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mrflamboynt
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Aeroponics will save you costs in media. It will increase your costs in apparatus. The cleaning per cycle is about the same as hydroponics. The nutrient costs (if done properly) will be the same. It is viable for growing lots of short "single bud" plants. Keep in mind that the volume of roots is almost directly proportional to the volume of buds. Kobe24's comment about the strength is correct because the plants are finally getting the proper dosage of nutrients. However, the same results (strength) can be achieved with hydroponics on a regular basis if you are feeding the plants at their capacity.
willy led wonka said:From the ez-cloner to 20 days later the plants are right at 18" tall and they came out of the cloner around 4-6"
The Ferrari analogy is true, if even a bit conservative... Think of full aeroponics as Formula One- lots of very high technology, finicky, tempermental, often expensive and still in the process of proving itself in the real world.
If methods can be found to reduce the drastic consequences of common events- like power outages, for example- I think this could well be a very attractive approach. Until that time, I'd say that if you want to experiment with it, then be prepared to put a lot of time and effort in and wake up one morning to see dead plants. If that doesn't deter you, go for it! If on the other hand you're trying to make a few bux or just have a reliable source of head stash, I'd suggest a more proven route.
I hear you on the Ferrari analogy. I don't get the pump failure thing though, isn't that the same risk for ALL hydroponics? It's either risk a power failure or hand water, right? I guess aeroponics needs power more frequently, like every few minutes instead of every few hours, so it is more risky but unless you check your room every few hours, the power failure risk is the same for hydro or aero right?
A good question, deserving of a more complete answer. As the man said above, if the roots dry out- at all- they stress and often die on the spot. This isn't news, since it's also known as air pruning. With aeroponics, if the pump fails for even a short period, say an hour or two, the roots get dry- and die.
Contrast that scenario with RDWC, where the pump isn't used to get the water to the plants, since the roots are bathing in nutrient solution already. This is much more forgiving, because even if the power fails and the airstones quit bubbling, it will take a day or so for the plants to pull the oxygen out of the water and start to drown. This interval makes it MUCH easier for a grower to catch and deal with problems.
In addition, DWC is much less susceptible to clogging than aero, due to all the emitters and lines running aobut. You can have plants suddenly stop doing well, only to find that an emitter is partially clogged. The trouble is, this kind of damage is tough to reverse.
I can't argue there, ttystikk. It's safe to say that unwanted air pruning either from a timer or pump failure or even going after root fuzz and not spraying frequently enough in a hp aero system is one extreme and air and water circulation failure in a rdwc setup would be the other extreme, as far as the length of time in the threshold of plant life or death. You are 100% correct that rdwc is safer. The plants would definitely last much longer. Do you also think it yields more? Was there ever a consensus on the UC vs TAG/HPA debate I saw? Is it really that TAG offers a higher risk = higher reward deal, or is "Current" the winner?
One thought: There are ways to prevent and monitor clogged nozzles with aero, isn't it true that there are plenty of inherent risks involved in running a current system too, i.e. water temps, bio-slime, under oxygenation, etc thus requiring either a dialed in setup or much user input? (I personally like different things about both of those methods) ps--thanks for the intelligent convo!
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