SIP thread -- (Sub-Irrigated Planter)

Polyuro

Well-Known Member
I had some 5 l sq pots that fit perfect under the pot elevators. Now I'll have 7.5 inches of clearance under the elevators/fabric pot. With 6.5 inches of water it will give me 7 gal of reservoir. Its coming together!
Looks cool. If u run into nutrient deficiencies and/or lack of water problems mid to later flower it may be because of the fabric grow bags. The landscape cloth can get clogged over time. If it does, use a razor knife and cut the bag down low under your fill line. Might be best to dump your medium into the bucket after adding a rez fill tube. Good luck either way!
 

Bignutes

Well-Known Member
Looks cool. If u run into nutrient deficiencies and/or lack of water problems mid to later flower it may be because of the fabric grow bags. The landscape cloth can get clogged over time. If it does, use a razor knife and cut the bag down low under your fill line. Might be best to dump your medium into the bucket after adding a rez fill tube. Good luck either way!
I was going to cut a donut out of the bottom of the fabric pot and blow a hole in the center of the pot lifter and pack the bottom 5 l pot full of peat, vermiculite and soil for an unobstructed column of soil from the bottom of the tub right up into the fabric pot. I think with the larger vertical distance of 7.5 inch and fabric pots I am asking too much for capillary action, its the reason i am going with vermiculite so it absorbs readily.....i have to test it. I'm not using a rez fill tube, going with nothing but a flashlight to look down the side, it gives me enough clearance to see down the sides. Hope to top it off with black plastic to keep light out.
 

Polyuro

Well-Known Member
@Polyuro do you think I will have wicking problems with the fabric pots evaporating too much esp in flower?
I don’t know.. I think as long as u cover your sip with black trash bag snuggly and not just the grow bag, any evaporation should “rain forest“ back down. I try and follow #greenthumbs256 As close as possible and he had issues with the fabric as a filter between Rez and medium. Or maybe it was someone else lol.
 
@Polyuro do you think I will have wicking problems with the fabric pots evaporating too much esp in flower?
I don’t think you will
The autopot has a fabric version and it’s a wick system
I think I read somewhere that the fabric actually draws the excess salts away from the soil
Not sure just starting down this path
 

Bignutes

Well-Known Member
I don’t think you will
The autopot has a fabric version and it’s a wick system
I think I read somewhere that the fabric actually draws the excess salts away from the soil
Not sure just starting down this path
That would make sense, as it evaporates at the surface it would leave salts.

When facing indecision on which way to go I am going to do this three different ways and test results.

1) The way I described in my last description
2) The way @Polyuro recommends with wick tube, screen, soil and fill tube
3) One with a shallow basin (made of plywood and poly) with a fabric pot sitting on a contained ring of pumice with a cover over water rez. I actually think I like the last one in theory the best, would make water level easily observable, clean out easy and by making it long and narrow for two plants to sit in. This gives you added surface area instead of providing more depth in a small rez, it would give less fluctuation in water level as it gets drawn down.
 

Polyuro

Well-Known Member
That would make sense, as it evaporates at the surface it would leave salts.

When facing indecision on which way to go I am going to do this three different ways and test results.

1) The way I described in my last description
2) The way @Polyuro recommends with wick tube, screen, soil and fill tube
3) One with a shallow basin (made of plywood and poly) with a fabric pot sitting on a contained ring of pumice with a cover over water rez. I actually think I like the last one in theory the best, would make water level easily observable, clean out easy and by making it long and narrow for two plants to sit in. This gives you added surface area instead of providing more depth in a small rez, it would give less fluctuation in water level as it gets drawn down.
#3 sounds like a f&d sip. Blowing my mind lolol. Start a grow journal please!
 

Polyuro

Well-Known Member
I don’t think you will
The autopot has a fabric version and it’s a wick system
I think I read somewhere that the fabric actually draws the excess salts away from the soil
Not sure just starting down this path
this system should not have salt build up problems. That is one reason sips rock. Hydro and top feed will have that problem U r right!
 

Bignutes

Well-Known Member
#3 sounds like a f&d sip. Blowing my mind lolol. Start a grow journal please!
At 18" x 44" x 4.1" deep for two plants total water capacity of 14 gallons, enough for two plants for 7 days at a gallon a day. With anti friction or furniture moving pads this could keep the overall height down to 6" or so and then pot on top of that, definitely work well for those who have height restrictions.


Ok I will do a journal, just need to get the room finished off, about 80% done and about two weeks from getting my new girls on the dance floor.
 

