(Part 2) Top products from r/hydro

Hey, looks interesting. I'll try to weigh in on this.

1. The pH might be ok, but it's a little low. Bell and hot peppers like 6.0-6.5, but 5.8-6.2 is a general rule of thumb that I follow for most veggies.
   
   
2. Your fertilizer is a 4-3-6, meaning it's got more potassium than nitrogen. While this isn't inherently bad, I tend to use something with more nitrogen for the vegetative phase. Again, you could probably use this and see no negative flaws, but a high potassium fertilizer like this is typically better for a fruiting phase. (Not sure how much you know about fertilizers, so just in case, the 4-3-6 are your N-P-K ratios, for Nitrogen-Phosphorus-Potassium). Another option is to use this for all of your fertilization, and just add a 14-0-0 fertilizer for the vegetative phase to really boost vegetative growth. That being said, just follow the instructions on the back of the bottle and you should be tine :).
   
   
3. I typically flood 4 times a day for 15 minute flood periods each, unless I'm planting directly into the system (for plants that don't like transplanting like spinach or cilantro) when I'll flood 8 times a day for 15 each.
   
   
4. Tough to tell what size those are. If they're 6" you're probably ok, especially if you just cut the bottoms out so that the roots can expand further down if they want, and provide some type of support for the fruits and shoots. Some string across the top should do just fine.
   
   
5. What you have looks fine if you cut the bottoms, otherwise, I'd fill them a bit higher, and maybe wick the bottom of the roots at transplant.
   
   
6. You're going to want to drop your light WAY down. At that wattage, that may not be enough for your plants, and if it is, you're going to want it AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE without residual heat burning your plants. You may want to consider another one so you can have two of them covering the entire tank hovering right above, but really, you may want to just invest in a HPS bulb. LED is promising, but realistically the tech isn't quite there yet unless you're willing to shell out boo-koo bucks. If you have the money, I'd probably go more for something like this https://www.amazon.ca/Watt-Hydroponic-Light-Electronic-Ballast/dp/B008RSGPEC/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1497742699&sr=8-7&keywords=hps+grow+light+and+ballast, but at the very least, drop your bulb so that it's as close as possible. As for timing, 12-16 hours a day for vegetative phase, 8-12 hours a day for fruiting phase, but you may want to look into this a bit more.
   
   
7. Ummm...not sure ;). I don't know how well it will retain water, so maybe? I use these for my ebb-and-flood system https://www.amazon.ca/GROW-GMC10L-Horticultural-Pebbles-4mm-16mm/dp/B009LNOZQ2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1497742859&sr=8-1&keywords=clay+pebbles+hydroponic and they work well because they retain water, but you should be fine with the coconut fiber liners as long as the roots can reach them (again, wicking the roots to the coco fiber before transplanting will help with that).
   
   All in all your system looks great! You're probably fine with the fertilizer and pH, maybe just raise the pH a tad, but the light does concern me. If anyone has success with it, especially with a demanding plant like peppers that love light, then please chime in, but at the very least, I'd want two of those to cover the top of your tank and hover right above. If you're using that light for the seedlings and they really start to stretch, you know you need more light. Hope this helped!
   
   

So if I were you I would look into what is referred to as a recirculating DWC, or RDWC. It is pretty much what you are looking for, and is also the cheapest way of doing what you want done (well, there's always a cheaper way, but I think it's still the best).

Basically, imagine you have say five 5gal buckets set up, and you don't' want to do water changes and shit in them individually. What you do is you drill a hole in each one, and connect them all via a 3/4" plastic tubing (black), then you attach the first bucket via the same tube to a single reservoir capable of carrying enough water for all of them (Let's say 25-30 gal reservoir). Basically what happens then is that a pump takes water from the main reservoir and circulates it evenly amongst the buckets. This a) keeps things flowing, and b) means you only have to add nutrients, change water, and cool one reservoir which is much easier than doing 5. Plus, if you get a big enough reservoir, like a 55 gallon drum, you could literally set and forget it for like a month with almost no maintenance (this is what I do). Another thing is you save on airstones because you only have to aerate the central reservoir and it will push that oxygen rich water to each bucket in a continuous loup.

