Hydroponic Planter/Grower - GreenGrowBox Nicole V2

Features and specification:

• Size: 460 x 196 x 360(to 620)mm
• Power: 40W (depending on the LED bulb power)
• Capacity: 4 pcs plants
• The roots are constantly accessing water through the water reservoir
• Automatic lighting schedule
• Set the timer via in-built smart switch
• Silent operation
• Telescopic height adjustment of the lamps, for optimal distance between lamps and plant.

The purpose of this Growbox is to grow small to medium size plants in coconut fibre as a growing medium.

What you can grow, just as an example:
- Basil
- Wheat-grass
- Coriander
- Mustard
- Sunflower
- Radish
- Rocketsalad
- Green pea
- Cress
- Any kinds of salad
- Dwarf tomato
- Dwarf chili
- Strawberries

Assembly:
The assembly of the unit is straight forward. Please refer to the uploaded photos.

Please use only GU10 LED bulbs as they will not generate too much heat to damage the printed electronics case on the top. Max temperature with 7,5W LED bulbs is 36°C on the case itself. Even PLA is a good choice for every component. If you intend to use higher power bulbs, it is recommended to use PETG or ABS for both the electronics case and the electronics cover.

How to prepare the GrowBox for the first plants:

• Pair the Blitzwolf switch module with your wifi network, install the app on your smartphone
• Fill the water tank with 2 liters of fresh tap water
• As coconut fibre has the ideal pH value of 5,8, you dont need to adjust the water pH level.
• Optionally add some fertilizer to the water. It is not needed if you plan to grow microgreens. For salad or bigger plants it is recommended to use a nutrient solution made for coconut growing medium (tips below in the shopping list section)
• Prepare the coco fibre brick by submerging it into water. The amount of water depends on the size of the brick, please refer to the sellers recommendation. To fill the 6 pots, you will need 100-120g of dry coco fibre brick.
• In each pot, put a rockwool cube (like Grodan 25/40) into the foreseen place on the holder. These will prevent that the coco substrate is washed into the water and will help to suck up the last drops of water in the reservoir.
• Fill the prepared coco substrate into the printed pots. Press it down only gently, roots need oxygen as well for optimal growth.
• Disperse the seeds on the top of the coco fibre. For microgreens you will need an almost dense layer of seeds on the top of the coco substrate. Press the seeds slightly down with your hands so they have a good contact with the coco substrate.
• For bigger seeds like peas, sunflower, keep some coco substrate to cover the seeds with a 5mm layer.
• Use a water sprayer to wet the seeds.
• In case you want to grow full-size plants for the leaves, like basil or salad, you should only put maximum 5-6 pcs of seeds into the coco-soil. Otherwise the plants will be only fighting for room to sprout. If you see, that the pot begins to be too crowded, just remove the smallest plants, so the bigger ones have more room to grow.
• Turn on the lights and let the timer switch on and off the lights. Plants need a stable day-night cycle to stay healthy.
• The coco fibre will suck up the water and evaporate it quickly, check the level regularly to have a constant water supplement to the roots.

Your shopping list: you will get it with the part files. There is nothing special, you could not buy in your baumarkt or on amazon.

Safety hints:
If you are not experienced in electrical wiring, please ask a competent electrician for help. Electricity is hazardous.

Take extra care if you are mixing the water with the nutrient solutions. Always close the bottles securely and store them in a safe place, where children cannot reach them.

Printing instructions:
- To be able to print the base part, you will need a minimum printer bed size of 440 x 440mm
- All parts are support-free prints

My tips to make watertight prints:
- Increase the flow rate (extrusion multiplier) by 5-10%
- Ironing can be used (print settings → infill)
- Use a higher infill overlap
- Increase the nozzle temperature by 10°C
- Lower printing speeds, 30-50mm/s is a good choice
- Use 0,6mm nozzle (with 0,6mm nozzle settings, of course)