DIY Self-Watering Raised Planter Bed (Sub-irrigation system)

hey everyone i am annika from monica's diy life and today we are building this guy and this is not just any planter it is a self-watering planter so it's perfect for if you have a small backyard or a balcony you don't have to worry about running a hose or water supply it is a self-contained sub irrigation system built in so you can fill in water and flask for a few months so it's perfect for people like me who forget to water their plants now before we begin building i am collaborating with my friend angela from angela mariemade to bring you a couple of spring projects angela shares easy beginner-friendly diy and home improvement projects as well so be sure to check out her youtube channel i have a link to that in the description below she is sharing how to build this awesome potting bench so be sure to check that out but first let's get building this self-watering planter the planter body is made using two by six boards and the bottom and the base is made using two by fours and four by fours i have the full cut list and dimensions including step-by-step plans that you can find linked in the description below for the body i cut six short two by six boards and six long two 2x6 boards to build the long side i lined up three of the boards and attached them with a cross support using exterior grade screws i had originally intended to use two by twos but i couldn't find them at my store so i just grabbed a two by three board for [Music] this however i obviously didn't think this through because i really do need two by twos especially for the ends so i took the ones at the ends off and rip them down on my table saw to make two by two boards then i built the short sides by attaching the two by two boards on each of the ends things were starting to get really heavy so i moved everything to where the planter was going to finally live and put it together over there i attached a small side to each end of one long side using exterior grade screws and then i went ahead and attached the last side as you attach the sides you want to make sure that you don't hit any of the screws from the previous steps [Music] now to make the legs they are made using two by fours and four by fours i made pocket holes on each end of the two by four boards using my correct jig and then i attached the two by fours to the four by fours using exterior grade pocket hole screws and exterior grade wood glue it is important to be on a flat surface for this step again the details are in the plants that are linked below with the base built i decided to stain it in a dark black stain before attaching it to the planter [Music] once the base was aligned to the planter i attached it using exterior grade [Music] screws the two by fours are aligned on the outside and there is a lip on the inside which i used to lay the two by fours for the bottom and then i attach them using wood screws [Music] okay at this point the planter is ready if you wanted you could just go ahead and line it with landscape fabric and start planting but we are going to be making it self watering so the first step to that is to use this fond liner and line the inside so we can have a nice watertight seal for the water and the water [Music] i trimmed and attached the pond liner with a staple gun i find it easiest to attach the sides first before dealing with the corner [Music] so remember we are not cutting it at all we're just folding it in so that it is water tight and that's how we are making these corners and then you just staple it in i cut off the excess liner but now that i look back at it i probably should have trimmed it down even more so now the next step is to add this guy this is a corrugated perforated hose it's basically a three and a half inch hose that has perforations in it so we're going to be covering the bottom of this planter with this hose now there are a bunch of tutorials online that use fabric covered versions there are a bunch that use just this i couldn't find a fabric covered version in any of the stores so by default we're going to be using this i will link to a tutorial below um where he uses this and has great experience with it so we're gonna try this out now the first step obviously is to pull this out and open it up and then we're going to cut it to size of the planter cutting the pipe is easy with a utility knife the key is to cut each piece so they fit nice and snug on the inside of the planter to make sure no dirt gets inside them i covered the ends with landscape fabric and duct tape [Music] and then i brought them and laid them out inside my planter and here again you want to cover the entire bottom with the perforated pipe for the inlet i cut a small flap to accommodate the pvc pipe on one corner of the planter i cut the pipe at a slight angle and pushed it in just slightly the fit should be nice and snug around the outside but you don't want to push the pipe all the way in so it touches the bottom on the diagonally opposite end i cut another slot for the outlet which is going to be a three-quarter inch flexible hose i cut a slot in the pond liner and made a hole in the planter itself to push the hose through it [Music] so here's where we are at we've got the inlet right here it is sitting nice and tight in the first one right here and we've got it all covered with the perforated hose and down here we've got the outlet coming out and going out right here i gave the entire planter a few coats of a protective stain i'm using deck stain which seals the wood and withstands the elements it is only on the outside and not in contact with the soil in any way so it is safe now we are ready to fill the planter up we mixed up vermiculite and peat moss in a 2 to 1 ratio and filled the bottom of the planter i made sure that the mixture covered everything it went in between all the pipes and was in contact with all the surfaces and basically it covered the pipes completely [Music] once everything was covered in peat moss and vermiculite mixture we added the potting soil now we did start a few seeds but they aren't ready to be planted just yet but i also bought a tomato plant to plant in there because i just couldn't wait now to fill it with water we filled the inlet with water and it took about five to six minutes for the water to start flowing out through the drain hose in the back there is a leak behind it and i found out that it is from the slit in the pond liner i guess i should have sealed it with duct tape it has been four days since we set this up we've had 80 degree days but when i check the soil under the top layer it is still pretty damp so i think this is working now how long can i go without refilling the reservoir i'm not sure i'm hoping it's a few months i do have a blog post on my website that i will be updating every so often to let you know how things are going with this how often i need to refill how the plants are doing so be sure to check that out i have a link to that in the description below be sure to check out angela's potting bench video if you're looking for more outdoor projects i have this raised tiered garden bed which is also perfect for a small backyard and it can actually be modified to use a self-watering system as well i also have this simple quick easy dining table and an outdoor bar and don't forget to hit that subscribe button so you don't miss out any future videos

Channel: Anika's DIY Life

Views: 274,186

Keywords: raised garden bed, self watering box, self watering garden, self watering garden bed, sub irrigated garden bed, garden box, raised bed, raised bed garden, raised bed gardening, sub-irrigated planter, wicking bed, wicking garden, urban gardening, vegetable gardening, diy self watering planter, diy self watering raised garden bed, diy self watering container gardening, diy self watering, diy self watering planter box, diy self watering system, diy raised garden beds

Id: rB4e91Ab4mU

Length: 11min 23sec (683 seconds)

Published: Fri Apr 02 2021