Re: measuring, you should get yourself a TDS pen, and also a pH meter or pH test kit (the kind you would use for a pool or something). Those metrics needs ot be monitored ideally every day, realistically at least once a week if everything is recirculating. I sometimes go over 2 weeks without checking but I wouldn't do that until you are more familiar with hydroponics.

Start with easy stuff like basil etc. A 5 gallon bucket is big enough to grow any vegetable though, like tomatoes etc. Keep in mind that in a recirculating system, plants that flower/fruit must be kept separate from plants that only stay in the vegetative stage, as a tomato requires a different nutrient schedule than say basil or lettuce so they can't all be feeding off the same reservoir.

Let me know if you need clarification on any of those points or would like some links to a RDWC setup.

Here is the TDS pen I use, it's cheap and never breaks: HM TDS-4 Pocket Size TDS Meter

For pH meters, spend between $40-$70 for a good one, the tesk kit where you put the colored drops in like one would use on a pool are good too and are only $20 for like a hundred tests, but they aren't as acurate as you probably want. Hope that helps.

Here's the link again to my first album after initial setup for reference: http://imgur.com/a/fvzkZ

1. I used round PVC mainly due to availability, price, and associated parts. I saw a design that allowed for the adjustment of the water level within the pipes by rotating the end collar on the round PVC and I liked that approach. There are way to accomplish this with a flat channel system also, but I found this method acceptable. As far as my research has shown, a "proper" NFT system does use flat bottoms (as seen in pretty much all commercial operations), but the round PVC approach is very common for hobbyists like myself. I can't comment on very detailed reasoning for the true "film" technique on the bottom of flat pipes vs round. It appears to me though that people get plenty of good results out of both setups, so I personally wouldn't (and didn't) get too hung up on it.
   
   
2. In the linked gallery above, the 5th image (this one: http://i.imgur.com/KSkFZEc.jpg) you can get a decent look at how the water is sent to the pipes. Most pumps vary, but I basically used a piece of flex tube to connect from the pump output to an adapter into the ball valve, then from there pieced together with various connecting parts, a threaded riser pipe used in irrigation, and then three of these: Riser Adapter. There are probably a million different ways, this is just what I came up with and it's working fine without leaks (plumber's tape.. use it).
   
   
3. I spaced my holes 6". This seems to be a commonly recommended spacing for leafy greens. I staggered the outer pipes (with 8 holes each) 6" from the inner pipe (has 7 holes) to maintain this spacing. Yes, more space will be better for larger plants, but I don't ever plan to use this setup for anything but various lettuces primarily, and some other leafy greens. Seems like most people grow larger plants that may require more spacing in different systems completely though, like DWC buckets, dutch buckets, etc.
   
   Hope this helps. I spent many hours on and off for a year researching before pulling the trigger on this system. In case you are wondering, here's the light I bought: Light It seems to be working very well so far with good output (~20,000 lumens) for 216 watts.

Lighting/Electric

1 - Apollo 180W LED Grow Light This thing is painfully bright, even when you're not looking at the light itself. Without a grow tent to block the light I wouldn't be able to share my office with this light when it was on. Previously I've had issues with the grow tent and HPS/MH lighting, since over heating quickly became an issue. I tried some solutions involving air ducting and vent fans, but these didn't really help a lot. These LEDs fortunately put out almost no heat, so I don't really need to ventilate in the tent.

2 - TaoTronics 25*3w LED Grow Light (They don't seem to sell it on Amazon any more). Sort of painful too, but not as bad as the other one. Tent or some sort of light-blocking device is recommended if you share a room with your greenhouse.

3 - EnviroGro 2 ft T5 Flourescent These things are awesome. Great value for the money and everything seems to thrive under them.

4 - 8 Outlet Programmable Power Strip Highly recommended! Way better than those timer ones.

5 - Hydrofarm 2 Outlet Air Pump which actually has splitters on the lines coming out of each outlet, so the pump is providing air to all four homemade units.

Hydro Units

A - 1 gallon bucket DWC currently growing brussels sprouts. No actual sprouts yet, but it seems to love the LED lighting. Slightly concerned about the space its trying to take up.

B - 1 gallon bucket DWC currently growing bell peppers. Peppers have just started blossoming earlier in the week and I've been vigorously vibrating the tree each morning to pollinate them. Got a few small peppers starting to come in already. Slightly concerned by how lopsided the plant is growing, but otherwise it seems to be thriving.

