hydro pros and cons

I personally grew for years in soil....I switched to hydro a few months ago, and I'll never grow on a large scale with soil again. Soil grows are said to taste better, but hydro grows are said to be stronger and you get a bit more from harvest.

...all in all, I like growing hydro better because liquid is easier to get rid of then dirt. Good luck.

 

Hydro pros-

+cleaner (no disposing of dirt, just water)
+easier to maintain (depending on your setup)
+shorter veg times
+bigger harvests (depending on your skill)
+easier to understand because you can test the solution directly instead of trying to measure run-off in a soil application. Soil is somewhat like a blindfold....

Cons-
-you gotta build a good setup to grow well in hydro with less maintenance so $$$
-you need to have a chosen method of growing and understand what you are doing with regards to EC/TDS, topping off, etc. A poor plan usually leeds to bad things happening in your grow.
-noise (pumps and such)
-some people just have bad luck with hydro...

 

My advice: Don't do hydroponics for your first grow. There's enough to learn about growing the plant itself, recognizing deficiencies, temp and humidity problems, etc. Using hydroponics means you'll be working with raw nutrients, bacteria, and more hardware.

Cons
1. Increased learning curve.
a. Nutrient solutions.
b. Bacteria.
c. Different problems with roots and plants vs. soil grows. Ex: Root rot is more common.
2. Hardware
a. You will have leaks, and whoever says it doesn't happen is a liar.
b. Most hydro setups are custom-made, which means you'll be dealing with repairs and maintenance frequently. With soil, you don't do nearly as much work.

Pros
1. Yield is maximized with skill.
2. Veg and flowering times are reduced significantly. You'll see 2-3week veg cycles on some speed crops, which would take you 6-7 weeks+ in soil.
3. Purity.
a. When you're making medicinal quality bud, it's beneficial to utilize a controlled solution. Although very few things can be controlled entirely, think of the microbes and nutrient deposits in soil when compared to an aerated hydroponic nutrient solution. Totally different levels of control.
4. Correcting nutrient levels.
a. Since soil mixes tend to store nutrients and microbes, flushing is common if something gets screwy. In hydro, you simply test your solution and modify it directly in your reservoir. It's a double edge sword though, because this also means you can kill your plants faster.

 

Nice reply. I agree with most. I have never done a soil grow though. My first was a hydro grow, and a mostly inexperienced one at that. It was 16 yrs ago. I did very well up to the point where I ran out of knowledge which was knowing when to chop, and I knew nothing of curing. So in the end, it was a sub par grow, but the hydro part went smooth for me. But I hear what you are saying.

The other statement I disagree with is the part about leaks. If you buy the right container, you will not leak. I looked at every rubbermaid type container at Home Depot, Lowes, Walmart, Kmart, and Target. And I finally settled on a Rubbermaid Roughneck 18 gallon res.

Guess what, I leaked. BUT, it was my fault. I bought a bottling spigot from a beer/wine making store, and installed it in the bottom of my res to make draining easier. Well, yes, that leaked. But had I not done that, (I have since replaced the res with another roughneck, with no spigot installed), there is no way this container will leak. Without disaster such as something puncturing it, on its on, its way too solid a build to leak. I do see how most of the rubbermaid like containers will leak. You look at the bottom of the container and you can see how its not solid, how pieces are glued there on the weak spots of the molds. Well, all those words are just meant to say that you can avoid leaks in a DIY Hydro build by getting the right container. Peace.

 

I think ALL growers should do soil first, it teaches you a ton about the plants enviornmental responces, most of the breeding in the world is done in soil to keep the plant from becoming too adaptive to the water growing. after a few generations of hydro grows the plants WILL change and in a lot of cases become to finicky. If I do a fem seed grow indoors I love my aero unit but for repeated breeding grows I will bounce back and fourth from soil to areo to keep them in line.

 

Cons
1. Increased learning curve.
a. Nutrient solutions.
b. Bacteria.
c. Different problems with roots and plants vs. soil grows. Ex: Root rot is more common.

to me this would go under "pros". I like the learning aspects of it all

2. Hardware
a. You will have leaks, and whoever says it doesn't happen is a liar.

Liar here

b. Most hydro setups are custom-made, which means you'll be dealing with repairs and maintenance frequently. With soil, you don't do nearly as much work.

Complete opposite. With hydro, I built it once and let it go,...with soil, I have to BUY and CARRY 27 gallons of soil up to the third floor and also have to figure out how to GET RID OF the 27 that just came out of the closet (I harvest 4 plants every 4 weeks)

This makes hydro BEYOND easier and maybe 2/3 less work,...that combined with not having to water any more...... .

Pros
1. Yield is maximized with skill.
2. Veg and flowering times are reduced significantly. You'll see 2-3week veg cycles on some speed crops, which would take you 6-7 weeks+ in soil.
3. Purity.
a. When you're making medicinal quality bud, it's beneficial to utilize a controlled solution. Although very few things can be controlled entirely, think of the microbes and nutrient deposits in soil when compared to an aerated hydroponic nutrient solution. Totally different levels of control.
4. Correcting nutrient levels.
a. Since soil mixes tend to store nutrients and microbes, flushing is common if something gets screwy. In hydro, you simply test your solution and modify it directly in your reservoir. It's a double edge sword though, because this also means you can kill your plants faster.

