steezy
New Member
hey im scanning these pictures in right now... should be up within half an hour...
DIY Rotary Garden Omega Garden Volksgarden Rotogro GIgrow Bonsia Bpod Odessy etc
- Thread starter maxximus
- Start date
steezy
New Member
here are the plans. ive got to head to class.
ill describe each picture later this afternoon.
most of it should explain itself
any ideas for improvement???
btw i KNOW there isnt a motor yet...
it will have one in the plans soon.
and my initial statement of furthest distance of three feet was only a foot off...
ill describe each picture later this afternoon.
most of it should explain itself
any ideas for improvement???
btw i KNOW there isnt a motor yet...
it will have one in the plans soon.
and my initial statement of furthest distance of three feet was only a foot off...
Below are pics of the "Tumbleweed" system, which is the first rotary garden to me knowledge to be brought to market. From this system all of the others were inspired either directly or indirectly, and many other round system as well, imo.
The Tumbleweed had water-cooled lights and photo-switch activated watering heads.
You can also see that it was mostly made from PVC pipe.
There has been some talk of building some home made units so I thought these might inspire.
I have not seen a home built version and I am hoping that this flushes out some pics n plans.
Cheers,
Maxx
you plans look very close to this setup. nice plans. i dont know if i like your water/nute delivery system yet, seems like it could go wrong more easily than a simple flood and drin like the volks.
anyways, if you actually built one it'd be a first for me to see. i'd love it. save me from building one just to show it can be done. lol. . . do it do it do it!
steezy
New Member
yeah my first plan was like the volksgarden where the plants would just be drug through the nute water. but then i saw the one you quoted. i love the idea of being able to move the plants closer to the lamp to prevent stretching.
i thought and thought and thought. smoked a bowl. then thought and thought and thought some more...
i decided on the irrigation system i have because i would be the easiest system to have that could still utilize the anti stretching feature of my device.
i forgot to mention that the pole on the interior of the wheel can be interchanged with other lengths.
oh and i forgot to mention the name of my device...
I declare it...
Wheel-O'-Juana!!!!!
phatchance
New Member
As if the makers of the Omega/Volks have anything to do with the motors or how loud they are. Have you tried to find a 1 rpm motor yet? The gearing has to be something like 1500/1 meaning you have an assload of gears in the gear box. The manufacture of the motor is not likely to care about the sound, cause I doubt it was made for any particular application. Then think of testing for such a thing in a noisy factory, ,compared to your home in the middle of the night.
PC
steezy
New Member
the makers of the omega/volks have everything to do with how loud the motors are. they buy the motors in bulk from a manufacturer. its the maker of the volks/omega job to test the motor, examine all characteristics. (including sound level) and then package it with their product. they made a choice to use that motor instead of another thats more quiet.
heres a motor with 2 rpm.
here
how can a washing machine be so quiet then? or a dryer? the newer ones are almost completely silent.
how loud is a fan that sits in the corner of your room?
you can use that motor with a small cog to spin a larger cog.
not an "assload of gears" as you put it.
mechanical advantage is a wonderful thing.
a better motor, or a better housing to dampen the noise. . . either would be an improvement. . .
also, you bolt the motor to one of the legs, and while this is convenient, it transfers all of the vibration to the floor. . . my downstairs neighbor complained to me that it sounded like i installed a death ray above their bedroom. . . i had to move my entir op to the other room, in a tent, on carpet, and i still can hear it (less) when in the room right beneath it.
i can DIY myself a solution if i need to, but i think your right, for the price a nicer motor would have been appropriate.
also, you bolt the motor to one of the legs, and while this is convenient, it transfers all of the vibration to the floor. . . my downstairs neighbor complained to me that it sounded like i installed a death ray above their bedroom. . . i had to move my entir op to the other room, in a tent, on carpet, and i still can hear it (less) when in the room right beneath it.
i can DIY myself a solution if i need to, but i think your right, for the price a nicer motor would have been appropriate.
phatchance
New Member
HA, you can stop a mirror ball motor with your fingers. You do not have a clue of what you are talking about.
A regular AC motor has an rpm of at least 1750 so there are dozens of little gears in the gear reduction part of the motor, use google before putting your foot in your mouth please.
My washing machine is not silent and it is new, who do you think you are kidding?
PC
phatchance
New Member
The best way to dampen the sound is to use one of those foam pads you stand on if you have to work standing all day (home depot). That or a small sand box kind of thing, but I think the foam would be easiest. You can also use a little foam where the motor clamps onto the stand to stop the vibration transfer.
