SIP thread -- (Sub-Irrigated Planter)

[Jesusgrowsmygrass]

looks like a variac to me, it would adjust voltages to control fan speeds or another application.

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

Day 46 of flower on these ladies , pretty sure they will go ten weeks... well that is also my preference on ripeness... not sure how I think I'm going to ever fit 12 of these in here... unless I get on my training and canopy management big time.

 

[raggyb]

looks like a variac to me, it would adjust voltages to control fan speeds or another application.

okay yeah. googled it and that's the ticket. I bet that could be useful on a heater.

 

[Tim Fox]

what's that transformer doing if you don't mind me asking?

that is my Variac speed controller,, my old one started having dead spots and the exhaust fan would stop turning , so i bought a new one, amazon said it was the same one i purchased before, but when it arrived it was larger than the old speed controller, so it wouldnt fit on the shell up above the plants, and i didnt want to risk having it fall and cause major damage to the plants, so it had to go down below, it was sitting on the floor but when i centered the sip in the box to make the plants fit better left to right, there was no room for the Variac, but heck, it fits real nice on top of the soil and under the canopy, and becasue the sip waters from below, its safe there, look strange though i bet hahaha

 

[Tim Fox]

nailed it, the Variac is so bitchen, it makes a lower sine wave , so its still true ac power,, the cheap speed controls do a square wave, essentially turning the fan off and on at a rapid speed, thus slowing the fan down, but its really hard on fans when they get slowed way way down like i do, with the variac is just cruises, and my grow box is dead silent when you stand next to it,

okay yeah. googled it and that's the ticket. I bet that could be useful on a heater.

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

okay yeah. googled it and that's the ticket. I bet that could be useful on a heater.

Get an ink bird temp controller.

 

[raggyb]

Get an ink bird temp controller.

I had one and put it on a space heater and the inkbird died. It's rated for 1000W and the heater is below that. This variac is maybe too pricey for me right now but if i had one I'd be using it on a heater. You could lower the continuous temp output and power usage without the heater turning on and off.

 

[raggyb]

nailed it, the Variac is so bitchen, it makes a lower sine wave , so its still true ac power,, the cheap speed controls do a square wave, essentially turning the fan off and on at a rapid speed, thus slowing the fan down, but its really hard on fans when they get slowed way way down like i do, with the variac is just cruises, and my grow box is dead silent when you stand next to it,

another lesson learned. whatever the piece o shit speed control i got that amazon recommended was doing it fucked up my fan.

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

I had one and put it on a space heater and the inkbird died. It's rated for 1000W and the heater is below that. This variac is maybe too pricey for me right now but if i had one I'd be using it on a heater. You could lower the continuous temp output and power usage without the heater turning on and off.

Huh I have had space heaters on the same ink birds for ... 3 years? And no issues and I grow in a cold ass basement in the north... I don't even know how a heating element would handle a variac... it might not even turn on at all without a certain amount pushed to it... very much like leds in a string ... I would really look into temp controllers over just something varying the electrical input like this.

 

[raggyb]

Huh I have had space heaters on the same ink birds for ... 3 years? And no issues and I grow in a cold ass basement in the north... I don't even know how a heating element would handle a variac... it might not even turn on at all without a certain amount pushed to it... very much like leds in a string ... I would really look into temp controllers over just something varying the electrical input like this.

i don't know it worked for an hour and then I turned the heater off and the inkbird went dead. I don't know if there is a fuse accesible inside. You're right I don't know for sure if the variac will work with a heater as I only googled a few mins but it looks likely it would. it should just make the heater push a lower temp because lower AC voltage. And leds i think are different because they're dc and they dim with pulse width modulation. The thing is I like the size and function of my large heater better than the small one I got but the large heater gets too hot so a switch will be turning it off and on alot. And if you switch the large heater power source off and back on then you have to be there to manually push the on button on the heater. But again I might not want to fork out for a variac fwiw so i'm still thinking what else will get me from a to b in the least steps and expense!

