5 Types of Hydroponic Systems

There are basically 5 different types of hydroponic systems. Deep Water Culture (DWC), Drip, Ebb and Flow, NFT (nutrient film technique) and Aeroponics. Each system has it own pros and cons. Some are more forgiving than others while some require more vigilant maintenance than others. Were going to touch briefly on each one here. DWC or Deep Water Culture Deep Water Culture, commonly referred to as DWC, is just as the name suggests. It is basically letting the roots of the plant grow down into a nutrient solution or water culture. DWC (Deep Water Culture) is the preferred system of choice for growing leaf lettuce, which are very fast growing and water loving plants, making them an ideal choice for the Deep Water Culture

hydroponic system. Many commercial hydroponic lettuce operations employ this method, using floating Styrofoam rafts to hold the plant cups or just the plants themselves. This setup can be as simple as a bucket full of mixed hydroponic nutrients (referred to as Nutes) with a hole in the lid to support a flower pot or it can be made large enough to support multiple plants. DWC hydroponics requires nothing more than a simple air stone and air pump to keep the nutrient solution stirred, oxygenated and fresh. The biggest draw back of this kind of system is that it doesnt work well with very large plants or with long-term plants. One of the good things about the DWC hydroponic setup is that it has no drip or spray emitters to get clogged, thus making

it a good choice for organic hydroponics growing systems. Because of its simple design and function, the DWC hydroponic system is a good choice for homemade hydroponic systems. Being one of the easiest and cheapest to build and setup, it is great for a first time hydro grower requiring little maintenance, plus it has very few parts for failure. If you are just wanting to get your feet wet (no pun intended) in hydroponics with a quick, cheap and easy method, I would highly recommend you grab a bucket and air pump and give this one a try. Build your own DWC bubbling bucket. Drip System Drip systems are probably the most widely used hydroponic systems in the world. This is mainly because they are commonly used in a lot of commercial facilities for growing long term crops like peppers or

tomatoes. Drip systems never totally submerge the roots or the grow media while also never allowing them to dry out. Operation is simple, usually a timer controls a submersible pump. The timer turns the pump on and the nutes are dripped onto the base of each plant by a small drip line. It works just like a drip irrigation system in your yard. In fact, you

can use the parts for such a yard system to build your own drip system. Nutrient solution is dripped onto the base of each plant where it then trickles down through the grow media and into the roots and finally drains into the reservoir where it is reused. Different emitters can be placed on the end of each tube to make the drip slower or faster, depending on the media used.

This system can be setup into what I like to call Vacation Mode using a non-recovery system. This method requires much less maintenance due to the fact that the excess nutrient solution isnt recycled back into the reservoir, so the nutrient strength and pH of the reservoir will not vary. This means that you can fill the reservoir with pH adjusted nutrient solution and then forget it, or go on vacation, until you need to mix more. The flow rate can be difficult to control on a drip system, and the emitters are well known for clogging. Organic nutrients are full of small particles that are quite problematic for the drip emitters. If you wish to grow fully organic this may not be the best choice of systems to go with. Ebb & Flow (flood & drain) The Ebb and Flow hydroponic method is the most popular type of hydroponic system for home/hobby gardeners. This

system is suitable for, and used by, beginners and experts alike. The Ebb and Flow hydroponic system works by temporarily flooding the grow tray with nutrient solution and then draining the solution back into the reservoir. This action is normally done with a submerged pump that is connected to a timer.

A submersible pump is placed in a reservoir to pump the nutrient solution up and into a flood tray. The flood tray fills with nutes until it reaches the proper flood level determined by the height of the overflow fitting. Once the pump turns off, the nutrient solution still in the flood tray drains back into the reservoir right through the pump. Your choice of growing media determines how often and how long you should fill the

flood tray for. For example, fast draining, expanded clay pellets may need be flooded for a 25 minutes 4 times a day, while the slower draining rockwool would be flooded for much less time and maybe only 3 times a day. Generally speaking, the pump should flood the tray for about

