Bottom-Fed Grow Systems: AutoPot and EasyFeed

About Autopot and Easyfeed Gravity Feed Systems

If you like growing in soil or coco, there will possibly come a time when you would like to erradicate the time-consuming and inconvenient job of hand-watering, particularly if you grow a large number of plants. A bottom-feed system (sometimes called gravity-feed) makes your life a whole lot simpler by automatically feeding your plants with Autopot setups. All you have to do is keep a reservoir tank topped up with nutrient solution and the Easyfeed or Autopot system will do the rest, utilizing gravity pressure to move water from the reservoir to the containers. The soil or coco "wicks" up the water from the bottom, making it an efficient and convenient method of plant feeding.

They offer the following benefits:

• Remove the need for hand-watering for most of the grow cycle
• Simple to set up
• Can be expanded to almost any number of pots
• They're very economical to buy
• There are no pumps to fail

Things to remember when using an Easyfeed or Autopot System

1. Put a thin layer of washed gravel at the bottom of each pot to improve drainage
2. Preferably use soil or coco that contains either perlite or clay pebbles to prevent the soil clumping and clodding This also helps with keeping the soil aerated. Plant roots need oxygen!.
3. Plants with small root systems will still need to be hand-watered for the first 2 weeks. This is because the water from the reservoir does wick all the way to the top of the substrate. After potting up small plants or cuttings into the pots, keep the soil around them moist until they have had a good chance to root down well into the fresh soil. If you are using a soil with nutrient in it you may not need to use any other nutrient. If you are using coco or soil with no nutrient value then use a weak nutrient solution.
4. Don't use organic nutrients as these can cause problems with blocking the pipes
5. House and Garden's Roots Excelurator will keep root diseases at bay
6. Clean the pipes and the valves (particularly the yello rubbers) after each grow cycle to keep the system running sweetly. Consider using a product such as Dutch Pro Keep It Clean through the grow to keep blockages at bay.
7. Keep the nutrient solution in the reservoir well mixed with a small pump
8. Make sure you use a sturdy stand under the reservoir to raise up at least 8 inches above the bottoms of the pots
9. Place an insulating tile under the pots if using on a cold surface such as concete
10. Increase oxygenation in the root zone by placing an Autopot Air Dome inside each pot of substrate about two-thirds of the way down

To see our full Grow Systems / Pots range, click here