I've got a couple of plants in 3 gallon buckets with bubblestones in a grow tent. Everything is going well enough. But, I'd like to start thinking about how to automate some things so that I can take a break, maybe go for short vacations without worrying about losing my entire setup.

With that in mind, any suggestions are welcome. I've been thinking that the next step might be to just add a separate reservoir, another bucket or something bigger, then run hoses through each of the buckets and back to the reservoir with a pump to keep things circulating.

I could then either not worry so much about ph for a few days, or add one of those automated ph adjustment systems to the reservoir.

Any other suggestions? I'd also be interested in hearing what you think might be easier to maintain hydro setups. Perhaps NFT? Space is at a premium.

thx