Hydra unlimited vs current culture

I was doing research on current culture and I came across hydra unlimited. Im looking for a 4 plant setup.

I’m not sure which one to go with. The hydra unlimited doesn’t use air stones and it doesn’t have a holding tank. Current culture does.
Which system do you guys like ‘better’?

if you were buying a new setup today which would you go with and why?

this will be my first hydro setup

If I were putting a system together, I would build myself.

I would use current culture 3” bulkheads and run waterfalls to break the surface water .

Active aqua pumps come with a venturi head so one could add this to say there tote bucket to add a bit of extra oxygen.

I have not run air stones in my 4 bucket set up for a while now but have added waterfalls to all my buckets instead.

The hydro max looks like just that , bucket with a venturi nozzle.

Great idea.

Enjoy and good luck with your choice.

Rolling2023 said:

I was doing research on current culture and I came across hydra unlimited. Im looking for a 4 plant setup.

I’m not sure which one to go with. The hydra unlimited doesn’t use air stones and it doesn’t have a holding tank. Current culture does.
Which system do you guys like ‘better’?

if you were buying a new setup today which would you go with and why?

this will be my first hydro setup

https://hydrobuilder.com/current-culture-under-current-4.html

4-Bucket RDWC Hydroponic System - HydraMax

This HydraMax 4-bucket RDWC system presents a robust hydroponic solution engineered to enhance cultivation efficiency and yield for growers.

www.hydraunlimited.com

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The benefit of airstones isn't really from adding air from bubbles. Though it does happen, it's miniscule. The real benefit comes from agitating the surface of the water (nutrient solution). Point a water pump straight up in the control bucket. Pulling the less oxygenated water from the bottom, to the surface to be reoxygenated, is key.

Hollatchaboy said:

The benefit of airstones isn't really from adding air from bubbles. Though it does happen, it's miniscule. The real benefit comes from agitating the surface of the water (nutrient solution). Point a water pump straight up in the control bucket. Pulling the less oxygenated water from the bottom, to the surface to be reoxygenated, is key.

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I understand that. It seems as if the hydra unlimited makes things a little easier and for long term might be better.
But I’m a newbie.

What’s your opinion?

Rolling2023 said:

I understand that. It seems as if the hydra unlimited makes things a little easier and for long term might be better.
But I’m a newbie.

What’s your opinion?

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That a pump, bucket , infusinator , plumbing fittings would be the same or maybe better.

Looks good if you just want to plug and play.

Rolling2023 said:

I understand that. It seems as if the hydra unlimited makes things a little easier and for long term might be better.
But I’m a newbie.

What’s your opinion?

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My opinion, I would diy. That's the route I went with dwc. Coco is what I use now though. Much less headache for me.

Hollatchaboy said:

My opinion, I would diy. That's the route I went with dwc. Coco is what I use now though. Much less headache for me.

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Where did you get your supplies from for your setup?
which pump are you using?

Rolling2023 said:

Where did you get your supplies from for your setup?
which pump are you using?

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I sourced from different places, basically whoever had the cheapest part.
I can't recall which pump I used.

Hollatchaboy said:

I sourced from different places, basically whoever had the cheapest part.
I can't recall which pump I used.

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I will start doing some searching for parts and see what I come up with

I decided to order the hydra unlimited 4 system setup.
I’ll see how it goes. I didn’t want to mess with finding parts and dealing with it.
This system will show up and be nearly ready to go

This system is leagues ahead of a current culture design and without the necessity for airstones which are nothing but a headache. For channing and maintenance.
Go look at ailen technology hydro as well that's revolutionary for RDWC.

Rolling2023 said:

I decided to order the hydra unlimited 4 system setup.
I’ll see how it goes. I didn’t want to mess with finding parts and dealing with it.
This system will show up and be nearly ready to go

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Well, how do you like hydra set up?

One of the concerns I have with a system that does not use a separate reservoir is that they're small systems. I grow in a res that holds 26 gallons and I grow one plant since it's a 2' x 4' tent. The large volume of nutes allows me to have very long intervals between res changes and it also means that pH tends to be very stable. Going to a system that has only an 8 gallon bucket means that there's <= 7 gallons of nutes in the bucket so I've got to think that there's a sacrifice in "stability".

In contrast, a system with an external res adds another 8 or 13 gallons to the size of the system. I understand that it takes up more floor space but means fewer res changes/more stable pH and it does also give me back space in the tent.

I'd really like to see how big a plant can be grown in an 8 gallon system vs 13 gallons. Any thoughts on that?

Dont foeget to regulary check your connections if one gets pluged res will overflow your tent.

You dont have many options airstone or waterfall and waterfall wants a submurged pump that can get roots in it.airstone loud but safe in my opinion

amneziaHaze said:

Dont foeget to regulary check your connections if one gets pluged res will overflow your tent.

You dont have many options airstone or waterfall and waterfall wants a submurged pump that can get roots in it.airstone loud but safe in my opinion

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I run four air stones in my res now and, yeh, it's noisy. I finished a grow in the past few days and it's nice to walk in the garage and no noise. Of course, I don't have much of a reason to go in the garage but…

Re. roots in the pump - I use a mesh net ("pump barrier bag") and that does the trick pretty well.

The waterfall idea is really interesting. I'd probably be tempted to run air stones in the res - is that needed?

Delps8 said:

One of the concerns I have with a system that does not use a separate reservoir is that they're small systems. I grow in a res that holds 26 gallons and I grow one plant since it's a 2' x 4' tent. The large volume of nutes allows me to have very long intervals between res changes and it also means that pH tends to be very stable. Going to a system that has only an 8 gallon bucket means that there's <= 7 gallons of nutes in the bucket so I've got to think that there's a sacrifice in "stability".

In contrast, a system with an external res adds another 8 or 13 gallons to the size of the system. I understand that it takes up more floor space but means fewer res changes/more stable pH and it does also give me back space in the tent.

I'd really like to see how big a plant can be grown in an 8 gallon system vs 13 gallons. Any thoughts on that?

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I grew this one, in a 4x4, in a 4 gallon bucket, that held about 3 gallons of nute solution.



Required a 1 gallon top off twice a day, res change about every 3 days.

Hollatchaboy said:

I grew this one, in a 4x4, in a 4 gallon bucket, that held about 3 gallons of nute solution.

View attachment 5388418

Required a 1 gallon top off twice a day, res change about every 3 days.

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Nice looking plant - no wasted photons!

Thanks for the info re. the bucket and swapping the res.