"Suckit Bucket" DIY thread

[AquaponicHerb]

You will need:

1. Drill, 1" drill bit, 1/2" drill bit
2. 1/2" 1/2" stiff black water tubing, 1/2" 5/8" clear hose, and garden hose.
3. >370 gph pond pump, with at least 12 foot height torque-rating. The stronger the better.
4. 3" hydro net basket
5. 3" pvc pipe
6. 3" pvc pipe end piece
7. There are some other small fittings that I will describe later.
8. 5 gallon bucket
9. Strong container that fits perfectly inside of top rim of bucket
10. Various bolts.
11. Filer for shaping grooves in plastic.
12. Lavarock: largest kind
13. Rockwool
14. wet dry vac
15. patience

I may add more later. This is a good start.

AquaponicHerb Reviewed by AquaponicHerb on 03-02-2010. "Suckit Bucket" DIY thread You will need: 1. Drill, 1" drill bit, 1/2" drill bit 2. 1/2" 1/2" stiff black water tubing, 1/2" 5/8" clear hose, and garden hose. 3. >370 gph pond pump, with at least 12 foot height torque-rating. The stronger the better. 4. 3" hydro net basket 5. 3" pvc pipe 6. 3" pvc pipe end piece 7. There are some other small fittings that I will describe later. 8. 5 gallon bucket Rating: 5

[AquaponicHerb]

This is a DIY for those interested in experimenting with new grow methods. I will explain as best I can, but ultimately I will need questions and prompts, as these concepts can be unorthodox.

I don't claim that this system is better than any other, however it does use concepts that are not new but have not been combined to grow cannabis so far as I can see.

I have documented the growth, and you can judge for yourself whether this is worth it or not to build. There are lots of systems for different applications. You will notice in some of the pictures, I have a special way of building my units; I may have inexpensive parts, clear water lines (for observing water flow), but make no mistake this is a very complete hydro setup.

If you complete this Bucket system, you will acquire specific knowledge in Advanced Hydroponics and Aquaponics; Venturi, Bell-Siphon, Romaurie, Surge, and now Suckit.

I will make this DIY in segments, explaining the diagrams...

Good luck...
you will need patience too.









***START***

Heres the first few steps, layed out. I dont have a lot of info on the actual part names or such but its really basic since I tend to make all my own stuff anyhow.

Just a word of warning-bell siphons are difficult to calibrate and don't blame me if it floods your place. This is a strong suction, 40 pounds based on 5 gallons of water.

Always work in a safe environment, away from electricity. Educate yourself on electrical and fire code. Have a fire extinguisher and wet/dry vac handy in case of mistakes. One time I shot myself in the face with a highly concentrated jet of emulsified fish excrement, and took 3/4 of it down the hatch as it was a high gph pump. I realized after cleaning up the whole area I was sitting in the water with an extension cord outlet, oops; lucky I didn't catch a little fry time and a trip to the hot spot...

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 economical and reliable fitting, working with 1" a standard size.

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 many 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 a 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: bell siphons 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]

Lets keep going...

Pictures-

1. Cleaning the seals is important for tight fits. We will use garden hose in this DIY for cost and versatility. You can use different types of fittings and I will explain these later.

2. I like using clear flexible and black stiff tubing. Here you can see the 1/2 1/2 black inside the 1/2 5/8 clear. You force this into any garden hose and it will be such a tight seal, that you will get a workout trying to get it in or out, but you will know its safe. You have to insert the black inside the clear, then then clear end into the garden hose, then pull clear through other end of hose till black reaches the garden hose, forming a seal, then you pull it through- this requires just physical strength and a bit of lube if your that kind of person.

3. Once you've pulled it through, thats how it should look from the inside. Black opaque hose 1/2 1/2 in center, clear 1/2 5/8 around it, garden hose (standard type) outside of that. The hose has been pulled through with the black 1/2 1/2 forming the lock in the 1" hole. The garden hoses with the mat finish, rather than a glossy-slippery finish, work better because they don't slip around as much.

4. Here is another example of that self-sealing fitting that I used in another type of bucket- this is an unrelated design so do not let it confuse you. This picture illustrates how this connection has been a very easy, inexpensive, and versatile way for me to connect units within a system.

5. Pulling the hose through the hole to form an airtight seal...

[AquaponicHerb]

sorry have been busy, but heres a diagram again

[redtails]

It seems so simple yet effective, I don't know why nobody's tried it or at least passed the plans around like you! Kudos man, way to innovate!

