The best hydroponic grow light for you will depend on a number of factors. These include the cost of the light, the energy cost of running the light x number of hours a day. The environment that the plant is in and what stage of growth you are trying to facilitate.

Florescent and Incandescent grow lights
While they are cheap to buy they are rather inefficient as hydroponic grow lights. Incandescent and Florescent grow lights are fine for low-light plants where limited results are expected. However the light is of a low intensity and they produce a low level of lumens per watt and are therefore less efficient than High Intensity Discharge Lights (HID) or Light Emitting Diode Grow Lights (LED grow lights). Incandescent lights have a much shorter usable bulb life than high-pressure sodium lights and LED grow lights. They also have approximately six times lower light output per watt of energy consumed than a High Pressure Sodium Light.¹

High Intensity Discharge Lighting (HID)
High Intensity Discharge lighting consists of a lamp, reflector and power supply. They are designed to produce a high output of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) for the amount of power consumed. It is not just the quality of the light but the quantity that is also important and High intensity discharge lights can produce both.

Commercial growers and some of the world’s premier growers use High Intensity Discharge lights and produce impressive results that would be impossible with conventional florescent and incandescent lamps.

Until recently High Intensity Discharge lighting for horticulture has not been cost effective. As a result of new lighting products by manufacturers like Hydrofarm and Sunlight Supply, lighting costs have been significantly reduced making the use of such lights profitable.

High Intensity Discharge lights are designed to cover the PAR spectrum (Photosynthetically Active Radiation). The wavelengths of light most important for photosynthesis to occur are the red and blue light spectrum, red being 600 – 680 nm and blue being 380-380 nm. These wavelengths are considered the most important for photosynthesis and HID lights cover these spectrums well.

There are two types of HID lamps which emit different colour spectrums:

Metal Halide Grow Lamps
Metal halide lamps emit light at the white/blue spectrum. Metal Halide lamps are best used as a primary light source if there are no other light sources and little or no natural sunlight is available. They consume large amounts of energy but produce significant quantities of light.

Advantages of Metal Halide Lamps (MH)

• Best when there are no other light sources
• Promotes compact vegetative growth
• Best for vegetative growth
• Emit high levels of blue light promoting growth of leafy plants

High Pressure Sodium Grow Lamps (HPS)
High-pressure sodium grow lights have a long usable bulb life and are a much more efficient means of producing light than standard incandescent grow lights. They emit a yellow/orange spectrum of light and have a yellowish glow. They are good when used in combination with other light sources such as weak sunlight during the winter months.

Advantages of High Pressure Sodium Lamps (HPS):

• Work well with other light sources (natural sunlight etc)
• Best for flowering/budding stages of growth
• Ideal for greenhouses and commercial growing applications
• Emit high levels of red light good for flowering and fruiting plants

The Son Agro and Hortilux HPS lamps add an additional 30% blue factor to their spectrum making them more efficient than other HPS lamps for solo use.

You can also buy High Pressure Sodium to Metal Halide conversion bulbs. These can switch from emitting Metal Halide light during vegetative growth then let you switch back to High Pressure Sodium for the flowering/budding stage of growth.

LED Grow Lights
LED grow lights are the most efficient means of producing light for plant growth as the light produced is specifically designed to target narrow wavelengths required for photosynthesis also most of the energy is not lost in the form of heat like other grow lights. LED grow lights have the highest PAR value (photosynthetically active radiation) of all grow lights. The downside of LED grow lights is that they are expensive to buy and while being the most efficient, the cheaper models don’t produce enough lumens to be effective for growing a decent size crop.

Advantages of LED Grow Lights:

• Produce less heat than other light sources which can damage plant and dry up hydroponic solution.
• Much longer bulb life than other lamps. Typical lifetimes quoted are 25,000  to  100,000 hours.²
• Lower energy costs due to higher efficiency
• No costly cooling system required unlike Halide Lights which get hot
• LED grow lights do not contain the harmful mercury-filled bulbs that exist in some other grow lights.
• Powerful LED grow lights have been shown to produce higher yields and vegetative growth

1. Grow Light, Wikipedia
2. Light emitting Diode, Wikipedia

Buying an LED grow light for your hydroponically grown plants can be confusing. There are a number of LED grow light suppliers out there and there are many factors to consider before spending your hard earned money.

PAR, LUX and Lumens

The mistake many people make when buying hydroponic LED grow lights is to buy a LED grow light with a low PAR rate. PAR stands for Photosynthetically Active Radiation, and designates the spectral range (wave band) of solar radiation from 400 to 700 nanometers(nms) that photosynthetic organisms are able to use in the process of photosynthesis”¹ .

Since the Photosynthetically active radiation range occurs within the visible spectrum it is common for the brightness of the light to be measured in lumens or LUX (LUX and lumens are interchangeable). Generally speaking you want an LED light with high lumens but a comparatively low wattage. The light should not get hot as this indicates that the light is not emitting energy targeted at the Photosynthetically active radiation range. Too much heat will result in waste, significantly higher energy cost and a shorter lifetime for the LEDs.The light should be bright enough that it is difficult to look directly at it without squinting.

Nanometers, Spectra Ratios and Watts

The reason LED grow lights have not been commonplace until recently is because it was difficult to find LED lights powerful enough to sustain good growth and within the right wavelength.

