Weedhound

Its called the GH waterfarm 8 Pack Circulating Upgrade Kit and I can't even find mention of it on their website. The thing is....you can get all the parts and make one without buying the kit.

I need some damn photos though....and can't find ANY info.

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LOL I'll help out WH :jointsmile::jointsmile::jointsmile:

Hey WH I put up the Drip ring and a pic of the 8 pack hope it helps out...:thumbsup::jointsmile::jointsmile::jointsmil e:

ok.....see that drip ring thing? minus the drip ring? the little two tube dealie....let me find a pic

Ok this thing......you need to set it up INSIDE your lower rez so that your basic air pump (just a small cheapie not the big monster you see in GL's photo) so that it pulls the water in from one side of the rez and dumps it the lower container. At the same time the other side is refilling.....very hard to explain without the damn kit.....can't believe i cant find any info....

Sorry WH just trying to help out... I know the cheap $40.00 Pump right?

No thats fine but I honestly think a monster pump would be too strong and cause issues.

See when we discussed recirculating the waterfarms the big issue was how strong of a water pump to use to prevent overflow since the entire gravity refill thing is so slow. You cant use something faster than the refill time right? That's why a cheapie 10 gallon fishtank aquarium pump is so perfect......small pump so keep things moving nice and slow which is HUGE when trying to move water along through all those buckets.

Capice? :D

Seriously the principal behind is exactly the same as the drip ring. You know how the air pump forces water up through the drip ring? Well it does the same thing inside the rez if you hook it up to an intake tube on your rez (then a seperate outtake tube to refill modules.) It pulls a bit of water in the rez from the inlet line and forces it up and into the rez. The suction created refills it from the other side.

It's quite brilliant really and I wish I could explain it better. We're modifying my other res tomorrow so we'll try and take some photos as we go to try and explain it more clearly.

Interesting method. It's definitely something I'd love to see drawn in a cheapo MS Paint diagram to show just how it works lol. Can't wait to learn more info about it.

iv been looking to mod my waterfarm system to do exactly this. I too would like to see some more info so I could custom mod it myself. (still kinda confused on how it works)

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Originally Posted by Weedhound

Seriously the principal behind is exactly the same as the drip ring. You know how the air pump forces water up through the drip ring? Well it does the same thing inside the rez if you hook it up to an intake tube on your rez (then a seperate outtake tube to refill modules.) It pulls a bit of water in the rez from the inlet line and forces it up and into the rez. The suction created refills it from the other side.

It's quite brilliant really and I wish I could explain it better. We're modifying my other res tomorrow so we'll try and take some photos as we go to try and explain it more clearly.

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LOL, there's the rub for me WH, i've had so many other issues and principles to learn, i've had to prioritize. unfortunately, that was a principle i put on the back burner.
i figured if i couldn't get them to grow, and i couldn't get them to clone, well, i didn't need to learn how to drip on them. LOL
anyway, it looks like this has the interest of others also so i'm sure we will have all the info we need soon.

bozo,
peace, love, dope

Bozo you think I understand this stuff? I go to the hydro store and say "what should I do?" and the BRAIN says "this" and hands me something.....I go do it.....nice plants grow.

I STILL can't tell you much about lighting and spectrums beyond what the best to use is and the VERY basics of why so don't stress.....its a learn as you go thing.

very interesting.....maybe even enough to convince this dirty boy of getting wet.........shhhhhhhh
whiskeytango

Stealth we could set you up with something really simple to start.....like a hempy....you'd even get to water it LOL. I think you'd do very well at it with some practice.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Weedhound

Bozo you think I understand this stuff? I go to the hydro store and say "what should I do?" and the BRAIN says "this" and hands me something.....I go do it.....nice plants grow.

I STILL can't tell you much about lighting and spectrums beyond what the best to use is and the VERY basics of why so don't stress.....its a learn as you go thing.

