How simple can hydro be?

[xaraph]

I just moved and am in the process of setting up my DR80 again to grow after about a year-and-a-half hiatus. I bought a 400watt CMH and I'm pumped to work on my green thumb again.

In the past I've always grown soil. I liked soil because I could make it as simple as I wanted and still grow great bud that got me high and impressed my friends. My first grow involved some Mandela Satori seeds, a few bags of Miracle Grow and my backyard. I used no additional ferts aside from the MG, but I did water regularly. The results were great.

Since then I've refined my ways a bit, done one indoor grow under CFL's and managed to trick my brain into making things more complicated without any significant increase in quality over that original outdoor grow.

I'm hoping to change that with the 400 watter and possibly a Waterfarm hydro setup. But after reading through some of the water and nutrient threads, I'm simply astounded at the scale of information versus what you see in the soil forums. I'm not sure if I'm ready for hydro! And if there's one thing I've learned about growing weed, it's the old boy scout motto "Be Prepared."

So my question is, can I get away with just using the nutrient guidelines for GH's FloraNova Bloom and doing normal PH adjustments in my Waterfarm? Or do I absolutely need to get into measuring TDS and all that?

 

[1quixotix]

Do a search for Hempys.
Easiest hydro set-up by far and great results.
Running with 1 tent, I'd suggest 4, 2 gallon white paint buckets from HomeDepot.
Pearlite then Coco ontop, not mixed together.
FloraNova bloom is a good stand alone, but you will get better flavor and smell with Pure Blend Pro.
I used grow and soil bloom along with cal/mg+ and silica blast.
Its way easy to get stellar results with such a simple system.
The differences between Hempys and more advanced hydro approaches are not that far apart, once you have your grow dialed in.

 

[Aerohead]

I see it a different way, soil is very hard for me, my plants are not as healthy.. I think it's because hydro is very reactive meaning if you make a change, you see it immediately. In soil, I was always chasing my tail, make a change and wait 24-48 hours to see it.

The other thing is once you experience hydro done right, you are moved forever and simply don't have the time for dirt, it's too slow..

 

[Maj.Cottonmouth]

I see it a different way, soil is very hard for me, my plants are not as healthy.. I think it's because hydro is very reactive meaning if you make a change, you see it immediately. In soil, I was always chasing my tail, make a change and wait 24-48 hours to see it.

The other thing is once you experience hydro done right, you are moved forever and simply don't have the time for dirt, it's too slow..

Here is thread about using just one fert at the same measurement all they way through.

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=191645

 

[StealthDragon]

I agree with Aerohead 100% I find hydro way easier than soil. I was very intimidated to try it at first.

I started a friend out in "stinkbud singles" type aeroponic/dwc units and he's doing great with just plain lucas formula straight through (8/16 micro/bloom)

I think another great simple hydro set up is just a 5 gallon bucket with some air stones using lucas formula. I've never run a water farm myself but I've heard of people having issues with them due to the slow flow rate and needing to modify them a little. I always recommend against buying any prebuilt hydro stuff though cuz it's so much cheaper and easier to build your own. It's also great to build things yourself so that if they fail you know how to fix them.

 

[geopolitical]

Pretty damn simple. I don't even bother checking pH or changing nutes on short term crops anymore. This is from a plant growing in stagnant non-circulating nutrient, it will live out it's whole life on the same amount it started with as a seedling. Zero maintenance, literally fill & forget.

 

[Scrogerman]

Measuring equipment gives you total control over the plants needs, but imo you can get away with just a PH meter 'yes. Im sure you'll find plenty of reference's to amounts(mls per litre/tbsp's per gal etc) so you should get away with it. However, if you want to really learn about Hydroponics & understand exact plant requirements, you'll need an EC meter too imo.
You can get away without both but i wouldnt recommend it. Ive had my last NZH truncheon for, for soo long ive forgot(8+ years) only battery changes are required, it has served me well, i will be buying another.

Hydro is very simple & easy to manage if you understand the basics. Soil 'can be' much more difficult to master, its all in the mix.

 

[Saran]

Invest in the most powerful HID lamp your space will allow, I prefer MH .

I like ebb & flo with rockwool and keep the feeding simple MaxiBloom per Lucas 7g/gal is my favorite, half strength the first 2 weeks maybe a week or two into flowering a couple a teaspoons of Epsom salt .

I like to check the pH often and keep it around 5.8 I also like to monitor my rez with a TDS meter .

Ya can go simpler or more complex just depends on how much work your up for, fer the next few months .

 

[supaleeb]

Pretty damn simple. I don't even bother checking pH or changing nutes on short term crops anymore. This is from a plant growing in stagnant non-circulating nutrient, it will live out it's whole life on the same amount it started with as a seedling. Zero maintenance, literally fill & forget.

