DWC water level opinions

Ive been doing DWC for yrs some Diy and a Waterfarm that has a Coco lid,It has a water level.And its about 8" deep full of Hydrotron,and the drip ring needs to run 24/7 because of Roots in the lid.


Now on the ones ive made from 5g bucketts,I have been keeping water level Rt at the bottom of mesh pot 4".
I was thinking about lowering the level as all the roots are in the Solution.

Thoughts, on letting some of the roots be not in the Solution,As i have plenty of stones and they throw alot of small water droplets,So much tht when i remove the mesh pot it comes out the top with current water level at bottom of mesh pot.Its working great just Curious what you guys think?
Any benefits from letting say 4-5" of roots being basically misted?And not in the Solution.

Beech

More air is good.

Less solution just means it can fluctuate faster. So keep your eyes on it.

I've been lazy and let mine get half empty before with no issues. Nutes where pretty dialed in though so I didn't have much ppm or ph fluctuation. It was rock steady so I left it alone and didn't top off. And like you said-the bubbles kept the top 1/2 moist. I usually leave an inch or 2 between the water level and the net pot anyway.

Just keep an eye on your ppm's because plants can drink lots and not eat leaving you with more concentrated solution and potentially lower ph or fucky ph.

All you guys make valid points like I said, ive been doing DWC for yrs.I guess what im asking is there any advantages of the roots being in the Air,with them being misted.

I also have let my res run low to push the limit to see how many PPMs,A certain strain can take.
With DWC and roots in solution all the time, ive found no need to run as High PPM.800-900max
will do just as good as 1500.

Beech

Just because a strain is taking 1500 ppm now doesn't mean it's not burning cells that will show up weeks from now. Keep your ppms lower to avoid issues.

SOMEBEECH said:

All you guys make valid points like I said, ive been doing DWC for yrs.I guess what im asking is there any advantages of the roots being in the Air,with them being misted.

I also have let my res run low to push the limit to see how many PPMs,A certain strain can take.
With DWC and roots in solution all the time, ive found no need to run as High PPM.800-900max
will do just as good as 1500.

Beech

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Theres alot more oxygen in air compared to what water can hold. Thats the only advantage I can think of.

I keep my water line at bottom of netpot, no matter what size. The next day it has dropped like 6-8" anyway so I just fill it back up to bottom and repeat, never an issue and search for my "white as rice" roots!

I use a top off res with a float valve in my control bucket, my water level never changes unless the top off res is empty...six of one half dozen of the other.

more roots covered = more water drank. i keep mine right at the bottom of the net pot. it probably doesnt really make a huge difference whether its being misted or not but i think having the roots compeltely covered vs roots misted, i think completely covered would drink more

BigBuddahCheese said:

Just because a strain is taking 1500 ppm now doesn't mean it's not burning cells that will show up weeks from now. Keep your ppms lower to avoid issues.

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Ive never ran 1500ppms and wont,my meter shows its only drinking water.

But thts a good thought,it does take sometime for plants to show and by then its usually too late.

I never go above 900 ppm,Buddah.How far have you pushed a DWC plant?


Beech