Survival Gear Blog

Hydroponic Drip Systems Explained

Before we delve straight into hydroponic drip systems, let’s cover the basics of hydroponics. Hydroponics is a from of growing plants in a controlled indoors environment with no soil and the aid of artificial lights. Soil is not necessary as the plants are grown in a solutuion rich in nutrients. The artificial lights are necessary to help promote growth, otherwise the plant will not thrive. As a result you can grow anything you want all year round, without the knowledge of which season are the best to grow crops. hydroponic drip systems are by far the most widely used hydroponic system through the the world. The process and layout of this type of system is very straight forward. A timer controlled pump is submerged in the solution. The pump utilises the timer to drip feed the solution to the plants at a specific rate. If you use a recovery drip system, any unused solution will be recycled back into the reservoir, where it can be re-used. Unless you have a recovery unit on your drip system, the excess solution will accumulate at the plants base. A recovery system is much more efficient as it makes use of the solution more effectively, as a result, a cheaper pump can be used as getting the drip rates dead on is not necessary. Word of caution though, unless you have a recovery unit installed, be aware of the exact amount of solution the plant requires, so you can set your timer accordingly, or they will not grow at their optimum rate. hydroponic drip systems with Recovery units tend to requires more maintenance time than non-recovery systems. This is because the nutrient strength and pH levels will vary as the excess solution is recycled back into the reservoir. For optimum growth of your plants its best these levels are checked frequently as adjusting will be required.