What is the best DWC system available?

I know it's a matter of opinion for most but there are some possible with ease of use. I've looked online and for a beginner it's quite confusing. I'd rather pay a little more for a better and easier to use system. My local store sent me home with a 4 pot wick feed type system but in afterthought I'd rather not have the hassle of changing soil after every harvest. I want to put an 8 pot system beside it for comparison, Even though I don't care about appearance the groji's online seem pretty nice but I'm seeing a simple system and a more expensive Scrog and can't see what the difference is other than the plant support system that I don't care for. Just hoping for some input on the best 8 pot system (nice to be able to upgrade to 16 pots) that I can just order online and where to order it. Many thanks

I just bought an aeroflo 30 and it uses less water, nutes, super easy. And the growth is just as good or better than dwc.

Dale269 said:

I know it's a matter of opinion for most but there are some possible with ease of use. I've looked online and for a beginner it's quite confusing. I'd rather pay a little more for a better and easier to use system. My local store sent me home with a 4 pot wick feed type system but in afterthought I'd rather not have the hassle of changing soil after every harvest. I want to put an 8 pot system beside it for comparison, Even though I don't care about appearance the groji's online seem pretty nice but I'm seeing a simple system and a more expensive Scrog and can't see what the difference is other than the plant support system that I don't care for. Just hoping for some input on the best 8 pot system (nice to be able to upgrade to 16 pots) that I can just order online and where to order it. Many thanks

Click to expand...

Hydro has alot of maitinence to it buddy. I started with dwc.

Then Dtw

Moved to shallow water top feed recirculating.

Been through this ringer and back noe im going to soil. Sub irrigated planter boxes.

Em1 in the res

Clackamas coots soil mix

And besically a self contained composting eco system with a cover crop.


You can walk away for a week lol or more depending on the res size . Im just tired of the constant cleaning and sterile nature of hydro, and slimes.

Organic and soil in general is very forgiving .

Not tk throw you for a loop but its worth checking out if you want quality

https://www.rollitup.org/t/organic-no-till-probiotic-knf-jadam-vermicomposting-soil-mixes-sips-etc-q-a.951076/

projectinfo said:

Hydro has alot of maitinence to it buddy. I started with dwc.

Then Dtw

Moved to shallow water top feed recirculating.

Been through this ringer and back noe im going to soil. Sub irrigated planter boxes.

Em1 in the res

Clackamas coots soil mix

And besically a self contained composting eco system with a cover crop.


You can walk away for a week lol or more depending on the res size . Im just tired of the constant cleaning and sterile nature of hydro, and slimes.

Organic and soil in general is very forgiving .

Not tk throw you for a loop but its worth checking out if you want quality

https://www.rollitup.org/t/organic-no-till-probiotic-knf-jadam-vermicomposting-soil-mixes-sips-etc-q-a.951076/

Click to expand...

Expect pests.

Airwalker16 said:

Expect pests.

Click to expand...

Theres work arounds. Keep the populations low

Dale; How many sq ft of space are we talking about, and how much do you expect from each plant? https://www.rollitup.org/t/pineapple-express-g13-labs-seed-to-harvest.34435 This thread is of a single plant, simple dwc top drip.. Less than 100 days, seed to harvest. 11 oz. It'll also show you how to fill a scrog screen before flowering with 12/12.. Scrog screens are meant to keep most veg growth at or 2 inches above the screen.. That starts all the would be colas off like it's a race... Some of the faster growing may need to pulled down and moved out on the screen.. It's really a monkey see, monkey do, low road to success with dwc . You can do as well with a 5 bucket setup.. You would still need to buy the GH driprig and hydroton..

projectinfo said:

Hydro has alot of maitinence to it buddy. I started with dwc.

Then Dtw

Moved to shallow water top feed recirculating.

Been through this ringer and back noe im going to soil. Sub irrigated planter boxes.

Em1 in the res

Clackamas coots soil mix

And besically a self contained composting eco system with a cover crop.


You can walk away for a week lol or more depending on the res size . Im just tired of the constant cleaning and sterile nature of hydro, and slimes.

Organic and soil in general is very forgiving .

Not tk throw you for a loop but its worth checking out if you want quality

https://www.rollitup.org/t/organic-no-till-probiotic-knf-jadam-vermicomposting-soil-mixes-sips-etc-q-a.951076/

Click to expand...

Good luck and be careful to to overdo the ingredients or you will have a hella time keeping everything in check.

mytwhyt said:

Dale; How many sq ft of space are we talking about, and how much do you expect from each plant? https://www.rollitup.org/t/pineapple-express-g13-labs-seed-to-harvest.34435 This thread is of a single plant, simple dwc top drip.. Less than 100 days, seed to harvest. 11 oz. It'll also show you how to fill a scrog screen before flowering with 12/12.. Scrog screens are meant to keep most veg growth at or 2 inches above the screen.. That starts all the would be colas off like it's a race... Some of the faster growing may need to pulled down and moved out on the screen.. It's really a monkey see, monkey do, low road to success with dwc . You can do as well with a 5 bucket setup.. You would still need to buy the GH driprig and hydroton..

