Proper Flow Rates in ZipGrow™ Towers

[@bfb8t1]

I did an experiment last summer using two towers put out horizontally on my wellhead case during 95 degree Iowa humid weather (1 Basil 1 cos lettuce) to see how long it would take me to kill the plants. The basil lasted 4 days w/ out water and the lettuce 5. Before that I hand watered them 3x/day and they lasted 10 days until they finally died. This is a great system even when you have a total irrigation system failure.

[@ZipGrowInc]

That's great info to have, Brian Beattie - Thanks for killing your crops for science.

[@mr3748]

Dr Nate, do you have to run the system continuously through the night? I have a solar powered media bed aquaponics system which I want to convert to zip grow tower aquaponics. However, my pumps are running as long as the solar panels get sunlight. I have a battery in the system but its only able to cycle the system 2 or 3 times through the night.

[@aidan.barokah6796]

Do you have a published science journal about flow rates? It will help my aquaponics studies. Thank you

[@brandonterry6194]

GRATITUDE 💥🐟💥

[@JeffsAquaponics]

I'm assuming those flow rates are per tower? Also curious as to ratio between fish tank size to number of towers? Based on the 7-10 GPH I'd guess a 250 gallon grow out tank with a 30 min HRT (500 GPH) would support 50 - 70 towers. Does that sound about right?

[@ZipGrowInc]

Hey Jeff Barriault - yes those are per tower flow rates. Each tower supports 1.5-2.5 pounds of fish and each pound of fish requires 8-10 gallons of water.

[@hammock753]

Are you cycling the pumps on the hydroponic system or letting it run continuously? If you are cycling it what is your recommended cycle rate on & off?

[@mukeshbaskaran3548]

Please answer this question

[@hammock753]

Hey Mukesh I got the answer from them on their facebook page. I am cycling 2 hrs on 2 hrs off.

[@mukeshbaskaran3548]

Thank u andy 😊👍

[@jeanaimarre8068]

Andy Baciocco And night too?

[@hammock753]

Jean Aimarre yes

[@quentindjching5720]

Nice set up ! can this set up be use for any fruit and vegetable plants?

[@ZipGrowInc]

Hi Quentin Dj ching - almost anything will grow, although we recommend sticking to short statured greens and herbs.

[@shivanichawda9113]

After the absorption of water by the plants wat amount of water will be drained out (which will be recirculated again)? Lookinf for an exact calculation of water per tower! the amount of water needed? (2gallons/hr) , amount of water used? amount of water recycled? because i wanted to make a whole green wall through dis towers!!

[@ZipGrowInc]

Hi there! This is kind of a tough question because it really depends on your climate, location, and the size of your plants - all of which affect both evaporation and evapotranspiration from your system. The general rule for building a custom green wall is to get a 50gal sump/nutrient tank and then account for .5 gallon per tower in hydro systems. Hope that helps!

[@lovemytechy]

What PPM do you run your basil at in hydroponic system? what nutrient do you use for commercial hydroponics? hopefully something economic and in powder form so easy to store..

[@ZipGrowInc]

Hi Deb Lovemytechy - Check out www.hydro-gardens.com - We use their herb mix. Basil is around EC 1.7

[@lovemytechy]

I was looking at the same website for fertilizer. Chem Gro looks like the way to go .. I will have a mix of different plants in my system so I will keep the PPM lower .. I think EC 1.7 is around 1200PPM I will keep mine around 900 to make it suitable for strawberries and some other herbs.. and perhaps use the tomato fertilizer so I can feed my tomatoes too in a separate system with PPM of 2000 and up

[@anjuisenth]

what medium do u use sir..?

[@ZipGrowInc]

+Anju Isenth We use our proprietary ZipGrow Matrix Media.

[@halasimov1362]

Bright Agrotech Killer BSA Bro!