DIY Bubble Cloner – Cheap Hydroponic Cloner System for Beginners
What is a cannabis ‘clone’?
When growing cannabis plants there will come a time when you will want to ‘clone’ them. Cloning essentially means making new plants out of the existing plants that you have by taking a cutting from them and allowing this cutting to develop and grow on its own. Cloning works really well when you have healthy plants that you wish to replicate, as these plants will be identical to the original mother plants – hence the use of the word ‘cloning’.
What is a DIY Bubble Cloner?
So, you might be wondering, how do I clone my cannabis plants? This is where the DIY bubble cloner comes in. In order to clone your plants, you need to take a cutting from them and then plant this in a suitable place for it to grow on its own. A bubble cloner is one of the best ways of cultivating your clones once they have been snipped from your plant – creating an optimum environment for your clones to grow in.
It can take from as little as a week to see roots growing from your clones, but it can take up to three weeks. Don’t get despondent – the rooting period can really vary but you can be confident that your clones are in the best possible place inside your bubble cloner.
How do I cut a cannabis clone?
It is simple to take a cutting from your cannabis plant to take a clone, and it is made that much easier with a good pair of sharp cutters to get a clean and smooth cut. Select a tip of the plant where growth is vigorous and select a growth tip that is located nearer the bottom half of your plant (as these cuttings will contain more rooting hormones). Cut the plant just below where there is a new growth top – you want the clone to be around 5-8 inches long and it should be cut at a 45 degree angle. Now you have your clone!
Step by Step Guide for building your own Bubble Cloner
What’s so great about building your own bubble cloner is that most of the items you are likely to already have in your home or are very cheap to get your hands on at the local store.
To make a bubble cloner you will need:
- Plastic container with a lid
- Duct tape for light proofing
- Drill
- Glue gun
- 2 x air stones
- Air line and pump
- Rooting concentrate
Step One: Lightproof your container
Using duct tape or another dark tape, thoroughly cover the box so that no light is able to seep in. This involves wrapping the tape around the box itself and the lid part if this is of a lighter/transparent color.
Step Two: Cut your holes
Depending on how many clones you are going to cultivate, cut out the desired number of holes in the lid of your plastic container. You also need to drill a small hole either in the side or the top of your cloner so that the air hose and pump can be connected to your air stones.
Step Three: Secure your air stones in place
You now need to secure your two air stones to the bottom of your plastic tub (in case you don’t know, air stones are small cheap devices that create dissolved oxygen in a water solution – to put it simply, they create the bubbles you need with the assistance of an air pump). To make sure these stay in place the best thing to do is glue these in place with a glue gun – that will ensure they are not going to float away.
Step Four: Feed your air line through
Now you’re almost there, all there is left to do is to connect the air hose and pump to the air stones so that the whole system can get started. You can do this by feeding the hose through the hole that you created earlier and attach it to the air stones (you can use a tube splitter to connect one hose to two air stones).
Step Five: Add a root solution
It’s a good idea to add a liquid concentrate to your water that is effective at encouraging root growth, with this in place your clones will have more chance at surviving and developing healthily. Both organic and non-organic liquid concentrates are available whatever your preference is.
Step Six: Add your cuttings
Your bubble cloner is now all set – all you need to do is add your cuttings. Some growers like to place rubber plant holders or stoppers into the holes to secure their plants and others prefer rockwool – see what works best for you but both can easily be purchased from your local hardware store or online. Make sure that your cuttings aren’t touching the water solution as the bubbles will enable them to come into the contact with the solution a sufficient amount. Also, it will help the roots to grow faster if they are searching for the water.
If you are looking for a more advanced bubble cloner, and want to take your growing systems to the next level, check out this state of the art DIY bubbler cloner!
Video: DIY Cloning Marijuana Using Bubble Cloner
Another great way of creating a bubble cloner is using polystyrene – check out this innovative DIY bubble cloner:
Video: Homemade Hydroponic Cloner
Conclusion
Creating your own bubble cloner is a great cost-effective way of increasing your cannabis crop. By selecting your best plants to clone from, you can be sure that your new plants will have all the same great features, and with the help of your bubble cloner, you can give these plants a great start in life. Happy cloning!
