New Grower This may seem like a stupid question...

[Epic Genetics]

I also don't know why you keep saying "real life info" I have been growing for 5 years that's by no means a lot but I do know a little about some stuff lol just new to AFN and autoflowers that's wwhy I ask a lot I try and learn as much as I can from as many people as I can then fine what I like best

Your just the first person I have ever heard that fills bucket to the top and I have always heard and seen from "real life" people doing it the way I do

i say that because lately ive seen a lot of people giving advice based mainly on what they read/hear

strangely enough until this thread ive never heard of not filling a bubble bucket to the top , even my local hydro shop guys do so that way

as for 5 years growing , to me thats a new grower , i dont mean that in a bad way so please dont take it that way

see the way i was told many years ago was not to worry if the stem is in the water because it has air in it and the stem will just grow roots and thats a good thing , just keep leaves from sitting in/on the water

has worked very well for me every time , but due to how many plants i grow at any given time buckets arent feasible so ive always been a soil/soiless grower who runa a single bucket from time to time just to keep things interesting

peace

 

[Epic Genetics]

i guess i should mention , its the bubbles i see poping at the top of the rocks not actual water , but the water isnt far behind

peace

 

[DWCocha]

Hey all Merry xmas :smokebuds:your all right in your own right !. I have filled many buckets way past the base on a regular basis & never had any ill effects at all but do like to keep water at different levels during the grow.

I filled the AM I grew to almost overfilling just because the greedy bitch was emptying the resies so fast & it was easier to keep on top of things .So filling past the net pot base is not a "no no" ...its a "yes yes" if you want to .HOWEVER that was later in the grow & with a very well established plant & I would do things a bit different depending on the stage of the grow ...ie

seedlings/germination -at this stage its best to keep the little babys cubes / jiffy's at the right moister levels for damping off purposes ,so I will keep water level 1-2" below these .(usually just above the base of the pot.) checking humidity & temps right by seedling regularly

Once the root is in the res after a few days I'll lower the level to encourage more roots to join it . Not for to long though & then I raise the level again to make sure as many are submerged as possible ...but without overfilling as mentioned above.The reason for this is reading Seymours methods & how he explains it is that you get feeder & searcher roots in DWC ... the feeders will grow submerged & the searchers will grow above the water level & then go searching for it .Seymour recons feeders are best for uptake & therefor overall growth ...the more the better ect !
It may not be "real time" info ,but it came from the top boy right here at AFN & thats good enough for me !.

Once you have a fully developed root system & well established plant I dont think it maters at all where the water level is as long as its not too low on a regular basis (I do try to keep them well topped up).So I agree with Bob ,its cool to fill the bucket as much as you like & will help overall plant growth for producing more feeder roots for increased uptake .But some water level control at the start is also a good idea to encourage the roots from the net pot /basket into the res as soon as possible so they can all become feeders


"uuuuggghhhh.."
"b0b's c0b"Hop digityHop digityHop digity"JM's a Hippy""DingDong.."

 

[Epic Genetics]

awesome DW , i see plenty of water level change as mentioned , so after reading your post im happy with how ive been doing it

never seen any dampining off like i do with seedlings in wet soil , maybe i use a more then adequate air pump ? i dunno the specs but it was the biggest 4 hose pump i could find back when i bought it and still works a charm to this day , the hydro guy sold it to me as a 4 bucket system pum and i run it in one bucket lol

peace

 

[DWCocha]

awesome DW , i see plenty of water level change as mentioned , so after reading your post im happy with how ive been doing it

never seen any dampining off like i do with seedlings in wet soil , maybe i use a more then adequate air pump ? i dunno the specs but it was the biggest 4 hose pump i could find back when i bought it and still works a charm to this day , the hydro guy sold it to me as a 4 bucket system pum and i run it in one bucket lol

peace

Yea I get a nice high RH right by the pebbles in a full size bucket with the 30lpm pump running but not so high with these mini buckets im using now for seedlings ... & these are what i'll be dropping seedlings in from now on .Ive messed around with one of those mini hygrometers on top the net pots/pebbles on a few buckets & in general its a nice place for a seedling to be ,the only thing is water temps in the 1st week or so could effect growth imo ... so I run just water at higher temps for the 1st week until the root shows & think that warmer air blowing up through the pot is a bit nicer for the tiddlers !.On the other side of things I even had some tiny babies pop in a full size bucket & collect water droplets on there tiny 1st leaves & burn up from what must have been to much humidity being forced up though the bucket ???? ..... Its all worth thinking about & trying to find the perfect balance buds ...im still learning all the time & had enough issues with DWC to know its worth covering as many angles as you can ,when done right no other system can compare "AFN smoke out"

 

[SAVAGE]

So witch way is better? My 6 seeds just started germing. You want to start yours and see what works best? Would really like to see open to new ideas.