C - DWC I made from a tupperware container. Just planted some cilantro in there earlier. For some reason all of the Cilantro I've gotten previously has failed to germinate. This time around I put out about 30 cilantro seeds on a paper towel and waited until I saw some starting to sprout before planting. So far so good.

D - 2 site DWC unit I made from a storage bin. Just planted two additional basil there this morning since I am using much more than 2 plant's worth. Been making quite a bit of pesto lately.

E- 3 site Aerogarden currenly growing curly leaf parlsey. I took off the light that comes with the plant, since the T5s have a way higher output.

F - 7 site Aerogarden currently growing two basil plants and one oregano. Same as the three site aerogarden, I just use this for the base. This one can hold 7 plants, but I fine that having so many means they crowd eachother like crazy.

Tent

Mylar grow tent

1. Cay is clay, I have not seen anything to suggest otherwise. I buy from a local hydro shop because he matches amazons price. Leca is the brand, but Hydrocorn from Gold is good too.
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Leca-Clay-Orchid-Hydroponic-Media/dp/B004IAP7JW/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=undefined&sr=8-1&keywords=hydroton
   
   
2. The air pump I have had the most success with is a Tetra Whisper. It sits outside all day, every day, for a year now, and it seems fine.
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Tetra-77848-Whisper-Pump-40-Gallon/dp/B004PB8SMM/ref=sr_sp-btf_title_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1409410615&sr=8-6&keywords=aquarium+air+pump
   
   
3. Low quality plastics might give off some particulates, but that shouldn't hurt your plants
   
   Best of luck!
   

Looks great, good work. If you want to speed up growth, buy a small aquarium air pump, and a cheap airstone. They have a lot of combo's on amazon for under $15.

I too started because of Jeb, humorously enough and now I have 5 foot tall plants in my man cave. Grow for the stars.

The marine should hold (assuming it bonds to the plastics properly). Marine resins can take 7 days to fully cure. It's worth noting that there are some pretty extreme carcinogens in marine rated resins.

I'm not sure what hardware stores have in way of hydro-friendly gaskets, but you might be better off just buying the General Hydroponics Waterfarm kit. It's only $12 and you can pretty much guarantee it'll work if you drill the right hole size and just hook it up to new tubing of the same size (take tubing to a Home Depot, they should have tubing of the right size). If you decide at a later date you want a drip rig, you're already part way there.

For my small nursery/seed starting I use little tubs like that and give air with a 10 gallon airpump. I think they're $9-12 at amazon. Get a good airstone - not those little round ones the diameter of a penny - but get one that is 2-3" around. They're cheap. You cannot circulate too much air.

With a later than few-gallon container, you'll want a water pump to move the water around. You can just get a small aquarium pump and not hook up an output line, turn it sideways, and it will do the job fine.
I use these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002JPGID2/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You can get similar (prob made by the same china shop) at Harbor Freight for $15 sometimes or even less with a coupon.

Cant comment on compost tea other than it smells like poo and I wouldnt want that in my basement where I grow stuff :-)

MaxiBloom is the easiest and I believe cheapest bet. Breakdown of cost: 2.2lb=997gms, 7gm per gl=142gl solution. $14.54/142=.10gl. And follow the Lucas Formula. Big Thanks! To MrMajors for pointing it out to me :)

I somehow missed this thread when it was fresh, but I have this pump and it's been great for me, definitely moves enough air for at least two, 4gal systems.

I run T5's and love them because they are cool and dont pull too much energy. I have a 6 lamp 4 foot T5 HO and it does well for everything I have tried to grow so far.
LIKE THIS

Thanks! That's exactly the kind of information I was looking for.

What about an LED bulb that would fit into a clamp light, like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/TaoTronics-Miracle-Hydropoics-Greenhouse-Organic/dp/B00GNWK2XO/ref=sr_1_1?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1462306812&sr=1-1&keywords=led+grow+bulb&refinements=p_72%3A2661618011

I figure if the purple light is driving us crazy, we could always swap it out for a CFL and not be down too much money.

Thanks again!

