cheap and easy DIY cloner and what to do with the results - Cannabis Forums Message Boards - Medical Marijuana, Cannabis Club, Dispensary, News

justanotherbozo · #1 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:23

i put this together because i thought it had enough to stand alone and, i felt it was kinda lost for the newbie in my 'imaginary garden' thread.

so, for the noobs like me and the noobs like the one i was before i found these boards and you people, i hope this helps.

justanotherbozo · #2 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:28

first, as a newbie, you need to understand that you must learn to clone, that is the only way you will reap the full benefits of ganja growing. it's just too big a pain in the ass to raise them up from seed and wait 2 - 3 months for them to get mature enough to display sex.
with cloning, you know that every plant you flower is a girl!

second, let me say that i'm no expert so this is not meant to be definitive!
there are several ways to root clones and all are effective to one degree or another. just don't be discouraged, if you try something and it fails, try something else, then, it wasn't a failure, it was a learning experience!

personally, i've rooted clones in rockwool starter cubes under a dome (last year 95% rooted, this year 100% died).
i've rooted clones in just a glass of water, got about a 60% success rate (not good enough to rely on, and it takes a good 10 - 15 days to see roots)

i've only had one run so far with my new cloner but, in that run, 17 of 18 rooted and within 6 days! eureka!
(the cloner has been in operation for about a month now and still with about a 98% success rate)

anyway, since my aim is a never ending Sea Of Green, having a reliable source of healthy clones was a must. being a newbie myself, i set to work reading every thread on cloning i could find and this is what i've come up with, i hope it works as well for you as it has for me!

justanotherbozo · #3 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:37

taking a cutting is pretty straightforward and covered by many, many other threads and faq's. my intent with this thread is to show you how i made a cloner to provide myself with a reliable source of healthy little girls and what you do once you have them rooted.

that being said, as a newbie myself i tell you, do not be afraid to try cloning. cloning is easy!
anyway, once you've taken a cutting you need a place to put it right?
this thread will show you how to make yourself a bubble cloner for about $20.00 USD, not counting another $20.00 for a small air pump, you need bubbles man.

here's a parts list and some pics

1 bin, no bigger than 2 gallons (mine came from Lowes and it cost $7.99)

2 airstones, get them at Walmat, they have a variety of sizes, bigger is better if your pump can handle it, just make sure the airstones fit inside the bin. (approx. $3.00 each)

1/4 inch outside diameter rubber tubbing (standard size for fish tanks)(20 feet is approx. $4.00)
a tee fitting (if your pump only has one outlet, if it has two, you don't need the fitting)
1 length of pipe wrap insulation (it comes in 6 ft lengths) (approx. $4.00)

and now a few pics

1) the inside (as you can see, my bin is black so light proof from jump street, well worth the extra cash, LOL, no need for duct tape)
oh yeah, don't get those airwand thingies, the suction cups don't hold and so they pop free and float to the top of the res, not a good thing.

2) assembled and ready to go, 3 rows times 6x1inch holes for a total of 18 'stations'. note the pipe wrap cut into 1 inch pieces
(the holes were cut with a 1inch hole saw)

3) loaded up but with a few empty stations that show the pipe wrap really well.

btw, i use 2 gallons of water into which i put approx. 6ml of ThriveAlive B1 Red and 2 drops of Superthrive (DO NOT OVERDO THE SUPERTHRIVE, 1 DROP PER GALLON ONLY)
another thing to consider is that you want the res to be kinda warm, not hot mind you, just not cold.

justanotherbozo · #4 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:44

heres a few pics of the cloner in operation, all pretty much self explanitory

1) the cloner is to the right on top of the beer box, to the left and on the floor is one of my DWC bins (same exact footprint and cover size, just 6 gallons deep instead of 2 gallons)

2) another shot, note the difference in the lids, on the left in particular you see 2 cups filled with hydroton, those have rooted clones i need to move to one of my DWC's, the other's are filled with some cuttings i had no room in the cloner for so i pressed a DWC into service as a bubble cloner. (it works but i don't recommend it, it's too deep for a bubble cloner)

3) the underside of the DWC impersonating a cloner, lol (as you can see, the cuttings just dangle about an inch from the top of the solution getting splashed with bubbles.

