OK, first off, I cannot take credit for this design. I found it on another forum and basically copied the design I saw there, aside from size and a couple of adjustments to accommodate my idea. Nevertheless I'm not a member of said forum, so I wanted to show off my homemade 60-site ez-cloner, which cost me less than a third of what the name-brand unit does.

I had a gift card left over from christmas for 25 bucks, for the Home Depot. Promptly went and grabbed a 54-gallon tote with lid. Also, I needed to grab 3, 1/2" cpvc tees, as those were the only fittings I didn't happen to have on hand. All told, 21 bucks with tax.

Off to the hydro store. I needed a pump-



It's the same exact pump I use to power my drip system. being that my drip setup is 24 plant sites, I saw no reason why it would do any less good with 20 sprayers- a fact to which my hydro store buddy agreed.

I also needed sprayers. Seeing as that they sell ez-clone machines at my hydro shop, it stood to reason they would have the replacements- which is exactly what I got, the ez-clone replacement heads. They retail for $1.50! Fortunately I'm a loyal customer, and my price of $.75 reflected that 360 degree coverage with no moving parts, gotta love that.


I also got factory 2" neoprene inserts and 2" net pots. The net pots are to afford the neoprene insert a lip on which to rest without danger of falling into the cloner. The neoprene inserts retail at $.82, I paid $.32. The 2" net pots are $.20 each, I didn't haggle over those

I gathered my cordless drill, tape measure, sawzall, a pen and some cpvc glue. A 2" holesaw is a must- to attempt this any other way would be futile.

First thing I needed to do was to get high So much easier to concentrate when baked. Next, I needed to lay out the location of the 60 net pots.



It took a good half-hour to lay everything out symmetrically and make them fit. I have to admit I didn't start my day planning on a 60-site cloner, but the selection of rubbermaids at the Depot was slim, and I didn't want a really small one, or a clear one, so I took what I could get. Add to that I love to make things big, and I end up with a beast. Also, for my garden, I am going to need 48 plants (2 per pot, going to try small plants next go-round) and with 60 it gives me a comfortable margin for error, and the ability to be picky with the clones I use.

Now that it's all laid out, it's time to drill. LOTS of holes. Be aware that should you attempt this, the holesaw will grab the plastic and try to twist the drill right out of your hand as soon as it bites- my wrist is good and sore from it.

Smoke break time after I tweaked my wrist like the third time already.



Got smarter about how I held the drill, and managed the rest with nearly no problems at all.



Now, you should notice that the lid is actually upside-down on the tote. Simply put, there is no "seal" with it right-side up. It actually has a gap around the edge that would mean incredible leakage. However, it so happens that the lid drops in, upside-down, and fits beautifully. No leaks!

Alas, I didn't get so lucky with the tote itself. The handles have vents/drains molded into them that will be profound leakers unless covered. I plan to use the old standby, duct tape, to seal these holes.



Alright, finished with the lid. Now it's time to make my sprayer manifold.



With pump located and lid in place, with a net pot for reference, I measured the riser piece that will come up from the pump after coming up with an arbitrary distance to keep the manifold below the bottom of the net pots. I chose four inches. There was little method to the choice- I know the roots are going to hang, but they won't be in there so long as to be creating great masses of root structure. 4" seemed adequate, and since nothing is glued together it is easy work to lower the entire manifold should the need arise.

Next, build the manifold itself. All of my measurements were, again, arbitrary. My only goal was to encompass as much area with spray as possible.



Not only do I have complete perimeter coverage, but the two branches in the middle really increase the volume.

Just a closeup of a few of the holes drilled in the manifold to accept the sprayers. The drill bit I used was the exact size as the sprayer ends; I actually had to wobble the bit a little in order to get the sprayers to screw into the pipe (they are threaded.)



Now you'll notice that the pump attaches to the manifold at one end. The pump isn't exactly a solid mount, if you know what I mean. Suction-cup bases are meant to secure it in place, but not rigidly. Hence, the weight of the manifold alone causes it to fall to the bottom of the tote. I didn't want anything to be permanently attached for ease of later cleaning, so I had to devise a method of putting "legs" on it. I pondered just turning a couple of tees downward, and capping the legs, but I didn't have the tees, and I didn't want anyplace for water to be able to sit and stagnate- and two pieces of pipe pointing down with no way to circulate the water spelled nasties to me.

So, I got creative, and took a couple of pieces and cut legs, with notches on one end with which to rest the manifold and support the end opposite the pump. I tried my smallest holesaw to try and cut actual arcs, but it was too large and the radius too great to work. I ended up taking the sawzall and cutting a 'V' in one end of each.



Here is the only place I used any glue at all- to secure the legs to the manifold itself.



Since the pipe I used was CPVC, I had to use CPVC cement. It is much different than PVC cement, and one won't work with the other. PVC is typically white or gray, while CPVC is typically yellowish in color. Just a heads-up to anyone who wants to try this.



I needed to let the glue set up, so it was time to eat dinner and smoke a bowl.



Time to finish. The glue had set up, but the joint is rather sketchy and I'm going to need to come up with a long-term solution. Nevertheless it held, so now the whole assembly can be placed in the tote.



Alright! The hard parts are all done now. Time to put the net pots and neoprene inserts where they need to be.



Nothing left but to test it! I put about 15 gallons of tap water and a little bleach in it, and fired it up!