The wavelength should be between 400 and 700 nms. When purchasing an LED light this information is sometimes made available and is usually stated in nanometers (nms). Outside of this range and the light will produce wasted energy not used by the plants. Bulbs that get too warm are an indication that they are not emitting energy at the correct wavelengths. This leads to inefficiency and a shorter LED life.

A combination of red and blue wavelengths of light are best for a plants life cycle. Red LED grow lights will be the most important during the flowering stage and blue LED grow lights will be the most important during the vegetative growth. However both red and blue LED grow lights will be important for all growth stages. You should buy a red and blue LED grow light as these will contain both wavelengths – ideal for all stages of plant growth. You can buy red and blue led grow lights on eBay but be aware of low quality and DIY models that are next to useless.

Full spectrum LED grow lights defeat the point of using LED grow lights as they will significantly increase energy costs and are not necessary.

You should aim for a LED light that emits light at 60 to 90 degree angles so that light emitted is not wasted due to a wide dispersion.

Some of the best LED grow lights for sale commercially are the Penetrator LED Grow Lights. They set the standard for grow lights as the Penetrator brand uses cutting edge technology. They claim to produce 3.7x more grams per watt than the competition in independent tests.

The technical specifications for their 126W Penetrator LED Grow Light model which would cover an area of 18” x 30” (46cm x 76cm) is the following:

• Number of LEDs: 126 LEDs each producing 1W
• Gen3 Spectrum: 440nm, 470nm, 525nm, 640nm, 660nm, 740nm
• Spectra Ratios: 75% Red, 10% Blue, 15% Green
• Lens Angle: Intense 60 Degree Lens
• Dimensions: 19″ x 12.5″ x 3.5
• Replaces 250W HID while using 65% less power
• Price: $475.00

You can buy LED grow lights in various wattages. The most common being 90 watt, 200 watt, 300 watt and 600 watt.

Some other popular brands include the following:

• Supernova led grow lights
• Cree LED grow lights
• Advanced LED grow lights
• Illuminator LED grow lights

Guarantee

You should try to ensure a money back guarantee should the LED grow light fail within the first few months.

1. Photosynthetically active radiation, Wikipedia

What are LED Lights?

LED lights are just small light bulbs that can fit easily into an electrical circuit but unlike ordinary incandescent bulbs, they don’t have a filament that burns out, and they don’t get very hot. This means they last a lot longer. They can also be configured to emit light at specific wavelengths thereby making them more efficient for growing plants which require light between 400 to 700 nanometers.

Efficient Means of Producing Light

Thanks to new technology LED grow lights have become the most efficient means of producing artificial light for plant growth. This is because LED grow lights have a high photosynthetic photon flux (area) density for every Watt consumed. What does this mean?

Photosynthetically Active Radiation

According to Wikipedia “Photosynthetically active radiation, often abbreviated PAR, designates the spectral range (wave band) of solar radiation from 400 to 700 nanometers(nms) that photosynthetic organisms are able to use in the process of photosynthesis”¹

PPFD stands for the photosynthetic photon flux (area) density which is the Photosynthetically active radiation emitted per square meter per second. In other words it is how much energy suitable for plant growth emitted every second for every square meter of plant. The higher the PPFD the higher the crop yield as the light can cover a larger area.

Plants only require light energy within a narrow frequency of between 400 and 700 nanometers(nm’s) and other frequencies can even be harmful to a plant. A frequency to high can damage the cells and a frequency too low wont penetrate the plant.

Because Hydroponic LED grow lights can be manufactured to emit light at narrow wavelengths specifically suited to plant growth they are more efficient and don’t require as many Watts to run than other grow lights.

How to Measure Efficiency

The efficiency of a LED grow light is determined by PPFD / Watt of energy. The PPFD per Watt will determine how efficient a light source is at producing photosynthetic active radiation per Watt.
The efficiency of an LED grow light can be expressed as the number of grams of crop produced per watt. However this will vary depending on the plant and other environmental factors.

Since the Photosynthetically active radiation range occurs within the visible spectrum it is common for the brightness of the light to be measured in lumens or LUX.

If these lights are left on 24 hours a day and use a high wattage they can still run up your energy costs. You want a powerful LED grow light that produces a high plant yield but efficient enough that it consumes a relatively low wattage. The following post entitled “Buying hydroponic LED grow lights” discusses factors you need to consider before making a purchase.

1. Photosynthetically active radiation, Wikipedia

Recent advancements in LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) have produced bright, relatively inexpensive, and long-lasting grow lights that emit only the wavelengths of light corresponding to the absorption peaks of a plant’s typical photochemical processes. Compared to other types of grow lights, LED grow lights are attractive to indoor growers since they consume much less electrical power, do not require ballasts, and produce considerably less heat.¹

Do LED grow lights work

A question many people ask is “Are LED grow lights any good”. The answer is Yes, but only if you are willing buy the more expensive Models and Brands. LED grow lights can work well when used indoors for growing plants hydroponically. NASA is using LED Grow Lights in space right now with great success! These lights are also a lot more efficient than other types of lights. This means lower energy costs and less wastage.

However although the technology has improved significantly within the last few years there are still cheap low quality LED grow lights that should be avoided and you should avoid purchasing grow lights with low LUX or lumens (visible brightness) as these will be pretty useless even for a small plant. Visit the post “Buying Hydroponic LED Grow Lights” for advice on buying a LED grow light for indoor use.