How many 1 rpm motors do you think are on the market? You need more then a mirror ball motor to make this work. If you have a motor that you think would be better, then by all means I suggest that you bring their attention to it, as I'm sure they would rather have it, if it exists.
PC
thanks for the input PC, actually i tried both of those suggestions already. necessity is the mother of invention right? neither the foam underneath or on the leg helped dampen the noise much.
trust me bro, i know electric motors. this one is cheap. reliable, and gets the job done but loud. . . i don't think they would care if i found a better motor for them, businesses run on one motive, the bottom line. maximize profits. charge the most for the least you can get away with. this is how you make more money.
trust me bro, i know electric motors. this one is cheap. reliable, and gets the job done but loud. . . i don't think they would care if i found a better motor for them, businesses run on one motive, the bottom line. maximize profits. charge the most for the least you can get away with. this is how you make more money.
btw, the motor is no where near 1 rpm. where did you get that number from? the motor runs a chain and sprocket system that is geared down. that runs a little 3" or so wheel that runs the big wheel. so its geared down a few times through the "drivetrain"
if you were making a DIY wheel setup, your motor options are endless. . . you can gear down any rpm motor to fit your needs if you have a little knowledge of engineering and simple ratios. you could find a 40-50 rpm gear motor with high torque that could easily be geared down to drive a big heavy wheel.
if you were making a DIY wheel setup, your motor options are endless. . . you can gear down any rpm motor to fit your needs if you have a little knowledge of engineering and simple ratios. you could find a 40-50 rpm gear motor with high torque that could easily be geared down to drive a big heavy wheel.
steezy
New Member
thats all im saying, most any motor will work. go buy a fan from walmart rip it apart. use different gear ratios to spin the heavy ass wheel. hell, you would even salvage the switch so it would have variable speed.
i think ill do this with my machine just to see how silent and functional it really is. im confident.
you should still go with a high torque gear motor imo.
steezy
New Member
so does anyone have any ideas for improvement of my machine?
well, i think i'm anyone so. .
i dont see how you are going to drain this in the plans, i assume just runoff to the res.
also, IMO, if i were building this i'd want at least another foot in diameter. you can design it however you want, so why not try to get to the ideal case from the get go? if there is a significant build issue that you have though, it might not be worth it. it would be to me.
you might want to think of including a screen in the system. the fact that the volks is made from plastic is actually nice to DIY mod'ers because its pretty easy to work with. I've been considering adding a screen instead of lst'ing my next turn. i think its a great option for increasing yield with a smaller plant count
also, i like your watering solution but what about this: (another thing i would like to try) why use RW at all? i hate that shit, pardon the swear word, but it's with a passion. your design looks like it would easily convert into a modified ebb and flow aero dwc hybrid of some sort. your tubes are already enclosed, so instead of drilling out big holes (at least 4" to fit the cube in there) that will decrease the integrity, just put small 2" holes and use a 2" netcup with a neoprene foam top. then you could fill the entire pvc with hydroton, or just leave it aero (what i would do). then water it every single pass, and you will basically flood the chamber every 45 min or so. this will save money on medium, avoid common ph and nute lockup problems from RW. and no timer needed for watering, less waste, many benefits. even with your water setup the same way, it would not be hard to do it this way.
i can prob think of more suggestions if you want, i have a million. but those are majors.
i dont see how you are going to drain this in the plans, i assume just runoff to the res.
also, IMO, if i were building this i'd want at least another foot in diameter. you can design it however you want, so why not try to get to the ideal case from the get go? if there is a significant build issue that you have though, it might not be worth it. it would be to me.
you might want to think of including a screen in the system. the fact that the volks is made from plastic is actually nice to DIY mod'ers because its pretty easy to work with. I've been considering adding a screen instead of lst'ing my next turn. i think its a great option for increasing yield with a smaller plant count
also, i like your watering solution but what about this: (another thing i would like to try) why use RW at all? i hate that shit, pardon the swear word, but it's with a passion. your design looks like it would easily convert into a modified ebb and flow aero dwc hybrid of some sort. your tubes are already enclosed, so instead of drilling out big holes (at least 4" to fit the cube in there) that will decrease the integrity, just put small 2" holes and use a 2" netcup with a neoprene foam top. then you could fill the entire pvc with hydroton, or just leave it aero (what i would do). then water it every single pass, and you will basically flood the chamber every 45 min or so. this will save money on medium, avoid common ph and nute lockup problems from RW. and no timer needed for watering, less waste, many benefits. even with your water setup the same way, it would not be hard to do it this way.
