DWC or Drip system
- Thread starter Fox-26
- Start date
A DWC bucket only costs a couple of bucks. A bucket with lid and an airstone. Throw one together, run it and see what you think. If you don't like or can't handle a single, you'll know to avoid a system.
ntrader1121
Member
I use waterfarms, they're drip and they're easy as hell to use
the dripping action of the water allows it to absorb air also
you can add another pump and airstones to the drip systems and make a combo drip/dwc
the dripping action of the water allows it to absorb air also
you can add another pump and airstones to the drip systems and make a combo drip/dwc
My airpump has yet to fail but, I lasted an 11 hour blackout with no ill effect. Course, I'm in a single tub. No idea about recirculating systems.humble1 said:
Drip coco can go almost a week in beds, less in containers depending on size.
Drip soil is similar, but longer.
Airpumps do fail from time to time. Rarely is not never.
Don't get me wrong, I love DWC and started indoors in a rubbermaid with SSH.
It's very forgiving for a true hydroponic setup.
Drip soil is similar, but longer.
Airpumps do fail from time to time. Rarely is not never.
Don't get me wrong, I love DWC and started indoors in a rubbermaid with SSH.
It's very forgiving for a true hydroponic setup.
Every system has it's weakness. You have drippers and pumps subject to leaks and shutdown. How long can your coco last if the water stops dripping? I can last 6 weeks.
Been waiting 52 years for that to happen.
george j warner
Member
ive used drip systems for 10 years with some amazing results, thing about drip is is freaking quiet so if stealth is an issue ...your on to a winner. DWC systems are about the same price if you build the drip and DWC system yourself which i do.
DWC is noisey as you have an air pump sounding like a fridge 24/7 the bigger the system the bigger the pump the more the noise ... drip systems are the same low sound level what ever the size.
if all conditions are the same for both systems the DWC will out perform the drip and you can supercharge your dwc system if you want to ...drip is always the same. ie ... the main idea for building a DWC system is giving 150Ltr's (minimum) of air to 1 20Ltr bucket every hour through 1 air stone, the more air infusion the faster the growth and larger the yeild......atm i have a large dwc system in 1 32Ltr bucket with 6 air stones and 4200 Ltr's of air an hour. SUPERCHARGED! in the growing environment there will be 1500ppm co2, canna nutes and a 400 watt MH for veg and a 600 watt digital HPS for flowering , the plant will be 5ft ..... i know i will get better results than a drip system but i still prefer drip.
you can way up the pros and cons all day if you want. the real question you should ask yourself is ....What works best for me? answer that and you can never go wrong.
i do no that DWC is best for growing mother plants as you can get lots of shoots very quickly for cloning , i also have a 18 x 11ltr DIY drip system which i adore far more than the DWC.
DWC PROS.................
1) FASTER GROWTH PATTERNS
2) LARGER YEILDS
3) SMALL SPACE NEEDED AS THE TANK IS THE SYSTEM
4) CHEAP AND FAST TO MAKE YOURSELF
DWC CONS................
1) NOISEY
2) ALWAYS ON AND ALWAYS USING ELECTRICITY
3) HARD TO MANAGE CF AND PH IN 1 BUCKET (excluding recircluating dwc with top up/inspection tank )
4) LESS PLANTS PER METER SQUARED THAN DRIP
5) IF AIR PUMP FAILS ,DISEASED & ROTTING ROOTS RESULTING IN K.I.A.
(if drip system pump fails you notice as the plants wilt abit but can always bring them back)
6) THE ROOTS CAN GROW INTO THE AIRSTONES RESULTING IN BLOCKAGES
7) HARD TO REMOVE PLANTS FROM THE GROW AREA.
8) IF THERE IS A POWER CUT WATER CAN MOVE UP THE AIR LINE TO THE PUMP RESULTING IN "AIR PUMP-K.I.A"
9) EMPTYING THE TANK FOR FLUSHING AND NUTE CHANGE CAN BE DIFFICULT
DRIP SYSTEM PROS....
