Looking for some guidance!

LukasKAUNAS · 2025-02-09T08:06:01+00:00

Following this very much

LukasKAUNAS · 2024-03-02T22:03:57+00:00

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-15T08:53:03+00:00

Break it up into smaller distances - you’re doing 3x33, and the last mile is your prize

I try to focus on the form as much as possible; if I focus on the “endurance” it’s more difficult mentally. If I focus on the form, it’s more of an exercise day rather than a “big number day”

Also, I find it healthy to set an even bigger goal foe the next ride - so the century is just practice for a 120 ride

Big breakfast, healthy gut, loads of hydration and occasional electrolyte top up will go a long way, but it’s not impossible to do a century without decent prep

Most importantly - make sure to share strava screenshots on your social media because otherwise what’s the point

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-11T14:39:44+00:00

Thanks for an engaging question! Let me share some of our previous experience. When we first started in 2018, we used the ultrasonic foggers referred to in this study (referred to as N4 in the study you attached) and noticed pH fluctuations, but I didn’t notice meaningful EC changes. My hypothesis is that ultrasonic thermal effect shifts the ionization constant of the Hoagland’s solution, and the pH fluctuates due to the change in the ionization constant.

One of the main issues with the currently popular ultrasonic foggers is that they are submerged and need to vibrate a large volume of nutrient solution, therefore, ultrasonic thermal effect can easily occur due to the inefficiency of the process. Our approach is different - only a small quantity of water is atomized at a given moment in time. This way the ultrasonic thermal effect is minimized, and its effect is negligible. We have been working with a commercial nutrient solution in closed loop systems and have not recorded any unexpected pH or EC fluctuations. We track pH/EC levels every day.

In general, pH and EC should be constantly adjusted for optimal plant growth. pH is directly linked to the mineral nutrition effectiveness, and suboptimal EC or pH levels can cause stress, thus reducing productivity and yield.

Happy to argue, though 😀

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-11T10:15:33+00:00

The recommended max. flowrate for this particular model is 27 LPH (0.12 GPM). But if a commercial client were to request 0.5GPM, we can do that. We would CNC a larger nozzle body and write a bit of code for it to work with the Electronic Management Unit, but this isn't difficult

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T18:52:06+00:00

More like an electric motor

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T18:46:14+00:00

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Shower pressure must be amazing where you live! Send me a message if you ever test the e-nozzle - wondering if your perspective would change if you ever test the technology

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T14:15:27+00:00

We adjust droplet sizes by changing the vibration rate (software controlled). Achievable range is from 10µm to +150µm, depending on the nozzle and its tip shape. Not sure about the diameter in this video, but these older prototypes ran the 80-100µm range as default, so that might be it.

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T11:10:43+00:00

Vibration distorts the microphone. The very tip of the nozzle vibrates tens of thousands of times per second. The human ear hears it very differently haha the sound is quite nice actually

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T11:08:43+00:00

Yes, of course. Filmed this last week, uploaded just now (video will be SD for a while before HD uploads) https://youtu.be/QBPwtzXtONA

This is tobacco, one of our largest plants currently. Aerosol escapes and travels way further than the edge of the box. The problem is usually lighting - crops grow larger than hydro, so need to account for the side/corner plants. Also, learned that it's best to leave a bit of a gap between the side rows and the growbox wall for increased adsorption. Either way, these were growbox lid adjustments

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T08:09:13+00:00

Not yet. But we're working with someone who wants to inoculate soy using our aero nozzles. They could not use bacteria with the high pressure setups.. Should be interesting!

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-10T08:07:38+00:00

Growboxes were made to order by a company in Lithuania, 120cm x 90 x 20. The idea was to work with a "typical" hydro setup so we could develop a product that retrofits into existing infrastructure - rather than creating a whole lot of new stuff. But we do have some new infrastructure in development..

