DWC... Nutritents are confusing me HELP!??

[line1260skr]

So I have a DWC and a growbox with all the lights and airflow i need... its just up to feeding the plants.. i dont know if im making this harder than it is but..

Can any give me a better idea of what you have to do for the DWC.. i searched but im strugglin for some reason.. i was thinking
- GH 3 part flora series gro bloom micro
- need ph up and ph down
- probably a ph pen

am i missing anything?

* pretty much when do you put certain nutes in?
* when is the bubbler running? always?

[stinkyattic]

Okay first the bubbler. Yup, it runs always. The goal of any grow system is to effectively deliver water, food, and OXYGEN to the roots. The bubbler is the last bit of that.

Next, you will need some way to test your water for pH and EC. A liquid pH indicator kit is fine if you want to save $$$, but you still want an EC meter. The Truncheon is one that works well and is a good value.

There are some grow logs on here that go through DWC grows, including the problems you will have, very well. Look for threads started by weedhound and xcrispi, for example. Treetops and The Image Reaper also have DWC info posted, as do many other members. There's a thread stickied in 'basic' called 'grow styles submit yours' that you can read through to find DWC style grows. Also, look for a thread by latewood about running the GH nutes in hydro. That has good discussion.

[herbie the love bud]

I'll start with the nutes: I cant say enough of Technaflora's Recipe for Success. They have a $30 intro kit that will get you through a harvest and you decide. It's all 100% DWC compatible. A lot of people like the Advanced lineup. It's good too but much more complex to manage, expensive and the bacteria products are not DWC compatible.

The air stone is important, but the pump is even more. Get the biggest pump you can afford.

I disagree about the EC pen. But the pH one is critical. Follow the nutrient manufacturer's recipe and you'll be good. But pH may fluctuate daily or so, and if it gets out of check your plants will suffer.

[line1260skr]

So I ended up getting Florabloom Floragro and Floramicro.. i also got ph test kit w/ (up and down) and a ec meter... was i supposed to get the supplements they offer like diamond nector and koolbloom?

[stinkyattic]

Supplements are just that- supplements. You CAN use them but don't NEED to. In fact, I believe that you should start out simple, with your base and micro ferts, and only add supps when you gain confidence and know that your plants are healthy. The exception is CalMAg Plus, and if you find that the EC of your tap water starts out VERY low, or if you are running distilled/RO/rain water, you MUST use it.
Practice using your pH test kit and the up/down to adjust a 'dummy' solution of tap water to 6.0. You'll be doing that frequently.