1) SILENT
2) EASY TO REMOVE PLANTS FROM THE GROW AREA
3) THEY WORK AND ARE RELIABLE AS THE PUMP ISNT ON ALL THE TIME
4) EASY TO MANAGE CF AND PH IN THE TANK
5) THE PLANTS ARE STERDY WITH NO CHANCE OF FALLING OVER
6) GREAT YEILDING IF MADE PROPERLY
7) ABLE TO PACK IN PLANTS (MORE IN METER SQUARED)
8) QUICK FOR MOVING PLANTS AROUNG THE GROW SPACE WITHOUT GETTING AIR LINES CROSSED
DRIP SYSTEM CONS....
1) THE DRIP TRAY IS THE SIZE OF YOUR SYSTEM ..FOR MAKING IT BIGGER OR SMALLER ...DIFFICULTIES WILL OCCUR
2) SALT BUILD UP ON THE DRIPPERS (limescale treatment works)
3) IF ROOTS GROW OUT THE BOTTOM OR THE POTS ROT CAN OCCUR
4) EVERYTIME YOU HARVEST WASHING THE GROW MEDIUM IS NESSISARY (i have 18 x 11Ltr pots holding 180Ltrs of clay balls all together... you have to wash out the old roots from the clay balls )
5) THE MORE POTS THE MORE COMPLICATED THE FEEDER LINES (HOSES)
THERE YOU HAVE IT .....
you can decide for yourself.... what works for you?
oh yer here are some drip bud pics as a reward for reading all the info
white rhino
great white shark
the 18
hope this helps
laterz
DWC is noisey as you have an air pump sounding like a fridge 24/7 the bigger the system the bigger the pump the more the noise ... drip systems are the same low sound level what ever the size.
if all conditions are the same for both systems the DWC will out perform the drip and you can supercharge your dwc system if you want to ...drip is always the same. ie ... the main idea for building a DWC system is giving 150Ltr's (minimum) of air to 1 20Ltr bucket every hour through 1 air stone, the more air infusion the faster the growth and larger the yeild......atm i have a large dwc system in 1 32Ltr bucket with 6 air stones and 4200 Ltr's of air an hour. SUPERCHARGED! in the growing environment there will be 1500ppm co2, canna nutes and a 400 watt MH for veg and a 600 watt digital HPS for flowering , the plant will be 5ft ..... i know i will get better results than a drip system but i still prefer drip.
you can way up the pros and cons all day if you want. the real question you should ask yourself is ....What works best for me? answer that and you can never go wrong.
i do no that DWC is best for growing mother plants as you can get lots of shoots very quickly for cloning , i also have a 18 x 11ltr DIY drip system which i adore far more than the DWC.
DWC PROS.................
1) FASTER GROWTH PATTERNS
2) LARGER YEILDS
3) SMALL SPACE NEEDED AS THE TANK IS THE SYSTEM
4) CHEAP AND FAST TO MAKE YOURSELF
DWC CONS................
1) NOISEY
2) ALWAYS ON AND ALWAYS USING ELECTRICITY
3) HARD TO MANAGE CF AND PH IN 1 BUCKET (excluding recircluating dwc with top up/inspection tank )
4) LESS PLANTS PER METER SQUARED THAN DRIP
5) IF AIR PUMP FAILS ,DISEASED & ROTTING ROOTS RESULTING IN K.I.A.
(if drip system pump fails you notice as the plants wilt abit but can always bring them back)
6) THE ROOTS CAN GROW INTO THE AIRSTONES RESULTING IN BLOCKAGES
7) HARD TO REMOVE PLANTS FROM THE GROW AREA.
8) IF THERE IS A POWER CUT WATER CAN MOVE UP THE AIR LINE TO THE PUMP RESULTING IN "AIR PUMP-K.I.A"
9) EMPTYING THE TANK FOR FLUSHING AND NUTE CHANGE CAN BE DIFFICULT
DRIP SYSTEM PROS....
1) SILENT
2) EASY TO REMOVE PLANTS FROM THE GROW AREA
3) THEY WORK AND ARE RELIABLE AS THE PUMP ISNT ON ALL THE TIME
4) EASY TO MANAGE CF AND PH IN THE TANK
5) THE PLANTS ARE STERDY WITH NO CHANCE OF FALLING OVER
6) GREAT YEILDING IF MADE PROPERLY
7) ABLE TO PACK IN PLANTS (MORE IN METER SQUARED)
8) QUICK FOR MOVING PLANTS AROUNG THE GROW SPACE WITHOUT GETTING AIR LINES CROSSED
DRIP SYSTEM CONS....