4) here you can see some roots poking out

5) inside the cloner proper (look at them roots man!)

justanotherbozo · #5 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:49

once you have rooted clones you can transplant into your medium of choice (because i'm learning to grow hydroponically i'm using homemade net pots filled with hydroton, expanded clay pellets)

the thing to remember is to be fairly gentle with the roots whether you're transplanting into dirt or hydroton. in truth, potting them in dirt is simple.

here are some pics to illustrate just how simple it is. just be sure not to leave too much space between the top of the dirt and the rim of the pots, about an inch is good, that leaves you room to water without so much space you have dead, stagnant air at the base of your plants.

note the pots, from last year (i made them from 2 liter soda bottles) (good size for a dirt SOG) i potted these in dirt for a friend who plans on putting them behind his 50 tomato plants.

justanotherbozo · #6 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:58

this is a technique i learned from StinkyAttic (thanks Stinky).

the key here is gentle, gentle, gentle.

in the pics you can see that i pre-soak my hydroton (get hygromite if you don't already have hydroton, it's better for the plants)
as you can see, you put the rooted end of the cutting into the net pot with some hydroton, then you fill up the pot with hydroton while still in the water. doing it this way is much more gentle on the roots

hudson88 · #7 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 20:59

Hey bozo great thread. I can vouch for this method of cloning, i've had problems in the past with clones getting around a 50/50 success rate. Around a month ago 2 of the 4 cuttings i'd taken and put in root riots rooted in about 2 weeks, the other 2 stayed in the riots for another week and failed to root.

Fortunately for me bozo visited my grow log and told me the success he had with his bubble cloner. I checked out his thread and decided to give it a try, all together it cost me roughly $25 and took me about an hour. I put the two unrooted clones that had been in root riots for three weeks and 2 new cuttings into the new bubble cloner, 7 days later all cuttings had roots!

Can't recommend this method of cloning enough.

justanotherbozo · #8 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 21:01

heres a couple more pics to really illustrate whats going on here

justanotherbozo · #9 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 21:03

the thing to remember is, don't be afraid to try something new and don't be afraid to ask for help (not something like 'do i put the switch up or down to turn the light on?'), we're all in this alone, together, so we all help each other.
also, keep in mind that the more research you do on your own, the more respect you will earn from everyone, plus, you will ask better questions, lol!

when you gain some experience, reach out your hand to the newbie and help him climb that dratted learning curve, just like someone, in my case, many someone's, reached out and helped me, and you!

now, toke amongst yourselves man!

justanotherbozo · #10 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 21:09

i'm really glad it works as well for you as it does for me man!

Quote:

Originally Posted by hudson88

Hey bozo great thread. I can vouch for this method of cloning, i've had problems in the past with clones getting around a 50/50 success rate. Around a month ago 2 of the 4 cuttings i'd taken and put in root riots rooted in about 2 weeks, the other 2 stayed in the riots for another week and failed to root.

Fortunately for me bozo visited my grow log and told me the success he had with his bubble cloner. I checked out his thread and decided to give it a try, all together it cost me roughly $25 and took me about an hour. I put the two unrooted clones that had been in root riots for three weeks and 2 new cuttings into the new bubble cloner, 7 days later all cuttings had roots!

Can't recommend this method of cloning enough.

hudson88 · #11 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 21:23

Just a couple of questions bozo

Have you took the temp of the res? I was under the impression below 70F was good for your res generally would you say it should be a little higher for cloning? It was a pretty hot week when i was cloning and my res temp got to around 80F with no problems.

Do you bother with a rooting gel/powder? I used some but i was wondering if it's a waste as it'll probably get washed off pretty quick.

Oh and by the way I told a guy about this on another site and he's just had 100% success with it.

justanotherbozo · #12 (**permalink**) Jun-23-2008, 21:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by hudson88

Just a couple of questions bozo

Have you took the temp of the res? I was under the impression below 70F was good for your res generally would you say it should be a little higher for cloning? It was a pretty hot week when i was cloning and my res temp got to around 80F with no problems.

for cloning you want the res a little warm, not hot, but not cold either, mine runs around 75 degrees mostly

Quote:

Originally Posted by hudson88

Do you bother with a rooting gel/powder? I used some but i was wondering if it's a waste as it'll probably get washed off pretty quick.

and no, i no longer bother with rooting hormones (i've got a brand new 2 oz jar of Rootech that i bought before i made the cloner)
both the ThriveAlive and the Superthrive are for root development and, so far at least, i haven't needed anything else

Quote:

Originally Posted by hudson88

Oh and by the way I told a guy about this on another site and he's just had 100% success with it.

and cool, spread it around, shit man, all i did was to apply the principles i learned while reading every thread i could find on cloning

