and it is described as aeroponics, but I have used baskets with small rockwool cubes, surrounded in LECA. The water level is about 1 1/2" in the PVC pipes; I think the baskets don't actually touch the water. The spray lines are spraying at each basket. So, how often do I need to run the pump? Thanks!
Answer: Bev- with a purely aeroponic system, there would be no need for any standing water in the bottom of the pipes. In this case, you could either leave the pump on 24 hours a day, or else you could get a timer to control the pump- the standard in aeroponics is one minute on, four minutes off. The important thing is to keep the roots from drying out.
If the water level in the pipes were high enough to submerge some of the LECA stone in the baskets, you might than be able to get away with turning your pump off for longer periods (since your plant roots would be partially submerged and since the LECA would wick up some of the water, creating a moist environment for the roots). In this case, the system would function like the DWC system on this page.
If you end up going this route, it is important that you add an air stone to your nutrient reservoir to keep the nutrient solution highly oxygenated. Hope this helps!