1) THE DRIP TRAY IS THE SIZE OF YOUR SYSTEM ..FOR MAKING IT BIGGER OR SMALLER ...DIFFICULTIES WILL OCCUR
2) SALT BUILD UP ON THE DRIPPERS (limescale treatment works)
3) IF ROOTS GROW OUT THE BOTTOM OR THE POTS ROT CAN OCCUR
4) EVERYTIME YOU HARVEST WASHING THE GROW MEDIUM IS NESSISARY (i have 18 x 11Ltr pots holding 180Ltrs of clay balls all together... you have to wash out the old roots from the clay balls )
5) THE MORE POTS THE MORE COMPLICATED THE FEEDER LINES (HOSES)
THERE YOU HAVE IT .....
you can decide for yourself.... what works for you?
oh yer here are some drip bud pics as a reward for reading all the info
white rhino
great white shark
the 18
hope this helps
laterz
08-29-2008 08:55 PM
humble1 If your pumps fail how long before your plants die?
What? It's an innocent question....
DWC is fairly simple, though......
I have no idea how to get the quotes in the green box, it's really starting to piss me off. I have searched the help forum, used the search function and checked the faq's with no luck... Mabie someone here can kindly share how it's done?
To answer your question, I have had a power strip issue that left my air pumps off for about 24 hours with little to no ill effects(a little wilting starting to happen)... I would not advise it but as long as the water is super saturated while the pumps are on and ambient temps are in check, dwc can be surprisingly forgiving in these types of situations (in my experience).
I think it is funny that in almost every comparison thread someone uses the argument "if the power goes out, dwc plants will die." This argument dosn't hold a lot of weight since most hydro growers are indoors under artificial lighting. Sure a dwc plant may start to show overwatering (lack of oxygen) signs after some hours with no air pump, but plants in other more forgiving mediums will also be hurting with no lights, climate controlls, etc.
I am not a die hard dwc fan as I currently grow run to waste coco, but I do have some experience with them. My point is to not let a potential power outage stop you from trying dwc. As long as your ambient temps are good and you have decent water, it's worth a shot and is not as tricky as some make it out to be (imo). Some of the best yeilds I have gotten have been from a stand alone 30 gal rubbermaid tub scrog with two plants per tub. People who have that many power outages should consider investing in some sort of back-up power system instead of changing media types, or better yet grow outside where there is no such thing as a power outage.
humble1 If your pumps fail how long before your plants die?
What? It's an innocent question....
DWC is fairly simple, though......
I have no idea how to get the quotes in the green box, it's really starting to piss me off. I have searched the help forum, used the search function and checked the faq's with no luck... Mabie someone here can kindly share how it's done?
To answer your question, I have had a power strip issue that left my air pumps off for about 24 hours with little to no ill effects(a little wilting starting to happen)... I would not advise it but as long as the water is super saturated while the pumps are on and ambient temps are in check, dwc can be surprisingly forgiving in these types of situations (in my experience).
I think it is funny that in almost every comparison thread someone uses the argument "if the power goes out, dwc plants will die." This argument dosn't hold a lot of weight since most hydro growers are indoors under artificial lighting. Sure a dwc plant may start to show overwatering (lack of oxygen) signs after some hours with no air pump, but plants in other more forgiving mediums will also be hurting with no lights, climate controlls, etc.
I am not a die hard dwc fan as I currently grow run to waste coco, but I do have some experience with them. My point is to not let a potential power outage stop you from trying dwc. As long as your ambient temps are good and you have decent water, it's worth a shot and is not as tricky as some make it out to be (imo). Some of the best yeilds I have gotten have been from a stand alone 30 gal rubbermaid tub scrog with two plants per tub. People who have that many power outages should consider investing in some sort of back-up power system instead of changing media types, or better yet grow outside where there is no such thing as a power outage.
bongo said:
Push the QUOTE button at the bottom of the post you wish to quote.
stevewinthrop
Member
changing nutrient solution in a big tank is easy if you 1) put a drain valve on the bottom of the res or 2) get a small 200gph pump and pump the res dry.
And you have neither of those, a 10 foot section of hose can syphon off a dwc in no time, haha.
