Homegrown Hydroponics - Hydroponic Nutrient

Hydroponic nutrients are available from the hydroponic shops (hydroponics store). These concentrated hydroponic nutrient solutions are diluted in water to make the plant food to feed the plants. Simple hydro nutrient concentrates are easier and cheaper (from $8 for 750 ml.). But some of the hydroponic nutrient chemicals precipitate out as flakes before use and are lost. Two part nutrient concentrates (from $20 for 2L.) don't have this problem. By separating nutrient chemicals they allow more nutrients to be added same amount of water.

         Mixing the two part hydroponic solution. Half fill the nutrient tank, mix the required amount of concentrate Part A in the water. Fill the tank and mix required amount of concentrate Part B. Check the instructions on the containers before buying or using either type of hydroponic nutrient concentrate.

Homegrown Hydroponics - Grow Lights

Growing under lights allows plants to be in light 24 hours a day, promoting vigorous growth. Some growers use 18 hours light and 6 hours dark. Many types of grow lights are available. Agro-type HPS and HMI lights are better for growing in doors and a single 400watt light is easier to handle ten 40watt fluoro lights. However they are expensive and require a control box to fire the globe($200 - $400 for a 400watt globe, reflector and control box.). Fluorescent lighting is also effective, Gro-lux and other Agro-type tubes are available but aren't as powerful. Fluorescent light fitting can be purchased second hand for about $5 - $15 for single a 36 watt fitting and $10A - $25 for a double 72 watt fitting. New fitting are about twice the maximum cost of second hand unit. Only one double fitting can grow many plants until they about 2 weeks old. As they grow taller the light is too dim at the sides and bottom of plant, more tubes will be needed to light these parts of the plant. The light from fluorescent grow lights needs to be very close to the foliage about 10cm. max., heat may cause burning or curling of the leaves if there touching the tube. If there are 6 large plants they will need 10 or 12 of 36 watt fluorescent tubes. I used Fluorescent grow lights on my first 2 indoor crops starting with 4 tubes then adding tubes every week or two, as this was all I could afford. this setup soon supplied us with plenty of smoke and a quality that made buy on the street pointless. Before this I always been broke or in hock, paying for smoke and after while growing and not buying a could afford to get a 400watt HPS fitting and Son Agro glob. I was amazed at how the growth rate and strength improved as there was improvement in growth when I changed from soil to hydroponic growing and when they were grown under fluorescent grow lights got better .

Homegrown Hydroponics - Pumps

After the hydroponic nutrients has drained out of the root chamber into the lower tank it has to be pumped back up again to recirculate. A timer switch is used to control the pump. Hydroponic Stores and Aquarium suppliers sell pumps from about $45 for a small one and about $150+ for an adequate pump. Old washing machine drain pumps can be used to circulate the hydroponic nutrients and are easily salvaged.

A typical washing machine drain pump consists of a electric motor, a cooling fan on one end of motor shaft and a water impeller on the other end. The water impeller has 2 short tubes for connecting the hoses. The inlet is over the centre of the impeller and the outlet on the side at right angles to the motor shaft. Attach a 13mm. garden hose to the pump inlet and one to the pump outlet using hose clamps, adaptors, silicon sealer or whatever. Pump outlet has more pressure than inlet.

Some pumps are DANGEROUS as they have a short duty cycle these are usually from automatic washers and can only be used for 5 minutes then not used again for 1 hour. A short duty cycle pump may burn out or CATCH FIRE if left on for too long. Test your pump by pumping water for 5, 10, 20, 60 minutes, at the end of each test disconnect the power supply from the pump and CAREFULLY feel the temperature of motor winding coil. You should be able bear the temperature for some time, CAUTION a pump with a very short duty cycle may be very hot after 5 minutes and the power must be disconnected before touching the pump. 

Homegrown Hydroponics Drip System

This feed system has a dripper for each plant. Dripping the hydro juice directly on the top of the root mass should stop the plant from sending out long roots in search of food. Resulting in more growth on top or so the theory goes. The drip system uses a drip feed tank about one metre above the drippers and reticulation system.

Reticulation(diagram-4.1) is via 13mm. poly tube to just above the root chamber. A hole is punched in the 13mm. tube. A 4mm. adapter is screwed into the hole. Then 4mm. poly tube is attached to the 4mm. adapter. A dripper is attached to the other end of the 4mm. tube. The 4mm poly tube should be kept as short as possible so there is enough pressure to start the drippers. Barbed right angles and tee's are used to route the 13mm. poly tube close to each plant. The top of the 13 mm. poly tube is about 50mm. below the bottom of the drip feed tank. A 13mm. to snap-on adapter is fitted to the top of the 13mm. poly tube. If the 13 mm. poly tube is positioned at right angles to the slot and the 4mm. adapter, 4 mm. poly tube and the dripper positioned over the slot. Any leakage at the joins in the poly tube will drip into the slot preventing loss of hydro juice.