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sigh, sadly, i'm poor enough that i am forced to learn the principles so i can come up with a makeshift alternative, 'on the cheap', lol

and Stealth, i'm only on my second grow, the first was in dirt, but i love the hydro way, lol, don't think i'll ever go back (with the possible exception of outdoors)
hydro rather than dirt, coupled with CFL rather than MV = 4 times the growth with the same seed stock.

i think i'm ready now to throw down on some quality genetics

so, toke amongst yourselves
:S5:

bozo,
peace, love, dope

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Weedhound

I think you'd do very well at it with some practice.

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i'm with you all the way on that WH!

shit, i'd say you both have proven your ability's, if you can do what you've already done, you can do hydro even better!

so, again, toke amongst yourselves, lol
:joint1:

bozo,
peace, love, dope

So we just went and built one in about 10 minutes and I took some photos. Hopefully these will make better sense than all my babble.

In the first two pics....the system set up unside the LOWER rez. This is the actual "piece" that GH sent with the kit. Second photo is the GH picture of the kit itself.

Here is what you will need in the first photo. Keep in mind these are only the parts to work on the resevoir....not the modules themselves. The modules themselves will need their own grommets and plastic extensions, tubing etc....

Second pic: Good extra parts to have around. The drill bits pictured there came with the kit but I used my own unibit to do all the drilling. The correct size bit for 1/2" holes (using 1/2" grommets btw...those are what are in the picture) is 13/16 fyi.

Oh and Bozo......hps instead of cfl.....4 times the yield for the same time, energy and nutes on your part. Worth every penny. ;)

Hey WH:jointsmile: You have everyone's wheel's spinning. Exactly what we were discussing. The WF buckets everyone seems to agree is an issue I'm so surprised they have not Tried to make a repair Kit.... Who needs them when you have the Weed Hound on your side....

Great THREAD :thumbsup:

So here is the real brains of the whole operation and I could just KISS GH for thinking this up. It's a pumping column set up inside the rez that pulls the air in from the intake valve you set up and into the general rez.

We made one by adding an inch of 1/2 in tubing and an L extension to the bottom of the pumping column.....then cut the larger white tube down to approximately six inches (high enough to be above water level but low enough to stay inside the bucket) but we left the airline completely intact.

The third photo is a close up of both the one we made and the one that came with the GH kit.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Weedhound

Oh and Bozo......hps instead of cfl.....4 times the yield for the same time, energy and nutes on your part. Worth every penny. ;)

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my use of CFL's is more a function of my ability to add lighting for $10.00 and my inability to throw down $200.00 - $300.00 all at once, rather than an actual preference for fluoro's.

believe me, if i had the dough, i'd be using 6 of those Procyon 100 LED lights. (LOL, and some CFL's for vegging)

kudo's to whiskeytango and doughboy for thier pioneering work!


bozo,
peace, love, dope

We didn't really feel the need to take pictures of this figuring everyone would be able to handle it by themselves but here are some photos of rez with 3 holes (and stop valves) in it and the bucket we are circulating with the system. In this case we're only using one but just imagine it as 8 of them all daisy chained together because the priniciple is exactly the same no matter what.

TIP: Buy those 1/2 inch stop valves in bulk.....you'll thank me later. :D

Afterthought: After drilling a third hole in the res it occurred to us that you really only need two of them (strictly speaking...an intake line and an outtake line) and the lower rez DOES come with two holes already. If you want to keep an eye on the water level you'll need 3 but can GET BY with the two already there.

PS....the power plant has improved quite a bit and is doing very well in a recirculating system. Plants just grow better with it generally imo. ;)

i'm still just dealing with my DWC bins individually, once i get my plants sexed and i begin production, then will be time enough to really understand how to make a recirculating system.

in truth, i plan on a SOG using 4x5gallon bins with buds in differing stages of flower so, wouldn't that mean different feeding schedules?

Bozo...yes different schedules will require different resevoirs. Thats the issue we are dealing with here and why setting things up for MINIMAL interference from us with all of them helps so much and why we'll even set up a recirculating system for just one bucket.

