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Inexpensive low-pressure aeroponics system design

Peter S

Peter S

I made this weekend before last, the plant (Bhut Assam) that is in it has been doing great. I have a time-lapse going that I'll post after it runs for another week. It's basically the same design as popular cloning systems, but the spray bars direct water upward and inward from the sides. My thoughts were this would provide better root coverage. At this scale, it wouldn't be sustainable long term for a large plant like a Chinense but would be great for accelerating growth. It costs less than 10.00 in parts, plus the pump which was 22.42 on Amazon. The icing container was free. I also added a sight glass for monitoring water/nutrient level. The parts for it were less than 2.00. 
 
do you really need that many sprayers for that small area and only one plant? or were you just testing it out? i've seen the clone machines with lots more sites. that don't have the horizontal sprayers... seems like overkill?
 
juanitos said:
do you really need that many sprayers for that small area and only one plant? or were you just testing it out? i've seen the clone machines with lots more sites. that don't have the horizontal sprayers... seems like overkill?
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It very well could be overkill. But I was thinking that when the root mass got bigger, and started filling the res space it might need the extra. With the cloners, they don't stay in there much longer after sprouting roots. It's still R&D for me at this point though. I'm testing it and going to post results, and any issues/concerns as it progresses. Going to see how big I can grow that Bhut Assam in there too. :)

Malarky said:
awesome video. Thank you!
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Thanks! Glad you liked it.
 
Nice tidy build.
You`ll find the roots head straight for the floor and fill the container from the bottom up. I think you have a few too many nozzles for the space but it`s all good. I would consider using a timer to give the roots a breather, it`ll also help prevent the water heating up too much..
 
Tank said:
Nice tidy build.
You`ll find the roots head straight for the floor and fill the container from the bottom up. I think you have a few too many nozzles for the space but it`s all good. I would consider using a timer to give the roots a breather, it`ll also help prevent the water heating up too much..
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Thanks! So far the water temp has stayed around 77-78 degrees. I don't know if it's a factor of the model pump I'm using, or maybe the ambient basement temps help keep in lower. I do have a repeat cycle timer. After it runs for a couple weeks, I might hook that up and see how it does.
 
If you are overdoing the spray the plants will let you know by showing signs of overwatering. Its easy to spot, the leaves will start to look a little wilty but the stems will remain bolt upright. With underwatering, both the leaves and stems will look wilty. 
 
Tank said:
If you are overdoing the spray the plants will let you know by showing signs of overwatering. Its easy to spot, the leaves will start to look a little wilty but the stems will remain bolt upright. With underwatering, both the leaves and stems will look wilty. 
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That's good to know. So far seems to be doing okay.
 
Here's a pic from day 1
uH2QluYl.jpg

 
Pic from day 12 (today)
cYtzzful.jpg

 
It's not directly under my 400 watt CMH, just a little off to the side of it, still catching a good amount of light though.
 
Great vids, looks super healthy what are you feeding it with?  Rising ph is likely due to the rapid increase in nitrate uptake. A bit of black tape on the sight tube will fix the algae issue, just leave a narrow vertical slot over the working range.
 
millworkman said:
I love how you can see it growing at night. Awesoem!
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Yeah, that is really cool. Looks like it was growing more at night than in the light.
Tank said:
Great vids, looks super healthy what are you feeding it with?  Rising ph is likely due to the rapid increase in nitrate uptake. A bit of black tape on the sight tube will fix the algae issue, just leave a narrow vertical slot over the working range.
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Thanks for the tips. Currently just feeding it Masterblend/Epsom Salt/Calcium Nitrate mix at around 800 ppm. When I cleaned it tonight I saw algae in the container as well. I think it lets too much light through. I'm going to try what you said about covering the sight glass and also black out the entire container. I'll probably just build a new one, paint it and swap it out.
 
I`ve never had much luck getting paint to stay stuck on plastic, a wrap of black and white poly (white side out) does the trick. I made my aero cloner from a green plastic planter, not an ideal color for spotting algae ;)
 
Tank said:
I`ve never had much luck getting paint to stay stuck on plastic, a wrap of black and white poly (white side out) does the trick. I made my aero cloner from a green plastic planter, not an ideal color for spotting algae ;)
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Rustoleum makes a paint for plastic. I tried it on another container and it stayed on so far. Wrapping something around like you said would be cheaper and simpler. Aluminum foil and gorilla tape might work.
 
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