I was watching "Waiting..." I saw the part where T-dog and Nick talking about a hydro, I saw its pretty easy to make one at home for about 50 bucks, what are the advantages of using hydro besides not having to water your plants? Since I am doing a pc box grow soon, I was thinking about making a small hydro with one of those plastic fish carriers you can get at walmart for a few dollars. , would this be a good idea?
Advantages are typically faster growth, disadvantages are more expensive to operate and maintain. ph meters, ppm meters, pumps, tubing, hoses etc etc.. And i always felt i used more nutes up in hydro vs. soil.
For me, the advantage of faster growth is far outweighed by the chances that something will go terribly wrong. When you make a mistake in hydro, it can fuck up your grow in less than a day. Soil is so much more forgiving in that way. I have grown both ways and I always end up coming back to soil. It's not because I am lazy or inatentive, I just know that one little fuck up can mean starting over from scratch. And to me, it's just not worth it. The faster growth isn't that spectacular. That being said, I think anyone with a few grows under their belt should give hydro a shot. If for nothing else then to see what they have been missing or reaffirm their faith in soil.
thanks, just wanted to see what the difference was, my main thought was that it seems a bit cleaner, and you dont have to worry about spider mites as much.
Spider mites is not brought on due to soil...its brought on by unclean growing spaces, and lack of control of growing space. I have grown in soil/hydro and I still use both mediums for different reasons. I grow out my plants in a passive hydro system and keep my mothers and seedlings in soil until I pick a mother. Just find the style that fits you, if you go with hydro...thats cool, just remember problems arise in grows. Its how you respond and learn from them that matters. Im sure not everyone that used hydro the first time worked out so great, I know my first time was trial and error(alittle heavy on the error, but heh gotta learn) now I have found a style that suites me and supplies me with my personal at all times.
I think I'm gonna give hydro a chance, I just think that for the sake of space for healthy root growth, I believe that a square tank will fit better than a round flower pot.
i beleve hydri is FASTER, but only in IDEAL conditions....so unless you got lots of time and money hydro polly isn't much faster and like mad4reef said you can wreck a grow real quick with a hydro stet-up.....
well good luck on the grow...but remember like Mr tangent is right hydro does cost more to set up and maintain, so if on a budget this is something to consider. You will need certain things that you may not "have to have" in a soil grow. Do research on what you choose and then do some more to know the basics before starting. I would agree with most when they say soil is a better choice for new growers, like stated earlier soil gives you a chance to fix it...when it goes bad in hydro, it goes fast.
I'm a new grower and just started with hydro. It is a bit tedious at times when u may run into problems, but what I found was if you previously experiment with ph and fertilizer before u start your grow ; seeing the fluctuations in the reservoir you can better judge nute uptake and ph swings. After that u can adjust accordingly and leave it alone for 3-4 days w/ no problems. The only thing that cost me was my light and the 30 gal res the bubblewands, nutes, ph up/down, net pots, ect.. were under 80 bucks. The reason some people grow hydro is the prefer the pure weed tast compared to an earthier taste mixed in with the bud.
I saw a side by side analysis of hydro vs soil on overgrow a few years ago. Plants do grow faster in hydroponics if you know what you're doing. I grow in soil though.
I grew in soil for a long time before going with hydro. My soil setup only cost me about $500 total, including lighting. If you've never grown weed indoors before, I'd definitely recommend getting the basics down pat with soil, that way you'll have some cushion for screw ups. It's inevitable, everyone messes up in some way on their first 1 or 2 grows. Everyone above is right, the tiniest mess up in hydro can be fatal to your whole crop. I've been growing hydro for quite some time now. My total investment into hydro is roughly about 5 grand. But it's well worth it....For me. I love to grow...and with hydro your always busy, your more involved with your plants. You have to be on a daily basis. Twice a day I check my Ph and everyday I have to adjust it. The equipment just to get started can get quite costly. To have a good working hydro setup you need the right equipment. Like a PH/TDS/EC meter. I paid almost $200 for my Milwaukee. I went with a portable one mostly because I have 4 resevoirs I have to check on a daily basis. You need pumps, hosing, aerators, timers, all kinds of stuff you wouldn't necessarily need for a soil grow. Basically the difference between hydro and soil is the fact that your growing without dirt. You have to make your own nutrient solution and you have to change it every week. Salt deposits get built up after every watering, and your electrical conductivity fluctuates. Which is why you have change your nutrient every week. Week to week you up your nutrient ppm content. You might start at a 1000 ppm's during bloom and at week 3,4, and 5 you might be peaking at about 1600 ppm's,. What makes hydro grow faster is the fact that more oxygen gets to the roots, and it gets a fresh batch of nutrient on a schedule. In soil, roots have to wait until the soil drys until it gets oxygen and it has fight through inconsistent fertilizers that sometimes doesn't get to all the roots due to the fact it's growing in dirt. Hydro plants get that oxygen almost immediately after every watering. Plus in hydro roots grow much, much stronger and healthier. The best way I can explain why hydro is better than soil is. It's like your giving your plants their food intraveniosly. They get their food instantly 3-4 times a day. As far as the smoke go's. The effect of hydro vs. soil is almost identical IMO. But the taste is smoother, not as harsh. and the aroma lasts a long time. Hydor bud for some reason (I don't why) is much stickier, it's like the THC is crystalized on the bud. Anyways.... I prefer to grow hydro vs. soil. I'll never go back to soil. In the beginning I cursed alot because I was just learning. But I think hydro is more rewarding than soil.
Hydro isn't any more difficult or expensive than soil if you know what you're doing. Also with hydro done properly you can cut 1-2 weeks from your veg cycle but once they flower they grow just as fast as soil.