 

[raggyb]

the inkbird went dead. I don't know if there is a fuse accessible inside.

having no luck googling this info

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

i don't know it worked for an hour and then I turned the heater off and the inkbird went dead. I don't know if there is a fuse accesible inside. You're right I don't know for sure if the variac will work with a heater as I only googled a few mins but it looks likely it would. it should just make the heater push a lower temp because lower AC voltage. And leds i think are different because they're dc and they dim with pulse width modulation. The thing is I like the size and function of my large heater better than the small one I got but the large heater gets too hot so a switch will be turning it off and on alot. And if you switch the large heater power source off and back on then you have to be there to manually push the on button on the heater. But again I might not want to fork out for a variac fwiw so i'm still thinking what else will get me from a to b in the least steps and expense!

Best of luck man!

 

[Tim Fox]

i would think a cheap thermostat from home depot would do a better job of regulatiing heat from a heater , by turning on and off a heater to maintain a certain temp,, i agree the variac would not be a good idea on a heater,, I own an InkBird i used it for other things than growing, last summer i hooked my inkbird up to a water heater to keep my swimming pool warm hahaha, the heater was too small and the heater simply stayed on all day,,

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

i would think a cheap thermostat from home depot would do a better job of regulatiing heat from a heater , by turning on and off a heater to maintain a certain temp,, i agree the variac would not be a good idea on a heater,, I own an InkBird i used it for other things than growing, last summer i hooked my inkbird up to a water heater to keep my swimming pool warm hahaha, the heater was too small and the heater simply stayed on all day,,

I have often wondered if that temp sensor could be submerged lol good to know!

 

[Tim Fox]

I have often wondered if that temp sensor could be submerged lol good to know!

lol yes it can be submerged,, i have always used my ink bird in a wet invironment, we used it to make beer and then to make home made yohgurt, and and then ths swimming pool

 

[Tim Fox]

they would work well for keeping a resevoir at a correct temp,, either by heating or cooling it, i used to use a fish tank heater on my res when i did floor drain and the ink bird turned the fish heater on and off

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

lol yes it can be submerged,, i have always used my ink bird in a wet invironment, we used it to make beer and then to make home made yohgurt, and and then ths swimming pool

Ha exactly what I was thinking! The beer brewing I mean. Some brews need that constant like 72 degrees or whatever. Need to get them one of those heated growler coat things and use some star san on the probe! Might use it for my kombucha too... time to buy some more ink birds! Thanks man!

 

[Tim Fox]

Ha exactly what I was thinking! The beer brewing I mean. Some brews need that constant like 72 degrees or whatever. Need to get them one of those heated growler coat things and use some star san on the probe! Might use it for my kombucha too... time to buy some more ink birds! Thanks man!

for sure it would work awesome with some kombucha,,, it kept my 24 hour yogurt at 105 degrees on the nose

 

[meangreengrowinmachine]

for sure it would work awesome with some kombucha,,, it kept my 24 hour yogurt at 105 degrees on the nose

I use my yogotherm for that, I boil for 8 minutes constant stirring then cool to 110 then put it in the yogotherm for 24 hours and it holds it steady there. Its basically just a big Styrofoam shield around a sealed container.

 

[Tim Fox]

I use my yogotherm for that, I boil for 8 minutes constant stirring then cool to 110 then put it in the yogotherm for 24 hours and it holds it steady there. Its basically just a big Styrofoam shield around a sealed container.

that sounds cool,, i used an ice chest with a heating pad and 100 watt bulb hooked to the inkbird, submereged the probe into one of the yogurt jars and the inkbird would turn the heating pad and light on and off as needed and the ice chest held the heat in, i was impressed i could make like 6 mason jars of yogurt at a time with it,, we did this back when my wife was sick, it really helped to heal her leaky gut