my first water farm

redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
i went to my local hydroponic shop and bought everything to build 2 water farm buckets. i do need more hydroton tho, and another air pump. i soaked 1 lph and 1 cbb seed last night. they were both at the bottom of the soda caps this morning. i'll be putting the seeds in starter plugs later today. do i soak the starter plugs in 5.8 ph water first and for how long? i have my water farm going 24/0 for now with phed down to 5.7. i'll check it later to see if ph raised at all. what ph should i add ph down at? how often should i change my res water?
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D

disposition84

Well-Known Member
One thing I did to my waterfarm that saved so much time and effort was to
install a T at the bottom of the bucket instead of an L. The T will still give
you the ability to monitor the level, while also giving you an outlet that will
utilize gravity for draining. Simply put a ball valve on the downward portion
of the T and whenever you want to drain just let her rip. I had to elevate my
buckets a little bit, but once I did every week I'd just put a smaller 2 gallon
bucket under the outlet, and nute change outs/adjustments were super easy.

This method works good for the individual method, but for multiple buckets I'd
definitely just convert it to a recirculating system for ease.
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
if i like the water farm over soil, i'm going to build 4 more water farms for my closet. i was planing on using the level tube for the drain tube also, just by spinning it around to bottom. how long should i soak the starter plug for? how often on res changes? i just put the plug into the hydroton when roots start coming out of it right? run air pump 24/7 or on a timer?
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
i didnt mean to post it in general growing. sorry i'm high. i ment to post it here where it should have been.
 
Little Tommy

Little Tommy

Well-Known Member
Those starter plugs become super saturated very quickly - 5 mins. tops. I am no fan of the rock wool either. Plugs are the way to go for this system. You just have to be sure to keep them moist until the root mass establishes in the hydroton as it will dry out faster than rock wool (a good thing)..
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
Remember your cannot pre rinse that hydroton enough either. Rinse, rinse and rinse some more. When you think it is well rinsed. Repeat the preceding rinse, rinse, rinse. It will save you a assload of hassle when it comes to a stable ph once you start growing.
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
thank you i will only soak for 5 min. should i just put the plug right into the hydroton with the air pump running 24/7?
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
cowboylogic said:
Remember your cannot pre rinse that hydroton enough either. Rinse, rinse and rinse some more. When you think it is well rinsed. Repeat the preceding rinse, rinse, rinse. It will save you a assload of hassle when it comes to a stable ph once you start growing.
Click to expand...
thank you. the lady at the hydro shop said 10 seconds should be good lol. i ran water over the hydroton for like 1-2 minutes after if was running clear just to make sure.
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
redrum83420 said:
tds meter came in today. the ppm is 480 after the ph adjustment.
Click to expand...
Cool. Ok, get the PPM reading of your source water, log it. Then add your nutes. I think you said you are using GH 3 part, so add the micro first always, then the grow and bloom. Get a new PPM reading after adding nutes until you attain the strenght you are looking for, subtracting the source PPM. Then adjust ph, this way you know what you are feeding without your ph adjuster confusing your readings. To get even more precise, take a reading after adding each part. You can really tune what you feed your plants. Good notes are key.
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
i need to buy nutes for hydro. i have botanicare for my soil grow. the ppm reading was a couple hours after i adjusted the ph down to 5.8. and my water has been ran threw a water filter hooked to the faucet. i need a new filter its been used here and there for about 3 months. i use it mostly for water for my coffee, and my plants. if there is any more info you need let me know. i'll give you what i can as fast as i can. i hope this works out good, and i dont kill my plants.
 
cowboylogic

cowboylogic

Well-Known Member
Which products do you have? Most all of Bonts can be used in either hydro or soil. CNS17 Grow and Bloom along with Ripe is as easy as it gets. Solid results.
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
ok kool thank you for the link. only the grow says for hydro and soil. will update as often as something happens. so start my water farm wil 50% nutes when i put the starter plug in it or no nutes at first? run air pump 24/7?
 
K21701

K21701

Active Member
I go no nutes for about the first 2 weeks and then start with 1/4 strength and go up from there..better to under nute than over nute!!!!
 
redrum83420

redrum83420

Well-Known Member
2 weeks from putting in the water farm? what is the short name for it is it dwc or something so i dont have to type water farm every time lol.
 
K21701

K21701

Active Member
Yes DWC....2 weeks from sprouting I go with no nutes....just water with ph of 5.5-5.8....Hardest thing with dwc is keeping water temps down. Warm water=slimy roots
 
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