A 42 litre plastic garbage bin and lid is used for the drip feed tank. Snap-on fittings and 13mm. garden hose connect the bottom of the drip feed tank to the to 13mm. poly tube. They also connect the pump outlet hose to the top of the drip feed tank. A Stop Snap-on is used where the garden hose connects to the Snap-on adapter on the 13mm. poly tube. This prevents the hydro juice flowing from when the Snap-on is removed from the 13mm. poly tube. 
To convert from flood and drain to drip feed. Move the pump outlet hose from the flood inlet on top of the root chamber, to the top of the drip feed tank.

Snap-on universal sprinkler adapter are used to connect hoses to the side of the drip feed tank . These are a Snap-on to 13mm. thread adapter. There is also a 20mm. thread that screws onto a 13mm. thread. A hole no larger than the 13mm. thread is drilled in the side of the tank. The 13mm. thread is pushed through the hole from the outside of the tank. Now the 20mm. thread is screwed on to the 13mm. thread inside the tank creating a water tight seal. Make sure the hole is away from obstructions inside the tank that would prevent the 20mm. thread from attaching to the 13mm. thread. This method is used for all tanks and also for the pump outlet hose connection to the top of the flood end of the root chamber. 

Homegrown Hydroponics Ebb and Flow System

A flood and drain system requires a timer, a pump and a drain tank to catch the hydro juice. Hose is run from the bottom of the drain tank to the pump inlet. Hose is run from pump outlet to the hole in the top of the flood (high) end of the root chamber. The pump inlet is below the bottom the drain tank. As the drain tank is filling hydro juice flows through to the pump inlet through the pump and up the flood hose till level with the hydro juice in the tank. This is to prime the pump as the pump can't suck air, it can only push out what flows in the inlet. The timer runs the pump for 1 minute and the hydro juice fills about half the root chamber. If chamber over flows increase size of drain holes. If a hose is used at the drain end, it must not cause hydro juice to stand at the drain end. A recycling type bin is ideal for the drain tank (see end of Drip Feed section to attach hose to drain tank). Putting the pump on the floor andthe drain tank on bricks should raise it enough prime the pump.

Homegrown Hydroponics - Sexing Plants

Females show the first sign that a plant is turning female, the hairs are a translucent white and usually appear in pairs from small groth either side of the divisions in the stem, usually in the new groth (near the tips), then the hairs start to grow in the all the centers, sometimes the hairs appear in the centers first. When the plant matures there will be many curly hairs on the heads, colored from off white to orange to brown. 

Males start with a small groth/s in the sameplace as the female but groths are closer to the stem division and appear more as clusters or bunches growing into small ball then they burst speading a fine pollen .

The Males should be removed before they burst. Males can appear to be unsexed but have a single branch or tip sexually mature especially if its in direct contact with a female. 

The male balls shown on the right are on the stem where the 3rd. and 4th braches from the bottom of the plant and did not grow from clusters in new groth as described above, but this is what they look like anyway or bunches of them things, they go a lighter green before they burst it only takes a day or two.

Homegrown Hydroponics Growing Mediums

There are many growing mediums for hydro use. They include Rockwool, Vermiculite, Sand, Gravel, Expanded clay and others. Rockwool is used because it stays together and doesn't pollute the hydro juice. One Rockwool block ( About $12 - $30 ) will last for several crops of 6 plants. The Rockwool block is sealed in plastic and is about 700mm. x 300mm. x 100 mm. Before cutting the mats you need to see the grain of the rockwool the grain of in fig8. is from side to side. Cut across the grain with sharp knife several slices ( Mats ) 7mm. to 10mm. thick off the long side.  Each Rockwool mat is about 700mm. x 80mm. x 10mm. The Rockwool mats are passed through the slots and molded to the inside of the PVC pipe. This should cover the bottom inside half of each side of the root chamber with 7-10mm. of Rockwool mat. Be sure the Rockwool mat extends 50 - 100mm. longer than the slot. Next cut seedling blocks about 50mm. x 50mm. x 50mm.. Then poke a hole about 3mm. diameter from the middle of one side to the center of the block. This hole should be large enough to let the seedling freely grow out the top of the seedling block. Make one block for each plant. These small blocks are used to germinate the seedling and support the growing plants.

The Rockwool should be prepared before using by soaking in water for 24 hours and then soak with fresh water for seeds or sprouts and in the root chamber with half strength hydro juice before the seedlings are transplanted. 

