DIY Auto Plant Waterer

youmagine

Additional materials required include: one wick (a string, rope, shoe lace or any cloth that can be used as a wick) and a reusable bottle (in my case, an Ocean Spray 1.89 L bottle). Work in progress: Test 1 - if this works as intended, I will reduce the amount of material used in this rough design and make it adaptable to other types of bottles/ containers. Update: after using this system for five days on a 1.89 L bottle of water as of July 5th, 2014, I have not had to water my potted plant. It appears to be working well so far, so I have fine-tuned my design making it hopefully less clunky. If you want to try that new design, you can find it at https://www.youmagine.com/designs/automatic-plant-waterer-2. I've added the .ipt file in case someone wants to do their own tweaking/ modification. Using a wick from the plant to the container of water is an option, but where's the fun in that when you have a 3D printer like the Ultimaker 2? Plus, we can reduce evaporation to the air by using a closed system and not having to re-pot a plant, especially if it's large!