A few of Many Questions

[Farmall]

I am new to growing and pruning anything except a beard for the last 50 years. I am thinking of hydroponics, I am reading and reading and learning that the reservoir water pump in top feed bubble systems runs 15 minutes per hour, and the air runs 24/7. Does the water pump run at “night’ during the 6 hour off periods to continue the top feeding to the rest of the buckets? I can only assume it does as to not dry out the roots? Sorry if it’s a dumb question.

Additionally , can you grow something like basil or ??? in the same system or will the chemistry between them cause problems?
‘How far of a run can an in-line power vent fan (450 cfm ) push heat from bulbs to the outside with a 6” duct . Can a 1000w hps ballast with adjustable 50%, 75% and 100% output simply run a smaller bulb not being a 1000w? For example....a 500w bulb on 50%?. How many hps fixtures depending on wattage, be Connected together in one vent hose duct?

[Mr.furley]

Farmall,
I am not a hydro guy but I'll Bumble words out anyhow
top feed runs at night as to not dry out.

Companion planting should work with some plants, the nutrients for cannabis could kill or grow you some monster tomato.

I have done about 25,' after the fan with two hoods(1 400w, 1 600w, 1 carbon filter, 1 wye) total of around 50' running medium/high with 6" and 450cfm fan.

it's is not recommended to put a lower watt bulb in higher watt balance for safety reasons. It is also not the best to run your ballest at 50% 75%. If you need a lower watt try to get a ballast to match your needs and bulb size.

hope this helps

[RosettaStoned]

I would say the pump runs, on schedule, until the roots hit the water. I do believe the bubbleponics article here says after that the top feed doesnt do much. As far as growing something else, if you have separate buckets for each you can. I wouldn't top feed the same nutes as the MJ.

as far as the light, I know they have ballasts that accept MH and HPS. Not sure if it's safe to put in a different bulb but my guess is no. Unless is specifically says on the ballast. I'm sure a gas discharge junkie will chime and tell you for sure. I'm all LEDs

as far as your duct length, it depends a lot on static pressure. But also the turns and the type of duct. Just run it as straight and short as you can. How far do you have to go? There are calculators online to help figure out what you'll have when said and done. Or better yet, contact the fan company and ask them to calculate it for you.

[Farmall]

Thank you both. Depending on the path, I have about 18’ of ducting with that plain thin duct material and 1 75 degree bend. . . . Or possibly, 27’ in a straight run, no bends. Had to sit and wait today for a friend getting some medical needs attended to and in the 3 hours, I thought about moving the location to the end of the room ( its a long room) and that makes the run about 6’ from the outside wall, I am making lists of materials I will need once this gets underway and it grows wildly every time I read something new.

I appreciate the information on the bulbs and ballast. Makes sense as I think about it more. The iPower ballast I saw does allow the use of both bulbs but it was a 1000w unit. While I know they say start small but I have a 10’ x 10’ space available to me inside a building. 8’ high is a ceiling limit but I see that won’t be an issue. Looking a led lights but have not yet deciphered what makes one $145.00 and another $600.00. Got lots more reading to do.

i have read the Bubbleponics article and I saw the top feed notation. I’ve also seen you tubio videos where this is a primary feed system and utilized throughout. Read at least 4 books so far that present like college courses in chemistry. There are also many individual opinions all touting success, yet so many 180 degrees from each other. Of course things like lights on “X” amount of time for this or that seems quite universal.

As for a multi crop grow, I do have a plan keeping all buckets separate but like conventional hydroponic farming ( and I know there’s nothing conventional with this process), the nutrient solution would be the same source...SHOULD that be a problem, I do need to protect the more important crop, of course..

i will forge ahead and keep asking questions.... again, thank you for the information

[Mr.furley]

What makes one LED light cheaper than the other, well is cheap parts. There are a few that do work for people but the good, lasting results come from the more expensive ones. If I had the room you had I would opt for two 600 watt hoods and ballast over LED or single 1000w it will run more efficiently and you'll have greater coverage.
Good luck on your endeavor.

[Farmall]

Thanks again to all.... so far, I’ve read a ton of stuff, seen hours and hours (maybe 65-70 hours) of video and from what I remember in 1975, we threw some bag seeds in the ground and stopped back about 3 months later to a small jungle of 6’ plants. Man, it is so so much more involved in order to get some great results...and clearly worth it.
I don’t know when I can pull the trigger and start .... I know much of it depends on grow space and the interior environment control. This warehouse space is not mine and it might be a problem maintaining temps and humidity for the upcoming winter season. However, its free , unused, private and clean. Hard to beat

i borrowed a co2 monitor from a friend and discovered an interesting number of between 990 and 1240 over a few days. That’s seems like a gift. No idea what is driving these numbers from what I read is around 400 outdoors.