Tim Fox

Well-Known Member
Hey everyone everything your asking and going through has been answered and shown in many posts earlier in this thread , air stones are not needed as the air gap gives the roots all the oxygen they need , I have never added anything to my res other than clean water , I have never ever never watered from the top , watch Earthbox videos on YouTube, sure you can put stones and oxy in your res , but I am not convinced they make a difference when using sips because of the air gap
 

Bignutes

Well-Known Member
Hey everyone everything your asking and going through has been answered and shown in many posts earlier in this thread , air stones are not needed as the air gap gives the roots all the oxygen they need , I have never added anything to my res other than clean water , I have never ever never watered from the top , watch Earthbox videos on YouTube, sure you can put stones and oxy in your res , but I am not convinced they make a difference when using sips because of the air gap
Glad you chimed in, I did read in the first 20 pages or so that one member did have better success with air stones but I am glad you put that to rest. I was on the fence with em-1, so good to hear you put that to bed too.

Couldn't read thru 120 pages, most often sidetracked conversation, gives me headaches otherwise I would.

What do you think of a shallow box with fabric pot on a contained layer of pumice? Is there a max distance that doesn't wick well? Was thinking the shallower and larger you make the rez the less change in vertical distance the more consistent the moisture level is in pot.
 

Bignutes

Well-Known Member
Fuck what a marathon read and a long ways to go still. So far it's given me perspective on how to make a sip for all around adjustability. From what I can tell some of the rules from posters are very specific to their build. Factor in soil texture and now you've got a monkey's lunch for what design works and what doesn't. Concept is coming along nicely, have parts but ran into some problems with geometry on how it's built, musing on that, hope to get that rectified, not a big one but my babies are about to be root bound!
 

Bignutes

Well-Known Member
@GreenDave123 , @Polyuro

My new sip design, the first of two is in this thread, this one is more for those with no height restrictions, I'm doing another concept in a bit thats a low rider:

 

weedstoner420

Well-Known Member
Heyyy, on/off lurker, first time poster...

So I'm starting my first organic/living soil grow in two Garden Patch GrowBox SIPs. They're currently filled with soil, but plants are still in solo cups for the time being.

I'm wondering if I should be worried about the small amount of soil that fell through the screen into the reservoir area while I was filling the boxes. It's less than a handful, just seems like it would be tough to get it out at this point without emptying the whole thing and starting over...

Is there any difference between that soil and the soil in the wicking chambers, as far as potential for anaerobic bacteria to grow? And is an anaerobic res a big deal as long as there is an air gap between the water and soil?
 

Polyuro

Well-Known Member
Heyyy, on/off lurker, first time poster...

So I'm starting my first organic/living soil grow in two Garden Patch GrowBox SIPs. They're currently filled with soil, but plants are still in solo cups for the time being.

I'm wondering if I should be worried about the small amount of soil that fell through the screen into the reservoir area while I was filling the boxes. It's less than a handful, just seems like it would be tough to get it out at this point without emptying the whole thing and starting over...

Is there any difference between that soil and the soil in the wicking chambers, as far as potential for anaerobic bacteria to grow? And is an anaerobic res a big deal as long as there is an air gap between the water and soil?
Dont worry about a little soil in the rez. Just make sure your wick(s) is compressed.

The air gap as Tim fox says keeps his grows healthy. Better follow him step for step.

Em-1 will keep the water from going anaerobic and adds healthy bacteria/probiotics.
 

weedstoner420

Well-Known Member
Dont worry about a little soil in the rez. Just make sure your wick(s) is compressed.

The air gap as Tim fox says keeps his grows healthy. Better follow him step for step.

Em-1 will keep the water from going anaerobic and adds healthy bacteria/probiotics.
Nice, I saw Tim's GrowBox setup a few pages back, definitely dig the super straightforward approach.

I was considering using EM-1 too; is that something that needs to be added every time the res is filled? Or will it stay active as long as it doesn't dry out?
 

Polyuro

Well-Known Member
Nice, I saw Tim's GrowBox setup a few pages back, definitely dig the super straightforward approach.

I was considering using EM-1 too; is that something that needs to be added every time the res is filled? Or will it stay active as long as it doesn't dry out?
I hear people doing it two or three times a run, some do it more. Some use LABS instead. And of coarse tim flow doesn’t do it at all. I would think a few times at soil cook/beginning to get the bactira/microbes/probiotics working and then they should grow on there own. Maybe hit it a couple times in flower just to make sure things are healthy down under. I don’t think u can over do it, it just would be expensive. Eventually the fungus would eat the bacteria if it went nuts! That is why Kashi on top, bacteria down low.
 

weedstoner420

Well-Known Member
I hear people doing it two or three times a run, some do it more. Some use LABS instead. And of coarse tim flow doesn’t do it at all. I would think a few times at soil cook/beginning to get the bactira/microbes/probiotics working and then they should grow on there own. Maybe hit it a couple times in flower just to make sure things are healthy down under. I don’t think u can over do it, it just would be expensive. Eventually the fungus would eat the bacteria if it went nuts! That is why Kashi on top, bacteria down low.
Great to know, thanks!
 
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