Click to expand...

I'm working with an 8X8 tent so far. I went to my local store and they sold me a 4 bucket Autopot XL that I don't think I'm going to like but who knows. I don't think I will like the changing out of organic soil every harvest due to wanting to be more discrete. I watched tons of videos and ordered a 6 bucket OxygenPot super flow digital that I think I may very well like but it hasn't come in yet. I'm also getting a 3X3 Ebb and Flow Table unit so I will be able to set the three systems up and compare personal likes and dislikes. Yes, I do know that I'm biting off way more than I can chew and probably shouldn't start out with all of this but I have plenty of time on my hands and have already walked to the end of the diving board. I also have 4 plants in large pots so I can compare the difference in that as well.
I will definately check out that thread now and thank you much. I will update on my progress. OH, by the way... I scored a deal on some Tents, Hoods, Filters, Ballast etc.. Locally... Surprisingly very high quality stuff. The tents are not quite gorilla grow quality but very close. I bought one for $100 and went back to buy more and the guy gave me a package deal at $75 each so I bought 6 as well as a bunch of the other things. He seems to have a warehouse full of them.

I run a RDWC iws pro version and it has some major flaws.. for this reason i would recommend building your own system using as bigger piping as possible so the roots can't block the pipes..
I would also waterfall the return from the chiller to each tote or bucket removing the need for and air pump.. water falling is the way to go for maximum DO..

alien do some good looking kits but again the good ones are expensive and i personally think diy would produce a better system.

Chemdog89 said:

I just bought an aeroflo 30 and it uses less water, nutes, super easy. And the growth is just as good or better than dwc.

Click to expand...

I have run the Aeroflo 60 and 30 both, neither compare to RDWC. You are very limited with root space also. It's a nice system but true RDWC is so much easier from start to finish. I had thought of keeping the water level in the square tubes filled 50-60% and adding air stones, at that point you'd be doing some pretty cooler stuff!

Dale269 said:

I know it's a matter of opinion for most but there are some possible with ease of use. I've looked online and for a beginner it's quite confusing. I'd rather pay a little more for a better and easier to use system. My local store sent me home with a 4 pot wick feed type system but in afterthought I'd rather not have the hassle of changing soil after every harvest. I want to put an 8 pot system beside it for comparison, Even though I don't care about appearance the groji's online seem pretty nice but I'm seeing a simple system and a more expensive Scrog and can't see what the difference is other than the plant support system that I don't care for. Just hoping for some input on the best 8 pot system (nice to be able to upgrade to 16 pots) that I can just order online and where to order it. Many thanks

Click to expand...

IMHO you can't beat Current Cultures plug and play systems if you dont want to mess with DIY. They use big 3" pipes, buckets of your choice of size and they offer different lids for more plants per buckets if you choose.

N.R.G. said:

IMHO you can't beat Current Cultures plug and play systems if you dont want to mess with DIY. They use big 3" pipes, buckets of your choice of size and they offer different lids for more plants per buckets if you choose.

Click to expand...

Man, do you guys get tired of cleaning everything so often ?

projectinfo said:

Man, do you guys get tired of cleaning everything so often ?

Click to expand...

I run my systems at 68, never any slime or deep cleaning needed. With my setup I have left my system unattended for over a week, came back and topped off res and adjusted ph, everything was spot on as far as the plants go. I started in soil and then went to coco fiber but to heck with that back breaking work hauling that stuff in and out every cycle. Way to labor intensive. I have a career, I need something that’s easy other wise it becomes too much like work.

N.R.G. said:

I run my systems at 68, never any slime or deep cleaning needed. With my setup I have left my system unattended for over a week, came back and topped off res and adjusted ph, everything was spot on as far as the plants go. I started in soil and then went to coco fiber but to heck with that back breaking work hauling that stuff in and out every cycle. Way to labor intensive. I have a career, I need something that’s easy other wise it becomes too much like work.

Click to expand...

Ever think about no till sips?

projectinfo said:

Ever think about no till sips?

Click to expand...

I'm not familiar with it at all. I'll google it and read up on it.

N.R.G. said:

I'm not familiar with it at all. I'll google it and read up on it.

Click to expand...

Look up probiotic farmers aliance.

Just buy a bucket, put a bulkhead on the side, near the bottom and attach to a 90 degree fitting and hose so you can see your water level.
Put a netpot in the lid, fill it with hydroton and run an airline and airstone inside.
Use a turkey baster or funnel to make adjustments via the water level hose PH PPM water fill ect.

F & D allows for ease of checking; pH, ppms, draining/filling, replenishing,..

As far as your space I think any method you choose legit hydro wise, if you do it right, you should be able to get 4 plants to fill it.
I have seen a 5x5 filled by two. What exact lights do you have?