The 5 Best Hydroponic Systems Explained! 🌳 Updated 2023
In the past few years, and up into the foreseeable future, hydroponics is becoming a forefront advanced technology in the agricultural sector. Basically, it is a soilless method of growing plants – sounds interesting, yeah? The system replaces the support system that soil gives to the plant with other structures such as rock wool, peat moss, and clay pellets.
While this sounds interesting and modern than the conventional farming methods, there are different systems that you can employ for hydroponics. Each of the six major types has its pros and cons. That said, some products are built on the tenets of each of these major types. We have compiled a list of the top 5 best hydroponic systems. While there are tons of systems available for sale, we believe you have quite an edge with these.
Best Hydroponic Systems
AeroGarden Indoor Hydroponic Garden
Pros
- Easy to use
- Includes gourmet herb seed kit
- Simple yet classy design
- Indoor herb garden system
- High performance LED lighting system
- High value for money
Cons
- Plastic casing might wear down easily
Generally, hydroponics systems have beautiful aesthetics. That said, products from AeroGarden bring a new punch to the table. The company is committed to a mission of simplifying the processes of indoor gardening, thereby improving the life, food, and homes of their users. This mission is quite clear in most of their products, one of which is AeroGarden Indoor Hydroponic Garden.
This product has a 6-pod harvest garden design that gives plants enough room to grow to a broad height range. Usually, this range covers the height of most vegetables, and you can easily trim off the excess if need be. It has a sleek shape and a small footprint, making it an easy-to-use garden tool, albeit technologically advanced. Your plants grow well in water with no soil and no mess, which also goes a long way in reducing the amount of time it takes to clean up after your plants.
Furthermore, AeroGarden Indoor Hydroponic Garden has an energy-efficient, high-performance LED lighting system that controls the amount of light available for the plants. It has a dual control mode with which you can tweak the available light source. With this product, you can easily grow fresh herbs, and evenly ripe vegetables, right in your kitchen. Could indoor gardening get any better than that?
iDOO Hydroponics Growing System
Pros
- Automatic timer germination kit
- Adjustable height
- LED Grow lighting system
- Efficient circulation system
- Varied water pump modes
- 7 plant plate
Cons
- Complaint of failing lighting system
iDOO Hydroponics Growing system is one of the best hydroponics systems available for sale. It is a widely accepted product in the agricultural sector, especially among users who prefer the neater soilless method of gardening and farming. It is a simply designed indoor germination kit with an effective circulation system. Usually, the major concern of most users of the hydroponic system is the effectiveness of water circulation to facilitate plant growth. To allay this concern, iDOO Hydroponics Growing system is equipped with a varied water pump mode that allows the user to have full control of the water delivery system.
Additionally, this product is equipped with an adjustable LED Grow lighting system that you can change to a different setting based on your current need. The lighting required for the germination stage varies from that required for the flowering stage and so on. Therefore, you can leverage this setting for the effective growth of your plants. Admittedly, some customers complained of a failing lighting system. This can be easily rectified with the manufacturing company.
iDOO Hydroponics Growing System is fitted with seven pods with an adjustable height and an automatic timer germinating kit. There is a provision for two nutrient solutions that provide all the nutrients your plants will otherwise get from the soil. There are no seasonal limitations for growing plants, and you can easily harvest your plants all year round. The best part, this product is relatively affordable – so, what’s to lose?
AeroGarden Bounty Elite Hydroponic Herb Garden
Pros
- Stainless steel casing
- Energy-efficient LED lighting system
- 9-pod gourmet herb seed pod kit
- Indoor herb garden system
- Non-GMO processed plant plate
Cons
- Weak warranty deal
AeroGarden Bounty Elite Hydroponic Herb Garden is a top product in a new line from AeroGarden companies. It is perfect for growing a wide variety of garden plants and vegetables and is compatible with all the new tech advancements in our everyday life. This product is Wi-Fi enabled and is compatible with Alexa, with this feature you can stay in control of the features of this product. Some of the highlights of this product include a 3 step water level indicator, automatic light dimming function, and a LED grow light.
With AeroGarden Bounty Elite Hydroponic Herb Garden’s effective water circulation system, your plants grow in water, resulting in a lesser mess. It has enough space to grow up to 9 plants, each of which can be as tall as 24 inches. The plant plate is pre-seeded and non-GMO; with that, there is a 100% assurance of year-long germination and harvest. The product is also fitted with an energy-efficient LED lighting system that controls the light supply to the plants, thereby facilitating your plants’ growth and development. Asides from the beautiful aesthetics of this product, there are numerous other benefits from trying out this efficient hydroponics system.
