**Advice needed** First recirculating hydro grow questions

Hi all, I'm starting my first hydro grow but before I do I have a few questions that need answering...

Here is the set up...
Five 17lit./3.8gal. dutch bato buckets filled with hydroton clay pellets.

Each bucket is connected to a five foot long 1 1/4 inch thick PVC pipe for drainage, which then drains into my reservoir below and is recirculated.

Top feeding with drip system going to each bucket.
(if more info need let me know)

My question are:
How often should I water? How long? how much? From my understanding clay pellets hold much air and drain quickly. I'm uncertain about the water holding capabilities which is why I ask.

How should I adjust the feeding schedule when the lights are turned off? I hear less is required when dark.

How many liters/ounces of nutrient solution (fertilizer and water mix) should be in my reservoir?

Also, if anyone has used dutch bato buckets, do the clay pellets clog the elbows inside the bucket? Is it a good idea to use a net pot inside the bucket?

Thanks ahead for all helpful responses
(more pictures to come)

I would really like to know as well!

How often should i water? How long? How much? From my understanding clay pellets hold much air and drain quickly. I'm uncertain about the water holding capabilities which is why i ask.

with topfeed it takes only 20-30 sec for a feeding/drain cycle to occur before the roots are again getting oxygen. This gives you way more wet/dry cycles to the roots, than than other methods

feed for 25sec every 3 hours from flowering day 1-20 (when roots are small) and then bump it to 25sec every 1h45m.

the issue with top feeding is how do you wet the entire 6x6" area of rocks with just one open 1/4" line in each pot? You can fix this by running the 1/4" line directly into the blocks, this makes it a 3x3" line of even water coverage due to the rockwool blocks good absorbtion.

are you planning on rooting in 40mm cubes and then move them to the hydroton in the buckets? If so, you might have some issues with water coverage from a 1/4" line to evenly saturate all the rocks...but you might just be able to make it

how should i adjust the feeding schedule when the lights are turned off? I hear less is required when dark.

same as when on

how many liters/ounces of nutrient solution (fertilizer and water mix) should be in my reservoir?

go by ppm, the more water the better because it keep the solution more stable, so yo use much as your rez as possible.

also, if anyone has used dutch bato buckets, do the clay pellets clog the elbows inside the bucket? Is it a good idea to use a net pot inside the bucket?

no, it wont clog, they will just float on top of the water, however, use should have it set up so they don't fall into the water regularly to avoid any issues with ph




Good Luck,

OceanGreen

I always ran em 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off while the lights were on. No need to drip while the lights are off. They LOVE running water, you can even run them all the time the lights are on if you wish.