Self-Draining Saucers to Evacuate the Run-off

The plants should be watered until run-off at each fertigation – and they cannot sit in that water! There are several solutions for eliminating run-off water. Many growers move their plants around to water them, however, plants don’t like to be moved and this becomes impractical. Other growers use shop vacs to suck up the run-off from each saucer, but this quickly becomes a tremendous hassle. Growing cannabis indoors should be a fun challenge, not a tedious chore. Self-draining saucers are the best way to remove run-off water.

Self-draining saucers are great if hand-watering: No moving plants, no hauling around noisy shop-vacs, simple – easy. If you are using an automatic watering system, then these saucers can become a key part of your automatic drainage system. Self-draining saucers are better than flood tables or other solutions that allow the water to stay exposed. Water exposed in a flood table or other catchment raises relative humidity and increases the risk of pathogens. The self-draining saucers move the water quickly through a tube to help maintain a clean grow area.

Build Your Own Self-Draining Saucers

These DIY Self-draining saucers take only a little effort to build, and that effort pays off in spades during the grow. I have used the same set of self-draining saucers pictured here for over two years now, and I can no longer imagine growing without them. When it comes to run-off water, I have nothing to do, nothing to clean, and nothing to worry about.

I use two saucers with 2x4s between them to elevate. This raises the top saucer 3.5”, which is all that is needed to properly drain. I attach drain lines which use gravity to drain all my saucers into one common catchment.

If you are hand-watering, the drain lines can run into a saucer which you can empty manually. If you are using an auto-watering system, the catchment should be large enough to hold the run-off from several fertigation events. I designed an “Auto-pumping drain bucket” which serves as my catchment. It receives the water from the saucers and automatically pumps it out into a separate bucket that sits outside my tent.

Self-Draining Saucers Supplies

• Purchased Locally:
  • A 2x4 cut into 8” sections (need three sections per finished saucer)
  • Wood Screws 1.5” to 2” in length