I wish I was there to help you. I have experience with aquaponics and bell siphons. You want the kind with a little hose running from the bell to a little cup. Those are absolutely reliable once you dial them in. I've had them run for a year without a hiccup. I don't have experience with hydroponics except for using bottled nutrients with the soil in my indoor cannabis plants.
@@comfortablynumb9342I have seen those before and will have to look at them again. Once I got the bell siphon working though, it never stopped. Thanks for the tips!
@@cliffp73 this was the 4th version our hydroponic system and the first version used perlite. That stuff was next to impossible to clean the roots. For this reason we moved to hydroton in buckets, then 4 bus pans, and then to what you see here. For cleaning, I would use a heavy duty storage container to place a few of them into at a time and use a water hose to spray them down well. Also, I'd use a small piece of PVC pipe to agitate them around. It may take a little bit of work but the dead roots and other debris will float to the top of the water. Last, I used a 5 gallon bucket with small drain holes in the bottom and sides to scoop the clean hydroton out for rinsing and draining a few more times before going back into the grow beds. For good measure, I would restart my system and cycle it for 24 hours using the recommended amount of 23% hydrogen peroxide per gallon. I hope this helps!
@ Thank you for the comment! I am at the 5 gallon bucket stage. I have been “playing with letting it dry out and get the big stuff out and then I use a blower to blow all of the light material ie dried roots. Then I sanitize.
new subscriber this video so marvelous so worth watching education ... stay connected
I wish I was there to help you. I have experience with aquaponics and bell siphons. You want the kind with a little hose running from the bell to a little cup. Those are absolutely reliable once you dial them in. I've had them run for a year without a hiccup.
I don't have experience with hydroponics except for using bottled nutrients with the soil in my indoor cannabis plants.
@@comfortablynumb9342I have seen those before and will have to look at them again. Once I got the bell siphon working though, it never stopped. Thanks for the tips!
@2_branchfarm the tube running down the side of the bell siphon and the cup are important. That's what stops the siphon, when the tube sucks air.
How do you clean the roots out of your hydroton?
@@cliffp73 this was the 4th version our hydroponic system and the first version used perlite. That stuff was next to impossible to clean the roots. For this reason we moved to hydroton in buckets, then 4 bus pans, and then to what you see here.
For cleaning, I would use a heavy duty storage container to place a few of them into at a time and use a water hose to spray them down well. Also, I'd use a small piece of PVC pipe to agitate them around. It may take a little bit of work but the dead roots and other debris will float to the top of the water. Last, I used a 5 gallon bucket with small drain holes in the bottom and sides to scoop the clean hydroton out for rinsing and draining a few more times before going back into the grow beds.
For good measure, I would restart my system and cycle it for 24 hours using the recommended amount of 23% hydrogen peroxide per gallon. I hope this helps!
@ Thank you for the comment! I am at the 5 gallon bucket stage. I have been “playing with letting it dry out and get the big stuff out and then I use a blower to blow all of the light material ie dried roots. Then I sanitize.