WEPLANT Hydroponic Growing System
Pros
- PVC plant garden system
- Special fertilizer timing cycle
- 36 holes growing system
- Simple hydronic conditions
- Easy to use and clean
- Makes the most of space
Cons
- Faulty parts might not have a spare
WEPLANT Hydroponic Growing System is an effective, simple design 36-hole system. This hydroponic system has a timed fertilizer with a connection sequence that has an automatic adapter-timer-pimp. Asides from being friendly to the environment since it saves electricity, it also saves nutrients because it works with a NFT planting method. Each planting cup has a square hole and net cup that makes water circulation and cleaning methods quite effective.
Aside from taking up less space than other widely known hydroponic systems, WEPLANT Hydroponic Growing System allows you to have a front seat approach in viewing your plants’ growth. It is suitable for indoor and outdoor gardening and gives more room for plants because of its simpler design. Notwithstanding, this product’s faulty parts might be difficult to replace because it has a no-third person design.
It is important to note that this product requires a simple hydroponic condition with enough sunlight and ventilation. Asides from direct sunlight, you can also try out plant lights. The best part, WEPLANT Hydroponic Growing System, is relatively affordable compared to the other bigwigs.
Viagrow Deep Water Hydroponic 4 Plant System
Pros
- Bucket deep water hydroponics
- 4 plant system
- Easy to assemble and disassemble for storage
- Great for indoor and outdoor vegetable garden
- Fair value for money
Cons
- Buckets might crack after a while
- Potential for leaks
Viagrow Deep Water Hydroponic 4 Plant System is one of the available products with the simplest design. It uses four buckets deep water culture which is one of the earlier models of Hydroponics in growing your plants. Although it is adaptable for both indoor and outdoor use, it is aesthetically suited for outdoor gardening. The product utilizes viastone grow rocks, hose tubing, and peat moss as support for soilless farming.
Concerning effects on the ecosystem, Viagrow Deep Water Hydroponic 4 Plant System uses a lesser fraction of water to cultivate the plants than conventional farming methods. This product is more mechanical as compared to the automatic functions of similar products. Still, it is as effective as others seeing as it has a proven track record of plant growth and survival. If you are new to the system of hydroponics, Viagrow Deep Water Hydroponic will be a perfect way to start.
The parts are relatively easy to assemble and disassemble, which comes in handy for storage and cleaning purposes. Considerably, this product has a high value for its cost since it is relatively inexpensive. Admittedly, there is a potential for leaks since the circulation system is based on pre-drilled air hose tubing. Frankly, you can give it a try!
What to Look for When Buying a Hydroponic Systems?
By now, you have quite a good grasp on how hydroponics work, and you know why you should get the good ones. While the system works with relative ease, it might be somewhat challenging to work with a suitable model for what you need.
Follow all the necessary procedures necessary for hydroponics systems, keeping the water free from impurities. You will increase the growth rate of your plants by almost 30%. That said, here are some essential things to look out for when buying a hydroponic system.
Easy to Use
Beyond the aesthetics and design of the hydroponic system, you have to be sure that it is easy to use before spending your hard-earned dollars on them.
Frankly, most hydroponic systems have an easy approach since they are automatic, but you can also come across some manually operated ones. While the automatic systems are more technologically inclined and might be easier to use, it is easier to get a good grasp of manually operated systems if they fail.
Additionally, products with an instruction guide should be considered before those who expect you to figure it out. Some of these products have clear, easy-to-follow instructions, sometimes visual demonstrations that guide you through the process. As we have said before, when choosing hydroponic systems, pick functionality over aesthetics.
Easy to Assembly
Another essential thing to look out for when buying a hydroponic system is the ease of assembly. This is particularly important if you are gifting this product to a person who might not be adept with tools. One easy hack with which you can verify this is to check users’ reviews online. Furthermore, beyond assembly, you should also be sure that you can easily disassemble the product if need be.
Often, the ease of assembly reflects the product’s functionality, especially when it has automatic functions. Notwithstanding, understand the product’s features and be sure that it is a good fit for what you need.
Value for Money
Another vital angle to view your purchase of a hydroponic system through is the value for money. As we have earlier said, beyond the product’s aesthetics, is it functional and adaptable to your needs?
Recently, most products are compatible with technology and might come with a lot of hype, but be sure you are getting an equivalent amount of value for your dollars, if not more.
Important qualities, such as an efficient lighting system, functional water circulation modes, easy installment, and maintenance, should be considered before aesthetics and general design. Of course, this doesn’t mean that general outlook does not matter, but they are more secondary than primary. Whatever you decide on, be sure that you are buying the best quality products to assure great returns and customer satisfaction.
Summary
It is not enough to be in sync with the latest advanced farming methods; it is more important that you get it right. With any of these listed products, you have a higher chance of hitting multiple year-long harvests, irrespective of the plant or vegetables. Furthermore, if you opt for any other hydroponic system asides from those listed in this article, you know what to look out for.