Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) Hydroponics System Tutorial
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A simple overview of the Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) for hydroponics – one of the most popular ways of growing plants hydroponically. It’s great for growing commercial basil, lettuce, and other herbs, and is also popular for home hydroponic growers due to the simplicity of setting it up.
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I would suggest some type of physical filter on the return from the NFT to catch roots and crap that will pollute your reservoir, also a UV light to kill bacteria in the reservoir.
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My new system is so far beyond any other growing system it’s revolutionary next level kinda growing no complexity issues
I see a mix of methods when people use NFT, so I have a few questions. When the water falls back into the reservoir it creates little air bubbles, that’s not enough to oxygenate the water? If you are using a timer to intermittently cut the water supply from the roots, wouldn’t that be enough to prevent the plant from drowning?
What’s the timer set at for the pump? Or is it a constant flow. Some instruction videos recommend 2 minutes every 20 minutes. What’s your preference?
Question: When doing Kratky, there is no aeration or movement of the water and the plants seem to grow just fine with the air that is left in the gap between the plant and the surface of the water in the reservoir. So, Why does the NFT need aeration when the Kratky does not? the water is going to agitate the surface as it flows from the drain hole and while that is not as much as an air stone, it’s much more movement than Kratky.
I have something that seems similar to this and I did not know it was a NFT. I basically took two new cat litter pans, stacked on top of each other with pillars to hold the top one above.. and I have a pump with a tube that goes up to about a half inch higher than the clay pebbles that fill the top tray. I have a hole drilled into the top tray, so that the water flows out, back into the bottom tray which is filled with the water. When I first turn it on, I hold my finger over the drain hole, so the top tray can fill up and get wet, then I remove my finger and the water starts flowing out. I adjust the pump and eventually reach a balance, so the top tray is not flooded, but water is flowing in just enough to keep the bottom 1/4 or 1/2 inch flowing with water. I built this to start seeds, but ended up not transferring all the seedlings that sprouted and ended up with several dozen catnip plants growing in it. I added Nutrients to the water and they grew like there was no tomorrow. I didn’t have an air stone. It wasn’t really slanted. I got the idea from Mike VanDuzee when I saw him starting seeds that way but he didn’t call it NFT, he just showed some seeds in the tray and I took the idea.
so thorough so cleat. THANK YOU
i see peoples design that intentionally stall a small amount of water. what are the effects of these designs??
@ Epic Gardening – Hi, What about the nutrient? We just add it periodically directly into the tank? Will be appreciated if w can have an idea on the amount to be added.
I love the system do it all the time works awesome
I set up my NFT last year and had great results, especially with the large leaf veggies. Regarding your comment about the timer: I didn’t have one at first and added it later when I started to get root-rot. The continuous flow of water around the root mass didn’t allow for enough oxygenation of the root fibers. I now have it on a timer that goes on and off many times daily. The rate depends on the time of year and temperature. This allows the roots in the center of the root ball to recover several times a day. I haven’t used the air-stone, but I’m probably going to try one. Cheers!
You need to make more videos on this format! I learned a loooot!! Thank you
6 years already !!! Man did you thrive!!👍
2:38 : Pumps run constantly in NFT systems. What ‘Some People’ do is not relevant. The pump is supposed to run constantly in a system that is working correctly.
hi,
i bought 2 yers a sistem nft,
i tried 3 time with clones not in idroponic genereted.
i set up the level of the water at the same level of the vase. but after 4 week the roots start to develop mushoroom.
Any andvise about the level of the water?
oder advise?
please let me know
best regards
The Earth’s nft
There is a BIG mistake in every other diagram around, including this video. The air pump should NEVER sit below the waterline of the container, especially if the highest point of the air line is not at least a foot over the water. An air pump can fail and the water can siphon back into the pump when you are trying to see what’s going on. Air pumps are not always electrically safe if the water gets inside and you could have a very nasty shock. Stay safe, set the air pump higher than your reservoir.
Do u have any customer for NFT channels i have 12nos
Whatsapp on 8767595367
You don’t really need an airstone for an NFT if you do it correctly. The point of NFT is to have a shallow film of water, which provides maximum oxygen to your roots. I’d recommend a timer for your pump that runs 1 min on, 10 min off (if you are growing in a control temperature, more often if it gets hot).
Hello am Eduardo from Perú, am a beguiner in this culture, I want to know about my box, a friend of mine, gave me one as a present, and I don’t know how yo use it. If you give me a Phone number, I can call you to learn more about it. Thanks for your time.