And we are in business! I have noticed that it does leak a little around a few of the net pots.



I'm going to have to assume they are directly in the line of fire from a sprayer, and there's not much I can do about it. I could use some clear silicone caulk to anchor the net pots in place, but I would rather let a little water build up on top of the lid rather than either using silicone itself, or securing the net pots permanently. Also I noticed an occasional spray around the edge where the lid sits inside the tub itself, but I am assuming that with time the lid will reshape slightly enough to conform and I won't have that issue. And if it ends up being a permanent problem, again it's time for the duct tape

I'm going to let it run all night where it sits, right next to the sump crock In case it begins to leak catastrophically, it can leak itself right into the sump.

And wouldn't ya know it, mama is looking a little bushy tonight, too... could be mom is going to be getting a trim soon

Great post.

I am anxious to see you fill it up and make some roots.

.

I let it run all night to flush and disinfect. When I checked it this morning, I had a little leakage on the end opposite the pump, between the lid and the tote. It may require a strip of duct tape to secure it in place until the two plastic halves become friendly enough with each other to conform to each of their shapes

I'll be emptying it and giving it the RO bath here later this morning, and debating how many cuts momma can handle. I don't necessarily know if I'll be able to fill it, but I definitely want to get some in there if for no other reason to see how well it performs.

great post.i have 1 question,will the pump keep the water warm enough or will you not be warming the water.my cloner i sit on a heating pad to keep it at the right temp.
wohlandr

I'm hoping the pump will keep temps up where they need to be. I'll know in the next day or so if I'm going to need to add a heater.



Ask, and ye shall receive.





The row closest to the front is naked- they were cut and placed in the unit. The row to the rear has been cut and dipped in Olivia's. I honestly don't anticipate seeing much difference, as I expect the Olivia's to wash off in short order, therefore mixing with the water in the rez and giving everything the same benefit. Time will tell.

I've only got the dozen in there right now because I have no need for them other than to make sure the unit works. One thing I did notice when putting them in, is that the sites closest to the corner get the least spray. I may have to get in there and turn some of the heads to adjust the coverage.

I've allways wondered if in hydro cloneing it would help to add nutirents to the water. Say like a tsp. of cloneing gel mixed right in or maybe some Superthrive. Anythoughts.

Nice post.!!!.. how much is a brand new ez-clone ?? 600??

like your idea with the upside down lid...

I have built a few aero cloners.. never really liked em cause i couldnt use a dome...

with your setup looks like you could lay a piece of plexi over them top and all would be sweet.....

EZ-Clone 60, new, on ebay goes for $280 shipped. The 120's are around $375. I have about 70 bucks into it, probably $100ish for the cost of everything (I had plenty on-hand and saved some bucks.)

I have a 2-gallon sprayer botle in the same room, that I use to mist my mother plant with straight water. I've thought about hitting the clones, but from the time I put them in they have stayed green and robust enough that I feel they are just fine. 4th day on the "tester" cuttings, and still no roots, but the naked eye sees what could be the start of roots. As long as it works within 10 days I will view the operation as successful And if not, I'll have to adjust something in the regimen to make it work.

It has leaked a little from the lid (just occasional drops, no accumulation), but the holes in the handles that I suspected were going to be problematic, are. Had a couple of gallons on the floor this afternoon to mop up, so I shut it down, cleaned it up and retaped it. Whenever my 'test' is complete I am going to caulk the handles so they never get the chance to leak again, and I *may* add weatherstripping to the lid itself in order to make a better seal that doesn't need taped also.

Even with the minor flaws it is still far better than the high-priced alternative.

Well late last night I took a look, and finally saw some rooting begin. Two of the cuttings that were dipped in Olivia's have started to root. One had just a couple of small nubs beginning, but another has a slew of small roots protruding from the base of the stem.

Now, just about 8 hours later-





And an overview of the lot of them. They seem to be doing quite well despite lack of roots on the majority of them.



And here's a shot of mama now. Several days ago I gave her a workout. She had been very tall and dense, but height was becoming an issue- not for the moment, but for the fact she's going to be flowered after the next set of clones come off her, so I needed to stifle her height- so I took all of those vertical branches and bent the shit out of them. Getting quite woody, so they definitely didn't bend easy. It definitely opened her up to probably twice the diameter she was prior, and all of that lower growth is now starting to take off very nicely. She'll make ample cuttings for me in a few weeks.



I have two seedlings going in those waterfarms in front of her. The nearest one is Godbud, the one on the right is Bubblegum. I did not have much luck at all with either set of seeds (gifted from members here) and these are the sole survivors. As soon as they are large enough to get a couple of cuttings each, they too will wind up in the cloner and shortly thereafter off to the flower room. I think I'm going to grow them out regardless; I'd like to collect pollen from them, surely from the Bubblegum, if they are males. I have some White Widow and some AK47 seeds I want to get going as well but space is at a premium right now.

I have an old plastic grease trap from a bakery that I want to cut down and transform into an ebb-n-flow setup that I *hope* will fit in the room next to the cloner. I'd like to try and mother some plants in that too, but I have to go dig it out and measure it to see if it will even fit in there. I may end up having to move my RO reservoir into the flowering room to make floor space in the veg room if all else fails...

nice to see when things come together.clones look great.just out of curiousty,have you had a chance to check the temp of the cloner?that mother might be a monster by the time you finish flowering.
wohlandr