You should enable your reputation...

[cigarettes42]

do you reuse your lava rocks? how do you seperate the rockwool from the rocks if you do reuse? are all those parts a bitch to clean after harvest?

[AquaponicHerb]

Recycled rockwool is only good for so long. but lavarock can be used forever. People recommend cleaning it because of bacteria or particulates, and you should. But realize that bacteria are good inherently, and unless you have a real problem with those types of pathogens in your system i.e. mold, plant disease, fungus, they are of no concern but augment the plants ability to break down and digest the nutrients, especially biological nitrate based.

Rockwool is a hard substance to clean out, and i recommend doing cleaning in a system within your system. Yes you heard me, I have a sump type scenario where I do transplants and its a controlled environment. The escape pipe to reservoir #1 is 1 inch under water surface, so it does not pick up surface particulates, and debris accumulates on bottom. I don't oxygenate this part of the system, because I do not want a lot of current as it stirs up the sediment. This acts as a filter, sump, res, mixing, testing, transplanting, and most importantly a primary ballast.

Heres pictures. I would clean the rockwool out of the Lavarock and throw it away. Get new rockwool, but its good to let it soak up and get some algae before using it, as this is promotes bacteria. I found in my trials that my bacteria enhanced (microbial) organic powdered soil fertilizer works good in combination with these layers of rockwool and lavarock, just as in soil.

If you don't want to do the process in a sump type environment I would buy a big 50 gallon rubbermaid bin, and do your recycling in there. Just fill with water and take the lavarock out a handfull at a time, you should be fine. Use a fishing net, like a 3" net for aquariums, and sift out the debris with that. I like keeping it all in the system cause the mess stays in there and not in the room. Just make sure that mess does'nt escape directly into system, or do the really messy stuff in bin, like involving massive amounts of soil, and then lavarock cleaning in sump...

hope that helps

[cigarettes42]

i would never reuse rockwool. but dont you have to replace lava rock after awhile just like hydroton? i know after awhile with hydroton calcium, and salts build up on the hydroton and that its impossible to wash/reuse, even with a flushing agent.

[AquaponicHerb]

You can clean it pretty well, and in such a design the rockwool would most likely take up most of the salts since they are the primary filter. Deposits are always an issue, but calcium is also a good buffer. If its allowed to soak in a sump like system and you hand wash it, you can recycle. If you don't believe in that, you can buy it for $3.25 a cubic foot at a landscape supply company like I do. For $20 I bought enough lavarock for a dozen 5 gallon buckets.

If its got lots of good drainage, and it floods and drains like so, it will build less than if you had a drip or something. I'm really trying to go towards a non-chemical approach towards this so I don't get salts and such. I'm working on a project with microbials and chemicals in 1 system. I'm familiar with bacteria from aquaponics and know their importance. Its just about putting a buffer between the bacteria and the deadly chemicals.

Heres a picture of the 40LB surge in action.

:jointsmile:

[AquaponicHerb]

Ok, so you have your hose pulled through bottom. We will not tighten our seal on the bottom of bucket yet, but will continue with the bellsiphon. Now its time to construct a tight fit between the container, the bucket, and something we call a bell siphon. The bell siphon will act as support in growing large trees (picture 3), as will the bolts we will fasten.

Making a bell-siphon for power... first steps

Measure the distance between the bottom of your container and the bottom of bucket. Should be around 5" or so. You want to cut the 3" pvc pipe so it is about 1" shorter than the distance to allow for endcap. What you are trying to do here is use the bell siphon as a pillar to support some of the weight of the medium and plant.

If your container is 5" off the bottom of bucket, then cut your 3" PVC pipe 4" long. Put the endcap on, and make sure the container can rest on top of the bellsiphon without breaching the airtight seal between container and 5 gallon bucket.

Keep placing the bellsiphon inside the bucket and placing the container inside on top of it, and recut the 3" pipe as necessary to form a good fit; you want to support the container without pushing it upwards breaking the vacuum seal.

This step is gonna be hard, so just let me know if theres any questions.


Picture 1 shows the bellsiphon properly cut with endcap on, resting in its spot on bottom of bucket. The container will rest on this.

Picture 2 shows the bellsiphon properly cut with endcap on, resting on its side on the ground.

Picture 3 shows a large cannabis tree vegging in a SB. These are heavy and require lots of support...

Picture 4 shows the bellsiphon properly cut, and resting under bottom of container inside bucket.

Picture 5 shows measurements taken of container and bucket, trying to establish a good length for the most support.