Questions on floating raft systems

[bsfman]

After pricing hydroton, I decided to go with a floating raft system on my new setup rather than a flood and drain. I have a few questions for those who have experience with this kind of system.

How far apart and what size should the raft holes be for growing lettuce, herbs, mint, etc?

My rafts are 2" styrofoam. I don't have a local source for net pots so was thinking of using styrofoam cups with holes in the bottoms instead. How deep beneath the bottom of the rafts should the bottoms of the cups protrude?

I don't have a convenient local hydroponics store to buy rock wool cubes, etc. Can I use rock wool from Home Depot or Lowes packed into the cups instead? Or would pea gravel work better?

The grow beds are 2'X3' 9 inch deep mortar mixing tubs. Each will have aeration in the bottom. The inlet will come directly from my mechanical/biofilter so there will be no solids to contend with.

Any tips or advice is appreciated!

Oh yeah - one final question: anybody had success growing strawberries on a floating raft system? I bought two strawberry plants just to play with and wondered if anybody else had tried this.

Thanks!

[rfeiller]

http://www.hydrofarm.com i use a lot of their products, the net pots are really inexpensive when bought a couple hundred at a time. and of course they have the mineral wool products specifically designed for your needs.

[davidstcldfl]

If you buy netpots...measure before drilling....which I didn't do...
The '2 inch net pots' I bought at the hydro store falls through a 2" hole. I bought 2 inch "slit pots'...they fit great in the 2 inch holes. They have a little lip on them.

On a 2 x 4 foot raft...I have 26 holes, with the holes stagered from the row beside it. This gives about a 6 1/2 inch space between them. This works for lettuces and bok choi. I do have some rafts with holes closer, for when the plants are younger.


The only thing I didn't like about rock wool was, they say to pre-treat it with water that is very low in PH. Which I didn't do the 1st time.... The wool has a high PH

I now use a product called Oasis horticubes. I buy the 1 inch ones....there are 162 cubes to a sheet. I just planted 10 sheets with differant letuces. Within 2 days they were sprouting...

I bought the cubes and 'slit' pots here....
http://www.hydro-gardens.com/germinate.htm#rootcubes

[rfeiller]

my rafts' holes are spaced 6" each way so real close to what davidsldfl does

[cedarswamp]

Place the bottoms of your pots 1/16 to 1/8th below the bottom of your raft. I use a staggered 8" on spacing, which seems to give me better airflow around the plants, I've used closer but had trouble with mold on the lower leaves. Mines a basement system so the humidity may have contributed to the mold, but at 8" (knock wood) everything seems to be fine.

[urbanfarmer]

You can't buy rockwool cubes online?

[bsfman]

You can't buy rockwool cubes online?

Sure. I cou'ld buy net pots online too. But I'm trying to get started with what's on hand locally. I can always get the fancy stuff later on

I got some cellulose based "eco friendly" insulation from Home Depot that looks a lot like rock wool. Gonna give that a try as well as trying some pea gravel. If neither one works, I'll opt for some online shopping.

Thanks to all who offered advice!

[cedarswamp]

North Fort Myers

http://www.gthydroponics.com/

[bsfman]

North Fort Myers

http://www.gthydroponics.com/

Thanks cedarswamp! These places seem to come and go (wonder why?) and I was not aware of that one! I'll check it out for sure!

[davidstcldfl]

I got some cellulose based "eco friendly" insulation from Home Depot that looks a lot like rock wool. Gonna give that a try as well as trying some pea gravel. If neither one works, I'll opt for some online shopping.

Thanks to all who offered advice!

The insulation sounds interesting....please keep us updated on that...