Which growing method to use?

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jaypru369

jaypru369

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so i want to setup a grow in a spare room that i will not be every day. Is it possible to set up a hydro grow that i wouldn't have to tend to every day? Let's say i can only come to the room twice a week at max, ideally once a week. Is this possible, given that the grow goes well, set up right and not too many issues? If needed i can potentially have someone check on it daily but would rather not have that. the room is 12x13 and i wanted to utilize about 10x10 of the room.
 
Chad.Westport

Chad.Westport

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Using hydro and a good environmental monitor like Pulse, you can be fairly hands off with your grow. The environmental monitor links to an app, so you can see if lights on or lights off, humidity levels, temp levels, basically everything but putting eyes on your plants, which can also be done through an app. But there is no better food for the plants than the farmers shadow :)
 
jaypru369

jaypru369

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Using hydro and a good environmental monitor like Pulse, you can be fairly hands off with your grow. The environmental monitor links to an app, so you can see if lights on or lights off, humidity levels, temp levels, basically everything but putting eyes on your plants, which can also be done through an app. But there is no better food for the plants than the farmers shadow :)
awesome thank you! so how would i go about setting this up and is there a resource to follow this build and/or parts list?
Edit: whats best hydro method, i was originally thinking of doing a RDWC.
 
Chad.Westport

Chad.Westport

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awesome thank you! so how would i go about setting this up and is there a resource to follow this build and/or parts list?
Edit: whats best hydro method, i was originally thinking of doing a RDWC.
Ah man, hard for me to say. I haven't done a proper hydro grow. I know there are a lot of moving parts, which is what has steered me away from it. My old school mentality says, moving parts can and will break. But that is being ignorant to an extent.

You have less room for error with hydro. Your nutrients have to be spot on, your Ph regularly checked and the temp of your water can make or break a grow. Have a search around the internet, I know there are lots of good guides lurking out there. Sorry I couldn't offer any firsthand advice.
 
tomatoesarecooltoo

tomatoesarecooltoo

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Just saying, soil or coco on a drip system is pretty hands off as well.
 
jaypru369

jaypru369

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Ah man, hard for me to say. I haven't done a proper hydro grow. I know there are a lot of moving parts, which is what has steered me away from it. My old school mentality says, moving parts can and will break. But that is being ignorant to an extent.

You have less room for error with hydro. Your nutrients have to be spot on, your Ph regularly checked and the temp of your water can make or break a grow. Have a search around the internet, I know there are lots of good guides lurking out there. Sorry I couldn't offer any firsthand advice.
Nothing to be sorry for mate! Thanks for the advice and you answered my original question so im good, ill figure it out and im sure someone might see this and give some more feedback.

the one thing that did worry me about hydro was a flood and having to tear down in the middle of grow if i have an inspection or something go wrong that needs to be fixed. But I figured if i can do it right, a hydro will have less issues to deal with and a bigger grow.
 
tomatoesarecooltoo

tomatoesarecooltoo

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okay dont know about that system. how does the grow compare to a hydro like RDWC?

My experience is lopsided so I would not be the best to compare, but if I was doing a set it and forget it grow, thats what I would do personally.
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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Coco autofeed or RDWC with a large res. RDWC growth will be a touch faster bit a coco/perlite will be very close.

Ifnyour gonna setup a grow like that your going to need reliable equipment and controllers.

I have my coco setup to pretty much give me a week or more before I need to do anything. But could easily make that longer with a bigger res.

A RDWC system with a large res would be the same thing but has the bonus of not needing to deal with runoff. A PH controller and pump and you could go easily a week or well more with a big res.
 
jaypru369

jaypru369

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Coco autofeed or RDWC with a large res. RDWC growth will be a touch faster bit a coco/perlite will be very close.

Ifnyour gonna setup a grow like that your going to need reliable equipment and controllers.

I have my coco setup to pretty much give me a week or more before I need to do anything. But could easily make that long with a bigger res.

A RDWC system with a large res would be the same thing but has the bonus of not needing to deal with runoff. A PH controller and pump and you could go easily a week or well more with a big res.
which system is easier to work with and more forgiving? This will be my first hydro grow or and ive never done coco either. What are the costs differences with each? Does one system produce a significantly bigger yield?

how many plants can i stuff into a 10x10 area without overcrowding? and having some room to work with? room is actually 12x13 so i can utilize more room if needed.
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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which system is easier to work with and more forgiving? This will be my first hydro grow or and ive never done coco either. What are the costs differences with each? Does one system produce a significantly bigger yield?

how many plants can i stuff into a 10x10 area without overcrowding? and having some room to work with? room is actually 12x13 so i can utilize more room if needed.
This is my first coco grow but I have seen many comparable to my RDWC grows. A bit slower but not much.

Easier will be what you understand best.

Honestly for a first grow to get everything setup automatically is going to cost you a lot.

Number of plants is going to depend on how you intend to grow.

Honestly I think for a first grow its biting off a lot.

There is to much for me to go over all the differences and cost point since there are so many different ways to do it. I would suggest looking at some grows and seeing how they work and then deciding what you want.
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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Environmental control will be something you need to figure out first.

How are you going to control temps, humidity, co2, what kind of ventilation or sealed room etc. All this makes a difference. Plus can you have the res outside the room or inside may mean you need a chiller.
 
Pondracer

Pondracer

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My goal is too ultimately be able to go 10-14 days on vacation and have it run on its own. But I will say that there is no way I could set that up without having experienced at least one grow cycle and really 3 is about right. There is just a lot to learn and every space requires adjustments.
 
jaypru369

jaypru369

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43
This is my first coco grow but I have seen many comparable to my RDWC grows. A bit slower but not much.

Easier will be what you understand best.

Honestly for a first grow to get everything setup automatically is going to cost you a lot.

Number of plants is going to depend on how you intend to grow.

Honestly I think for a first grow its biting off a lot.

There is to much for me to go over all the differences and cost point since there are so many different ways to do it. I would suggest looking at some grows and seeing how they work and then deciding what you want.
where can i find the good examples of coco setups? I just went over HB's RDWC setup and it looks fairly simple and he shows you how to set it all up and what you need which is pretty cool and sounds doable.

Im not so worried about building and as much as i am maintaining and growing correctly.

what do you mean by how i intend to grow?

I understand i will be spending a lot since i dont really have much equipment.

I have a window to vent out of. However its on the first floor in an apt building so im actually a little worried about that. i could vent out into the rest of the apt since i wont be living there. theres a walk in closet i can utilize to keep the rez outside, but i was fully ready to get a chiller.
 
jaypru369

jaypru369

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Which one of the two will give me a higher success rate for first grow with it? im seeing alot of conflicting opinions. i cant tell which one will be less work thoughout the grow. i wont be able to be there daily unless i see problems from environmental monitor.
 
tomatoesarecooltoo

tomatoesarecooltoo

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Which one of the two will give me a higher success rate for first grow with it? im seeing alot of conflicting opinions. i cant tell which one will be less work thoughout the grow. i wont be able to be there daily unless i see problems from environmental monitor.

I only grew dwc once but it was not successful. Grew flood and drain rockwool once with success and have been soil organic ever since. Not sure if that is helpful.
 
tomatoesarecooltoo

tomatoesarecooltoo

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Similarly I have experimented with dwc for vegetables with limited success, and have had good success with soil on drip and flood and drain with hydroton.
 
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