Flood & drain guys please take me to school.

panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
Im done with soil & need to move to flood & drain,the reason ive chosen the flood & drain method is that it seems the easiest for a noob,it also seems the least likely to be severely affected by pump failure,my plan is to have dual pumps on each table for the belt & suspenders effect.

Ive decided to build my own custom size tables,making them permantly water tight will not be an issue,building skills are not an issue either,i have a good basic design allready & a firm understanding on how to build the design.

Lighting or light movers will not be issue's, nor will issues such as saftey or electrical wiring for the room,ventilation,humidity & temps are also non issues.

What i need is the know how.

I plan on using peat plugs for cuttings then into 3x3 or 4x4 rockwool,the tables are to be filled with hydrotron,this is as far as ive got,the reason ive chosen peat plugs for cuttings is that it seems there is a learning curve to using rockwool for the cuttings due to over watering,i'd rather use a method that i know i cant fuck up.

Things i need to know.

What are good brand ph meters & where to order them.

What are good ppm meters & where to order them.

What meters are the easiest for a hydro noob to use,shit thats easy to calibrate is best for me,meters with easy to read displays are a big plus also,my eye sight isnt what it used to be.

Flood times.

What are the most common mistakes for noob hydro growers so i can avoid them.

Most importantly i need to know how to use nutrients properly.

Im at 1st grade level right now with my understanding of flood & drain growing so please take the time to school me,your time will not be wasted,this system is getting built,i have 1 month (more if needed) that i plan to spend on learning & getting my shit all bought & set up,any info or links you guys can give me would be a huge thank you.

I need info from experienced hydro growers,if at all possible please include links to the exact items you reccomend,not that im too lazy to do my own reasearch but i want to buy the right shit the first time so anything at all you can tell me will be a huge help.
 
Roullette

Roullette

Well-Known Member
but if u do decide to do ebb flow dont forget water that soaks to the base of the stem will drown the plant if to wet for to long thats how the ebb flows go bad. DWC water dosnt go near the base of the stem
 
panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
Roullette said:
but if u do decide to do ebb flow dont forget water that soaks to the base of the stem will drown the plant if to wet for to long thats how the ebb flows go bad. DWC water dosnt go near the base of the stem
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Understood,im counting on issues like that my 1st time around,i plan on making every mistake in the book but i only make mistakes once,im very good at correcting problems that i experience 1st hand,if this problem happens in one table i'll be sure to avoid it in other tables.

Im not putting all my chickens in one basket,i'll be setting up several tables at different intervals,this way i can take what i learn on the 1st table & apply it to tables started later on.
 
grandpabear3

grandpabear3

New Member
i think i've seen your post on albfuct's thread...if not sorry but thats where you need to read. it will take forever but i promise you will come away with an understanding of every aspect of a professional grow. i do dwc and ebbnflow and as long as its set up properly its perfect and cant be beaten for us noobs. dwc fails and everything dies in hours ebb fails and it still takes days before your in trouble. just read al's thread and you'll be well on your way to a pro-grow!!!
 
panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
bugsrnme said:
i think i've seen your post on albfuct's thread...if not sorry but thats where you need to read. it will take forever but i promise you will come away with an understanding of every aspect of a professional grow. i do dwc and ebbnflow and as long as its set up properly its perfect and cant be beaten for us noobs. dwc fails and everything dies in hours ebb fails and it still takes days before your in trouble. just read al's thread and you'll be well on your way to a pro-grow!!!
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I have read every last post in al's thread & i monitor it daily,still i want to hear from other hydro growers,it never hurts to have too much information.
 
B

bigwheel

Well-Known Member
Now I can't quite figger out why a DWC grow would die so quick? I mean all you got is roots in still water when the power goes out..or am I thinking wrong here? What kills it so quick? If you dont mind a person being nosey of course. This is also contingent on being on the same page as what is a DWC of course. Thanks :joint:

Big Wheel



bugsrnme said:
i think i've seen your post on albfuct's thread...if not sorry but thats where you need to read. it will take forever but i promise you will come away with an understanding of every aspect of a professional grow. i do dwc and ebbnflow and as long as its set up properly its perfect and cant be beaten for us noobs. dwc fails and everything dies in hours ebb fails and it still takes days before your in trouble. just read al's thread and you'll be well on your way to a pro-grow!!!
Click to expand...
 
panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
bigwheel said:
Now I can't quite figger out why a DWC grow would die so quick? I mean all you got is roots in still water when the power goes out..or am I thinking wrong here? What kills it so quick? If you dont mind a person being nosey of course. This is also contingent on being on the same page as what is a DWC of course. Thanks :joint:

Big Wheel
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Its the lack of oxygen to the roots,with pump failure the plants drown quickly from lack of oxygen.

Keep in mind im only being a parrot & repeating what somebody else said,im still a hydro noob :mrgreen:.
 
TetraHyC

TetraHyC

Well-Known Member
F&D is great, but the hydrotron is going to float during the flood.
pH meter Hanna is what you want, spent about $80-$200,If you get a cheap one you will be sorry, and then you will go buy the good one.Good meter self calibrate, and recognize buffer solutions by themselves.

Supernatual brand for flood and drain is great for new hydro people, holds its pH very good.

Greencoast hyroponics is a good store I go to,Its sandwiched between to cannabis clubs, no worries about the law.Check the prices he's hard to beat.

They don't have Supernatual though.

CHEAP,look.
HANNA Waterproof pH /EC/TDS/Temp Tester
 
TetraHyC

TetraHyC

Well-Known Member
I like net pots filled with hydrotron, then theres a snap on lid with a hole for the plant to come out of.

Have you ever tried using wool slabs under your cubes?
 
Damion5050

Damion5050

Well-Known Member
Hey if yo uare looking for a good Hydro system to start with and you have the money buy the waterfarm, thing works like a charm.. or if you are looking in a cheap direction try hempy bucket, it's like a hydro soil hybrid setup
 
TetraHyC

TetraHyC

Well-Known Member
You say no worries about temp/hum.

I flood hydrotron, 30 min flood(max) 90min down,

Wal-mart has 15 min duration timers no pins $5(very reliable,year+) Digi timer $10 only been using 2 months, no problem yet.
 
TetraHyC

TetraHyC

Well-Known Member
What do you waterproof you trays with ?? I like foam,was also thinking about torch-on white roofing membrane.
 
panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
TetraHyC said:
What do you waterproof you trays with ?? I like foam,was also thinking about torch-on white roofing membrane.
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Im using a roofing material made by Johns Manville called Trocal,its a white pvc membrane sheet where the seams are heat welded with hot air welders,its a very easy product to keep clean,it is tricky to install though until you get the hang of heat welding the seams with hot air instead of open flame.

Roofing materials work great but if it were me i'd stay away from ashphalt based material like torch down membranes,all alshpalt roofing membranes seep petroluem disolate gasses from the material as they age,this cant be good for the roots,also roofing asphalt has the tendency to rott when its not allowed to dry out, especially type 3 asphalt that is used to manufacture most torch applied roofing products.

Firestone blgd products makes a white 45 mil rubber roofing sheet that would be much better over asphalt products & is fairly easy to install.
 
brontobrandon1

brontobrandon1

Well-Known Member
i have flood and drain in net pots filled with hydroton, when the roots grow out the bottom of the net pot do they just curl under the bottom of the net pot and jus continue to grow while flooding once every hour or 2??? it looks like thats what mines doing im jus hoping it goes good. and how many times and day and for how long do u flood urs for 30 min??


thanks
later:blsmoke:
 
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