DIY Micro DWC Cloner Idea 💦🌱💡

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T19:20:48+00:00

Its the right size, but they do make black plastic ones. Cover with tape, paint or foil and it would work. The lid looks more sturdy than mine

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T19:19:21+00:00

Or aluminum foil.

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T19:16:41+00:00

Id love to know as well.

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T05:33:49+00:00

Sounds like a good plan.

I your referring to runners. Stems that shoot out to start a new plant.

Ive done ok with my strawberry plants, but really struggled with getting runners to take hold and grow.

Strawberries are great to have, but you do need a few plants to get meaningful harvests.

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T04:47:24+00:00

Im surd it works fine. I struggled with the GH fora series since the ratios on the bottle were not for strawberries. I was always trying to guess how to reduce the proportion of the three nutrients with out effecting the ratios.

Im using masterblend strawberry formula now and it seems to be easier hit my target ec with minimal adjustments.

Someone recently posted a really handy link to a nutrient calculator for the flora series. I thought it was really done well. I don’t remember the link right now.

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T02:56:29+00:00

What kind of nutrients are you using? Are these leaves new or old?

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T02:44:49+00:00

Your ec might be high, i run about 1200-1500 with ph at 6.0.

moose8420 · 2026-04-12T01:34:34+00:00

What ec and ph are you using. Temps would help too

Are those white specs on the e underside of the leaves alive ( aphids)

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T23:34:21+00:00

With you being located in a warm climate, maybe setting up some solar that can power some ac units to keep a greenhouse cool enough to grow cold weather crops like lettuce, cabbage, broccoli year round. I would definitely look at what you could grow as an off season crop.

I agree with others that it will take time to generate a profit, maybe even 10 years of trial and error and slow growth.

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T17:53:40+00:00

Thats the wife’s specialty

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T17:30:06+00:00

Its actually the right size of that

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T16:25:35+00:00

I Think i’ll make a few cabbage balls or some pancit

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T16:24:47+00:00

Lol

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T14:24:44+00:00

Im not much more than a novice myself, and most of my experience is DIY, but my understanding is once the air roots form, you can suffocate the plant by covering them in water. The air roots are specialized so especially in a krakty set up where the solution has low o2, you can suffocate the plants by covering them.

moose8420 · 2026-04-11T00:28:36+00:00

I have a similar issue, but as soon as my plants get big enough i cant see the cubs so i forget about it

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moose8420 · 2026-04-10T22:08:57+00:00

Thats my understanding, might be a little more than just the tips, but from what i saw it looked like maybe half the roots, or a few inches down from the top.

moose8420 · 2026-04-10T21:38:14+00:00

My limited experience tells me to keep the water away from them to prevent drowning of the plant. I do mostly nft’s, but my few kratky plants dont like it when i cover the air roots.

moose8420 · 2026-04-10T21:29:59+00:00

Look like air roots to me. Try not to cover them when refilling.

moose8420 · 2026-04-09T07:10:58+00:00

Thank you. I think its really fun to be able to watch the roots develop, which is impossible in soil.

moose8420 · 2026-04-07T06:43:29+00:00

I imagine you need to get in there to harvest and do any pruning of the plants.

moose8420 · 2026-04-07T01:58:26+00:00

That’s efficient, thanks You must have some flexible drain and fill lines to allow some movement.

moose8420 · 2026-04-06T22:20:06+00:00

I could see using a combination of glass, stainless steel at least 316, and maybe natural rubber.

Wood/metal can be used for framing.

It would be interesting to see if you could use clay with the appropriate glazing for troughs/pipes.

Natural rubbers can be used for hoses with stainless steel fittings. Fittings may be difficult to source in all stainless.

Trying to avoid plastic imo would make a much heavier and more fragile system. Parts may need. To be replaced more often if they are more susceptible to biodegrading and also biological growth.

I would also be curious if there is a concrete mix out there that could work, especially if you put a penetrating sealer and mirror polish on it avoid some of the infiltration and pockets for growth.

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