Homegrown Hydroponics Root Chamber

ROOT CHAMBER

ROOT CHAMBER; The Root Chamber is made from 90mm. PVC storm water pipe. This type is used for all new building constructions so off cut are about. A selection of 90mm. PVC storm water pipe and 90mm. fittings are available at large hardware stores. Fittings include right angles, tee junctions, end caps and others. These can be used to make the root camber suit any room. The root camber show in Diagrams (fig.5,6,7) is made with two lengths about 1 miter for the sides, 2 lengths about of 600mm. for the ends and 4 right angles for the corners. PVC pipe glue is used to make all joins water tight. A   slot is cut in the top of each side providing access to change growing medium and remove root mass. Holes instead of a slot may be used   for each plant but another way of access must be used. A drain hole or holes are drilled in the bottom of one end of the root chamber and a flood hole is drilled in the top of the other end. The root chamber is mounted on an angle with drain end below then the flood end. This is to ensure that the roots don't get water logged. Too much of an angle will cause the rockwool and roots to dry out at the high end.

Homegrown Hydroponics Germinating and Transplanting

STARTING PLANTS; Soak seeds in damp paper or cotton wool, cover seed with damp paper or cloth, drian off excess water and don't allow to dry out. When the seed root is 2 - 5mm. long place the seed root first in the small hole with tweezers (fig.3). Make sure the root is protected by the open jaws of the tweezers and that the seed or root isn't squashed. Then place seedling block hole up on a plate and wet Rockwool until it won't take any more water. Keep the plate on an angle for drainage, but the seedling blocks shouldn't dry out too much and seedling should come up in a few days. Seedlings can stay on the plate until roots grow from the bottom or sides of the seedling block (fig.4).When this happens seedling are ready to transplanted on to the Rockwool mat in the root chamber. (Before the seedling blocks go into the root chamber the rookwool is soaked in water 24 hours then with hydro juice at half strength.) Roots will grow from seedling block, through and along the under side of the Rockwool mats. Place three to eight plants per side, evenly spaced along the slot, and it will soon grow into mass of green. When the system is operational and plants are growing, the inside of the root chamber should have a rich earthy smell. Three or four plants if your growing them big (outdoors ), eight if your growing fast and flowering early ( under lights ).

When the roots grow from the bottem or sides of the Rockwool block it's ready to transplant into the grow tube. Once the roots have grown into the mat tou can hit them with full stength hydro juice. Light proof plastic should be used to cover the top of the root chamber white side up, this is to stop green slime growing on the rockwool. This can only be done when the plant is tall enough, take care not strain or damage the plant.

Homegrown Hydroponics

BASIC PRINCIPALS; Plant foliage requires light, oxygen and carbon dioxide. Plant root systems require water, nutrients and oxygen. When plants are grown normally water leeches nutrients from the soil and carries them to the roots. The water and nutrients are taken up by the roots to feed plant growth. Soil drainage then allows water to be replaced by air in the gaps between soil grains. This supplies the roots with oxygen.

          In hydroponics the nutrients are dissolved in the water. Soil is replaced with a growing medium to supply the roots with water, nutrients and oxygen. Hydro juice (nutrient solution) can be drip fed to each plant, it can also be used to regularly flood the root chamber, then drain out. Both methods require a pump and timer to circulate the nutrients through the roots and are covered by these diagrams and notes. Roots can also be grown in the air by spraying roots with a fine mist of hydro juice, or grown in the hydro juice and the solution aerated under each root mass with an air pump. With both of the second two methods the plants must secured at the base of the stem or something.

          The hydroponic system described does work and is suitable for any plant with stringy roots. I have not tried it with any bulb plants or plants such as orchids that require fungus or mold in the soil to grow. This method is similar to Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) the thin Rockwool slice acting as a capillary mat. This eliminates the need to have flat bottom the root chamber and to level the bottom of root chamber, making easier and cheaper to set up.

          This method will get the most vigorous growth if each plant has it's own continuos drip feed. The dripper is positioned drip on roots growing from the base of the seedling block, the roots will grow thick, hairy and compact under the dripper. 4L per hour dripper are used however their drip rate depends pressure, this is effected by height and size of the drip feed tank. The drip rate will slow as the tank empties.

          Feeding can also be achieved with faster dripper at the top of each top end of each side of the root chamber. The plants grown like this had a large root mass, the roots of three plant taking up about a third of the root chamber. With the timer I had could only flood the root chamber every 4 hours, the growth rate was similar to the last. The growth rate will improve by flooding every hour or even less. After the root chamber is flooded it should drain to a trickle in a few minutes.