LED grow lights gain their efficiency because their wavelength is concentrated within a spectrum that is ideal for plant growth. They can produce the exact wavelength of light that plants need to grow and direct this light at narrower angles ensuring more of this light reaches the surface of the plants.

Grow Light Alternatives

Hydroponic plant growers can use a variety of different lights for growing plants indoors. These can include flurescent lights, Halide lights, and High-pressure sodium lights (HPS). These lights are costly to run and can damage the plants. For example fluorescent lights emit most of their energy within the UV spectrum. This means they not only inefficient for promoting plant growth and are therefore expensive to run, they can actually damage the plants by overheating them.
Here are some of the advantages of using LED grow lights for hydroponics:

Longer Life Time

Typical lifetimes quoted are 25,000 to 100,000 hours which is significantly longer than incandescent lights that produce more heat and therefore deteriorate more quickly.²

Light Spectrum

LEDs can produce the exact wavelength of light that plants need to grow. HPS lights on the other hand produce distinctive infrared and optical signatures, which can attract pests³

Higher Yields

According to various studies I have seen Hydroponic LED grow lights can produce over twice the yield Watt for Watt than HPS lights.

Low Heat

Hydroponic LED grow lights produce less heat. This allows LEDs to be placed closer to the plant canopy than other lights. Also, plants transpire less, as a result of the reduction in heat, and thus the time between watering cycles is longer.

Low Energy Cost

The lower energy use means lower bills with LED grow lights than HPS grow lights. This is because LED grow lights are able to emit light that contains only the range of frequencies that plants can absorb rather than a large spectrum of light. Also unlike HID bulbs that direct the light at a wide angle, LED grow lights direct light at angles that include 120, 90 and even 60 degree angles thereby giving a smaller coverage so that less light energy is lost.

Do not Require Cooling System

Traditional grow lights such as those that use HPS and Metal Halide become very hot resulting in a need for a cooling system to keep your plants at optimum temperatures which can be costly. While LED lights have built-in fans to cool the base they do not require expensive cooling systems.

Non-toxic

LED grow lights do not contain the harmful mercury-filled bulbs that exist in some other grow lights.

Higher PAR value per watt

LED grow lights are designed to emit light at wavelengths that can easily be absorbed by the plant during photosynthesis.

LED grow lights have a much higher PAR value than other lights such as HPS lights. The PAR value from LED grow lights can be in the thousands. PAR stands for photosynthetic active radiation. It is basically the strength in the lights effectiveness for photosynthesis.

1. Grow light, Wikipedia
2. Light emitting Diode, Wikipedia
3. Grow light, Wikipedia

A video demonstrating how to make a simple homemade hydroponic system:

What you need:
Storage tote tub
Net pots/neti pots
Aquarium/Hydroponic air pump
Sharpie marker pen
Pair of Scissors
Typing paper
Drawing compass
Razor blade or cutting tool
Shipping pallet
Fur strips
Pea gravel
Nutrient solution

Video Transcript:
To build a home hydroponic system you will first need to acquire a storage tote tub. These can be acquired at any wal-mart, Kmart loads and home depot or anywhere storage items are sold.

The most important thing about buying your tote tub is to make sure it has a smooth flat top on it. This is very important for applying the net pots to your system.

The tote tub that we will be using is an 18 gallon tote. The net pots that I am using for this tote tub are 3.75 inches in width. They will need to be that large at least to plant peppers and or tomatoes which is what we will be planting in this hydroponic system.

These net pots I acquired on eBay for about a dollar a piece… Also you will need to acquire two aquarium stones. These are 12 inches each. You will need one for the bottom of each tote tub. I got these for 4 dollars apiece.

The air pump I also acquired on eBay. After paying for the shipping I believe it was $15.00. It is a duel port system, meaning it has two external ports. Here you can see the ports. This is how I was going to lay out the top with the neti pots – their upside down and arranged in the rows that I want. This is going to be an 11 net pot system.

Next I will use a sharpie to draw out where the neti pots make contact with the lid so I know where my holes need to be. You will do this for all the neti pots on the lid. Next I will take one neti pot and trace an outline on a plain white piece of typing paper. I will do the same and draw an outline at the top. I will take a pair of scissors and cut out the circle. Now I want to find the dead centre of this circle – I will fold it twice, once half and then another half so it’s a quarter. Snip out the tip and that will be your dead centre. You can see here the hole.

Next I will place it on the circles I’ve made and will make a small mark so I can use a compass to make an interior circle. There’s the dead centre of the circle and you do this for all the neti pot holes. Next I will use a compass and draw an inner circle about a half an inch inside from the outer circle. First I started using a razor blade to cut out the holes and it proved to be quite tedious so I used a cutting tool I acquired at harbour freight. It worked very fast but it was kind of sloppy. As you can see here it doesn’t produce perfect circles. You will do this for all the holes. Next I came back with a laser blade and smoothed out the edges.

Then you are going to make slit cuts from where the inner circle was to the outer circle. This is so the neti pot will be supported by the half inch lip and it will support the net on the lid while it is soaked into the nutrient solution. You will need to do this for all neti pot holes. Next I bent the tabs downward so that the neti pots fit snug in place. This is how the neti pods look in the tote tub.

