DWC bucket change and quick spoon tools (Orig. post April, 2021)

I've had a few questions regarding the DWC system and how I manage to change out the plants' water with buckets since I don't have any water valve connected to the bottom of them. Usually, gardeners will make a water valve on the bottoms to drain the water and replenish it. For me, instead of wasting resources on a valve with a cheap bucket, I do a quick swap out of the buckets when they're young.

As they mature though and grow through a scrog net, I won't have the opportunity to change out their water. If I absolutely needed to change out the water, I'd use a water pump to slurp up the water into another bucket. But since these buckets are so small, the amount of water you're really changing is null. By the time you refill your buckets, the amount of water on the bottom will dilute with the refill buckets. I've been doing this for the past six years and I've never needed to change out any water when they're mature. The plants will be too busy making flowers.

But for now, I figure this post will be a great opportunity to show you how I change out the water when the plants are young. Today I'll also show you some quick tricks to help you keep tabs on how many gallons you're putting in the reservoir.

Bucket swap:

For this you're going to need an extra bucket, empty and clean. I took a bucket from the yard and placed my young clone into it. Be careful of the roots, they'll be dangling down and wrapped around your airstone tubing. Gently remove your roots from the tubing. It is best if someone is helping you in this process. I usually unhook the airstone from the tube and release the roots that way. Be gentle in setting the plant in the extra bucket.

Examine your reservoir and check if it is good for a refill. Buckets can last years but if you have intense heat or constant temperature changes, it can warp and crack the plastic. I've not had this problem, but I know what sun damage can do to buckets and the light itself will fade the plastic and cause it to fracture.

Take your bucket outside and wash it. Don't worry about your plant, the amount of moisture in its roots is enough to keep it without water for a few minutes. After washing, if you used soap, rinse it with fresh water so there aren't any suds, which can contaminate and change the chemistry of the bucket.

Since it can be frustrating to constantly check on how much water is in your buckets, I have a little trick. I've notched out my mixing spoon to check how many gallons are in the reservoir. Each notch line tells me how many gallons I have in my reservoir.

As I fill my buckets I hold down my spoon and wait until the water line has reached the referred notch, in this case it'll be three gallons. Although it's a simple hack, it's pretty useful when you're too busy to be guessing how many gallons you need every time you swap water.

Once I'm done filling the buckets, I'll replenish them with fresh nutrients (2 grams per gallon for each of my primary nutrients and 1 gram per gallon for my secondary). After nutes I drop about 6mL of pH Down to get my pH to about 6.0. If it's a little on the acidic side, no need to worry, just add some tap water to dilute it up to the pH you desire.

Return the airstone back to the reservoir and check for ample bubbles. Now your bucket is ready for the clone to return. As a rule of thumb, I always leave a little space between the water and the net pot. The reason for this comes from a study on Kratky method of hydroponics. Hydroponic engineer Hideo Imai published a study in 1987 stating that the space between the net pot and the nutrient water was important since the space allowed the open air roots take in oxygen while the roots in the water took up the nutrients and water. In his paper he noticed that when you cover that space with more water, the plant will drown in water. It does make sense since plants that are drenched in water tend to die due to too much water, resulting in root rot. It also makes sense since my cloner system works in the same fashion.

Once you’re done with one plant, you’re now ready to do the next. Hopefully, this post helped you with the process of cleaning out your buckets. If you have any questions, please let me know. I’m here to help. Happy gardening, folks.

-Pinky

"As I fill my buckets I hold down my spoon and wait until the water line has reached the referred notch, in this case it'll be three gallons. Although it's a simple hack, it's pretty useful when you're too busy to be guessing how many gallons you need every time you swap water."

"Once I'm done filling the buckets, I'll replenish them with fresh nutrients (2 grams per gallon for each of my primary nutrients and 1 gram per gallon for my secondary). After nutes I drop about 6mL of pH Down to get my pH to about 6.0. If it's a little on the acidic side, no need to worry, just add some tap water to dilute it up to the pH you desire."