You've probably seen a few "how to make a simple hydroponic system" guides around the Internet before, but did you ever wonder if simple also means low-cost and efficient? Find out how these three variables will affect your choice in building a hydroponic system.Let's see what are the top 3 factors that come into play when you're planning on building a hydroponic system. First, you're obviously going to think about cost. If it's a homemade hydroponic system you're planning to make, component costs shouldn't be all that high, because you'll be able to get most of the components from stuff lying around the house. Next, you have building difficulty. In most cases, cost is directly proportional with building difficulty, since the more complex a system is, the more advanced components it will use, thus the higher the difficulty. Last but not least, you will want to worry about the DIY hydroponics system's efficiency: how many plants will you be able to grow and how well will you be able to grow them? All these three variables are equally important, so let's take a look on how to make a simple hydroponic system while also providing the best efficiency for the lowest cost.
Choosing the Right Hydroponic System
Here are a couple of common systems and how they relate to the three variables I mentioned above:
Ebb and Flows - Cost: low, Building Difficulty: medium, Efficiency: medium
Multi Flow - Cost: medium, Building Difficulty: hard, Efficiency: high
Water Culture - Cost: low, Building Difficulty: easy, Efficiency: low
Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) - Cost: medium, Building Difficulty: medium, Efficiency: high
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Of course, the variables are also affected by what you're planning to grow. For example, I considered a water culture system to have low efficiency, not because it can't grow plants as well as the others, but because it can't grow as many of them. In the standard 5 gallon homemade water culture system, you can only grow around 5 maybe 6 plants. Take them as they are and let's get going to the next step on how to make a simple hydroponic system that won't rip open your pockets.
Choosing the Plants
Again, the three variables will be shattered by another choice you'll be making: figuring out what plants to grow. Even if building a system might not be so costly, if you opt for a more pretentious plant, these costs can go up the ranks in the long run. For example, strawberries are well known for their high requirements when it comes to light, so if you're planning to grow strawberries in your otherwise cheap ebb and flow system, you might find the costs rising through the electric bill that's sprung out by that high intensity discharge metal halide lamp. So as you can see, in order to make a simple hydroponic system, you'll have to go through some not-that-simple choices.
In truth, no one has a recipe on how to make a simple hydroponic system, because the formula this concept is based on relies on way too many variables that are often, in turn, affected by personal preferences. It's all a matter of prioritizing your needs. If you're low on cash and are just starting with homemade hydroponic systems, you're probably not going to aim for a sophisticated one that's hard to build, thus risky. If you want high efficiency, go with growing plants in a more advanced, more costly multiflow system that can suit your needs. And the examples could go on and on, but in the end it's your choice and your choice alone.