Next I acquired a shipping pallet and some 1 inch by 8 foot fur strips. I cut them in half to make them all into four foot lengths as a support structure for the plants as they grow.

To fill the neti pots I’m going to use pea gravel that I picked up at Lowes. A bag can cost about $4.00 Here you can see the support structure that I built using the 1 inch fur strips by 4 foot. This is how the hydroponics is going to be set on top of it and this will be out in the yard so they can get sunlight and as the plants grow you can trail some up on the support structure.

The fertilizer nutrient system you are going to use is very important. You need to make sure that you get a plant food that has micro-nutrients. Here I’m using Peters Professional 20-20-20 and it also has all the micro nutrients because the plants will need all the other of the barium , the iron, the sulphates and everything else it needs to grow because your using the water as the delivery system for the nutrients.

Once we have the support structure set in place we put the tubs on top and we start to fill them up with water from the garden hose. Something I did notice was that as we were filling the tote tubs up, the sides of the tote tubs started to bulge out. As you can see here where the lid is versus where the lid of the tote tub is and its bulging out with the water being filled out. This created a problem because the top would not perfectly seal on top of the tote tub.

Now here you can see the nutrient solution that we added to the water turned into a nice blue colour. We had to add a half of a tablespoon per gallon so we measured it out for 18 gallons per tote tub. As you can see here, here is the aquarium inner pump tubing. I ran through a very small hole that was already naturally in the tote tub and going down into the solution to aerate it. Aeration is very important for your plant fruits.

Here is the air pump which I put on the top of a stepping stone behind the system. I will cover it later with a dishpan so it is waterproof. Now when you’re putting your plants into the neti pots you will want to wash off the root balls of all dirt. Do it gently so you don’t disrupt the root systems and once it gets fully cleaned you want to place the plant dead centre into the neti pots and add pea gravel in around it. You will have to do a lot of estimation here.

Regarding the tote tubs, we solved the problem by using zip ties and a cordless drill . We drilled holes through the lid and into the side lip of the tote tub and then ran zip ties through it. This was a two person operation – one held the lid while the other person drilled and zipped.

The plants as you place them into the nutrient solution will need to be at least 1 inch submerged into the water so that the water can make contact with the neti pot wick up into the pea gravel and into the root system so that the root system will grow outside of the neti pot and down into the nutrient solution. You have to make water contact with the neti pot, that’s very important.

Here is the aquarium air pump with a dishpan on top of the air pump that is sitting on top of the stepping stone and I put a brick on top of it so that the wind won’t blow it off so that waterproofs the pump. We just got a good 3 day rain and it did not get wet.

Here is the back of the system showing the air pump tubing going into the tote tubs and here is what they looked like one week later. The pepper plants have really taken off. They have grown approximately 5 inches in one week. I was pretty amazed at that and they are really bushing out. Here you can see the root systems of the pepper plants just one week later growing out of the pea gravel and out of the neti pot and into the nutrient solution. I was pretty impressed. Thank you for watching.

The following video provides a demonstration of how to set up a hydroponic grow tent for indoor gardening:

Video Transcript:
Today were going to show you step by step on how to put together a grow tent in four easy steps.

First we start with the base. Make sure the corner joint pieces are positioned with the flat side pointing up. Repeat this process for all four corner joint pieces.

Now we’re going to put together the vertical rods that will hold the tent up. There’s two different vertical rods. One has a tapered end and the other is un-tapered. Insert the tapered ends into the un-tapered rod. Repeat this process for all four vertical rods.

Now attach the vertical rods to the corner joint pieces on the bottom frame.

Now for the top frame; for this section of the top frame notice the bars are uneven with holes closer to one end than the other. These bars will be parallel to each other so make sure the holes align. Connect the corner joint pieces this time with the flat side pointing down so it connects to the vertical rods we installed earlier.

These will also be parallel to each other so make sure the holes align. Then connect them to the remaining corner joint pieces.

This is the removable water proof floor tray. Its real simple to install and can easily be removed for cleaning. To install the floor tray attach the four Velcro straps to the four corners of the frame.

This is the actual tent that will be placed on the frame. Make sure you identify the top and bottom. The top section can be easily identified because it is attached to the two side flaps and the bottom of the tent will be a flap that is connected by one side only.

For this section you might need someone’s help depending on the size of the tent. To install the tent simply slide it over the frame and make sure the tent fully covers the frame and that it aligns correctly.

For the bottom of the tent it may be easier to zip up if you lay the tent down on its side. The bottom will be a little more difficult. Make sure everything is snug and properly aligned. The zipper will go around the entire bottom end of the tent.

And that’s how you put together a basic grow tent.

If you grow your own plants hydroponically I recommend you buy hydroponic seeds. There are a number of advantages to buying hydroponic seeds rather than seedlings from a plant store.

• Seeds come in so many varieties and they don’t contain the diseases found in seedlings.
• Pests can infect your hydroponic garden and be difficult to eradicate. If you buy young seedlings from a plant nursery there is always a chance that they already contain pests. Aphids are common in plant nurseries and they are difficult to spot.  You can bring them home without knowing it and spread throughout your hydroponic garden.
• Some seedlings do not take well to being transplanted from soil to a hydroponic medium. The roots will require a rinsing and not all soil grown plants will survive this method.
• There is more satisfaction in starting from scratch and knowing that the plants have been grown entirely by your own effort. Starting seeds hydroponically doesn’t require an expensive hydroponic kit although you should move them to a hydroponic unit once they have matured.

Hydroponic seed starter kit:

• Small inorganic Starter plugs/cubes
• Hydroponic domed propagation tray
• Warming seedling mat
• Thermometer
• Fluorescent grow-light or natural light
• Seedling solution (Advanced Nutrients / General hydroponics)
• Hydroponic medium

Hydroponic Starter Plugs

1. Germinating seeds hydroponically will require small inorganic starter plugs or flats before the plant has produced any roots. This is because if you place these hydroponic seeds straight into granular hydroponic media the seeds can get washed away with the nutrient solution, or they fail to get enough moisture to germinate.

2. Push each seed into a starter plug or starter cube – you can use a pencil to create the holes. Place each of the starter plugs into a slot in the hydroponic propagation tray. For hydroponic tomato seeds, peppers, cabbage, basil and broccoli 2 seeds per cube should be sufficient; for herbs, 4-6 seeds per cube.

Hydroponic propagation dome

3. Place a clear, transparent, plastic dome over the plant tray. You can buy a hydroponic propagation dome that enables you to adjust the humidity with adjustable vents (see image to the right). The container should hold in moisture and heat the air around the plants. Keep the plants warm with a temperature of between 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit and exposed to plenty of light. You can buy a seedling heat mat to keep the seedlings warm by placing the mat underneath the dome.  Like all seeds, hydroponic seeds requires a lot of warmth to germinate and light to sprout.

4. Water once or twice a week depending on how quickly the tray dries out. Water by adding seedling solution to the tray, not directly onto the plant. Feed the plants a hydroponic nutrient solution by measuring the solution in a separate container before adding it to the tray otherwise you can easily add to much or too little of the nutrient and kill the plants. The solution should have a PHP of around 5.5.

The company “Advanced hydroponics” – popular amongst hydroponic gardeners, provides PHP ‘perfect technology’ in their hydroponic nutrient solutions ensuring a stable PHP throughout growth. Their “NO SHOCK” nutrient solution is specifically designed for cloning, rooting, germination and transplanting. According to Advanced Nutrients “NO SHOCK… provides seedlings with calcium, potassium, Vitamin B-1 and other substances proven to strengthen seedlings so they develop root systems.”

Use No Shock mixed solution immediately after planting and once a week until seedlings break through the surface. You can also use No Shock after they have been transplanted to a larger growing unit. Carefully water using 5 ml (1 tsp) of No Shock per litre (quart) of water. Evenly water using 500 ml of No Shock mixed solution over each 25cm x 50cm (10 inch x 20 inch) planting flats.

5. The seeds should start sprouting in a couple of days. Within 1 to 3 weeks, the plants should be 2-3 inches tall and the root systems should be apparent from the outside of the starter plug. Leave only the strongest seedlings in a single plug by removing the skinnier weaker ones.

6. You should transplant the seedlings to a larger sized hydroponic pot or hydroponic unit. It is important only to transplant them after their roots start to show through the sides of the plugs so they can access the hydroponic nutrient solution in their new larger container. Some plants like tomatoes and peppers can take a little longer to grow. Do not remove the seedlings from the plugs. Just place the plugs directly into the hydroponic pots or unit.

7. After transplanting the seedlings to the hydroponic unit sprinkle some hydroponic nutrient directly over the plants and let it soak all the way into the hydroponic medium. Do this every day for a week to ensure the roots do not dry out before they can access the water and nutrients in the bottom of the unit.

8. They should be exposed to plenty of light in their new hydroponic unit. However if you are using an indoor light be careful not to expose the baby plants directly under a hot light which could cause them to shrivel up and die. Keep the light at a good distance at first and then bring the light nearer after they have matured.

There are a number of different hydroponic kits and accessories used for different purposes; these can include hydroponic kits built for cloning seeds or cuttings, outdoor and indoor hydroponic kits, hydroponic starter kits, hydroponic tent kits, and others just for supporting your plant in a nutrient solution outdoors. However the more you substitute for nature, the more complicated these kits are and the more expensive they become. When plants are removed from their natural environment, as in indoor gardening, then all aspects of that environment have to be duplicated by artificial or technical means. The right hydroponic kit will depend on the stage of development, the conditions the plants are grown in and your available budget. Here are some hydroponic kits you may find indispensable:

A Hydroponic Cloning Kit

Hydroponic cloning kits can range from around $30.00 to $200.00 depending on the level of sophistication. A hydroponic cloning kit can enable you to have faster grow cycles and harvest more often.

The best hydroponic cloning kits will support dozens of trimmings and deliver a high success rate of clones. The cloning kit will consist of a reservoir that holds the water and nutrient solution mix. The growing chamber section usually consists of trays or pots containing a growing medium for root support such as compressed peat or a perlite Vermiculite mix to support the seeds or clippings.  An automated hydroponic cloning unit will contain an air pump and watering system that can include a water pump, water spray or mister.  You should avoid humidity domes as these can lead to mold and wilting of the plant. Other important components of the kit can include:

• A hormone to enhance the development of roots.
• Hormone rooting compound such as Rootex-L, Clonex, or Eziroot
• Heating pad or propagation mat
• An anti-stress agent such as superthrive
• Nutrient solution and thermometer
• Pruning shears or sharp scissors

You should see tiny root bumps appearing after 3 days and in about a week these roots should be formed and expanding. After about 2 weeks the plants should be ready to be transported into whatever medium you wish – this could be soil or a hydroponic unit.

A Hydroponic Growing Kit.

When your plants have matured to a size that cannot be supported within the cloning kit they can be transported to a hydroponic growing unit. Much of the components required are similar to that of the cloning kit except the unit will be on a larger scale and may be housed within a tent. Also a growing kit will require light either from the sun or a powerful LED grow light and different nutrients depending on the stage of development.

The cost of a hydroponic growing kit can vary significantly in price from hundreds to thousands of dollars depending on the size and type of hydroponic unit, however you can find some cheap hydroponic kits for sale on eBay for less. If you are on a low budget you can usually find cheap hydroponic kits sold on eBay. There are a number of different hydroponic units available to growers and hobbyists each using a different method of water transfer and plant support. These can include the drip systems, Ebb and Flow systems, Wick systems and Aeroponic systems.

Hydroponic Nutrient Kits

While you can make your own homemade nutrients using fertilizer salts, to obtain higher yields and faster plant growth a number of hydroponic manufacturers provide nutrients that contain more than just the major and trace elements. These hydroponic nutrient kits contain crop enhancers such as root boosters, amino acids, microbes, enzymes, vitamins, fulvates, humates and non-ionic surfactant.

A good hydroponic nutrient kit contains all or most of the above enhancers, be easy to use and provide a more than one part formulation containing different formulas depending on whether your plant is in the growth or bloom stage of development. There are many hydroponic manufacturers of nutrients but you should avoid lesser known hydroponic nutrient suppliers as many of these have not made all their own products and sometimes a very different product is sold to you because they switched suppliers which can be detrimental to your plants.

The nutrient manufacturer “Advanced nutrients” passes all the above criteria, it is one of the most widely known and is considered one of the best hydroponic nutrient suppliers by hydroponic gardeners. They provide various kits/bundles depending on your level of experience. These include hobbyist level, Expert Growers Level, Professional Grower level and Grand Master Level.

Unless you are an experienced hydroponic gardener I recommend that you buy hydroponic nutrients ready-made/ready-mixed rather than make your own homemade hydroponic nutrient solution.

Many gardeners don’t want to go to the bother of making their own hydroponic nutrients, and pre-mixed hydroponic nutrients usually provide a balanced diet while allowing you to concentrate on other aspects of plant care. Also you may wish to adjust your nutrient solution later depending on the stage of development and conditions of the plants; readymade hydroponic nutrients are more manageable and the nutrient concentrations are easily identifiable.

You can find hydroponic nutrients for sale at many large nurseries and plant stores. These usually contain all the essential nutrients and trace elements. However if you want to give your plants an extra boost the best hydroponic nutrient brands pack nutrient solutions containing not only the essential macro and micro elements but crop enhancers such as root boosters, amino acids, microbes, enzymes, vitamins, F-1 (fulvates), H-2 (humates) and non-ionic surfactant.

Judging by sales on eBay the most popular suppliers of hydroponic nutrients in descending order are Advanced Nutrients, Botanicare, General Hydroponics, Canna, Fox Farm, Technaflora and Dutch Master.

Choosing between these brands can be confusing and it is expensive and time consuming experimenting between them. From experience and judging by others these exotic nutrient solutions can make a significant difference to yields. While there may not be a significant difference between manufacturers you should avoid lesser known hydroponic nutrient suppliers as many of these “hydroponic manufacturers” have not made all of their own products and sometimes a very different product is sold to you because they switched suppliers. This can be detrimental to your plants.

The best hydroponic nutrients will depend on many factors and there are many variables that need to be controlled to carry out a successful comparison. To discover the best hydroponic nutrients for your plants you should experiment yourself, perhaps setting aside a few of your plants specifically for that purpose and place them within the same environment to ensure a fair test. Here are some comments and reviews from around the web I found useful.

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Advanced Nutrients

According to their website advanced nutrients provide 2-1 and even 5-in-1 solutions that contain base nutrients with added ratios of chelated macro and micro elements, crop enhancers such as humates, fulvates, amino acids, and non-ionic surfactant. They have a large selection of solutions and formulas to suite your skill level and needs and claim to have developed the first-ever pH Perfect nutrients.

Here are what people are saying about Advanced Nutrients:

Did they work, yes. Did they work as good as what they state in their ads, NO. They basically made claims like they could double your yields… INCREASE WAS ABOUT 20% . and that was from an average of 3 crops, some less some more but 20% is about right. Compared to the yields I was getting from a very basic 2 part grow 2 part bloom nutrient which cost less than a tenth of A.N. total package… The increase in yield was not worth the extra cost in my humble opinion.

I have to say that i love advanced nutrients line up ! I do not beleive that you need the whole 2 plus but most of there line up is fantastic. It took me about a year to get my garden dialed in with these nutes but once i did the rsults were amazing. I went from 3 pounds to 4.5, it didnt double but an extra 1.5 pounds was real nice. I have grown for over 20 years and havnt found anything i like better… canna is way more expensive than an [advanced nutrients]

…the product line up is confusing and you need a PhD to work out what is what in between the big promises and money back guarantees.

