This is my Kratky method salad garden. https://ibb.co/ZxCsc0S
This is a good introductory NFT system.
https://cropking.com/catalog/nft-introductory-systems/nft-desktop-system
This is the best priced flood and drain system I've seen.
https://shop.pahydroponics.com/easiest-flood-drain-setup-kit/
This is a decent sized, at a decent price. All in one system. https://www.amazon.com/iDOO-Germination-Removable-Hydroponics-Adjustable/dp/B08R88NJZZ/ref=sr_1_41?crid=BDEXINIVUVIS&keywords=idoo&qid=1687287083&sprefix=idoo%2Caps%2C109&sr=8-41&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.18ed3cb5-28d5-4975-8bc7-93deae8f9840
1/8/2021 Update: I had to abort the cucumber, peas, and watermelon. They all grew way too fast and were starting to overwhelm everything. I have a much better idea of what to expect however for these types of crops, and need to think about how much more space I'm going to need to allocate for them to be manageable when I start them again.
I have enough lettuce at this point to never have to buy it again, which seems to be how lettuce goes in these things. I need to put a lot more thought into staggering crops so the yields overlap a bit more cleanly.
Over the break I got my hands on an Aerogarden Bounty and iDOO Pods system. The Bounty was under $200, not sure why it's so high now. My intent was to see if these systems would make germinating and initial growth periods easier to manage and the answer is... sorta. The seedlings in the seed tray germinated faster and grew faster.
The Bounty system was pretty dead simple to manage, and I didn't worry about ph or EC at all. Just poured in water and added a cap of the included plant food when it yelled at me. They transferred over and seem to be pretty healthy. The iDOO system seemed like it was going to be more transfer friendly but germination rates were comparatively low (cilantro and lavender didn't sprout at all) and the lower powered light really makes a difference. I think the difference is the Aerogarden's drip/DWC hybrid setup is just better designed.
My next step is to see if I can copy the Aerogarden's drip style system over to my seedling trays, that seems like it would make a dynamite combo and force me to work on automating the germination in this round.
That air pump on the list is balls. It's way louder than I expected and has far less flow than I expected. Need to replace that soon.
Will update again in a few weeks!
This is my Kratky method salad garden. https://ibb.co/ZxCsc0S
This is a good introductory NFT system.
https://cropking.com/catalog/nft-introductory-systems/nft-desktop-system
This is the best priced flood and drain system I've seen.
https://shop.pahydroponics.com/easiest-flood-drain-setup-kit/
This is a decent sized, at a decent price. All in one system. https://www.amazon.com/iDOO-Germination-Removable-Hydroponics-Adjustable/dp/B08R88NJZZ/ref=sr_1_41?crid=BDEXINIVUVIS&keywords=idoo&qid=1687287083&sprefix=idoo%2Caps%2C109&sr=8-41&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.18ed3cb5-28d5-4975-8bc7-93deae8f9840