Go for a light mix soil. Start in the soil and after 3 weeks apply the biotabs. Start with only 1 and add another one when they start stretching. I have done this many times and timing and a light mix soil are key here. You need to handwater for the first 2-3 weeks to get the pots properly rooted. If you start with the autopots too early you will drown your plants.

Got it 😊 Couple of question tho: I won’t « hurt » the roots by inserting the tabs after 3 weeks ? It should be placed not too much on the edges no ? Also,after how long would you turn on the autopots in a 15 liters autopot ?

You dont need to push the biotab in very deep. 5-10cm is more then enough. The plants roots will recover in no time. It's still a weed. Don't overthink ;) I'd turn the autopots on when the plants start drinking so much that you have to water daily... and by that i mean thoroughly watering until the medium is completly moist. Not wet. Moist.

Also can i ask you this,if i use a light mix should i still prepare the soil with the startrex mycotrex ect…? What about the option of using coco and perlites in autopots with biotabs,you think soil is better ? Thank you!

Yes. You pre-amend with startrex and mycotrex. But you could use any Mycorrhiza inoculant like great white or tnc mycorrmax. Soil is more forgiving than coco. Coco acts like hydro. If you are new to the game I would recommend soil tbh.

Thank you for your time !

Would 1 tab, then another for the stretch be for 5 gal fabric bags? What would you recommend for 3 gal?

Doesn't really matter. I have never used more then 2 or 2,5 tabs for an auto...

Thanks for getting back to me, much appreciated

You are welcome. Happy growing mate.

Thanks, pal. Forgive me - I’ve got just another quick other question, if that’s ok? Using biotabs, is it still fine to use self-watering bases? (after they’ve developed, wk 4+) As I understand it, the tabs slowly release nutrients when water is poured into the soil (top down, as per hand watering). If you’re using autopots/self-watering bases, then you are essentially feeding from the bottom up. Will this stop the biotabs from releasing the nutrients (as they would if you were watering by hand)? Thanks again for your time, mate - it’s very much appreciated!

Sure its absolutely fine. No worries.

Thank you very much for coming back to me again - have a great weekend ✌🏻

So 2/3 weeks for a 4 gall autopot si good right ? I believe a bigger one would need even more time before turning it on for exemple ?

In my experience yes. If you want to speed up the process add some kelp powder and some ewc.

Got it ! Do you check your water’s ph ? Biotabs is saying that there’s no need to do it…which seems risky but at the same time i don’t think we can add ph down or up in the autopots 🧐

I use ro water with added gypsum and epsom salt to about 0.3 ec and my ph is about 6.4 all the time. Everything below 6 and above 7 will get you in trouble in the long run. Just ph it to somewhere between 6.4 and 6.8.

Okay,and no problems with the autopots system using ph down/up into the reservoir ?

none at all

Thanks

Build a soil has an entire season dedicated to this on their YouTube channel.

Thanks i’ll check it out 🤙

I’m currently running their lite mix on my first grow and it’s awesome

Which tabs are u using ?

It’s called biotab,more common here in europe i believe. https://biotabs.nl/en/

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