The Suck-it Bucket (NEW)

[AquaponicHerb]

Ok. The way this thing works:

The bucket has a pot inside of it with 5/8inch perforations on the bottom only; it fits a perfect seal inside the bucket. See first picture....

Super oxygenated venturi-driven water trickles in from the top through 1/2" tube when my timer kicks in. A venturi is better than an airstone for many reasons, we can get to that later. Also the oxygenated water has to feed in from the top in order for the process to work properly. This creates pressurization inside the fittings starting a countdown...

The waterline fills all the way to the top of bucket, fully soaking the entire lavarock filled pot to the rim with superoxygenated nutrient solution. It fills 1 inch from top of bucket, submerging all of the grow medium, actually the whole plant up to the stem is in the nutrient solution. Then the magic happens.

Right when it gets to an inch from the top of the bucket and looks like its going to overflow, a powerful snap and rumble can be heard from inside the bucket.

Through fittings and the physics of fluid, a siphon forms in the bottom of the bucket, and through a extremely powerful vacuum the water is rapidly sucked out through the bottom of the bucket, with approximately 40 lbs of pulling force.
The water level will quickly recede back into the depths of the bucket.

This creates of a surge of air being drawn in from the surface of the medium all the way through root system, the medium, down through the 5/8inch holes, into the the root chamber below the pot in the bottom of the bucket, and finally out through the bell-fitting in the very bottom of the bucket.

Basically it works like connecting a vacuum to the bottom of a plant container, and sucking air through it via a 1 inch hole in the center-bottom.

Everyone is familiar with flood and drain. One of the reasons this works so well is as the water leaves the pots and the beds drain, new air gets pulled into the pots like a piston. Now imagine this concept x10 and much more often, each time after a drain so there is always a fresh coat of nutrient solution on the roots to protect them as air blows over them through the entire medium.

When the timer is on, every 3 minutes the bucket fills and empties drawing enormous amounts oxygen directly through the entire root system.

AquaponicHerb Reviewed by AquaponicHerb on 02-14-2010. The Suck-it Bucket (NEW) Ok. The way this thing works: The bucket has a pot inside of it with 5/8inch perforations on the bottom only; it fits a perfect seal inside the bucket. See first picture.... Super oxygenated venturi-driven water trickles in from the top through 1/2" tube when my timer kicks in. A venturi is better than an airstone for many reasons, we can get to that later. Also the oxygenated water has to feed in from the top in order for the process to work properly. This creates pressurization inside Rating: 5

[AquaponicHerb]

If this thread is popular I will make a DIY step by step.

[GetThisOrDie]

That thing is cool. Id love to see a DIY so I can try one out and experiment with it.

[AquaponicHerb]

just a quick one I drew. I may add more components or airstones not sure yet. the venturi produces a nice frothy foamlike water that is far better than airstones and they dont need to be replaced, unit opened etc....

[drudown11]

ill be happy to try it out! Sounds like a damn science experiment too, so im down. If you post A DYI i will definatly going to give it a try. So would this be considered a aeroponic system or what?

So what exactly is this venturi thing and what makes them so superior to airstones?

[AquaponicHerb]

heres first steps, i layed it out
the venturi is very complex, we can get into that later

its basically a waterline that has a shaped interior designed to draw in air. The air bubbles are mixed with the solutions and form almost an aerosol. The water gets so oxygenated that it literally oxidizes on contact if you get it right. Once u get to a certain level of oxygen, the water starts to foam though. I'm still checking out these thresholds.

Anyway here goes the first few steps. Just know bell siphons are a bitch and dont blame me if it floods your place. This is a strong suction, 40 pounds based on 5 gallons of water, but my plant is growing 2 inches a day and the leaves are getting gigantic.

1. drill hole in center of bottom of bucket with drillsaw this is a 1" size

2. install these fittins. hell i dont even know what they are i found them at home depot. they are just basically 1" screw in male on 1 side with 1" female hole on other. then its got this metal screw thing and a rubber seal. i found this is the most best fitting possible through aquaponics, i just wish i knew what the hell it was.

3. this is what will later be the siphon. a 3" pvc pipe with an end cap. I use a metal file and grind little v shaped teeth. you can make as teeth as you want. these teeth allow water to pass through and ensure when the bucket drains its drained from the lowest point ensuring a full drain. dont cut the pipe until you know the exact distance it needs to support the pot. the bell siphon acts as a pillar to hold some of the weight of the pot, lavarock, and massive would-be tree

4. this is a pot, it fits perfectly in the 5 gallon bucket, its very generic i got it at home depot. it fits perfectly into the 5 gallon bucket. I guess any one would do but it must be sturdy, and be a snug fit. let me know if this is an issue i might be able to find out the brand pot

5. then i wrap it with electric tape. this thing has to be sealed airtight or it wont work right. these are the first steps, stay posted.

note:

by the way creating a bell siphon, and understanding that technology can make you a hydroponic wizard. you could flood a 300 gallon bed in 30 seconds or drain it just as fast, this has so many applications and the efficiency is off the charts as it is a mechanical action and requires no timers.

[AquaponicHerb]

it helps to understand the concept of the venturi. here is a second chamber i made to micronize the bubbles, and keep them in the water for longer. they are held in there like a blender. lots of them pop and smash, i can hear it so I know they are saturating.

watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUd4WxjoHKY

[AquaponicHerb]

built a new drive for my entire system. it uses a vacuum, but i inject air into the line so its even more powerful. it doubles its pattern, so its a double venturi pvc.

check it out

[AquaponicHerb]

built a new drive for my entire system. it uses a vacuum, but i inject air into the line so its even more powerful. it doubles its pattern, so its a double venturi pvc.

plant is growing insanely fast, faster than any hydro ive seen. 2 inches or more every 24hours

i have break points to smash the bubbles as well:thumbsup:

[AquaponicHerb]

I am doing some research on data done by controlled studies, and some other concepts to conclusively prove this.

An efficiently designed venturi can provide efficiency off the charts compared to any number of airstones. Also it provides 100% saturation in seconds and penetrates the entire systems water not just the water under the airstones.

drawbacks:

noisy
expensive
hard to make; must be custom-modified for hydro setups in master systems because of pressure issues with pumping upwards to beds
if there is any kind of compromise within the valve itself due to particulates, a possible leak may occur; this can be avoided with certain redundancies

stay posted, i will have your info for you man....:rastasmoke: