Can anyone tell me how many plants I can grow in a 27 gallon Commander XXL black bottomed yellow topped tote…outside, hydroponically in a greenhouse?
30.8"L x 20.3"W x 14.5"H
Bruce Banner Fast Version
P.S. I’ll be painting the yellow covers black to avoid alge.
Thank you to any and all.
I’ve plant two plants in a totes before and one well be dominate and take from the other
Anything over 3 and the roots will get tangled like crazy.
Thank you for your reply, it makes me think, perhaps if I hot glue plastic panels or walls between the plants to keep the roots segregated it MAY eliminate the dominance or as @Rye points out, root entanglement. I have a few more days until I begin germination and am still building my totes, so I’m still fluid on the build.
Thank you very much for your reply, I am new to all this, and tried to link you in to my reply to @Daddy1971, but just in case, what do you think about a modification of the totes with walls to separate the plants it would be PRIMO if I could separate it into four, that would be 18 gallons per section…thoughts???
Yes that would work fine putting panels in good ideal
Thank you again, now on to reviewing podcasts and video tutorials for nutrient advise, I think I should transition from one large air stone to four small sir stones, one in each section or perhaps an ultra fine screen for oxygen/airflow between panels. I’ll test it. It’s ALL a learning process for me, this is my prototype, give me 3-4 grows and I’ll have it down.
Reed, skip the plastic panels to separate I imagined up going with poly mesh honey filtering bags to use four in each container allowing about 16 gallons of water space for each 5 gallon mesh bag to hold and separate root systems while allowing water /Oxygen flow to all roots. 
That sounds great keep us updated
My pleasure, I’m sure you’ll have more advise in the future.
Never done hydroponics before but putting mesh bags between plants sounds like a really risky proposition. I can not imagine especially a first time grow going off without some kind of complication with water quality issues causing the bags to clog up.
Ok Jared, ( or anyone) what do you suggest to separate the plants so I can grow four plants per container.
??
Whether you separate into individual containers, joint containers or not, in a Hydro system you feed from a reservoir. That is a Central / single point of failure system. Individual buckets with their own water supply is cost prohibitive and time consuming.
You will not attain any benefits from root bags so let them just grow. The airstone beneath each root ball is the best route so each root structure gets oxygenated. The better the stone / aerator, the better the O2 production the better the roots.
Intermingled roots - EVERY TIME a hydro system is used where the roots are a shared community. Only individual containers will address that. Like when we grow in 5/8 gallon buckets with a central reservoir.
Thanks again Mike.
It is difficult at times to overcome my stubbornness, yet at the same time, properly directed it can influence creative ingenuity, I want to try to conceive of a way to keep the roots separated yet have water flow between compartments. I’m stubbornly stuck on trying to squeeze one more plant into the 72 gallon tote to have 48 plants for my first grow. Stubbornly stupid, I should and likely will go with two or three then upgrade next grow to individual containers. I am also in these few days before germinating considering a rush order on lights and taking the grow into one of my 20 x 30 outbuildings. I really do appreciate your guidance.
Dan
72 gal tote…48 plants = 1.5 per plant…not much root space. If it were a milk carton, your plant would easily fill the container. I would not grow hydro in less than 3 too 5 gal…72/5 = around 14 plants…maybe 15. I would set up like a channel system…keeps roots separate but you need good pump -not an aquarium pump -
Mike, I think I may have misrepresented my circumstances, not sure. Loved your schematic, I have to figure out how to inset “partitions”, (https://www.lowes.com/pd/Coroplast-Plastic-Cardboard-0-157-in-T-x-24-in-W-x-36-in-L-Black-Corrugated-Plastic-Sheet/1001469554) Thinking of using this material for the partitions. I can use a 55 gal drum for nutrients and get a bigger pump or two to incorporate, I have some extra 1" PVC I could use with grommets to link them all together and bring a piece of PVC up and drop into the 55 gal drum to create even more airation if need be. Also with your design I could drill a hole in the “top/Lid” next to each 3" cup and drop an airstone in each one running an air pump with four nozzels on each side of each Tote so each root ball has a seperate airstone. I was setting each of these up as a stand alone DWC and intended to change the solution in each accordingly. Your schematic shows a possibility of “eight” plants per tote that (I think) would provide nine gallons of water for each plants partition space??? But really I was good with just four plants per tote, if I could go six plants per tote and rig up the SOG above all this it would give me a total of 72 plants…THAT would be great! I have to get better at uploading photos. Also last but not least I used to live outside the back gate of Nellis for a coupke years in the 80’s, my folks lived there for years and I was in and out as a wayward youngster so I know your town well. Used to work at an old western town in Red rocks canyon as a stunt man…what a gas THAT was.
Dan
In any big box store they sell ac unit filter that you can cut to fit your size needed. They cone with a hard plastic square grid that would be perfect to cut to size to separate the container into 4
Just becasue I showed 8 sections doesn’t mean you have to go that route. You go with what fits for your environment. Use total gals divided by plants to determine how many. You want 5 gal per plant…
I have used “venturi” rigs to increase the flow and aeration of my reservoir
you can google to see how this may benefit your system. Use your pvc and create the “high > low” pressure system and an air intake valve (you can find adjustable ones which will allow you to increase / reduce air flow.
The totes, just set up like ballast tanks / baffles. They will RESTRICT water flow but keep roots separate. Always use POSITIVE pressure so you do not SUCK roots / root material into your valves / pumps
Killer system…I grew big time with a setup like this…But remember…hydro requires MUCH BABYSITTING and monitoring of the Ph that will fluctuate all over the place due to O2, Co2, water movement, nutrient solutions.