i can prob think of more suggestions if you want, i have a million. but those are majors.
steezy
New Member
i like this idea my goal is to make it from as few materials as possible. i dont know why i picked 6 foot. i could just as easily make it an 8 foot diameter from the same number of sheets of plywood. but i am limited to the size of a the room i am growing in. maybe 7 would be a good compromise.
on that note i am using plywood for my first build of the machine. i DO plan on sealing with a high gloss paint or primer.
i just used the link in your sig to find that article on screening... i will read it in a bit... i like what i see though.
genius. i love it. ive never grown anything except in soil so i might need more elaboration on this. i get the gist of what youre saying though.
i love these ideas. this is why the internet rocks. people who have never met can collaborate and create amazing things.
id LOVE to hear any and all ideas you have.seriously good stuff... thanks.
how do you plan to connect the two pieces together? and what thickness ply are you thinking of?
are you seriously thinking about trying this in the near future? i would love to see it, but so far no one has ever stepped up and actually started building anything.
when you start a project like this, you will quickly learn that you have to learn how to adapt your ideas to reality, and the truths and limitations of your design will become evident. plans will change.
some times you can over plan things and it gets too overwhelming and then never gets done. do you have a time frame in mind of when you might try this?
steezy
New Member
i was planning on making the wheel so it can be disassembled. so the two pieces would be attached via hinge with a locking pin. id probably use quarter inch ply just for sake of price. if the first build works well id preferably switch to a different material than wood. either that or use half inch ply instead. but that would need a bigger motor.
well ill put it this way i dont have any cash at hand to start building it. but i am having a yard sale with prob 500 -600 worth of stuff on saturday. i dont work, only school. but i have a few side jobs lined up for next week. so even more money then.
any money i get will be spent on this wheel (dont have to pay rent for another two months.). i plan on buying some supplies on monday when the lumber yards open... and i only have school on mon wed and fri. so construction would start asap.
as far as timeline i plan on starting with building the wheel. the stand i could be done with this weekend. thats all lumber i already have.
i do need the bearings and cross rods.for the stand though and those cost money too. so it depends on how much i have after this weekend...
well ill put it this way i dont have any cash at hand to start building it. but i am having a yard sale with prob 500 -600 worth of stuff on saturday. i dont work, only school. but i have a few side jobs lined up for next week. so even more money then.
any money i get will be spent on this wheel (dont have to pay rent for another two months.). i plan on buying some supplies on monday when the lumber yards open... and i only have school on mon wed and fri. so construction would start asap.
as far as timeline i plan on starting with building the wheel. the stand i could be done with this weekend. thats all lumber i already have.
i do need the bearings and cross rods.for the stand though and those cost money too. so it depends on how much i have after this weekend...
good plan so far. thats a pretty big wheel to be held together by 1/4" ply and a pin. . . and how are you planning to balance it or guide it to stay on the smaller wheels it rests on?
my plan was two use (4) 3/8" or 1/2" 4x8 sheets per side of the wheel. make 4 half circles and then screw them together with their joints staggered 90*. this would give the wheel some rigidity and strength. also I would make one of the two wheels an inch or two bigger than the other, that way you could use it as a guid to keep it on track, i.e. if the outside one was an inch bigger, then the big inside wheel would rest on the smaller wheel, and the larger outside wheel would be on the outside of the smaller wheel. . . . is that clear? i doubt it.
v-Inner Ply
||||
||||<-outer ply
||||
--||
||||<-here it acts like a guide to keep it on the smaller wheel.
||--
--
^-small wheel that the big wheel sits on
my plan was two use (4) 3/8" or 1/2" 4x8 sheets per side of the wheel. make 4 half circles and then screw them together with their joints staggered 90*. this would give the wheel some rigidity and strength. also I would make one of the two wheels an inch or two bigger than the other, that way you could use it as a guid to keep it on track, i.e. if the outside one was an inch bigger, then the big inside wheel would rest on the smaller wheel, and the larger outside wheel would be on the outside of the smaller wheel. . . . is that clear? i doubt it.
v-Inner Ply
||||
||||<-outer ply
||||
--||
||||<-here it acts like a guide to keep it on the smaller wheel.
||--
--
^-small wheel that the big wheel sits on
I'm learning how to make a fiber glass bumper in school. I notice one could easily make a wheel in fiberglass and it'd be lighter than wood and just as strong.