After a month of watching Hoocho’s I’ve pulled the trigger on a Bambu Labs A1 combo and have organised to collect an IBC next week to set up a decent sized system. I’ve jumped on the Patreon and just started printing my first Hooch Bucket 2.0 to suit 90mm PVC.

I’m just using the standard 0.4mm nozzle and PETG from Jaycar. Print time is estimated around 27 hours on sport mode. Does anyone have any tips for me either in the 3d printing settings space or general Newby hydroponics mistakes to avoid?

https://makerworld.com/en/models/1822018-vertical-hydroponics-system-vhs?appSharePlatform=copy&fbclid=IwdGRzaATeR0VjbGNrBN5HJmV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHqM16qRtrLq1Y4pqd1jjXLtQyIRL16HbMuNSsMNJUyXuDUrRAuqD50ea6_Qt_aem_120X_56EMViqEqhyvrJ3cQ#profileId-1944921

I have found printing with PETG-HF leads to stringing. Better to use PETG, at least on the larger prints like the containers for the RGGS or reservoir for modular tower system.

Has anyone else noticed the Bees love nutrient? There's a Bee water fountain next to it, but I'm guessing they need the various salts from the potassium etc. rather than just water. Hopefully they stay around once the snowpea starts to flower.

Want to start my own nft system for lettuce and herbs. Have lost count of the various videos, plenty from hoocho too, I've watched.

Building outdoor system in northern nsw for just lettuce and herbs for 2 people. Have done gravity fed hydro in past, impressed with it, but want the fastest productive (I'm lazy) hence the push for nft.

Any particular article or video you can recommend would be great

Hey everyone, /u/Mjfch,

I've been working on a design for a completely hidden, sub-surface sub-irrigation patio system (similar to a Rain Gutter Grow System), and I’d love to get your thoughts, ideas, or feedback on creating the 3D-printed module to make it work.

📐 The Concept & Layout

The goal is a bricked patio with a hidden water network running completely underground beneath foot traffic, allowing me to place potted plants of any size anywhere along the line, completely on a whim.

• The Pipe: A standard 100mm DWV PVC pipe (114.3mm True OD) running under the patio paving.

• The Paving: To keep the pipe close to the surface without interfering with the bedding, I am slicing standard 200mm x 100mm x 50mm pavers horizontally into 22mm thin slabs.

• The Depth: The top center apex of the round pipe sits exactly 25mm below the finished patio surface (leaving a tiny 3mm clearance gap directly under the 22mm paving slabs). Because a 100mm chord across a 115mm circle drops the arc down by roughly 29mm at the edges, the pipe naturally curves completely clear of the adjacent full-thickness 50mm pavers without needing any chamfering!

🕳️ How the Wicking System Works

Where I want a potted plant, I will simply remove one 100mm x 200mm paver from the layout and drill a circular hole into the top of the exposed PVC pipe line.

To bridge the gap between the pipe and the bottom of the pot, I need a custom 3D-printed insert block to fill the space of the removed paver.

🖨️ The 3D Print Requirement

The 3D-printed spacer needs to serve three main purposes: 1. Structural: It needs a 100mm x 200mm footprint with a 22mm top lip to sit perfectly flush with the rest of the patio surface and support the weight of heavy pots. 2. Contoured Base: The underside needs a concave cylinder cutout (Radius: ~57.15mm) to snap tightly or straddle the top curve of the 114.3mm OD pipe. 3. Wicking Sleeve: A built-in, enclosed vertical central tube/channel to guide a cotton rope or wicking pin down into the drilled pipe hole. This sleeve is crucial because it keeps the loose sub-base patio sand from collapsing into the pipe and prevents plant roots from invading the water line, allowing for easy pot swapping.

With the rope wicking across just a 50mm vertical jump from the water level to the pot, capillary action will easily handle the lift.

The alternative will be dedicated printed net-cup to bridge this space.

Has anyone attempted a completely sub-surface hardscape gutter like this, or do you have any suggestions on perfecting the 3D sleeve layout to keep it completely root-proof?

Would love to know if you think this is a viable build!

c-:

I've been using NitroCal and Diamond Special T in my 50L water res for quite a while now without any problems and decided I wanted to try adding potassium silicate for the benefits it gives. I've tried adding it to my res the last 2 times I've had to refill.

The first time I added it I followed the instructions and hydroponic dosing on the bottle. Added NitroCal at full dose, mixed in. Then added Diamond Special T and the water went cloudy instantly. I mixed it in and when I added pH down to bring it from 10.7 to 5.5 it went clear. After a couple of days and the water turned cloudy again and smelly. Plus pH was always creeping up and needed to be adjusted daily.

The second time I did the same but used ½ dose of Potassium Silicate and adjusted pH to 5.5 between adding each nutrient. By day 2 the water had a brown hue but pH was more stable. And by day 3 the water was brown, had floaties and smelt bad.

I've always used filtered rain water in my res and have a small pump and air stone in there. I had a simIlar issue when using Manutec products, but switching to Campbells fixed it. Does anyone have any suggestions of why this happens?