15-20 minutes every few hours or more; this is known as the flood cycle. The Ebb & Flow hydroponic setup is a versatile system that can be used with a variety of growing mediums. The entire grow tray can be filled with clay pebbles, grow rocks, gravel or granular rockwool. Alternatively, another way you can do it and the way that I prefer is to use individual pots filled with growing medium and set these into the flood tray. Doing it

this way makes it not only possible, but simple and easy to move my plants around or even move them in or out of the ebb and flow flood tray altogether. The parts and function of this hydroponics growing system are

pretty basic, making it another good option for a homemade hydroponics system. With a good strong water pump that can handle the heavier nutes, you can also use this method for organic hydroponics production. The main disadvantage of this type of system is that with some types of growing medium like gravel, expanded clay pellets, or grow rocks for example, there is a vulnerability to power outages as well as pump and timer failures. The roots can dry out quickly if the watering cycles are

interrupted for very long. This problem can be relieved somewhat by using growing media or a mix of medias that retains more water, like rockwool, vermiculite, coconut coir or a good mix for example. NFT (Nutrient Film Technique)

NFT is an ultra-resource efficient method of growing plants by providing a highly oxygenated, slowly moving film (stream) of dissolved minerals (hydroponic nutrients) to the roots of plants grown in a flat bottomed, light proof channel. One end of the channel is purposely left lower than the other to encourage the flow of the nutrient solution which is then returned to a reservoir to be recirculated through the process again. Plants are placed at intervals along the growing channel and grown with their root ends constantly moistened by the nutrient

film. The nutrient film is kept shallow enough for most of the root mass to have direct access to oxygen from the surrounding air. The name of this growing method was so coined in order to stress that the depth of

the liquid flowing past the roots should be very shallow in order to ensure that sufficient oxygen is supplied. A wide range of vegetables and ornamental crops may be grown in an NFT hydroponic system. Depending on width of the channel, NFT can be a great choice for plants as diverse as tomatoes and lettuce. Nutrient Film Technique systems are some of the most productive available, and they are often the chosen method of commercial growing operations. N.F.T. systems have a constant flow of nutrient

solution so no timer is required for the water pump.

There is usually no growing medium used other than air, which saves the expense of replacing the growing medium after every crop. Normally the plant is supported in a small plastic basket with the roots dangling into the nutrient solution. In order to make sure the water flowing through the bottom of the tray is nice and even, a layer of absorbent material commonly referred to as a capillary mat is sometimes placed in the bottom. The parts, the design, and the function are all very simple. NFT is both easy for the homemade hydroponics do-it-yourselfer and also a good choice for organic hydroponics growing systems since their

are no small parts or sprayers to get clogged. N.F.T. systems are very susceptible to power outages and pump failures as they have very little buffering against interruptions in the nutrient flow. The roots dry out very rapidly when the flow of nutrient solution is interrupted. Another small problem with this method of hydroponic gardening is that you must start with plants that have a root system large enough to hang down into your nutrient solution. Another option would be to top feed the plants with a drip system until their roots are large enough to reach the nutrient film, thus making it a hybrid hydroponic growing system. The main advantage of the NFT system over other forms of hydroponics, aside from its simplicity, is that the plant roots are exposed to adequate supplies of water, oxygen, and nutrients 24 hours a day. Because of its design, N.F.T.

provides a system where all three of these requirements for healthy plant growth can more easily be met at the same time. The result of these advantages is higher yields of high quality produce. Aeroponics The aeroponic system is probably the most high-tech type of hydroponic gardening. The growing medium is primarily air, but unlike the NFT systems shallow channels,

the roots are growing down into a much larger container . The roots hang in the air and are misted with an oxygen rich hydroponic nutrient solution. The mist cycle are usually done every few minutes. A timer controls the nutrient pump much like other types of hydroponic systems,

except the aeroponic system needs a short cycle timer that runs the pump for a few seconds every couple of minutes. These types of cycle timers are usually only available from specialty grow shops and will cost around one hundred dollars. The pumps used in most aeroponic systems is a high-pressure pump, and the spray emitters are made specially to deliver a very fine, highly oxygenated spray. Because the roots are exposed to the air, the roots will dry out rapidly if the misting cycles are interrupted. The fine-spray emitters will instantly clog if you try to use anything except high quality hydroponic fertilizers so this system is not at all suitable for organic nutrients. Of all the hydroponics growing systems, this is the most difficult type to build,

setup and to master, not to mention the most temperamental. pH changes and nutrient imbalances occur more quickly because of the increased absorption rates and high levels of oxygenation. Furthermore, with no grow media to protect the roots, the plants react negatively to these changes much more quickly. On the flip side, because of the increased absorption rates and high levels of oxygenation, this type of hydroponic system in the hands of a well experienced hydroponic gardener will yield explosive and absolutely phenomenal growth rates.