Recirculating Hydroponics

Step 4 Assembly and planting

The bottom container is filled with nutrient solution, the pump and spray bar fitted into place through the hole in the side. Snap the top on and place the second container on top and fit the piece of window screening in to it and fill with washed perlite. The spray bar has enough play that it can be swung up and lifted into the notches cut in the top container.

Wash as much soil as possible from the roots of your plants before planting, otherwise follow general planting procedures, ie not to deep, not to shallow.

Place the unit in the sun and plug in.

To change nutrient solution (about every ten days) unscrew the plug and let the solution get pumped out, I catch it in a bucket to water containers. Mix up a new solution (Gen Hydro is very good) and slowly pour it in through the top of the perlite, optionally remove the top container and fill directly.

The unused lid from the upper container can be drilled and split to surround the plants, this limits contamination of the perlite by organic matter (leaves mostly) and algae growth.

Comments

[chriscc63]

this looks pretty awesome, I wonder if there are any others this simple. I would like to add to genius by suggesting a solar panel to run the pump.! I am unfamiliar with the requirements of these systems but does the pump have to run 24/7 or would a solar panel running it all day be enough?

[jeff-o]

I imagine that the pump would have to run 24/7, otherwise the water would drain out of the perlite (leaving the roots dry) after only an hour or two.

[Toastalicious]

 save power by adding a timer to run it for 30 minutes every hour or two then.

[jeff-o]

that'll work!

[gsteiner]

The roots should be fine overnight. My understanding is that plants don't take in water at night, and without the heat of the sun drying out isn't an issue. I have a makeshift aeroponics system I built into a large 30 gallon garbage can with a 10 second spray every 15 minutes or so. I shut the system off every night when the sun goes down and the plants are doing just fine. I would imagine that perlite is going to hold more solution overnight than just roots hanging out in the air.

[tabletopphoto]

as long as the roots don't dry out, you are fine