5. Ease of flushing
6. Kind of goes with 1 but ,...being able to dial in the amount of feed according to what they are eating
7. LESS SMELL!!!
8. Doesn't, come with bugs!!
9. Topping off instead of watering, much easier

 

Love this post... can we sticky it and lock it please?

 

I swear I don't think there really is anything easier about trying to gorw in soil. People say you need to grow in soil to learn about dificiencies etc, but I say learn to grow in hydro in the first place and you can grow without EVER having dificiencies. The great thing about hydro is being able to test the solution directly, see how much the plants are consuming, adjust the solution, and see results almost immediately. No waiting a week and hoping you did the right thing. I really think growing in soil is like growing in the dark. The only time I really think soil is easier is if you really are just not concerned and you are just gonna throw some water and MG on it every couple of days. If that's all you are willing to do then soil is the way to go. That and the supposed flavor difference for some people I guess.

@LBH - I totally forgot about the advantage of hydro not coming with bugs like some soils do. Shit that is critical.

BTW I guess I am a liar too, I have never had anything leak. Maybe some people need to improve their building skills, or may I recommend ebb-n-flo fittings..........

 

Budslingers recirc buckets

 

The idea is that you're reducing the variables involved in the op. When you're learning, you might not have a clue what auxin hormones are, or what levels of NPK/etc you'll need to fix a given deficiency. Add in lights, temp, air flow, CO2, PH, EC, and whatever else you want to add onto that list. One false measurement, and you kill your plant with excess nitrogen.

With soil, you could buy a few pots, an HPS, fans, $20 fertilizer and actually come out with decent crop. Less variables allows you more time to focus on specific aspects of the plant, instead of considering 10 times the variables in the same time span.

Maybe you guys are more lucky than me, but when I started building my first hydro setup with a buddy of mine we had a few leaks. Nothing major, but I still think it's something to keep in mind when you build it. But, if you have to haul huge amounts of soil up stairs....yeah I'd do hydro.

 

I tell you what I swear by the ebb-n-flo fittings those things are the shit and they never leak.

 

You are correct sir, it is definitely something to keep in mind. But the comment that if you say you don't get leaks your a liar was just a bit strong. Its definitely doable without leaks, if, like you said, you keep it in mind.

 

A friend of mine got kicked out of his apartment for an eighteen gallon leak from a DWC. It ruined everything on the floor in his place and the ceiling down stairs. I think large volume hydro is good in an insulated garage or outside when the weather permits but that's why I like my Aerogarden.

 

This is all good information. I needed this because I have a decision to make.

I have grown hydro for a couple of years with no problems with anything. I had 2 initial leaks but it was because I relied on the rubber gasket that I used for fittings. I took some epoxy to the seal of all of my fittings and haven't had leak 1. My very first run in bubble buckets had a slight case of root rot but some h2o2 cleared that up and I use frozen gallons jugs to keep res temps cool and i haven't had that problem since.

I have since then upgraded my system twice. once to a RDWC/Bubble Buckets
and recently have built a larger version of the bubble bucket with a 18gal roughneck rubbermaid container. with a SCROG screen built onto the lid that will be also RDWC for 2 plants.

about 6 months ago I was presented with a way to get 3 strains, I helped a friend out etc etc and got the 3 clones (lsd,brainwreck,lemon skunk) I decided i wanted to make them mothers but didn't want them to grow like crazy like all my plants have done in the dwc. My ex grow partner suggested putting them in smaller pots with soil. At the time I was game because I have done really well with hydro and i wanted to try soil. Everything with the soil has gone well but It has brought bugs to my happy garden. Thrips to be exact. I was already debating making a RWC system on a small scale to limit the size of the plant. I have seen a RWC made from 3" plumbing pipe. I plan to do something similar to that .

I found that soil takes more work. with more chances of making mistakes IMO
also after years of hydro, remembering to water the plants and having to check run off and etc etc.. I am Dr.HydroThumb for a reason.

 

From a 3rd grow newb: I switched to cool my plants down a bit and use my space better.

Soil can't be used more than once: That is a lot of dirt every few months and looks odd in November diggin through the lowes leftovers and taking dirt outside to throw in the yard.

Roots don't get bound in the tiny containers i had to use. the 12" airstone lets them be free range chickens.

I can't possibly OVERWATER or Underwater: I can see the level of the water at all times.
PH Tester is my friend.

And Forums..

IF you cut no holes in your tub you should have not leaks. the only holes i have are in the lid.
The Megagarden next to my tubs sits idle for now, but has the potential to leak due to the fitting on the side to show the water level. (a cool gadget that has bad potential)

 

If your growing out doors then soil but for indoors hydro is the way to go. If you love all the work of using soil but want hydro get some coco medium. It comes bug free.