Is that from a healthy plant? Those roots honestly look kinda gross!

 

[GuerrillaRed]

DWCs are retardedly simple. I actually use them for the specific fact that they're the lazy man's way to grow. Once you get your room set-up, literally all you have to do is re-fill the reservoirs once every few days. I don't even measure PH or anything anymore. And the concept is simple, all you need is a lightproof container (I prefer 5 gallon air coolers) an air pump, some GH Micro and Bloom, a net pot and you're in business. I honestly couldn't imagine using anything else.

 

[geopolitical]

Is that from a healthy plant? Those roots honestly look kinda gross!

Yup, very healthy & heavily productive plant. The roots are very lovely happy & white. Just bits of algae & peat stuck in there. No rot, no funky smells, clear solution. The roots will get a bit green by the end of a cycle but I haven't had a single issue from it so I quit keeping them dark, too much trouble. The only plants we run "active" hydro for these days are long term ones. Anything over 60-90 days we'll tend to run in a circulating system, there are limits to what you can do with a one way system.

 

[xaraph]

Pretty damn simple. I don't even bother checking pH or changing nutes on short term crops anymore. This is from a plant growing in stagnant non-circulating nutrient, it will live out it's whole life on the same amount it started with as a seedling. Zero maintenance, literally fill & forget.

That is nuts! But it tells me exactly what I need. Thanks everyone else for the links and advice. I may do a DIY DWC setup over the Waterfarm. I know that eventually I'll complicate things more, but it's good to know that starting out I'll be OK keeping it simple.

 

[Scrogerman]

2-4 plant totes in 60-100litre Res can be pretty easy & trouble free in that case, plenty of room to throw in a few frozen water bottles if your not going RDWC, only ever had res temp issues in Mid Summer, rest of the year its not a problem. Unlike Buckets the smaller Res can cause probs in the root zone, but even the buckets are pretty hassle free ime.
Best of luck

Mad pick of that Green Algae, luvs light the old green algae pretty harmless unlike other types. infact i dont think it can bloom without light, not 100% on that though! Looks like something out of a river bed.

 

[guineatrippin]

I agree with all the above hydroheads, when I managed to screw up 4-5 plants in soil I said 'f*ck it' and bought an aquafarm (similiar to waterfarms in the US). Never been happier. Have managed to get almost 1 g/w harvests and it's sooo much easier to maintain. I've converted a few of my friends by helping them make DWC's and almost all of my friends now grow in hydro.

Faster, easier, bigger.

Just to add, growing in hydro may first seem a bit harder, but it's just because you can MAKE it harder, with not much improvement to the harvest, but hey, some of us like to nerd up their grows

 

[Haps]

OK, first, you should have a ph pen for hydro, it is important and will help you succeed.

Geo, damn man, I respect you, but not the mess you posted here. That algea is one of the nastyess roots I have ever seen a picture of, cause I have never seen that green mess in real life. You are old enough to know just because you can get away with something, is no reason to teach others your worst practices. And that shit is lame, plain and simple.

Growers, hydro needs air to be healthy. What you see above is not healthy, it is the wrong way to grow, and terribly unkind to the plant. Weed will grow in a turd too, but it don't taste very good.
H

 

[PuReKnOwLeDgE]

Just learn the proper ways, practice them, and before you know it it is not so intimidating and you can do it in your sleep. Hydro is easy, if you know what you are doing. I maintain my RDWC system every 48-72 hours, with a one part nutrient, is that simple enough for you?

 

[stihgnobevoli]

im doing dwc in a small container, maybe 4 gallons max cap. ive changed the res 1 time cuz the first 2 weeks i didnt bother to check the ph and when i got defeciencies i had to change the res and start over. 3 weeks later everything is going well. too well actually one plant got so big it took over the whole cab. all it took was, a container, some netpots, a lights, and an air pump and some gh micro and bloom (lucas). i eventually got some ph down too cuz in the winter time the ph of the water here is high 8. i just check the water level every few days and add back more. when i get to 3 gallons im gonna mix up some more nutes at the proper ratio for 3 gallons of water and mix it in next time i need to add back water. so far its way easier than people lead you to believe hydro is.

 

[Bonavendura]

DWc is simple but you must have ec , ph meter
Rdwc is easier for a lot of Buckets .
Hempy's is bullet proff give a watering twice a week and forget.

 

[echo_chamber]

Soil was easy? Man share your secrets.. I'd go back to soil from Hydro if it was not so difficult..

Hydro is a no brainer as long as you have your PH straight and your timers are setup properly.

 

[Govinda]

Lucas formula, floranova grow all the way through, deep water cultivation in a shared reservoir, not individual buckets (bigger reservoir=more stable ph and water levels). Hydroton & lots of bubbles. Win!