NEW TO HYDROPONICALLY GROWING

KY~GROW1

Well-Known Member
Ok, so I've never grown hydroponically, and now I remember why :( I can't find as much information as I can growing in soil!!! Here's my predicament, I have FoxFarms Big Grow, Big Bloom, and Tiger Bloom... I'm not sure how to apply these, given I'm not growing in soil this go around. HELPPP!!!!! pLeAsE!!!!
 

Airwalker16

Well-Known Member
Ehs4
Ok, so I've never grown hydroponically, and now I remember why :( I can't find as much information as I can growing in soil!!! Here's my predicament, I have FoxFarms Big Grow, Big Bloom, and Tiger Bloom... I'm not sure how to apply these, given I'm not growing in soil this go around. HELPPP!!!!! pLeAsE!!!!
What type of hydro?
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
thats a good question as far as what type. if your good with soil you can go ahead and stick to that and while doing so, at the same time you can get your feet wet with just one 5 gal bucket to try your hand at dwc.

youll need a bucket with a lid.

an air pump, not a hydro over priced pump, a dual outlet aquarium pump for 20gal will work for the 5 gal bucket

2 air stones and black air line.

a 1 inch net cup and a rock wool cube.

2lb bag of maxi bloom fert.

set up should be less than 30 bucks.

the expensive parts will be a ppm meter and ph meter. i would recommend a digital ph meter because the chem type that you match the colors up with according to a chart dont work very well with the nutrient solution its self is colored.

ppm meters can be expensive, id look up reviews before settling on one.

there are guides on here for DWC, but the basics are this:

plant roots sit in fertilizer water with air being pumped into the water so the roots can breathe, just like fish breath in an aquarium with an air pump. You use the pH meter to measure pH to tell when the plant needs more nutes. pH goes up, give more nutes, pH goes down, give more water. The ppm is to keep track of whats going on in the nute solution so you know when you need to change out the water.

plants can grow much much faster in dwc as you can keep a steady amount of nutes to he plant and can flush easily if you need to by replacing the nutrient solution with plain water.
 

ILM

Well-Known Member
Ppm goes down give her more nutes ppm goes up give less nutes.start slow id say around 5- 600 and try to keep ph in range 5.5-6.2 just my 0.02
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
yes, you can very easily use the ppm for that, how did i miss that tid bit? i use extra supps so my ppms can be off the chart, so i us pH.

for starters tho, maxi bloom will be a great and cost effective one part. dont get talked into using all kinds of extra crap. you can run a sterile system with chlorine as well to help keep the roots clean as well.
 

KY~GROW1

Well-Known Member
Ok I understood..some of what u just said lol, I have a pH kit, bubble stone, air pump, etc.... Just don't know exactly how to operate it sufficiently yet.... And how much nutes, and how often, etc AHHHH going crazy over here lol soil is MUCH MUCH MUCH easier
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
does your pH kit have a tiny vial that you add a chemical to and mix?

with maxi bloom, it have two scoops, you can use the small one and go one scoop per gallon for half of what your gallon size is. if the plants are doing okay then you can work up to one small scoop per gallon.

im not familiar with the fox farm line because i think they are over priced compaired to the all mighty Flora Nova which is a step up from maxi but im not sure it can be run in a sterile sytem.

hopefully someone will come in who uses fox farm. perhaps if you start to trash talk fox farm in another thread it will get someones attention who will defend it and then they will give you the run down on how they use it in hydro to point you in the right direction.
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
yea that pH kit is a no go. as it is, maxi bloom turns the water pink and im guessing that tiger stuff with the tiger poo and lion jizz is some off color thats only going to mess with your pH results. you wont be able to tell what the pH is with the color chart if the water your testing already has color or is too dark to begin with.
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
iv almost gotten those nutes many times but i wont spend the money on that when maxi is just so much cheaper. id rather go Flora Nova if i go something other than maxi.
 

KY~GROW1

Well-Known Member
yea that pH kit is a no go. as it is, maxi bloom turns the water pink and im guessing that tiger stuff with the tiger poo and lion jizz is some off color thats only going to mess with your pH results. you wont be able to tell what the pH is with the color chart if the water your testing already has color or is too dark to begin with.
Really?? Because it's General Hydroponics brand kit.....
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
yes i know its GH brand kit. it came with the bottles of pH up and down yea? i know what im telling you. take a piss in that vial and try to read the ph, if your piss is yellow your going to have an off reading. okay lets move on.

he means type as in when i comes to hydro you have:

Deep water culture DWC
Nutrient Film Technique NFT
Airoponics
Frogponics
Drain to waste DTW
and a multi set up Recirculating DWC

Looks like you have... DWC with some kind of drip line im guessing. you just need air stones and air pump, hand water for a while and the roots will eventually go into the water.
 

KY~GROW1

Well-Known Member
Well damn!! See a buddy of mine gave me this system, so I'm freakin clueless.... So I do NOT need the drip lines? And I have an air pump connected to a bubbler inside.
 

In Shape Vet

Well-Known Member
you dont NEED the drip lines, but if you have them go ahead and use them. The purpose of the drip lines is to water the plants inside of the net cups before the roots have reached the water inside the tote you have there.
 
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