hi Dixie... I don't know long term yet although I have seen links to another grower in Taiwan. (?maybe on your other thread?) I have also read that perlite is neutral and av's want a little bit of acid and the solution was to water with a tiny micro amount of vinegar. And the fertilizing was to be, I think, 1/4 strength of a liquid fertilizer. Also, the water will be accumulating in the saucer over time it's good to flush out both the perlite and the saucers periodically ... no idea how often. :) sorry. but this is all long term and i'm very much a beginner right now ... I won't be fertilizing until I come back next year ... so they'll be 3 months with no fertilizer at least. As for peat ... sorry ... don't have a clue. The same for sterilization... have never done it... my husband would freak out if I suggested it ...lol..... ps: my name is silvana ... T&B is very long to write out ...lol.... do you have to type in Dixie after all your posts? ... I keep forgetting to sign mine. This post was edited by toronto.and.brisbane on Fri, Nov 21, 14 at 15:11

Hello Sundarms, 10 litres of nutrient solution seems a lot I usually add about 1 litre approx to 200 litres on my ebb and flow system to arrive at a nutrient EC of about 1.6 to 1.8. In my Floating raft system which is small of about 20 litres , I generally add a small amount of nutrients to achieve approximately the same EC level. For smaller plants eg chinese vegetables I add and then forget until the plants are ready for harvest. Unless you have thirsty plants like tomatos it would be wise to keep an alertness to the nutrient levels as tomatos will absorb a lot of the solution. Tomatos are thirsty ones, so I would check every week because as the nutrient level goes down the EC levels rise . Only if the nutrients go down appreciably would I consider adding new top up solution. If this were the case I would add water to keep the solution at about 1.6 to 1.8 EC because as the plant matures it will develop a thirst for a higher nutrient level, but if it gets depleted before maturity , be wise not to overdo the top up too much, I think the test trial may be wise to observe how the plant reacts to the addition of new solution. As for Tomatos or any other vegetables if they have taken up nearly all the available solution , keep in mind not to drown these plants and allow enough room for the roots to oxygenate As for PH I seem to add the solution then forget, however with tomatos etc I would check at random. PS for 40 years of hydroponic gardening I did not have a PH or EC metre and generally had success. I have added a photo of a previous crop of chinese vegetables , to indicate not to flood the root system and only allow about 1cm of fluid to cover the bottom of the pot, as you can see the roots have not drowned and as they have taken up the nutrient the roots will go deeper and deeper. Best of luck.

Nice overview. I would also recommend BACI's hydroponic FAQs for more detailed information. These are available by doing a search in this forum for "FAQ".

More than likely, you'll get good responses from the Hydroponic Forum. It's at http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/hydro