Dutch Buckets

After seeing one of Bobby's how to videos on MHPGardner on Dutch Bucket Tomatos I decided to make my very own dutch buckets. This is a 4 bucket system that I built so that I can learn more about hydroponics and growing my own food. The dutch bucket system is an active system meaning that the nutrient solution is automatically delivered to the plants. The plants then take what they need and the rest of the solution drains back to the reservoir to be reused. The constant recycling will cause the pH of the nutrient to fluctuate so it needs to be monitored often.

I used four 10 liter black builders buckets which I painted white on the outside. The white helps keep the temperature low by reflecting sunlight while the black interior reduces your chances of algae. I then used some irrigation piping, pvc piping and elbows along with grommets to reduce any water loss to deliver the nutrient to and from the reservoir. I am also using a small 5v pond pump which sits inside my 20 liter reservoir. Currently this is working off power but eventually I would like to power the pump via a small solar panel. I am use a 50/50 mix of perlite and vermiculite as a grow medium covered by some pebbles to reduce water loss to evaporation. To further reduce water loss I have pushed the feeder pipes below the surface of the pebbles.

When the water returns to the reservoir it drops between 15cm and 20cm which is how I am hoping to get around using air stones. I have the system running on a timer which turns on and off at various times throughout the day.

You can definitely make a cheaper system than what I made that will perform just as well.