General Hydroponics 706721 EcoGrower Drip Hydroponic System

I was interested in indoor gardening and learning about hydroponics, and gave this a shot.Setting it up was quite simple. The hardest part being the cleanup from all of the clay dust that's generated from the growing media in shipping.I ended up using this in a VivoSun 4' x 4' grow tent and it fit perfectly. After germinating my seeds and giving them about a week in a propagator, I transferred one to each of the six net pots, and was good to go.Reading a few recommendations from others, I set the drip pump to cycle on and off for 15 minutes, twice a day. In later discussion with General Hydroponics, they said I could have left them on until the roots were submerged. Speaking of which: that's the biggest benefit of this system. You're getting all of the benefits of a circulating system and a deep water culture system.Admittedly, I did make one small modification. While the drip pump was cycling, I added two air stones and a second pump to drive them. In retrospect, I didn't encounter many of the "first timer" growing problems people run in to like root rot and mold / fungus growth, and I attribute a lot of that to adding the air stones. Just something to think about there.One other post-grow thought: larger plants can cause the relatively shallow pots to tip -- and that not only creates a problem with growth of the plant, but can also introduce algae into your system. Be sure to keep an eye on what you're growing. And if you're growing something large, like cucumbers, tomatoes, or cannabis, you're probably going to want to limit yourself to 4 plants instead of 6.Outside of that, General Hydroponics gives you a generous amount of clay growing media, and the included nutrients should easily last you for a couple of months, if not an entire grow cycle.Of course, you're going to read about bucket systems and other methods. I'll be honest with you, I thought I had outgrown this and did opt for a Waterfarm and PowerGrower system, but relative to the EcoGrower, they require way more maintenance (preventative and ongoing) than my trusty EcoGrower ever did. So, I'd definitely recommend this over building your own bucket system if you're just starting out.

My first purchase was missing parts. To avoid the hassle of returning the entire system for six missing net pots I bought them in addition. Since I liked how it fit in my 3x3 grow tent I decided to buy a second one. The post office called me to let me know it was leaking fertilizer, so I had it returned. I liked the idea of having one reservoir rather than two so I decided to get another after the first reservoir sprung a leak, for the sake of convenience. Now I’ll switch to a two bucket dwc setup. It’s probably easier to build your own reservoir and I might add significantly cheaper.I wasn’t impressed by the drip setup, as the tubes and central assembly had to be perfectly placed to work properly. Since I was worried about my plants dying I wanted a more predictable setup, so I used it for deep water culture by removing all the tubes and just placing an air stone in the reservoir. It worked nicely until it sprung a leak and flooded my grow tent.Save yourself the hassle and buy something else.

First let me say I am very happy with the unit. Setup is easy but takes considerable time to rinse growing media. The unit works perfectly. But here's what is not disclosed about the unit in its description:1. The growing media must be thoroughly rinsed before placing in the unit. Otherwise small chips and dust could block or restrict flow of nutrients/water through the tubes;2. It is recommended in setup directions that the 17 gallon reservoir which holds water & nutrients be drained & replaced every 1 to 2 weeks depending upon plant growth. If you don't have the time or desire to commit to this maintenance schedule than this is not for you. There is also the minor costs involved with replacing nutrients. For example I'm using my unit to grow habanero peppers & a couple of tomato plants. If I buy the three types of required nutrients in the 32oz size, my cost to drain & replace nutrients four times a month is about $4.00 dollars US. Considering the maintenance schedule to drain & replace water & nutrients, you should plan on where you intend to place your unit so maintenance can be done easily.

Very good product. Good size, good quality. Comes with everything you may need (except the seeds starter).Clean everything correctly to be sure not to block the dripping system.

give up trying to make it work, packaging etc. looked like a returned unit