FAQ
What exactly is Hydroponics-?
Hydroponics is the act of growing plants without the need for soil.
Why is it Better to Grow using Hydroponics than Soil?
The produce grown in hydroponic systems is cleaner than plants produced in soil, and the person growing can change the levels of nutrients the plants are getting, allowing them to get the best growth in the smallest time.
What is PH?
This is the measure of how acidic or alkaline a solution is, equal to 7 for solutions that are neutral, and increases with more alkalinity, and lowers with more acid. The nutrients for your hydroponic system are most soluble when the PH level is at 6.5.
What's different between High Pressure Sodium and Metal Halide Lighting?
These are both High Intensity Discharge lights, but the difference is in the color spectrum that each puts off. The High Pressure Sodium Bulbs put off light that is more concentrated in the red to yellow area of the light spectrum, and are not as strong at the blue-violet end. The Metal Halide bulbs produce light that is highly balanced and has each of the energy peaks at visible spectrum wavelengths. The Metal Halide bulbs usually look blue-white and the Sodium bulbs look yellow-orange.
What is PPM?
PPM stand for Parts Per Million, and is often used as a way to measure the complete amount of Total Dissolved Solids in your nutrient solution, or can be used to tell the level of Co2 that is present in the atmosphere.
What does EC stand for?
EC stands for electrical conductivity, and it is used to determine the measure of electrical conductivity in a particular nutrient solution. When you use an EC meter, it will put off an electrical shock to the solution, and tell you the conductivity that is made through the mineral ions movement.
What Types of Plants can I Grow Using Hydroponics?
Just about any sort of plant can be grown with hydroponics, but some will need greater care than others. Anytime you can give the plants the perfect environment needed for growth, you can have plants that grow much greater than they would in traditional soil environments.
How Often Do I Need to Change My Nutrient Solution?
There isn't a set amount of time that should pass before changing your solution. It is best to first top off your reservoir with fresh water without adding nutrients. This is due to the fact that water will be lost thanks to evaporation and what the plants take in, but the solution strength doesn't always lower when the water does. Just add fresh water, and then change the Ph depending on what is needed. Keep a log of the amount of water that is being placed into the reservoir to keep it topped off, and when that number equals half f what the reservoir can actually hold, then the solution should be changed, and the reservoir and growing media needs to be rinsed.
Can Soil grown plants be transferred to hydroponics?
Yes they can. Be sure to first wash the roots gently to get rid of as much soil as possible. They can be dipped in water for this purpose. Be gentle with the roots so as to not send them into shock from transplant. As soon as the roots are clean, they can be placed in your hydroponics media, and then start a
normal watering regimen. For about a week, add some B1 into the solution to help the plants recover from the transplant.
Do Hydroponic plants have a better taste than those that have been grown in soil?
Oftentimes, this is exactly the case, since the plants grown with hydroponics get all of the nutrients they require. When grown in soil, many of the essential micro nutrients remain just out of the plant's reach, depriving the plant of some of the top nutrients. Hydroponic growers can control exactly what goes into the system, and how much, resulting in crops that have the ultimate size, color, nutritional value, and taste.
