I can see why it's not for everyone, but I'm having fun with it and it works perfectly for my system. And besides the UV light which most people probably dont need, it's really only cost me about $180 in irrigation stuff. Rockwool alleviates some of the issue with power outages, as it can retain a lot of water and keep the plants alive for a few days. I run a backup generator anyway.
For me the benefits outweigh the initial setup and costs. Automated watering is a huge one I wanted to do anyway, greatly enhanced growth rate compared to my promix grows, I'm using less water overall, way more control over ph and ec in the rootzone. Only downside for me has been installing the watering system with my fucked up back, I swear I'm two steps from needing a walker. I can barely put my shoes on these days.
I really like the concept of using the rockwool croutons in fabric pots. I imagine the air pruned root structure will go berserk in the wool with all those air pockets. Ive got 5 of these plants, one to replace the one I killed with ph9 and 4 to add an extra row. Not gonna top these ones to try and keep the canopy roughly the same. From what I've seen the lag time is much shorter in the croutons, and the clones going into them are very well established. Let's see what they can do in a week and a half for veg.
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