LOW COST, DIY self-watering wicking garden bed from an IBC.

[@larryllamma7593]

This is such an excellent instructional! I can hardly believe I'm the first to like and comment. Keep up the great work - because this video was super useful.

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

So pleased you liked it. I made it years ago when wicking beds were very new .. just didn't get around the posting it. Good luck with building it - they make such a big difference to water use and keeping roots out ... the best

[@thearchibaldtuttle]

Clever use of the overflow to hold the inlet in place!

[@ruthbentley2090]

Brilliant presentation! Thankyou 😎👍

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@Chaz1962]

I'm impressed, i've never heard of this before.

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

They work a treat.

[@arhodes2866]

Brilliant tutorial

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

Thanks so much

[@karendavies9434]

This was great, time to make ours. Thanks!

[@sandig621]

Thankyou I’ll be making some of those.

[@suekeane]

Looks great, thank you

[@cecilsabourin9462]

Enjoyd you,re presentation and you,re Aussie accent , from up here in Canada ,cool . Being a guy , I,d need a few more measurments , ha . EG. -depth of rock , soil and such . Did ,very much ,enjoy the video,thanks .

[@PeterDjordjevic-jo5fc]

Depths vary depending on personal needs.. i built a few of these for my sister and went roughly 1/2 of the total height in scoria or gravel...

[@nickaugust557]

Great instructions, I cant wait to set mine up. Thankyou :)

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

You’re welcome 😊. Let me know how it goes and grows

[@user-dz4mz9je4v]

great vid you make it fun

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

Glad you enjoyed

[@horstgehann4659]

Very good and clear illustration of how the self-watering ones are built. Many thanks for that! I really like it and will build one myself. How long does one water filling last and how do you know when to fill water in?

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

You are welcome! Depends on the weather , your level of mulch and what you're growing. I find in the heat and height of summer one filling a week is good when I've got a water-loving crop in (cucumber for example). I just look down the tube and see if I can see the water level. If it's half full it will still wick that water up into the soil. I generally fill it up once a week or when the water tank is full and we're about to get some rain!

[@prakashambastha7530]

This is super helpful..Thank you!! Is that black corrugated pipe having slots/hole in it (french drain)?

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

YEp. We call it agricultural pipe in Oz.

[@emmak9856]

I’m considering doing a wicking bed Well 5 . I see a lot of people paint them to prevent algae. Is painting them worth it or can you get away without painting them 😂 it’s all seems so much effort and painting them is just an added task

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

I didn't do that ... and it's a lot of work but they do work brilliantly

[@karenkmk4035]

Great video. Curious did you look at what the ibc had contained previously.? Do they need to be food safe? Thanks..

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

Yes and yes. I think it was a oil used in soap and we do did a very sold washing out the IBC. You can get food grade - this didn't seem like a huge issue for us but now that you mention it ...!!

[@ApisVenandi]

Will builders plastic work to seperate soil and scoria?

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

No ... you need something that will wick up (or absorb and draw-up) the water from underneath the soil. I find the geotextile the best as it will last a long time. You could use another type of fabric but it might degrade quickly meaning you'll have soil all through the substrate/scoria layer and that would mean clearing it all out.

[@lornaj3310]

Why is there such a long piece of filling pipe?

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

I think it was over kill - but main thing is you don't want the resevoir to get too much dirt in it or the overflow outlet/hole to get blocked.

[@ianwilliams7740]

Wicking leaks. Lol

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

You're onto it!

[@mghh448]

How much would this cost to make?

[@GIYGreenItYourself]

The biggest cost is the scoria stones. You can get lots of recycled/reclaimed bits to use but buying all the parts new it's about AUD$500 (Australian buckeroos!)