If you havnt tried the collossal bud blast foliar boys your missing out !! I am telling you this is the best foliar out there bar none. Use it the last 2 weeks of veg and the first 2 weeks of flower….. what a difference.

AN’s organic line is great…the iguana juice, mother earth super tea, granny’s humic and fuvic …etc

I’ve used the AN stuff and although everything came out good I can get the same results with much cheaper stuff

…my plants just from the start were greener and healthier looking than with anything else (though GH [General Hydroponics] was a close 2nd).

Personally, I find my plants are healthier with the AN line I use.

…with AN it has been the best I’ve seen or used by far.

…I have used some of their products. They do work, but there is not a single thing in their line up that was not easily replaced by something that works just as well, if not better, and costs pennies on the dollar

The best growers on this forum either have no issue with AN products or heavily/exclusively use AN.

The line is very complex but the beauty of it is you can add or remove almost any part without a major issue so if you do find something that works better or is cheaper you don’t have to change a ton of things, other systems just aren’t as flexible… I’ve used GH, bumper crop, future harvest and a really good local brand, in the end AN is what got me the best results.

They use the highest quality ingredients in their products and there are 100s of side by side comparisons with tons of dif nute lines against AN and for some strange reason AN almost always wins. And these test are done by avg joes like all of us and most of the time theyre using AN for the first time against a nute line theyve used before.

I’ve ran Advanced too. My main problem with Advanced is the flavor it produces…

General Hydroponics

Hydroponic cultivation by NASA on the International Space Station is done with assistance from General Hydroponics and they claim to be at the cutting edge of scientific research into hydroponic systems and perfecting nutrient formulas

Here are some of the things people are saying about General Hydroponics:

…“I used several types and always come back to GH for it’s ease of use and great yields. But what I like mostly is it’s consistant results with each grow. I grow in coco which is considered hydro. And I trust the GH company that’s been in the hydro business since the 1970′s compared to AN’s start in 1998.”

…“Used G.H in C.O for a few grows SIMPLE and what results…with tap water not using G.H Micro (hard water) Jaw dropping!!!”

although pricey you’ll never get anything like it. your plants will be alot fuller, grow faster, and look alot healthier. wether your planting in soil or a hydroponics system it dosnt seem to make a diffrence. this is a good deal.

You cannot find or use a better hydro feed solution than General Hydroponics. Their online nutrient charts are perfect and yielded fantastic results.

This is a great starter kit for Hydroponics [ Flora Kit]. The basic formulas are easy to mix. Mixing formulas for seedlings, teens and adult plants. And for bloom or veg cycles. I love the micro nutrients. My plants never seem to miss out on anything. If you are a long time grower, buy bigger sizes.

…the General Hydroponics nutes definitely provided a ‘cleaner’ nutrient solution

Botanicare

Yup very happy with Botanicare, never need to use it at full streinght. Recommend it all the time. Never used the other so can’t comment.

Botanicare generally makes the best quality commercial Cal Mag supplement imo. Advanced Nutrients Sensi Cal Mag is good also

i’ve used the botanicare cal mag but ph issues prevented me from giving the product a fair grade. i did notice that the calcium to magnesium ratio is 3:1 and that really doesn’t seem like a good balance. too much calcium can actually lock out magnesium, but again, i really didn’t get a good chance to see how it worked.

…decided to go back to the botanicare cause it seems more stable that GH stuff is weird

Dutch Masters

Dutch Masters is the only one I do not suggest b/c it is weak and you go through it like water.

This new gold formula by Dutch masters is all that and a bag of chips. Very concentrated, a little goes a long way. no need for any additional nutes such as grow and bloom enhancers. very satisfied.

Use it on all my plants (although I avoid flowers) as part of a foliar with saturator, humic acid, and full spectrum nutrients, my plants have never been so green and lush!

Canna

I think Canna Coco A+B is fantastic, and a friend who uses the Canna Terra says the same about that, fantastic yields, great taste, just fabulous stuff…. the AN [Advanced Nutrients] stuff is less concentrated so a bottle doesn’t go as far… I’m sticking to Canna and won’t be using AN again… I think the problem with AN is that everything is in separate bottles so to get all the goodies your plants need you gotta buy loads of bottles, whereas with Canna you just need the A+B and PK13-14 to get great results. Oh, and you need a PHD to be able to understand AN’s product line!

I don’t agree canna is more expensive [than advanced nutrients] as you have to buy far less bottles of stuff.

The Canna line is very cost effective for me, which is why I use it, if there were anything else cheaper that did the job as well, I would use that instead.

Fox Farm

first couple hydro grows, I used the highly-respected ‘General Hydroponics’ 3-part liquid formulas … it was good stuff … last couple grows, I switched to 100% Fox Farms nutrients, despite so-so reviews by others … I use the ‘Grow Big Hydro’, the ‘Tiger Bloom’, the ‘Big Bloom’ and ‘Open Sesame’ … will be adding their ‘Cha-Ching’ tomorrow … simply put: I love the Fox Farms stuff, and don’t see me changing anytime soon, as I’ve been growing my best plants, ever, with it … it’s also cheaper than most nutrients…

…Not a huge FoxFarm fan, but that’s mostly cause the Grow Big doesn’t shelf very well, and it gets really expensive cost-per-use as yer using so much

I don’t use it myself because the chems crystal up and fall out of solution too fast for my taste. And in hydro, I like to look for a nute that is designed specifically for a hydroponic application and contains both a BUFFER that helps stabilize the pH around 6 and CHELATORS that prevent unwanted interactions among fert components and your source water… Some people swear by the stuff, though… But I recommend starting with something intended for hydro.

