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I went hydro!!

I couldn't help myself... After looking at various hydro post last night I went and bought a single hydro setup. Didn't want anything fancy or over the top, just something that I could learn on and see how well this hydro thing works for me. When it came to picking a plant to plop in there the choice was simple... My double split Douglah seedling! Now it's time to see what this plant is really made of haha. Here are a few pics...

If you Hydro guys have anything to add or tips for me, bring it on! The more the better... Thanks!

-J

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was your setup purty expensive dude??

Depends on your value of money haha. The kit I got came with everything I needed to get started... nutes, buckets, clayballs, pump, hose and such. It was 60 for everything, to me thats a reasonable enough price to pay to play around with hydro.


-J
 
somewhere on this forum, you can see my posts of my homemade system. i used old 3 gallon totes, used yogurt containers and old fish pumps. everything is recycled. and my plants are monsterous.

for nutrient solution, i use a cheap 15-15-30 solution mixed with water. when that runs out, i have a 20-20-20 solution that will use. even my seeds are from my own stock.
 
Yeah hydroton works well.

If the airpump has enough output to drive another airstone and still work the airlift, put a splitter in the hose, and run another hose with a stone down into the bottom bucket to add more aireation to the nute solution.
 
i don't even use hydroton clay as a bag costs, $ 30.00. i use really cheap rock wool that i cut in half, so it goes twice as far. and when i run out of rockwool i going to use cotton balls from the dollar store - that is how cheap i am. the most expensive thing i have in my dwc are the light bulbs. 6500K, 15 watt from walmart, pkg of 4. $ 8.95. cheapest i could find.
 
Quick question... How long and how many cycles should I run the drip? Also how long do I need to run the airstone?

-J
 
So let the drip and airstone run 24/7? I was under the impression that you had to use a cycle for running the drip throughout the day. I had asked the lady at the hydro store and it was suggested I use a 3 x a day drip for about five minutes each... And this is why I like asking questions here haha.


-J
 
I have a unit like that one and I run the pump 24/7.
The blue tube that shows the water level will let enough light in to grow gunk. You can get a piece of black tubing that will slide over it to block the light. Just pull it off to check the water level and put it back on to help keep it clean.
 
Thanks for the heads up on the tube, I'll go buy a black one today. I'll set it up to run an airstone and the drip 24/7 as well. I had plan on doing weekly water changes in a separate bucket then funneling it over using the level tube.

-J
 
somewhere on this forum, you can see my posts of my homemade system. i used old 3 gallon totes, used yogurt containers and old fish pumps. everything is recycled. and my plants are monsterous.

for nutrient solution, i use a cheap 15-15-30 solution mixed with water. when that runs out, i have a 20-20-20 solution that will use. even my seeds are from my own stock.
Do you have the brand of the 15-15-30 solution?
I tried Miracle grow universal fertilizer, dissolves in water, the problem is that it makes lots of bubbles, almost like soap.
 
After upgrading the air pump and adding an airstone to the nute water my plant has now decided to yell "I DONT LIKE THE CHANGE". I moved the system under my grow lights and let the drip run for about 30min and it started to wilt and hang down low. Looks like a pepper that hasn't had anything to drink in days. Im not sure if the shock of being taken out of soil, root washed and tickled and moved over to hydro finally caught up with it or if it was the move to the lights...maybe to soon?

Any suggestions?

-J
 
The plant looks like it is in a black pot inside the square pot. If the roots are contained within that, they may not have access to the nutrient solution as the drip ring is outside of that. What is the purpose of the extra pot?
 
It was easier for me to spread the roots out within the smaller one then putting the balls on top of that. The roots are by no means restricted from getting the water because of it. I found the the issue to be the lights. Once I turned them off the plant perked back up with no issues at all. It's the same lighting it was under when in the solo cup with fox farm. My guess is it's just not ready to get a full dose of light just yet. I'll give it a few days to settle in to it's new setup and then give it some small doses each day until it's ready to go again.

-J
 
It seems to be an issue with getting used to light again. Instead of drooping after 30 min like yeaterday it went for 3 hours before it started this morning. The lights are nothing extreme, four GE plant and aquarium t12s 5 inches from the plant like it has been.

Is it possible the little heat fom the lights is drying up the medium causing the roots to dry?

-J
 
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