I like DWC because it was extremely forgiving as far as nutrients and pH, extremely easy (do nothing except top the res off). And the growth is soooo much quicker and easier than doing coco bags, or really anything... haha... I had one problem with my DWC's, which was I never changed the res water, and got a toxic buildup of P and K, leading to a late-flowering hermie... that's it! I never changed the res water at all, just topped off and put in half the prescribed amount of nutrients on the BC nutes bottle.
I mean, they say a paraplegic rhino could grow a massive bud in DWC, and they aren't kidding.
and by "they say" i mean "i say".
It really is the easiest way to grow.
BTW, a water pump will go bad faster than an air pump. no matter how well you take care of it. Then again, you can buy a rebuild kit for most water pumps, not so for most air pumps.
-- steve
And you have neither of those, a 10 foot section of hose can syphon off a dwc in no time, haha.
I like DWC because it was extremely forgiving as far as nutrients and pH, extremely easy (do nothing except top the res off). And the growth is soooo much quicker and easier than doing coco bags, or really anything... haha... I had one problem with my DWC's, which was I never changed the res water, and got a toxic buildup of P and K, leading to a late-flowering hermie... that's it! I never changed the res water at all, just topped off and put in half the prescribed amount of nutrients on the BC nutes bottle.
I mean, they say a paraplegic rhino could grow a massive bud in DWC, and they aren't kidding.
and by "they say" i mean "i say".
It really is the easiest way to grow.
BTW, a water pump will go bad faster than an air pump. no matter how well you take care of it. Then again, you can buy a rebuild kit for most water pumps, not so for most air pumps.
-- steve
MHHSP
Member
Do you think I could get by changing the res once after two weeks of veg (starting with rooted clones) and then again once every 2 weeks for flower?
Seems like an advantage to have a clean(er) res. I'm also using organic hydro products, which may change things.
Thanks for the advise Steve.
Seems like an advantage to have a clean(er) res. I'm also using organic hydro products, which may change things.
Thanks for the advise Steve.
stevewinthrop
Member
Definately you can change every 2 weeks, no problem with that.
With organic hydro, your pH is going to fluctuate a bit, but that's a good thing.
Have fun!
With organic hydro, your pH is going to fluctuate a bit, but that's a good thing.
Have fun!
Oscuridad
Member
Just be careful... organics in a standalone DWC can result in quite a mess in your rez as the sediment-based nutes settle on the bottom over time.
Typically in a big rubbermaid DWC, you'll see the rootmass collecting on the bottom as well, so if you aren't careful you'll end up with pH flux in the solution & erratic hotspots that could end up frying your roots.
Took about a year of fussing around before we finally just switched from PBP nutes to the GH lineup.
Typically in a big rubbermaid DWC, you'll see the rootmass collecting on the bottom as well, so if you aren't careful you'll end up with pH flux in the solution & erratic hotspots that could end up frying your roots.
Took about a year of fussing around before we finally just switched from PBP nutes to the GH lineup.
Freezerboy- THANK YOU!! I could not figure that out for the life of me, kept looking on the reply to page...
I just use a cheap siphon pump I got from harbor freight cause I only have two or three tubs to change out at the most so it's not too much of a big deal for my scale.
oscuridad- I also have found that the gh 3 part as a standalone is has given me my best results with the least amount of hassle. I like that it's easy and clean.
I just use a cheap siphon pump I got from harbor freight cause I only have two or three tubs to change out at the most so it's not too much of a big deal for my scale.
oscuridad- I also have found that the gh 3 part as a standalone is has given me my best results with the least amount of hassle. I like that it's easy and clean.
if you want to do more then 1 quote its easy to type the code as wellFreezerBoy said:
]quote=name[ text ]/quote[
^[][] are backwards^ so you can see and it dont "quote" it lol
name said:
bingo said:
its allso in the reply page on the same bar as B I U its the 2nd from the end u click it and paste what ever you want into the line
i myself like drip.... i had to many probs with DWC i run 100% perlite in my drip system ( for mom's i do 25% super soil 75% perlite ) and can go 2-3 days if pump/power go's out (5-7 for moms mix)..... if it cant be fix in 2-3 days dumb ass should not be growing
and i can allways hand water if need be with dwc no power there's no o2 and never seen a plant do good with lack of o2 GH water farms (drip/dwc mixxed) do good and you get best of both worlds... i run perlite in them as well......... i hate hydroton
but have growen good plants in it... but never again
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