Have some questions about the bed construction

[Leonhart231]

Hi all! I’m looking to do some farming at home and have read a fair amount of the docs about constructing the bed, but had some questions. I’m not 100% sure I’ll buy a FarmBot just yet, but want to keep what I make compatible with it.

If I wanted a longer bed than the non-XL FarmBots support (but keep the same width), would I be able to buy some additional components and then change the bed size in some kind of setting in the software to make it work without much issue?

The bed looks like it has a solid bottom. How does the water drain out? And lastly, is there a recommended kind of wood to use for the construction?

Thanks for any help!

[Marc]

@Leonhart231

I will try to answer your questions one by one.

1.Recomendation on the construction of the garden bed. You should know that the construction of the X-Axis tracks is the most important part of the whole assembly process. Please spend extra time to plan out this stage of the construction. Take time and understand the instructions fully prior to starting the work. Ideally the fixed raised bed needs to be constructed upon a sturdy supporting structure.

We suggest that a composite wood product, or a cedar, redwood, cypress and other naturally rot-resistant woods are likely the best materials to use for the supporting infrastructure. If you do decide to go with pressure treated wood, please ensure that there is a plastic or rubber moisture barrier between your soil and the pressure treated wood to protect against chemical leaching into the soil. Also, you must consider drainage ports to ensure there is no collection of stagnant water in your garden bed.

Important Facts:

-The X-Axis tracks need to be level and as perfectly parallel as possible.

-The FarmBot does not function on a slope.

-Please ensure that the X-Axis tracks are square and aligned, as precisely constructed as possible.

-If there are bumps, jumps or other gaps in your X-Axis tracks it can cause operational issues.

-The transitions from one track to the next on the X-Axis tracks should be smooth to the touch.

2.Software Limitations

Currently the free version of the software has account limitations.

Software Limitations

From a software perspective, our current free FarmBot licenses are only capable of managing 1000 plants (or points) this is approximately the space limitation for a FarmBot Genesis XL. The reason why we put this limitation is because if we allow for any more points, it will bog down the system software and impact the software performance. Please review the current account limitations:

Account Settings

Please note: If you are looking to run a garden with more than 1000 points we can create a commercial farmbot account for you but it will require a paid subscription. Please contact us at CONTACT@FARMBOT.IO to inquire.

Learn more about the benefits of the Fixed Raised Bed Gardening - Joe Lamp’l “Learn the Benefits of Gardening in Raised Beds”

YouTube Video: Learn the Benefits of Gardening in Raised Beds - YouTube

3.You will need to account for appropriate drainage. The video from Joe Lamp’l explains how to properly set up water drainage for a fixed raised bed garden.

Let me know if you need additional assistance.

Marc from FarmBot
www.farm.bot

[Leonhart231]

Thanks for reaching out and all the information! I think I’ve got everything I need now and understand things better.