Grow Mediums Setting up first autopot run questions for the guru’s

[Lil Dab]

Hey guys I think I have a good plan for my auto pots we will see? Kinda wishing I didn’t purchase them after further research but is what it is. So I have autopot 2 pot system 3.9gallon plastic square containers. I plan to top fergitate/mini flush the pots once a week two weeks max. Already been in contact with MOG and have a feed plan figured out going to stay light on feed. I am going to be using canna coco bricks that I am rinsing and buffering. Mixed with perlite. Suggests on coco/perlite mixer? Any other advice is welcome

 

[Olderfart]

Hey guys I think I have a good plan for my auto pots we will see? Kinda wishing I didn’t purchase them after further research but is what it is. So I have autopot 2 pot system 3.9gallon plastic square containers. I plan to top fergitate/mini flush the pots once a week two weeks max. Already been in contact with MOG and have a feed plan figured out going to stay light on feed. I am going to be using canna coco bricks that I am rinsing and buffering. Mixed with perlite. Suggests on coco/perlite mixer? Any other advice is welcome

I used 40% perlite in my coco grow in rolled down "5 gallon" fabric pots the XL kits come with, and that ratio worked very well. It should work fine in your setup. I heartily add my vote for a weekly top watering "flush". Nute buildup/imbalance is a common problem with sub-irrigation, and has caused mischief in every one of my salt nute grows in autopots.

Good luck with it.

 

[JP1]

I do a weekly top watering/flush with regular nutes out of the rez with added recharge, will be doing it tomorrow actually, and a full flush with bloom nutes and recharge when I switch to bloom. I usually just pour a quart a week through the top. Shut off the valve at the rez, shop vac out whatever is in the containers. If you put a quart in, you'll get a quart out and it will flood so I suck it out until it's done draining, takes maybe 15 mins, then turn the rez back on later on in the day. I do this until there's only a couple weeks left. Also highly recommend a shut off valve for each pot

 

[Lil Dab]

I used 40% perlite in my coco grow in rolled down "5 gallon" fabric pots the XL kits come with, and that ratio worked very well. It should work fine in your setup. I heartily add my vote for a weekly top watering "flush". Nute buildup/imbalance is a common problem with sub-irrigation, and has caused mischief in every one of my salt nute grows in autopots.

Good luck with it.

@Olderfart i was hoping for some of your input!!that's kinda where i figured i'd start. if i wanted more aeration i think i remember reading somewhere about drilling holes in the sides of container. i got a deal on these otherwise i would have went with the fabric style. after further research i wish had went with a irrigation system drain to waste with the coco and mega crop and not have as big of issue with salt build up. there's always something to worry about . also i know you've been to coco for cannabis do you start your autoflowers in jiffy pellets like him? i've always done wet paper towel germination then straight to final pot. thinking about trying the pellets.

 

[Lil Dab]

I do a weekly top watering/flush with regular nutes out of the rez with added recharge, will be doing it tomorrow actually, and a full flush with bloom nutes and recharge when I switch to bloom. I usually just pour a quart a week through the top. Shut off the valve at the rez, shop vac out whatever is in the containers. If you put a quart in, you'll get a quart out and it will flood so I suck it out until it's done draining, takes maybe 15 mins, then turn the rez back on later on in the day. I do this until there's only a couple weeks left. Also highly recommend a shut off valve for each pot

awesome yeah that sounds perfect i thought i was gonna need to take pots out of the tent every week. thanks for the heads up i definitely would have flooded the tent . coco/perlite ratio?

 

[Ace12]

Take this with a grain of a salt but my last auto grow was 4 fabric autopots with 1 part megacrop. I used 70/30 coco perlite pre mixed and buffered. Kept the ppm at 500 the whole grow and never flushed. Used recharge about once a week and was very happy with the grow. Grew some monsters that yielded well nice terps and plenty potent. I did let the res run dry and a few times to let the coco dry back just a tad. Good luck hope it works out well for ya.

 

[JaysAutopots]

Hey guys I think I have a good plan for my auto pots we will see? Kinda wishing I didn’t purchase them after further research but is what it is. So I have autopot 2 pot system 3.9gallon plastic square containers. I plan to top fergitate/mini flush the pots once a week two weeks max. Already been in contact with MOG and have a feed plan figured out going to stay light on feed. I am going to be using canna coco bricks that I am rinsing and buffering. Mixed with perlite. Suggests on coco/perlite mixer? Any other advice is welcome

Sorry to jump on your thread, you mentioned Canna Coco bricks -- mine are arriving soon. Do you still have to strain away the coco dust if using Canna coco bricks? (as in the video below)

 

[Olderfart]

@Olderfart i was hoping for some of your input!!that's kinda where i figured i'd start. if i wanted more aeration i think i remember reading somewhere about drilling holes in the sides of container. i got a deal on these otherwise i would have went with the fabric style. after further research i wish had went with a irrigation system drain to waste with the coco and mega crop and not have as big of issue with salt build up. there's always something to worry about . also i know you've been to coco for cannabis do you start your autoflowers in jiffy pellets like him? i've always done wet paper towel germination then straight to final pot. thinking about trying the pellets.