Not a liquid, but I have used this:
http://www.amazon.com/Lettuce-Greens-Herbs-Hydroponic-Nutrients/dp/B00MSW5LQQ

It is very easy. You just mix each bag with water to make a concentrated liquid as soon as you receive it. Then you use it like any other liquid fertilizer.


Ive had Great Results and it is cheaper than any liquid fertilizer out there.

Hi. As far as nutrients go, I am unsure of the PPM. I have great luck with this product and just follow the instructions.

http://www.amazon.com/Lettuce-Greens-Herbs-Hydroponic-Nutrients/dp/B00MSW5LQQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462802642&sr=8-1&keywords=hydroponic+lettuce+nutrients

I'm using 4ft, 8 bulb, T5 fluorescent lights. I keep them 16 inches from the channels.
http://www.amazon.com/Hydro-Crunch-FLUORESCENT-LIGHT-SYSTEM/dp/B0099989Y2/ref=pd_sim_86_3?ie=UTF8&dpID=41iL%2B2K9rEL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0WS9V2ESNRTMSGM2BG24

I keep the pH between 6.0 and 6.2, and the plants (holes in the top of the channels) are 8.5" apart.

You can find pretty cheap pumps on amazon that will work. In Zipgrow towers they generally have 2GPH drippers in them.

​

https://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-Active-AAPW250-Submersible-Water/dp/B002JPGID2/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=active+aqua&qid=1550686698&s=gateway&sr=8-1

​

The 550 should give you a total of 7.2 Ft of head pressure and give you a bit of extra flow for adding towers

​

Cheers

Good info! Do you think this is comparable to what you've got?
5630 LED Tape on Amazon

So, everyone thinks the color "grow" lights are just gimmick and won't produce better results than these pure "daylight" LEDs? Just a final confirmation before I order.

Thank you again for your feedback!!

This is a complet waterfarm kit, just need a res and grow chamber It's not very expensive but good stuff still.

Yeah, I need a fixture like this for another setup I've got so I think I'll see if I can take it apart to do what I want for the other system.

I am currently in the process of building one of these OpenAg Food Computers and this item is not on the list that I purchased. I do have some white LED adhesive strips off amazon, which it looks right now that they will be for illumination of the computer side of the unit. Inside the growth chamber we have two Erligpowht 45W LED: https://www.amazon.com/Erligpowht-Indoor-Garden-Plant-Hanging/dp/B00S2DPYQM/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1443799150&sr=8-2-fkmr2&keywords=grow+led+panel+erwl

These will be the main source of lighting growing the plants. The white LEDs are only for visual appeal, which I'm assuming would be the same for those LEDs by GE.

Got it, thanks. Currently I am using General Hydroponics Flora Grow, Bloom, Micro (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I4U0NYK). On their site they have a suggestion for starting, growing, and fruiting (https://genhydro.squarespace.com/nutrient-questions a 2 micro - 3 grow - 1 bloom ratio for vegetative), then adding that till the PPM get to where it states it should be from this site I reference in this post (https://www.reddit.com/r/hydro/comments/6m3mt5/where_to_find_the_proper_ppm_and_and_ph_for/?ref=share&ref_source=link).

I bought the two below (the first results for pH meter and PPM meter respectively). They are well reviewed and have worked great for me.

https://smile.amazon.com/Jellas-Household-Hydroponics-Aquariums-Resolution/dp/B00YBUH4RC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1491933088&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=ph+meter&psc=1

https://smile.amazon.com/HM-Digital-Measurement-Resolution-Accuracy/dp/B0002T6L5M/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1491933118&sr=8-3&keywords=ppm+meter

If you need EC instead of PPM I can't help you, but you can convert between the two I believe.

I'll probably just grab this guy, since he seems pretty cheap: https://amzn.com/B006M6MTMI

new question: given that the sprinkler/drip design would give some oxygenation of the water, do you think I could skip getting an air pump/bubbler?

Somethin' like this?

https://www.amazon.com/LEDMO-Flexible-Daylight-Waterproof-brightness/dp/B01339G2F6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486245183&sr=8-1&keywords=led+6500+k+strip

"normal" hydroponics has higher yields due to higher oxygenation of water. If that is your goal by a cheap air pump. This one would do the trick quite well for your bucket.

Might be able to find something cheaper at a local aquarium store. Aim for 4-5 LPM min.