번역이 필요해요
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Dad was growing 600 lettuce, 2 x 4 rows, about 15 meters long, 4 HUGE nutrient tanks, 40 gallon plastic drums, EXTREMELY crucial the p.h and feeding nutrients are correct, in a large polly tunnel, dad even had this cool device that measured moisture in the air,, picture a like a fly swat… when the end of the fly swat got dry, it would lift up, and engaged a solenoid to spray a mist of water , until that "fly swat" got wet, it would lower, amd turn off the mist. This was in the early 90’s,, it was brilliant. Still gpt all this gear, but I’ve ssimplified it to a 3 level, 1 meter system, its great to teach the young ones also, how to simplify a recirculation n.f.t .. Great rewards. Edit: the timer is not used, its 24hrs. Also, no net pots needed, the flow is so low, and slow, simply place them through the 50- 60 mm hole all good,, you can grow anything this way, but it’s not for the feint hareted, quite a dedicated version of simple hydro, or a hrydo bucket with nutes..
Mamadas
No need for an airpump if you top feed continually.
what % is the channel set at??
Kratky followed by hydroponic thereafter nFT for pro
so i have a little clarity, when you say 1:40 that is every 40 inches drops 1 inch correct?
What ever happened to the real nft? This is just hydroponics. I suppose I need to contact a university and get literature about real nft
I set up my NFT last year and had great results, especially with the large leaf veggies. Regarding your comment about the timer: I didn’t have one at first and added it later when I started to get root-rot. The continuous flow of water around the root mass didn’t allow for enough oxygenation of the root fibers. I now have it on a timer that goes on and off many times daily. The rate depends on the time of year and temperature. This allows the roots in the center of the root ball to recover several times a day. I haven’t used the air-stone, but I’m probably going to try one. Cheers!
22
Why do you need to slope the tube? i’m pretty sure there are ways to make it perfectly horizontal because that sloped tube gives me OCD issues.
Hello from malaysia 😀
Maybe I missed it. What about a pipe on a slope, a water pump and a reservoir = nutrient or = film? How does it differ from the many other hydroponic setups that are practically identical that are not referred to as the "nutrient film technique". Throw an old dog a bone ‘n explain how this name came into being.
OMI
What’s the difference with dft??
what about the mechanical and biofiler? Supposedly an nft system doesn’t have a lot of space for beneficial bacterias to grow like a dwc or media bed has
Obviously Vertical stacking isn’t really an option for indoor plants growing under lights.
Surely the return water splashing into the reservoir will put oxygen back into the water? I do that with my home brewing without the need of an air pump to keep the yeast happy!
*screenshots video*
It seems to me that this would be better for a higher production value for the space. Just a deep reservoir gives you a single plain to cultivate from, this expands on the plain size and since you’re moving the nutrient rich liquid along the plain rather than using the reservoir, you’re actually able to ensure that there are no spots where bad bacteria can cultivate in the place of good bacteria. If you add to the another sub straight to the grow tables you could probably get rid of most of the bad bacteria in one level of the grow table, like a second type of filter. Say like one tray has stone in the tray for the full length. You could then remove and clean the medium pretty easily.
Flatley Isle
hello. im trying to find what kind of materials are used in a hydroponic system and i was wandering if you could tell me some if you know. thanks!
Can you add fish in the tank?
How did you set the water flow rate or the water pump timer on/off timing?
For any newcomers, hybridize your water/air pump by using a Venturi tube on your water pump. solid state, no cleaning required like air stones
I’m gonna throw this out there, because I see several people asking if it’s an issue because they’re not using an air stone. And I always see people in the Hydro world saying air stone, air stone, air stone.
Coming from the fish keeping, aquarium world you don’t really need an air stone for oxygen in your water. As long as you let your water fall back into your reservoir and splash as it returns, that is plenty oxygenation for your water. Don’t believe me? Most people that keep more expensive fish in aquariums don’t rely on air stones and their fish thrive. Air stones in aquariums are mainly used if you don’t have a good water pump/filter or its for aesthetics for the bubbles.
The name of this system is already fucking ruined
I’m nft you don’t run a timer on your pump. It should run constantly. There are flow limits you need to hit. This video is dumb…
Do yOu HaVe FiVe MiNuTeS tO tAlK AbOuT nFtS aNd CrYpTo
how frequently do we have to change the nutrient solution throughout the growing period??
I found this vid on my textbook