I now use the peat pellets all the time. I have tried direct planting, and for me it has not done as well, early growth seems to suffer a bit due to the difficulty of getting watering right, at least it has for me. Other peeps here seem to make direct planting work, but I seem to get a better early start with the pellets than I have starting in larger containers. Keep in mind that there is a big difference between photos and autos. With photos, a slow initial start is not a problem, with autos running down the clock with early issues can be a big deal.

I have used the pellets with and without trying to remove the mesh, either entirely or just the bottom, but it does not seem to make much difference, roots that penetrate the mesh do not seem to be deterred or constricted when I check the root ball later.

The peat pellets need to be planted pretty quickly, but for me it seems that the couple day kick start gets them going nicely and consistently. I have heard others complain about pH with the pellets, but I have never seen an issue with it. I like the pellets because they are easily available and cheap locally. The rapid rooters and the like which are sold wet have too many issues for me, and are stupid expensive by comparison. Bottom line is that the pellets are cheap, readily available, and work as well or better than anything else I have tried. The one improvement on them that I might consider is making my own with some sort of paper or other organic "mesh" on the outside, but so far, I have not bothered. I also don't bother with intermediate potting up, as soon as the the tap root emerges, I plant the pellet in the final pot. Again, with photos, potting up might make sense, but with autos, IMO, perhaps not so much.

The fabric pots work really well, there is no need to try anything else with the autovalves IMO. I roll mine down to about 3 imperial gallons. With coco or soil and salt nutes, you do not need the full size pots. With soil and water only, you need larger. One of these days, Autopots will come up with a larger tray for 10 gallon containers just for the water only crew, but so far if you want larger tray, you have to make your own.

Good luck with it, the autovalve/autopot kit can work really well if you can stay on top of the nutes.

 

[Lil Dab]

I now use the peat pellets all the time. I have tried direct planting, and for me it has not done as well, early growth seems to suffer a bit due to the difficulty of getting watering right, at least it has for me. Other peeps here seem to make direct planting work, but I seem to get a better early start with the pellets than I have starting in larger containers. Keep in mind that there is a big difference between photos and autos. With photos, a slow initial start is not a problem, with autos running down the clock with early issues can be a big deal.

I have used the pellets with and without trying to remove the mesh, either entirely or just the bottom, but it does not seem to make much difference, roots that penetrate the mesh do not seem to be deterred or constricted when I check the root ball later.

The peat pellets need to be planted pretty quickly, but for me it seems that the couple day kick start gets them going nicely and consistently. I have heard others complain about pH with the pellets, but I have never seen an issue with it. I like the pellets because they are easily available and cheap locally. The rapid rooters and the like which are sold wet have too many issues for me, and are stupid expensive by comparison. Bottom line is that the pellets are cheap, readily available, and work as well or better than anything else I have tried. The one improvement on them that I might consider is making my own with some sort of paper or other organic "mesh" on the outside, but so far, I have not bothered. I also don't bother with intermediate potting up, as soon as the the tap root emerges, I plant the pellet in the final pot. Again, with photos, potting up might make sense, but with autos, IMO, perhaps not so much.

The fabric pots work really well, there is no need to try anything else with the autovalves IMO. I roll mine down to about 3 imperial gallons. With coco or soil and salt nutes, you do not need the full size pots. With soil and water only, you need larger. One of these days, Autopots will come up with a larger tray for 10 gallon containers just for the water only crew, but so far if you want larger tray, you have to make your own.

Good luck with it, the autovalve/autopot kit can work really well if you can stay on top of the nutes.

Perfect thank you for the detailed answer and confirming my thoughts. I like the theory behind the pellets just wanted some experts inputs. Just trying to learn from everyone else’s mistakes and apply that to my setup and dial in my system. I think I’m figure out how the site works. There is no wrong answer. As long as it works with your setup and your happy with results. I pay attention reputation now. And things are starting to come together. As always thank you very much @Olderfart

 

[Olderfart]

Perfect thank you for the detailed answer and confirming my thoughts. I like the theory behind the pellets just wanted some experts inputs. Just trying to learn from everyone else’s mistakes and apply that to my setup and dial in my system. I think I’m figure out how the site works. There is no wrong answer. As long as it works with your setup and your happy with results. I pay attention reputation now. And things are starting to come together. As always thank you very much @Olderfart

I'm no expert, but I have learned several ways to screw up.