Grow Mediums Dwc question

[briman]

Hey AFN Hydro folks. Wanting to start dwc, and have a question. Most DWC from what I read cosists of 5 gallon bucket. My question is

What would happen if you used a 20 gallon bucket?

I know auto's are time specific, but will it grow bigger plants in a bigger rez, or would it be a waste of nutes and ph liquid. I have 5 gallon bucket system, but I have a 20 gallon rope tote I could use too. ok, another question

would a plant be bigger and less root restriction in a bigger rez? Or would I be fine in a 5 gallon DWC bucket? Any and All responses would be great. I know the answer if I was growing photo period strains, but with autos, I have only done in dirt.

 

[bud head]

5 gal is enough for the roots.... any larger is wasting nutes

 

[DWCocha]

5 gal is enough for the roots.... any larger is wasting nutes

:thumbs::smokebuds:

 

[Groff]

I dunno... Never done DWC (planning for next winter), but from what we're getting with some new genetics, I am very willing to bet some monsters could be grown if the roots had more space... Hey Vira, how much did your lautomazar yield? 400+ ? Could it have grown bigger if it had more root space?

Food for thought

 

[Abbmacher]

It's worth a go. the more volume you have, the more stable the nutrient levels will be!

 

[bud head]

I donno but I just pulled 19 oz. (dry) off one plant and usually get 5-12 oz normally (depending on the strain) using 5-gal pots ..you still have to drain the water every week so it means.... more work, water, nutrients, lifting heavy water and buckets, more airstones?, more growing space for the larger pots to fit in and in the end, not needed ...5 gal is plenty! trust me I know you will never get 'root bound' in a 5 gal bucket

I just reread your post '20 gal bucket' that's a good one! can you imagine: haulin around a 166 lb garbage can with a 6" plant (early stages)

1 gal. of water weighs 8.34 lbs x 20 = 166.8 lbs
if you use 5mm per gal of a 'nutrient' x's 20 =100mm of that 'nutrient' (and that's only one) EVERY WEEK
let's not talk about the water distilled / RO
post some pics!

 

[Pal23]

I donno but I just pulled 19 oz. (dry) off one plant and usually get 5-12 oz normally (depending on the strain) using 5-gal pots ..you still have to drain the water every week so it means.... more work, water, nutrients, lifting heavy water and buckets, more airstones?, more growing space for the larger pots to fit in and in the end, not needed ...5 gal is plenty! trust me I know you will never get 'root bound' in a 5 gal bucket

Hey man, maybe you can explain to me why using anything larger than a 20L DWC bucket is wasteful? I just assumed with a larger reservoir the roots have more space to grow = a bigger plant/harvest. Is it just a point of diminishing returns once you go past 20l? I'm currently sizing up containers for a diy dwc bucket but I do have access to three 20L buckets so I'm in two minds whether or not to use those as opposed to one large res. I'm hoping to grow 1 tree or 2 decent sized bushes Cheers bud

 

[insert name here]

if you look at some of the massive plants that have been grown on this site in DWC, going from 200+to over 500+ grams, it would seem that the 5 gallon bucket serves its purpose well, a 20 gallow tote would be great for growing a few plants(clones that were all drinking and eating at the same level) Otherwise in order to keep your nute concentrations right in the 20 gal, you'll need alot more nutes for just one plant. even if the root ball looks like it fills that bucket, there is still alot of space between the root hairs, and lots of bubbles letting them gorge on the available nutes.

 

[DWCocha]

I agree with budhead that 5gal is enough for any auto IMO ... I guess you could go bigger if you wanted & had the extra air pumping & light to complement the extra root zone space ?.... but I dont see them getting much bigger given there life span ?.

If you gotta go bigger than this then go for it I guess stylez rasta smoke

 

[Pal23]

Thanks for the replies guys, sorry to hijack the thread It makes life easier for me to use the 20L buckets then I guess - still a noob to hydro so all the info is helpful, and true vira, I didnt even consider their lifespan having any relation to the overall size! Pretty sure my next grow will now be 20L DWC bucket x2 each with a GN MS006 above it - hopefully will perform well