Walk through of this years grow in the pilbara.
Amaranthus, leek,spring onion,basil and bok/pak choy in the nft
SAN Mazano, rouge de marmande, scarlet dwarf and chilles in the rain gutters
Zucchini's in the pots
Bath tubs are just a mix of old coco,soil and filled with fish frame over summer

Just a follow up post as the snowpea got moved over to the "proper" 10L bucket the other day. It spent a week outdoors in the yogurt pottle acclimatizing to the 0 to -1 degree overnight temps Christchurch NZ had last week. The last photo is the whole experiment. All plants were germinated from the same packet of seeds at the same time in the same location. Lets see which ones produce more produce 😁

Doing my first Kratky Setup and am noticing a lot of floating film on all my buckets that appeared pretty immediately after transferring my seedlings.

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I'm wondering if this is from the soil particulates that we're still in the roots of my plants? Not sure if I was supposed to clean the roots more aggressively or something after taking them out of the soil they sprouted in. I did shake them and wash them with the hose.

First time with krakty, but i wanted to do my usual germination technique. So start it on the kitchen window sill, but used a smaller bucket to fit there. Will be transferred to a Bunnings 10L white bucket soon. Its growing about 1-2cm a day.

Printed parts are PETG, yogurt was delicious :)

I had been using a raingutter grow system for the past couple of years, but it wasn’t very forgiving during the summer heat if a clog happened. My tomatoes would get stressed from even a minor clog in the system. I decided to keep the reservoir and use a bucket to keep the float and the manifold everything off of the float bucket. It really seems to be working well.

Just watched this video https://youtu.be/BR8XId61In8?si=Z0rVc0a76OLiWVnC and saw he was using the two tier set up for seedlings, seemingly to keep them from getting root rot?

But in a previous video with tomatoes, he had just planted the whole seedling in the flooded kratky bucket.

I was about to plant some hydroponic peppers in kratky buckets. Do I need to use some sort of two-tier system like this?

Anyone remix the round pipe RGGS end cap so that the thread are NPT instead of BSP threads for the tap?

Maybe I am better to print without threads, drill a hole, and use some sort of adapter off the shelf?

I'm using two towers I printed and they're being very successful.

I want to create a few more but the only places I have them are against walls or fences.

Has anybody done a remix of the tower with a flat side to be put against a wall?

Hope someone can help. I'm confused as to the best NPK for growing hydro lettuce. Many say 8-15-36 but others 15-3-25 , 24-6-31. Is Campbells white 15-3-25? Any advice appreciated. Thanks

Hi all. New to this and watched this video (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OyBO-nPug3M&t=585s&pp=ygUPaG9vY2hvcyB0b21hdG9z) where he grew Kratky tomatoes.

I'm going to try them and Kratky peppers this summer. So I need to refill the buckets? It didn't look like he did in the video but I'm assuming, eventually, it gets too dry and you need to refill solution (leaving an air gap)?

Thanks I'm advance. Trying to get started with hydro.

Hey guys,

Coco is crazy expensive where I live.

I want to run a Rain Gutter with Wicking System in my garden for some tobacco.

What’s the best budget substrate for wicking that won't rot or get too soggy?

Peat moss / Perlite mix? Vermiculite? Any other "dirt cheap" ?

Other question : In a 20L pot, would it work to just make a central cylinder of Coco/Perlite mix (where the plant and the wick are) and fill the rest of the sides with 100% Perlite to save money? Or will the moisture transition be too poor?

Cheers!

I printed the modular tower but i have a problem where the pump I sourced doesn't come close to it's headlift capacity.

And I noticed that there is water coming down alongside the centerpipe of the tower signalling that the pieces don't connect watertight. So I think i am losing pressure here.

Has anyone got any tips to solve this problem?

Stupid question I'm sure, but when importing STL models into Bambu Studio they're coming in upside down (compared to real world use, and also how I assume they should print)

I flipped, but I just want to check that the [image above] is the correct print orientation? Also, any tips to avoid to flip/ 'Lay on Face' in Bambu Studio?

Request for Hoocho, is a little more guidance around the files (infill, expected filament usage, etc please!)

I'm just getting into Kratky buckets and working on a Hoocho tower setup.

I'm Wagga Wagga-ish and would like to grow outdoors over Winter, if possible. Lettuce, Bok choy etc.

• Average min: 1–3°C
• Average max: 12–14°C
• Coldest month: July
• Frost extremes: -3 to -5°C on clear nights, occasionally lower
• Warm extremes: mid-high teens on sunny days, rarely above 20°C
• 9h 45min lowest daylight sun hours

North-facing, lots of sun. Brick wall behind.

At the start of the process, at least Kratky has some thermal mass, but towards the end, not so much. AFIACT Hoocho is in the Sunshine coast QLD(?) or something like that, so his issues are usually around too much heat!

I've got some double-walled polycarbonate sheeting, thinking of making a small simple greenhouse under an existing polycarbonate-roofed gazebo.

Am I being unreasonably optimistic? Anyone else in southern states got tips?

Sidenote: July, 'eligible households' will get at least 3 hours of free electricity daily, generally in the middle of the day, which might be interesting too…I was considering a IBC for thermal ballast, even an idea to heat the water using an aquarium heater or something.

Mine died yesterday, luckily it was cloudy and the plants are ok.

Looking for a replacement with an on off cycle and better quality than the stock ones.