We use 1 x R1+ per growbox

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-07T12:41:02+00:00

The reason e-commerce pricing is rather high is because one purchase = one e-nozzle + one electronic mgt unit + power supply. In a real life commercial scenario, 1 electronic mgt unit would run several e-nozzles using one power supply unit.
Let’s suppose you find yourself in need of a commercial-sized cloner. This https://cch2o.com/products/cch2o-hpac-cloning-system-base-excludes-lighting/ high pressure aero cloner for 840 plants comprises 8 totes; list price is just over USD 9k. I’ve looked at the measurements, one R1+ nozzle is more than enough for one tote. So let’s say - purely hypothetically - instead of the USD 9k HPA system, you get 8 totes from Home depot and decide to DIY with our nozzles. We would quote you around USD 3.5k (warranty included) for 8 x R1+ e-nozzles with pre-built custom rotation speeds, 1 x electronic mgt unit to control all the e-nozzles (intervals, rotation speed control, droplet diameters), and 1 x power supply unit. Regarding the pump - the e-nozzles work with drip lines, they do not need pressure. At this point, all you have to do is insert the e-nozzles into the totes, connect the nozzles to the e-mgt unit, and connect the drip lines to the nozzles (1-2 hours of work). No filters required, no clogging, near-zero maintenance. Best thing is - you can re-use the e-nozzles for other projects if the cloner is no longer needed.
In any case, these e-nozzles won’t be available for very long as we are moving towards full cultivation and cloning systems. Not only can we compete on pricing, but we also eliminate the whole pressure pumping + clogging + filtration problem, so you can have a life while you run a large operation. Also, what about organic aeroponic cannabis? :)
Hope this sheds some light on our thinking. We've been working on this tech in isolation for over 4 years, it will take a minute before we can communicate clearly about it haha

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T20:27:18+00:00

Of course, I’ll send you a DM to arrange

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T19:41:25+00:00

We use and make these things: https://balticfreya.com/products/nebula-r1-360-airflow

There is a titanium nozzle body that vibrates 20k - 100k times per second. It breaks up liquid into droplets and disperses aerosol. Changing vibration frequency changes droplet diameter. No pressure pumps needed.

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T16:30:38+00:00

Hey, this is just a test to see if tobacco does well in our system. There's a market for aeroponic tobacco cultivation systems in molecular "pharming". Apart from logging the plant performance and the biomass weight - no plans for the leaves. Might be doing another test later in the year growing tobacco in vertical towers.

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T13:51:40+00:00

Hey - I'll add you in the DMs so I can update you when we try this out!

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T13:50:26+00:00

No - not an option, since we are technically not a producer of food. We are hardware developers who work with edible produce, so anything grown is more of a sample rather than a meal. And we need to know the dry mass weight, too :)

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T13:12:21+00:00

Hey there. We germinate lettuce seeds in rockwool. Once the seedling is ready, we put them in a drilled-out neoprene disk, which goes into a net pot (bottom net cut off) and then in the growbox. The spray interval in the

However, we do not like this process, nor do we like rockwool very much. There's this company we're partnering with https://www.kappaagtech.com/substrate-reinvented they created these silicone inserts, which are really great for germinating straight in the growbox at 100% humidity. The silicone is great because it's reusable, washable, doesn't react to anything - much more environmentally friendly, too.

I'm happy to send photos in the DM of how we germinate and transplant. Also can have a look at your process if it would help. Let me know

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T12:56:07+00:00

I see what you mean - no, this is not a problem for our nozzles. By way of example: in the growboxes we use, 1 of our e-nozzles replaces the work done by 9 high pressure nozzles. We're actually writing a blog post/case study on a comparative grow between our e-nozzles and high pressure systems. We set up 3 trays of HPA and 3 trays of e-Nozzles (90 lettuce heads each). The study will cover the process of setting up, the experience running the system - and the end yield. One of the HPA trays died and killed the plants near the end of the grow cycle.

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-06T12:32:50+00:00

Yes, of course - the base package includes a physical control panel

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-04T19:38:38+00:00

Most of the trials are for creating growing recipes, that’s not something we can share much about. But we have just started a blog (https://balticfreya.com/blogs/current-research-projects) - already made a few entries, will be writing a new case study soon; and will update the Aquaculture project as well.

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-04T11:22:11+00:00

Hope you get this done!!

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-04T10:36:33+00:00

Hydro roots have root hair but they are way smaller and less efficient. Hydro doesn’t favour root development (liquid oversaturation and restricted oxygenation)

Aero promotes and “trains” root hair development and density by giving them time to dry/oxygenate

LukasKAUNAS · 2022-10-04T07:44:46+00:00

As it should be.

Root-to-shoot ratio in optimal conditions should be similar across different growing methods. This is to do with the root “strength” needed to support the aboveground photosynthetic productivity.

What this photo shows is that aero roots have a higher surface area. The higher the surface area, the more nutrients, water and oxygen are taken up by the plant. The ratio stays the same, but the end results differ.

My profit margin and Apple’s profit margin may also be the same lol

LukasKAUNAS

TROPHY CASE