My First Aero Set Up

What's up people, this is my first Aeroponics set up that I have built and plan on using it for a SOG under a 1000W liquid cooled light. The design is based on someone else's post on this forum (I forget where I saw it). As you can see from the pictures, I have one large tub set up on top of a smaller reservoir, into which the main tub will drain. I have 3 PVC tubes running the length of my lid- 1 on each side of each row of plants, and one in the middle. I have 180 degree misters (from home depot) positioned to basically cover 3 sides of every pot, and spraying horizontally and downward.

So the first question I have is, are these misters ok to use, and do I have too many of them? Is there such thing as having too much spray in your tub? I plan on running 15 min on/15 min off, but if anyone has a suggestion on a better timing schedule I'm all ears.

The second and more important issue I have come across is not having adequate pressure to get a nice mist from my sprayers. I tried a 400GPH hydrofarm pump, but it was immediately obvious that I needed higher pressure because water was just kind of dropping from the mister holes. I'm guessing a 1000GPH pump will do the job, but I was curious as to whether I could find a pump that simply delivered a higher PSI, and not necessarily just a higher flow rate to achieve a higher PSI. Does anyone know how to calculate the PSI you will achieve given a certain GPH flow rate and the height that your pump has to achieve? (The total height the water is travelling in my case is 1.5 feet.) What is the relation between PSI and GPH, and how do I maximize my PSI? Are there certain pumps that are better for PSI as opposed to flow rate. If so, where can I find them? I've noticed that most hydroponic pumps only give you a flow rate, and rarely mention any kind of pressure rating.

I really appreciate any help you guys can give me, you are the experts and I welcome any and all advice. Thanks.

Ok I went ahead and got the 1000GPH pump today and it works beautifully.

The other issue I'm faced with is my pump timing schedule. Wal-mart sells pumps with 15 minute intervals for 8 bucks. I saw one at my Hydro store that has timers you can set by the minute, but it was like 90 bucks with tax. So is there anything wrong with 15 on/15 off? And suppose I do decide to get the expensive timer and do a 1 min on/5 min off schedule, how long will my pump be able to handle being turned on/off 240 times per day? It's an Active Aqua pump by the way.

Keep your nute loads low
This will decrease any chance of clogging
I run the pump continuously until they have good roots
and then 15 on 15 off will work OK.
your pump will not be a problem with this on/off cycle.

Thanks for the response Earl. I'm thinking of throwing an inline filter in there to help prevent clogging, but that depends on whether I can fit it into my system or not. Right now I'm using a pair of leg stockings from walmart and it seems to be working pretty well for 33 cents.

If you use good clear nutes you don't really need a filter.

Earl said:

If you use good clear nutes you don't really need a filter.

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What nutes do you recommend? Also, doesn't the pH adjuster solution create salts when it is added to the solution? I'm thinking about using CANNA nutes since our local hydro shop raves about it, however I don't exactly trust retailers as an unbiased source of information...especially when they are promoting their most expensive product

I use Advanced and Dutch Master.
I have never tried canna.
Keep the nute loads around 50% of max.

LiquidLumen said:

What nutes do you recommend? Also, doesn't the pH adjuster solution create salts when it is added to the solution? I'm thinking about using CANNA nutes since our local hydro shop raves about it, however I don't exactly trust retailers as an unbiased source of information...especially when they are promoting their most expensive product

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Canna is the bomb in my opinion. I have some pics on my page of my first Canna run, I used to use GH, but I have never had plants like these so now I will never go back, I am using areo as well w/LL. Just my two cents, hope it helps

abellguy said:

Canna is the bomb in my opinion. I have some pics on my page of my first Canna run, I used to use GH, but I have never had plants like these so now I will never go back, I am using areo as well w/LL. Just my two cents, hope it helps

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Well that's good to hear, I'll probably have to try it out since I have only heard good things about it so far. Thanks for the info.

get yourself a lifetime supply of h2o

in an aero i prefer h2o vs micro nutes.. only to be used once you have roots..

~cheers and best of luck

If you use Canna you can't us H202 with their products. I don't and have had no problems at all. 21 days 12/12

your gonna want to cover up the rezi's, clear is no good, either spray paint them or use poly to cover or insulate them with that sticky duct covering, a good rule of thumb for pump strength is 25gph per spray head, i favor the use of inline filters, they are less than $20 and at some point you may have bits of roots falling off, this will jam spray heads, also a while back earl said to lighten nutrient loads, after he told me this i started to practice this and its just great, you want to see your ppm going down instead of up, this means the plants are actually using what they need and perform just as good or better than higher concentrations, you can wreck a crop by abusing too much nutes

morrisgreenberg said:

your gonna want to cover up the rezi's, clear is no good, either spray paint them or use poly to cover or insulate them with that sticky duct covering, a good rule of thumb for pump strength is 25gph per spray head, i favor the use of inline filters, they are less than $20 and at some point you may have bits of roots falling off, this will jam spray heads, also a while back earl said to lighten nutrient loads, after he told me this i started to practice this and its just great, you want to see your ppm going down instead of up, this means the plants are actually using what they need and perform just as good or better than higher concentrations, you can wreck a crop by abusing too much nutes

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Yeah I was planning on using black garbage bags to cover up the tubs...that will work right? And yeah an inline filter would be a good idea I just gotta find a good one that will fit nicely in my plumbings. The ones from Home Depot are kinda big and awkward...

reefcouple said:

get yourself a lifetime supply of h2o

in an aero i prefer h2o vs micro nutes.. only to be used once you have roots..

~cheers and best of luck

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Wait, you're saying you don't use any nutes at all? Just water?

http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(bbypxhqceywzgv55qemy1fm4)/ProductDetails.aspx?SKU=7107188
this is the one i use, i get them from the hydro shop, your just going to have to get the proper fittings to go with your plumbing, if you have a decent sized pump she should screw directly into the pump, this is made for outdoor hoses, very easy to clean aswell, highly recommend you invest in this if using spray heads of any type

LiquidLumen said:

Wait, you're saying you don't use any nutes at all? Just water?

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definately use nutes.. just instead of the micro nutes (enzymes etc) in an aero i prefer h2o.. theres many threads out there on proper use of h2o (hydrogen peroxide 3%) any grocery store sells it..

you'll swear by it someday in aero's...