Hydroponic Guidance Needed! Which is better?

[rhizome]

The 15 minute timers are ok, but you really want a cyclestat. They are more money, but you have infinite control overy the duration of watering as well as the frequency. (about $140). You want abou 7 minute frequency and 1 minute duration (depending), and you can't come close to doing anything like that with the cheaper timers included in those set-ups.

Those parameters would be very difficult to acheive in an ebb-n-flo of any size. Certainly mine take much longer to flood, and much longer to drain. I think that the flow rate required to fully flood several hunded liters of hydroton in sixty seconds would be injurious to the plants. That's a timing schedule that I normally associate w/ aero.

I greatly prefer electromechanical for this application- the cyclestat is overkill, and less reliable. For timer based CO2- they're great.

You won't need a float if you get a good timer.

The floats are a failsafe. You don't need them until the timer screws up- ie system is pumping in, is at high level, power blinks, resets cyclestat, cyclestat begins pump in cycle, system pumps out all over the floor.

Saying you don't need the floats w/ a cyclestat is like saying that you don't need a seatbelt if you have high-end brake pads. Ya don't- until something goes wrong.

Oh- you'd need two cyclestats synced@180 degrees, or some fancy delayed action relays. Two pumps- one fill, one drain.

[GDS StonerBoy]

Wow rhizome your the man! I'm really glad i decided to ask about this before i bought it! It seems as if you've had experiences with both of these systems, if so which one gave you the better yield?! Anyway thanks alot i think i'll be going with the waterfarms because its easy shipping and i like that fact that you said they were more forgiving.

Thank for your help everyone

[swisha]

i would plop the buckets on a shelf and let gravity to the work and just drain back into the res. then drip feed the buckets.

[rhizome]

i would plop the buckets on a shelf and let gravity to the work and just drain back into the res. then drip feed the buckets.

The advantage that these systems share is minimal height- in order to gravity return, the bottom of the grow container must be lower than the top of the res- bucket+res is gonna be an easy 24" vertical, which is more valuable to some than others.

I gravity return whenever possible, as it's idiot-proof- and I have been that idiot. But if it's not practical, these are a fine way to go.