McDanger · #13 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 13:13

what would be your recommendations on pumps and airstones?
I would also like to aerate another res with the same air pump

justanotherbozo · #14 (**permalink**) Jun-24-2008, 14:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by McDanger

what would be your recommendations on pumps and airstones?
I would also like to aerate another res with the same air pump

one of these, with the dual outlets, even the small one would probably work

Organically Grown EcoPlus Air Pumps

or one of these, i'd go with the 40 or above (these are available at Walmart and almost any pet store)

Product Catalog

i bought one of these also and liked it a lot, very quiet and blows a lot of bubbles

Aquatic Gardens Double Outlet Hi-tech Air Pumps at PETCO

in truth, any air pump rated for a fish tank bigger than your res size will work, i'd suggest you get the biggest one you can afford
i didn't, starting with a 20 gallon, single outlet pump.

since then i have bought 3 other bigger pumps until i bought this one rated to run 16 waterfarms
Organically Grown Dual Diaphragm Air Pump
this thing blows some air man, lol

anyway, i use the small 20 gallon single outlet pump to run my cloner only, all other pumps are running multiple DWC's

McDanger · #15 (**permalink**) Jul-04-2008, 12:41

here is another big thank you for this thread. I had 4 clones taken on 6/19 that were in r/w and lookin about dead when I moved them to the bubbler, now they all are rooting and I took 4 more on 6/25 and all 4 are starting to show roots. This thing works great.
P.S. this was my 1st attempt at cloning.

McDanger · #16 (**permalink**) Jul-04-2008, 13:10

sorry for the repeat, it looked like it wasn't working

polishpollack · #17 (**permalink**) Jul-04-2008, 13:28

this thread was exactly what i've been waiting for. I've heard of cloning machines but either didn't want to spend too much or didn't trust that they work. My local shop sells them for too much. I didn't see the need to spend close to $100 on plastic. Now I can make my own, thanks to this. Great job justabozo.

the image reaper · #18 (**permalink**) Jul-04-2008, 13:33

great thread, very well done

polishpollack · #19 (**permalink**) Jul-04-2008, 13:40

I do have a question - what do you use to put holes in the lid? Is it like a two inch round drill bit, the circular ones with teeth?

justanotherbozo · #20 (**permalink**) Jul-04-2008, 16:40

sorry i'm been less than attentive, i've been dealing with some personal problems and also with mites here in the real.

anyway, thank you all for the props, although all i did was to apply the principles i've learned doing a LOT of research. anyways, thanks

and McDanger, i'm glad it works as well for you as it does for me.

and polish, i used a 1inch hole saw, if you have 2 inch neoprene inserts, you can use a 2 inch saw,
lol, i know a guy who makes his inserts out of flip-flops (that would be shower shoes, or beach shoes, the flimsy rubber kind)
if you use pipe wrap like i did, a 1 inch hole saw will work.

and thanks for the thumbs up reap! (i've learned a thing or two from you dude)

maxrun427 · #21 (**permalink**) Jul-06-2008, 02:05

This sounds like a great idea! I was wondering how people change
the water in their DWC setup or a bubbler cloner?

italian04 · #22 (**permalink**) Jul-06-2008, 12:57

wht is the ph of the water. still 5.8-6.2?

justanotherbozo · #23 (**permalink**) Jul-06-2008, 17:45

honestly italian, i don't know what the ph is, i have no meter to check it.

and maxrun, if the how of it is really what you want to know,
the easiest way is to have an extra bin to put the plant filled
lid from one bin onto the extra bin while you then empty and clean
the original bin. then just put the plant filled lid back on the
original bin.
if your question is more toward how often, i'd say every 2 weeks
to every 10 days.

italian04 · #24 (**permalink**) Jul-07-2008, 09:18

im just not sure on what size i should trim from the plant for my clone. the ones in your pics look pretty big. i was trying to stay on the small side but the stems would barely touch the water.

hudson88 · #25 (**permalink**) Jul-07-2008, 10:53

Hey italian,

I've used this method with small cuttings and it works great, i'd say mine were no bigger than 3". As for them barely touching the water, that's just what you want, i have my stems around 1/4" from the water. i think, correct me if i'm wrong bozo, but i think bozo has his stems a little further away from the water than that, (the airstone makes the water spit up and onto the stem) so you shouldn't have any problems with them not being big enough, obviously you don't want to be taking crappy little 1" cuts, but my crappy little 2.5" cuts rooted just fine

Good luck!

e2a - Check out the first few pages of bozo's imaginary garden, it'll give you more of an idea how it works.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode