When the owners are away, there is a need to water indoor plants. Neighbors will not always help, but saving flowers is necessary.
How to keep indoor plants while away
The plants can survive without watering for two weeks. To do this, they must be prepared as follows.
- Water abundantly.
- Choose a place where there is less light so that moisture does not evaporate too much.
- Cut off all the buds and flowers and thin out the leaves.
- Put all the pots together in a large pan on a layer of expanded clay, flooded with water from below.
- Cover it all with foil.
The simplest autowatering devices
You can place water-filled bottles with a hole in the lid in flower pots. They are lowered down the hole, and moisture is gradually absorbed into the soil. The simplest device for automatic watering of indoor plants of industrial production is a flask with water connected to a ceramic cone immersed in the ground. After the flask is free, it is removed from the pot and refilled.
DIY gravity gravity automatic irrigation system
Autowatering of indoor plants can be done using a conventional dropper. Needles and tips must be removed from it. Also needed: a hose from a car glass washer , a plastic bottle for drinking water (5 l) and a simple ballpoint pen.
The handle section is cut off and inserted with a threaded end into the hole made at the bottom of the bottle. A cap with a rubber sealing washer and a pre-cut tip is screwed onto the improvised fitting from the inside to allow water to escape through it.
Sections of the hose of the infusion system of the dropper with the water flow regulators located on them are cut off. Then the pipe system is connected using plastic tees for watering plants in several pots.
The main water supply line is assembled from washer hoses, and the outlets to each pot are made from thin hoses with flow regulators. The whole system is connected to a plastic tube made of a ballpoint pen and secured in a bottle. Where the hose does not fit on the pipe or tee, it is heated with a hairdryer, put on a wood expander.
Do-it-yourself self-watering of indoor plants is done by installing a container above the flower pots so that the water drains under the influence of gravity. Rods made of wood or plastic are stuck into the soil of the pots, and an irrigation system is attached to them. Each plant has its own hose with a regulator. In order to move water from the bottle, a constant tilt must be ensured in order to create regular pressure and uniform flow of liquid. The free end of the hose is closed with a stopper, after which the watering through the entire system is adjusted, depending on the needs of the plants. At the outlet of the bottle, it is desirable to make a general flow regulator in order to supply water periodically.
One system of automatic watering indoor plants may not cope with the work when there are a lot of pots. Several approaches can be made (in the form of branches). Water is supplied to each group of pots separately.
Automatic irrigation system with periodic water supply
An automatic watering device for indoor plants is best done with a periodic supply of water. To do this, you need a pump and a timer. Pumps are used submersible and external. For a small DC device, you need a 12 V voltage source. A power supply from an old computer will be enough. It will provide a current strength of 4-5 A. As a control device for turning the pump on and off, a daily timer is required, the step of which does not exceed 1 min.
The system of automatic watering of indoor plants can work without a pump, if you install an electromagnetic valve that will temporarily open the water supply, and then close again on command from the timer. In this case, the container with the liquid is installed above the flowerpots. Auto watering indoor plants (system) is collected as follows.
A timer is connected to the 12 V power supply and configured to turn on, for example, for 2 minutes at a specific time of the day. Then a 12 V pump is connected to it, observing the polarity. The polyethylene hoses must be firmly fixed so that they are not torn off by the pressure of the pump. At joints, clamps should be worn everywhere.
Do-it-yourself self-watering of indoor plants is done in such a way that the water tank is located below the flower pots, and the liquid does not leak out of the system by itself. In order for the pressure in the system to be uniform, water can be supplied to a larger diameter collector, and from it to be planted in flower pots. To relieve excess pressure, one hose must be routed back from the manifold to the tank and a flow regulator installed on it.
Autowatering indoor plants. Reviews
Users note that the automatic irrigation system is not entirely reliable. There are comments that it eventually clogs with calcium salts. Now there are many ways to deal with this, for example, washing in solutions that remove scale. It can be watered with rain or softened water.
As the liquid level in the tank decreases, the flow rate also decreases. To do this, you can take a larger width tank. Application of the pump provides the necessary pressure in the system.
Devices for controlling the flow of liquid in a dropper are not designed for a long life. The polyethylene hose loses its flexibility and its performance deteriorates. You can replace the material or find another, for example, from rubber.
Many gardeners have problems controlling the flow of water for small plants. Only a timer with periodic activation of watering will help here. In addition, ceramic hose nozzles can be used through which moisture passes slowly.
Conclusion
There are many ways to water plants, you can choose any. If you have to leave the house unattended for a long time, the most reliable will be automatic watering of indoor plants, which lasts for 2-3 weeks. Proper use ensures a reliable and metered supply of water.