Planning my first Aeroponics grow!

Hey guys, I've been reading the forums for months now, and I'm finally feeling ready to start posting and getting active!

I'm finishing up my first grow as we speak (soil grow) and it seems as though it went better than I expected with fewer problems than I expected. I followed WidowMaker's How-To guide almost to a "T". (Don't bother asking what strain I grew, they were two random seeds saved from a cheap weed batch bought by my room mate... only one was female).

Anyway, since this grow has gone so well, I'm fully intending on building an aeroponics system for use after this harvest.

My problems are in all the ridiculously contradicting advice/info out there that I've found so far. It seems as though once I thought I had a good grasp on everything I needed, I'd find another post/website/youtube video that totally disagreed with what I previously read. Hopefully you guys can critique and nudge me away from any misdirection you see me going in.

Here's where I'm at:

1) Here's a link to the youtube video that shows what kind of grow system I'm going to use. I'm not going to use the drip feed aspect of it, and I'm only going to grow a single plant per grow (more than likely changed to two as long as everything goes well the first time). Other than controlling the water temperature, is there any other major benefits of an external reservoir?

2) As far as nutrients go, I'm leaning towards GH's products... (FloraGro, FloraMicro, FloraBloom) Is anything else really needed?

3) Ok, here's where I start to get entirely confused... Nutrient Mixtures... I've read and understand that aeroponics requires (or works better with) a lower pH and a lower PPM of nutrients than soil growth. That being said, I've seen a HUGE range of PPM concentrations on both the forum and other sites. If I follow GH's Recirculating Feeding Schedule, then that puts you at around 1200 max PPM which is basically around what I was doing for soil growth? Other places I've seen keeping it below 900 PPM? Which is it?

4) When should I add more nutrients? It's pretty fool proof that with soil growth, you water as needed with nutrient rich water. However, in an aeroponic growing situation, when do I add more nutrients? Should I constantly check the PPM with my reader and keep it at the desired levels, or should I watch and wait for the PPM to drop significantly before adding more to get back up to my target level?

5) I'm pretty sure I know the answer to this one, but I plan on having a 1 min on 5 min off spray time. I've seen other advice on here about having a 24/7 spraying time, but the 1/5 ratio seems like it was better supported with arguments of root expansion/fluffing because of it. Any reason why I should consider a 24/7?

6) Last but not least, I'm VERY open to suggestions on which strains have had good results with aeroponics, likewise are there any strains I should avoid because of poor performance with aeroponics? I'm buying the next batch of seeds, so I want to make sure I don't blunder right off the bat.



For those of you who have taken the time to read/reply to this, I greatly appreciate it. I realize I'm a noob and some of these questions might be frowned upon because "all of this information can be found using the search", but I can assure you that I've been searching the forums and there's just so much information it can be overwhelming! Not to mention there's so much misinformation out there on the internet, I want to make sure everything I've soaked up has been correct. I'm just trying to get my bearings before trying to step foot into the world of aeroponics.

Thanks, guys!

PLEASE! If there is any information you guys would like/need to know in order to answer my questions that I have left out, please let me know!

If you're thinking about using GH's nutes, then here's some extremely helpful info:

oldgrower said:

Recommended pH, Nutrient, and Temperature Levels


pH levels:

Rockwool - 5.6 to 5.8
Coir - 5.8 to 6.0
Hydrotron - 5.8 to 6.2

Anything lower than 5.6 results in nutrient lock-out in any medium.


Reservoir temperature:

68 degrees Fahrenheit (given a 72 to 78 degree lights-on room temp and a 65 degree lights-off temp)


Nutrient levels:

Clones - 200-400ppm AFTER roots appear (nothing before that)

Veggie - 800ppm or so, although can go aggressive and boost to 1000 once the plant is well established.

Bloom - 1000ppm or so for the first couple weeks, then boost up to 1200 for almost any strain.



Mixture Ratios for General Hydroponics Flora Series Nutrients


Note: Amounts should be mixed in the orders given.

Clones and Seedlings - 2.5ml/gal of Micro, Gro, and Bloom

Vegetative - 5ml/gal Micro, 10ml/gal Gro, and 5ml/gal Bloom

Early Flowering - 7.5ml/gal Micro, 7.5ml/gal Gro, and 10-12.5ml/gal Bloom

Peak Flowering - 10ml/gal Micro, 5ml/gal Gro, and 15ml/gal Bloom.

Flush - 2.5ml/gal of Micro, Gro, and Bloom for 3 days, then plain RO or de-chlorinated water with 1 tsp/gal (2.5ml) of molasses.

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FWIW, I really wouldn't start out with aero. That imo is considered to be an advanced cultivation technique, more suited for colder temps, and above all just too many variables/things that can go wrong at anytime which can result in a total loss of your crop, just like *that*. As many others have stated before, be prepared and willing to invest months of your time with the very real possibility of waking up one morning to find total disaster.


Ebb & Flow on the other hand is a foolproof way to grow!

I don't think strains are able to differentiate between what type of hydro system they're being grown in, lol!

What you should be focusing on however are criteria such as disease/pest resistance, flowering times, overall plant structure, and the amount of stretch.

As for what strains in particular to go with? I'd look into gear from Mr. Nice Seeds. Reputable strains and breeders behind them, lots of information on them (grow journals, smoke reports, etc) is widely available, plus their prices are more than reasonable. You just gotta choose Indica or Sativa dominant...

JJFOURTWENTY said:

If you're thinking about using GH's nutes, then here's some extremely helpful info:

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Thanks, JJFOURTWENTY! That's some very helpful info on the GH nutes... Definitely something I'll keep in mind.

JJFOURTWENTY said:

FWIW, I really wouldn't start out with aero. That imo is considered to be an advanced cultivation technique, more suited for colder temps, and above all just too many variables/things that can go wrong at anytime which can result in a total loss of your crop, just like *that*. As many others have stated before, be prepared and willing to invest months of your time with the very real possibility of waking up one morning to find total disaster.

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I'm prepared to be met with problems and failures, but I can't pass up the challenge. I've been interested in aeroponics now for a while, even before thinking about using it to grow the green I have a pretty green thumb, so hopefully I'll be a little more prepared than the average Joe equipped with no knowledge of growing anything. Besides, I'll wont really have to make any real investments other than the seeds and nutes since I have the pump and most of the parts already. (Doesn't hurt when you help run the family hardware store/lawn and garden center ). Anyway, I'm grateful for the friendly heads up, and I'm fully ready to jump any hurdles that lay before me

JJFOURTWENTY said:

I don't think strains are able to differentiate between what type of hydro system they're being grown in, lol!

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Haha I suppose you're right on that one! I wasn't sure since I do know (or at least thought I knew) that certain strains do better indoor as opposed to outdoor and vice versa. I wasn't sure if any one plant strain for one reason or another just didn't do well growing in an aeroponic environment. I'll definitely keep the points you mentioned in mind, though!