They’re just very much a soil-first kind of company… If I were growing in soil that’d be fine. But I just don’t think it’s a top-3 or even top 10 choice if you’re using hydroponics

Fox Farm does have a nutrient specifically for hydroponics .. they recently added a ‘hydroponics version’ of their ‘Grow Big’ (3-2-6), soil version is 6-4-4, and their granulated fertlizers are pH-balanced, buffered … it says so on the container, anyway, I didn’t ‘run it through my lab’ … my plants are loving the stuff

Technaflora

I’ve never tried it [Fox Farm] but I’ve used Advanced, it’s ok but now I use technaflora recipe for success. I think that gives me the same results as advanced for less money with an easier formula. In the end I think they all perform the same.

If you don’t want to buy hydroponic nutrients readymade and you believe you’re experienced enough to create your own hydroponic homemade nutrients I recommend you use fertilizer salts. These are the most common type of homemade hydroponic nutrients and are very rudimentary and cheap assuming you can buy in small quantities. You can buy them in bulk from plant food suppliers, plant nurseries and agricultural agencies. Unfortunately if you buy hydroponic fertilizer salts from these suppliers you often have to buy in twenty-five to fifty pound bags, which isn’t practical or cost effective unless you are buying for a large scale commercial business or an extensive hydroponic garden.

I recommend instead you buy fertilizer salts from online sites such as eBay as these suppliers supply them in smaller quantities.

Here is a list of recommended fertilizer salts for those who want to make their own hydroponic homemade nutrient solution.

Fertilizer Salts (Most recommended):

Magnesium sulphate (Epsom salts): Supplies Magnesium and Sulphur.

Potassium sulphate: Supplies Potassium and Sulphur.

Potassium nitrate: Supplies Nitrogen and Potassium.

Superphosphate: Supplies Phosphorus and Calcium.

Calcium sulphate: Supplies Calcium and Sulphur.

Sodium nitrate: Supplies Nitrogen.

Calcium nitrate: Supplies nitrogen and potassium.

Ammonium phosphate: Supplies Nitrogen and Phosphorus.

Here are two workable, tried and tested hydroponic homemade nutrient solutions. There are many different nutrient formulae’s, but as long as the elements are present in balanced amounts the plant should be fine – it will extract from the solution what it requires. Of course every plant is different and exists in different conditions so you should experiment with what works best for you.

The recommended quantity is the weight in ounces that experts recommend in a 100 Imperial (120 American) gallon water solution.

Homemade Hydroponic Nutrient Solution 1
Potassium sulphate: 10 ounces
Calcium nitrate: 10 ounces
Sodium nitrate: 10 ounces
Superphosphate: 15 ounces
Magnesium sulphate: 5 ounces
Add trace elements and 100 Gallons (120 American gallons) of water

Homemade Hydroponic Nutrient Solution 2
Potassium sulphate: 4 ounces
Calcium nitrate: 1 ounce
Sodium nitrate: 8 ounces
Magnesium sulphate: 3 ½ ounces
Ammonium phosphate: 1 ¾ ounces
Add trace elements and 100 Gallons (120 American gallons) of water

In addition to the three key elements of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium there should be at least 8 trace elements present in your nutrient. These include zinc, copper, sulphur, manganese, iron, calcium, magnesium and boron, chlorine and molybdenum. Chlorine and molybdenum are already present in either the water supply or salts mentioned above and therefore should not be added to avoid toxicity.

The following provides the function of each of elements in the hydroponic solutions:

Nitrogen: Necessary for the production of leaves and in stem growth. An essential ingredient in building plant cells.
Phosphorus: Required in the development of flowers and fruits and aids in the growth of healthy roots.
Potassium: Used by plant cells during the assimilation of the energy produced by photosynthesis.
Sulphur: Assists in the production of plant energy and heightens the effectiveness of phosphorus.
Iron: Vital in the production of chlorophyll.
Manganese: Aids in the absorption of nitrogen. An essential component in the energy transference process.
Zinc: An essential component in the energy transference process.
Copper: Needed in the production of chlorophyll.
Boron: Required in minute amounts, but it is not yet known how the plant uses it.
Magnesium: One of the components of chlorophyll, magnesium also is involved in the process of distributing phosphorus throughout the plant.
Calcium: Encourages root growth and helps the plant absorb potassium.
Chlorine: Required for photosynthesis.
Molybdenum: Assists in some chemical reactions.

The trace elements that are added to these formulae must be mixed separately. One recipe is given below. You can use a mortar and pestle to grind to a very fine powder.

Trace elements Solution
Zinc sulphate: ½ teaspoon
Copper sulphate: ½ teaspoon
Iron sulphate: 1 ounce
Manganese sulphate: 1 teaspoon
Boric acid powder: 1 teaspoon

These ingredients should be grinded well and stored dry. You should use half a teaspoon per 100 gallons or 120 American gallons of water.