Stinky's Crash Course in "nOOb Hydro"... Welcome to the Darkside

Well, my issue with flood and drain would be the timing....I don't want to deal with the possible problems and drip and DWC don't deal with the issue (unless you want them to). But for lack of moving parts, ease of checking and adjusting ph etc as Stinky said...it would be the way to go.

stinky quote: I'm setting up another room in my house to run hydro for the winter because I really don't have a good place to store soil that doesn't freeze, and disposing of used dirt in a place that gets SNOWFALL is just ASKING for trouble... :quote

I'v seen some pix of a setup like this one on the web befor.

I am sure that if stinky is doing it than it should work out great.

Oh sheesh I had a long sit-down yesterday with the guy from the shop to talk about possible setups.

My priorities, and the reasoning behind them, are as follows:

-MUST be a re-usable medium- that is why I am SET on hydroton.
The reason is to make this a good setup for an apartment-dweller who can't be disposing of soil, soilless, or rockwool slab every cycle, and doesn't feel like hauling a bale of promix on his bicycle or public transportation, lol!!!

-Should be under $200 for all parts, not including lights and climate control.
This is because I am trying to make this thread a tutorial for someone who already has the dirt experience I recommend for your first couple grows, so already HAS the basic equipment handy.

-Must be very low maintenance and also pretty fool-proof.
I want this to be easy to set-up and maintain for someone who has only limited DIY skills and can't afford a pre-fab hydro kit.

So a second option we discussed was what he calls a 'modular vertical containerized NFT', lol!!!! Or something like that- I was baked off my gourd at the time.

This is a BRILLIANT solution. It's a sort of hybrid NFT/recirculating drip. But rather than dripping, it emits a constant STREAM of highly aerated water over a pot of hydroton pellets.

A system like that has the following advantages over NFT:
-hydroton remains moist for a significant amount of time after pump failure
-hand-watering is possible in emergencies (power outage).
-Cleaning is very simple

And the following advantage, valuable to upper-story apartment dewllers, over flood and drain:
-Volume of reservoir can be much smaller!!!
This is why I am leaning towards this method. I wanted to be able to flood out of 5 gallon pails, but that would have meant multiple pumps on timers set to go on at different times, flooding the trays.
This delivery system's total volume is very small. I am not trying to haul more than 5 gallons of nute solution up my attic stairs, thanks!!!

So when I make up my mind, I'll let y'all know.

Please do because I am LOST.....where is this stream of aererated (sp?) water coming from? There has to be power to a.....(can't spell) right? Now you've got moving parts again......:confused:

The stream of aerated water is run from a res with an airstone, by a pump pushing 1/4" flexible tubing. The pump is a given either way.

I'd also like to add the assumption to set this up- You've already completed at least one soil grow and have lights, ventilation, appropriate mother plants, and basic troubleshooting knowledge already in place.

Ummm....no...I haven't completed a soil grow.....am I out? :(

You were probably born with a green thumb... :weedpoke:

Yeah, if the pump is a given....maybe you said it and I missed it but what kind of timing would the watering schedule be with that?

That would be constant flow actually, like a waterfall.

So the advantage over drip......?