keep the aerograden i dont use the hood for top lights i use 600 watts of cfl daylights 6500k works great an i use the hood for side lights dont over feed your plants flush your plants if you over feed them for a week only give it one small tablet after you flush every week once you decide on flowering get a timer for 12/12 get 600 watts cfl soft lights 2700k then use large tablet once a week but i put a lil extra stuff in when i flower i use super bloom an i use distiled water you wont have to worry about the ph
I agree with deegunz, keep the Aerogarden but that's about as far as it goes. I can;t understand why you guys put out the big bucks for a simple complete growing system and then you start changing it. On page 187 of Cervantes's book "MARIJUANA HORTICULTURE THE INDOOR/OUTDOOR MEDICAL GROWER'S BIBLE," he has a photo and the caption, "Stoners have a way of making simple things complex" I've yet to have to add extra lighting. I have positioned three cheap mirrors, one behind and one on each side to reflect the light back up and illuminate the lower parts of my plants. I get buds all the way down to the planting deck and I'll bet my set up is a lot neater than yours.
Why do you have your lights on 24/7? Would you like to work that hard? A friend pointed out that the more you imitate mother nature the better the result will be and everything I've done has proved him right.
There is new thinking on light cycle and next grow I'm going to try it. Start on twenty on and four off and darken by one hour each week. When you get down to 12/12 that's when you're ready to force blooming with a change in nutes and there's less stress to your plants. Less stress = better taste.
As far as the chemistry is concerned, that's vital, and not a good thing to do if you're loaded. Try that when you're not altered.