So final pics......you'll hook up the intake line into the rez and the pumping column up to that. You'll need to drill a small hole in the top of the rez to accomodate the airline (does NOT need to be exact) and hook your pump up to it. Outtake line out to the w/f modules (obviously) and you should be good to go. :thumbsup:

Tip: Third photo is of the parts we had left over and the parts we didn't use.....you'll have to do the math yourselves on that. :D :wtf:

And hopefully now it makes much more sense. :cool:

Hope that was clear enough for everyone to understand. If you don't want to build one I'm sure you can get the kit on the net or your local hydro store soon....I have a feeling these are going to be a real hot seller. :thumbsup:

k....my heads reeling a lil...lol, gotta sober up a little bit more before i read this...
whiskeytango

I think I understand this just please check me first. :jointsmile:

OK the reservoir gets a hole in the lower with a intake. A cheap pump that is tied into the last of 4 or each pot gets a exhaust for the water that goes back o the Rez? Sorry just want to get it right.

Then in the Rez Pop in the L shaped section and place an air pump to connect to the drip section. That makes what happen by adding the air pump to the drip in the Rez?

Each Pot gets the drip installed to it and then you add air?
Have a draw back to the main Rez
And all the air stops potential problems with Overflow?

WH I'm sorry I read this alot and I want to understand can you please just explain the theory to me......

Please I feel like such a Bozo:jointsmile::jointsmile:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GreenLeaf420

WH I'm sorry I read this alot and I want to understand can you please just explain the theory to me......

Please I feel like such a Bozo:jointsmile::jointsmile:

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lol, she isn't withholding the info Green, if she could explain it better she would have.
she's already admitted to not understanding the operating principles.
hydro guy says good, good, good and she trusts him and uses it. no need to understand it beyond being able to make it work.

lets just relax, someone else will see the thread and come to the rescue, we just have to be patient.

okay so let me see if I understand this right.

In the main res (the big one) you have a drip column attached to the intake (which is coming from the individual WF units) and on top it is attached to an air pump which pushes the intake water out to either each individual WF or into the controler (this is the part which confuses me).

So then in each individual WF unit, you have a second drip column inserted but instead of attaching a ring you attach a line which goes back to the main res (which is what i referred to as the "intake" before)

This is very true bozo....I've thought about but don't undestand it myself. The way I see it the air pump pulls water in through the intake. Now that there is a void created everything has to fill and the water fills it from the outtake line.....let me try and think of an example.

Think of it as a siphoning thing. If you have a complete circle and you draw something out from one side that something has fill from somehwhere and it does so from the other side due to gravity.

We need X-Crispi or somebody to explain it....they'll understand the theory behind it I think. Or maybe Stinky.....she gets stuff like that.

The air pump is acting like a siphon.....pulling air from the last waterfarm out and into the rez. So what basically happens then? That w/f is going to pull water from the next one and so on and so on all the way around the circle......until you come around to the first w/f which is going to pull it from the rez which is the normal way the system fills. . The pump is powering the pulling part.....gravity is handling the pushing part.

If you had everything daisy chained in a circle and took water out from one thing.....what would happen to the rest of them?

Ps....COMPLETELY IGNORE THE TOP REZ.....we're only working with the bottom one and top one doesnt affect anything as far as this goes. The top merely holds extra nutes. the nutes in the top rez will NOT recirculate.....does this info help at all?

WH you have the set up I seen better PICS. Your forgetting to talk about the actual water pump which draws the water. Were does that fit in to this equation?

It's a good thread you did it that pump that pulls water and goes back to the rez. Were does that fit in?

Slothy.....I'm sorry I got confused on the second part of your question there....two drip rings in each individual w/f?

AHA! THATS IT EXACTLY!! THERE IS NO WATER PUMP!! NONE!! That's what is so KILLER!! Its as if you took the intake line and wrapped your lips around it and sucked some nute up and then spit it into your rez....What would happen?

Finish the Post.... LOL:jointsmile::jointsmile:

Well if the water can't refill from the same spot it went out (it can only flow ONE WAY because of the air pump right?) What would happen? It would fill from the other way.....aLL THE WAY AROUND TO REZ right?? Because gravity will fill them all the same.....so take a small amount out of one and they ALL change their amount a bit.

i think i gets it now. So you have the drip tube in the controler, on the bottom its attached to the last waterfarm in the row (or last two water farms if you have 2 rows), on top its attached to a air pump which pushes the water back out to the first waterfarm in the row?