dwc is a fine system but for a new grower in hydro the work of changing that many buckets as well as diluting their feed schedule can be complex. flood and drain however is more or less fool proof. 1 res 1 table 1 pump 1 flood and drain fittings it can never over flow, ph and ppm are easy to check and manage because its all in one central rez. also changing the nutes is easier because its all in one res and not 8 separate buckets. also some people run into heat issues with dwc where the water starts becoming too warm and it can no longer hold oxygen. last point, when power goes out, flood and drain tables can be top fed with a watering can. this is much harder to accomplish with DWC. NEVER BUY WHITE FLOOD TABLES NO MATTER WHAT THEY TELL YOU! they look nice, they look clean, hey reflect light and............... they grow enormous amounts of algae that coats the tables and gets in the rez. buy black tables and a black rez and you will never have this problem. the black tables and rez's are cheaper too. make sure you have a quality PH pen and keep it in the 5.9-6.1 range and your golden. dont use hydroton, it's dirty and tough to clean for re-use, get 4x4 rockwool cubes. they are cleaner, easier to work with and hold water way better. you will only have to flood twice a day which reduces ph swing in the rez. throw em out when your done and watch all your grow medium fit in a kitchen trash bag. this is my favorite and one of the most effective ways to grow. dwc is good but flood and drain is way less of a headache. also if you're in hydro ditch the general hydroponics PH up and down products. they allow to much ph swing in the rez. get a 1 liter of Advanced Nutrients PH up and down and some rubber gloves because its 4-5 times stronger than GH and PH swing is nearly non existent. this is the one and only product from advanced nutrients you will ever see me recommend. peace
