Well to be honest, i think there is more of a cool factor then anything
if not you would see all the major hydro farms using it like the dutch for instance.
But i dont think outside of smaller ops any one is running a rdwc set up for major agriculture.
I love rdwc setups (this pertains to mine as everyones is different)
Here are my design pros and cons
Pro super oxygenates the water
Via waterfall, flooming(ish), sufrace disruption, and airstones (they add fresh air in the system and churn the bottom up).
Very nutrient efficient as i dont run high ppms.
If the air pump fails i have the circ pump still going. Providing plenfy of DO
If the circ pump dies it will essentially be a dwc setup.
So pretty safe as oppesed to a aero pump failure . Or just plain dwc ait pump failure.
I built mine specifically to run a semi small res.
About 30 ish gallons max and im running 28 currently but ill probably go higher next run. To try it.
Now for the bad stuff lol......
All hydro setups have their pluses and minuses so far in my exp.(lp aero,nft,dwc, aero/dwc, and coco)
For rdwc the cons in my opinion are.
Huge nutrients usage most people are running like 50 g setups and if you dump every two weeks it adds up.
They can be a pain to clean completely .
They are prone to root issues if the conditions allow it. Ie low flow,aeration,water temps ect.
The circ pump adds heat either to the room or the res i have mine in the res and it tuns about 72-77 on hot days so far .
But i havent taken huge measure to drop temps as im running hydroguard to see if it works .so far so good. But its in the back of my mind.
The air pumps add heat to the water as well
this is offset by a cooling fan the airpump but its still there.
Leak potential . (I have a love hate relationship with bulk heads and uniseals lol )
Difficulty inspecting the roots if you scrog them cause sometime the plants pin down the lids lol.
These are the cons i can think of for now.
So my criteria for my next system is as follows.
Circ pumps and air pumps optional.
Leak proof for real
Easy to clean
Easy to inspect roots.
No chiller required or dependant on constant pumps (reduces energy costs equipment costs ect)
If i can figure out how to do those thing with the next system ill be quite happy
end of novel
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