I have a recirculating deep water culture setup that is very similar. Instead of running larger return lines, I have my pump on a mechanical timer that turns on for a few minutes about 10 times a day. Enough flow to keep fresh water in the bucket, but slow enough to avoid a water backup.

Also. Use a water manifold like this to distribute water to the buckets:
Orbit 67000 8 Port Adj Flow Manifold https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H9AI9C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Na9GDbHAAHMP2

My ecoair is supposed to push 253 GPH and I wouldn't even consider for a second moving to actually using all 4 ports. That GH pump says 320 GPH. Not sure if that step up is going to be enough. Then again I'm not entirely sure the ecoair is actually putting out 253 GPH....

Any experiences with this Pump

I think that GPH looks a lot better, but reliability is a whole nother issue.

I have this LED grow light on the pepper plant only. Seeing the price now I might buy more as it's less than half of what I paid originally.

x get a few of these?

http://www.amazon.com/TaoTronics%C2%AE-Lights-Plants-Greenhouse-TT-GL20/dp/B00GNWK2XO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410664858&sr=8-1&keywords=led+grow+light

Check out the graph in the last picture.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006M6MTMI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Z12HxbMYVKCSE

Makes use of a few of my 3D print designs:

• 88x https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2474497
  
• 16x https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2555658
  
• 16x ABS Female service-ends
  
• 8x 4" ABS pipes
  
• 1x Rain Bird T22-250 Drip Irrigation 1/4" Blank Distribution Tubing
  https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B0049PJMYC
  
• 1x DripMaster Apollo 8 Manifold https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B000H9AI9C
  
• 5/8 Garden Hose
  
• White Paint

Here's a link to my last post.

That fancy LED grow light failed after two days, so I replaced it with a 5000K CFL that I had laying around. Maybe not ideal but it gets the job done.

Also, I added sheets of aluminum foil for two purposes: to reduce evaporation and to reflect more light to the plants.

The tallest plant is maybe six inches; the shortest (a habanero pepper) is only two.

So when I got home yesterday the big one from this video was droopy and looked very thirsty. I'm not sure why since the root ball is over 50% submerged in the nutrient solution. I added a little more plain water but now I worried. Could it be that the nutrient concentration was changed from "Aggressive Growth" to "Transition to Bloom"?

The nutrients are from the General Hydroponics line of liquid fertilizers. Just following the concentration charts on the label.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HEYCRI8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I use this to grow lettuce in a 4ft x 14 inch area, the same size as its shade. I imagine I could grow in a larger area with minimal loss but that would be too much lettuce so I haven't tried. I use 2 lights for about the first half of its life then I turn on all 4 lights. 16 hours a day.

Doesn't get any easier or cheaper than this for beginners.

For lettuce:
https://www.amazon.com/General-Hydroponics-MaxiGro-Gardening-2-2-Pound/dp/B00NQANQAC/ref=sr_1_25?srs=3029221011&ie=UTF8&qid=1498793863&sr=8-25

For tomatoes:
https://www.amazon.com/General-Hydroponics-MaxiBloom-Gardening-2-2-Pound/dp/B00NXVZQUW/ref=pd_bxgy_86_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00NXVZQUW&pd_rd_r=N34HAQYTWQ06PBVKJ5Q6&pd_rd_w=AjPTO&pd_rd_wg=pRXDh&psc=1&refRID=N34HAQYTWQ06PBVKJ5Q6

If hydro does not work out for you, you can still use these products for regular gardening.

It's a 3 gallon tub from home depot with mint cuttings. 4 are in net pots suspended at water lever with Styrofoam. The two in the center at just side attempts.

But it's that one LED bulb providing enough light for the plants?

This is the bulb I got (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013OMDSIQ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_D6Kmxb6YKTPC8)

anyone else using, or thought about using, those LED light strips like this? http://www.amazon.com/LEDwholesalers-Controller-2034RGB-3315-3215/dp/B0040FJ27S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375383479&sr=8-1&keywords=led+stripe

I got one as a gift and have been wondering if I can use it to supplement my current lighting(HPS150 on one rig and 6xCFL 60's with 2x 4"tubes on the other). thought it might be actually to use this thing for something other than mood lighting in my mancave. I was thinking about using it to wrap around the lower section but didn't know if that would be a complete waste or not