Making Your Own Hydroponic Nutrients

How I make my 2 part hydroponic liquid nutrients.
Visit the LED grow light site: chilledgrowlights.com/our-pro...
Mixing your own from powders would save you a ton of money over the ready made stuff you normally would find at a hydroponics store. Works just as well if not better and you get to control what you put into them.
My General Purpose Recipe:
Part A:
1 gal RO or distilled water
600 grams Masterblend 4-18-38 Tomato Special
300 grams Epsom Salt
1.5 grams Sodium Benzoate as a preservative
Part B:
1 Gal RO or distilled water
1,100 grams Calcium Nitrate (YaraLiva CALCINIT)
The above would make a 250x concentrate (each gallon of concentrate would make 250 gallons of working solution).
I use it at 15ml part A and 15ml part B for each 1 gallon of water.
With RO water you would get an EC of about 2.0 or PPM of 1000 at the 500 scale.
Working strength nutrient breakdown (approximate):
N - 203 ppm
P - 50 ppm
K - 200 ppm
Mg - 45 ppm
Ca - 220 ppm
S - 50 ppm
Fe - 2.5 ppm
Zn - 0.63 ppm
B - 1.27 ppm
Cu - 0.63 ppm
Mo - 0.063 ppm
Mn - 1.27 ppm
Cl - 12.7 ppm
Hope that helps. Again, this is not a fits all solution, just what I use personally, feel free to change the recipe to your requirements as needed.
God Bless,
Vitaly

[@johnclamshellsp1969]

UPDATE YEAR TWO. This year I made two more hydroponic units. One for watermelon and one for cherry tomatoes. Crimson watermelons are 9 per vine and 13LBS each. The cherry tomato plats have yielded 12LBS on three plants.. I make your solution to the gram, the results are STUNNING. WOW. All my plants are growing at insane pace and I use the mix in soil as well every two weeks. Thank you very much.

[@vladhristov2316]

of course. You are putting the plant on steroids, because of the extra on the top of the soil. The video is for hydroponics.

[@FiglioBastardo]

Phenomenal! I absolutely love your channel and how adamant you are about doing things inexpensively but correctly, then sharing it for everyone! On that note ì can't wait to see when your 2nd gen lights are going to be available! Thank you so much! You and growmau5 absolutely freaking rock!

[@lisamarie1927]

Thank you! I have been looking for a nutrient mix that would work for a variety of veggies and greens and thanks to you I now have it and to make a concentrate is a HUGE bonus! I love your garden, it is so green and beautiful.

[@billhanson827]

For a non-metallic paddle, you could use an old arrow shaft with 3 medium to large zip ties equally separated. I use this with a common drill for Sil-Nylon mixing and works great.

[@getupgonow3231]

Well done! Your comments helped explain the the "why" along with the " how to " component! Great job young man!Will be using the kratky method with your formula ! Thank you for making this informative video!

[@calvin6998]

I hope one day i can have a set up like this. Great job

[@whyamigreen]

Thanks for making this so clear and easy to follow. I will be using your blend this summer.

[@ponicsgardens5996]

This is a great base to start with. Thanks for posting these and all your other videos!

[@gwrace]

Awesome video. Thank you for taking the time to make this so detailed.

[@40ny]

Although I spent most of my career in a lab environment and was well acquainted with making up different chemical solutions, since getting interested in food production and hydroponics I have found the whole area of plant nutrient requirements and fertilizers quite confusing, so thank you very much for helping me make sense of it with this very clear video.

[@hunterwhearley2571]

Thank you so much. I’ve grown a lot in dirt but am learning hydroponics. It’s such an efficient way to grow but it gets expensive buying premade.

[@johnclamshellsp1969]

Thank you for providing this awesome video. I purchased everything and its all mixed tonight. It is stunning on the amount of money I will save. My kids and wife love the outdoor hydro garden, no dirt, no mess and wicked tons of yummy veggies.

[@Vera-dc7my]

John Clamshell SP can you share please where you purchased everything? Thanks

[@zarielandaluz458]

Thank you so much for sharing this valuable information in the way you did. Great video, best vibes.

[@duaneandrewblack6269]

One of the simplest diy hydroponic grow solution I've seen. Thank you!

[@chris432t6]

Totally agree. Well spoken, simple and thorough. Cool tip with adding sodium b for bacterial control. Thank you

[@givemetoast]

Thank you for clearing and completely explaining this!

[@weedosoarusrex3719]

I've gotta say wow I've been jumping from channel to channel telling everyone about your lighting its awesome what you've done with making such a versatile light I've looked everywhere and nobody comes closes to you, the only downside is I know high quality when I see it and being disabled and losing almost all my income ill only be able to watch some people use them because there going to be way out of my price range ,good luck man I hope you have great success and can see a very good future ahead, cheers

[@alfredolumba641]

Thanks for sharing your formulation. I will try it here in the Philippines.

[@BenjasUberHobby]

Never thought of making it in concentrate. I hate pulling out the fertilizers, scales etc. to make my nutrients sol. Great video thanks for sharing :)

[@hmhma7230]

Wsup Bro. Good Vid with good helpful info.I've been doing some research due to my own confusion of my Masterblend mix.I figured out my problem through trial & error.You are the only person that breaks this done right.I'm getting ready to do my own clarification of mixing Masterblend & how it relates to Ppms.I was checking your vid out just to see if you cover the Ppms,& you did.Thats for the tip about preserving all the Good Micro Nutrients.Knowledge is Power.

[@ecarrasco2635]

Awesome video! Great explanation and examples. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!

[@rogerbeck2085]

Your plants are beautiful, I'll try your mix thank you.

[@luiseduardogomezdearandaju723]

I'm just watching your first video and I'm already subscribed. We need more people making videos about indoor LED growing, so thank you for your work!

[@midwestmangos2452]

We're putting together an aeroponics/hydroponics controller based on Arduino, will be using this concentration recipe along with the 1ke grow light we bought from you guys and test on cucumbers first to fine tune before going to other varieties of fruits, veggies, and trees. Thanks for the video.

[@RobinHood89566]

Thank you so much! Starting my own hydroponic garden next week. Kratke method...mason jars.

[@dianakakar9721]

Wizard of greens! Thanks so much for the nutrient Recipie! Xoxoxo

[@johnclamshellsp1969]

UPDATE. I made your solution to the gram, the results are STUNNING. WOW. All my plant are growing at insane pace. Thank you very much.

[@liamduncan732]

Not that interesting sorry I am British and I live in Poland but Google has ruined my iPhone so I will not watch you tube on it

[@FeelingShred]

John, how many plants have to be sold in order to repay for the cost of the lights and the energy used, do you have that ratio?

[@eduardoespiritu1110]

Sodium benzoate is bad for DNA

[@stardawud2877]

Who else wants them for a chick

[@utkarshasinha423]

Hehe

[@christiangab1227]

Thank you for sharing with us how to make your own hydroponic liquid you are truly awesome and wonderful ^^

[@mamba8020]

Very well explained , take my word you help someone , god bless you...

[@johnclamshellsp1969]

UPDATE #3 2018 gardening season. I used this combo for my soil based plants as well every two weeks, STUNNING. I grew my first 1.8 LB beefsteak tomato. Average was 10 OZ tomatoes. Spices and potato gardens all double in size. NOTE: With my soil based plants, I also use Azomite as well.

[@johnglen3915]

Very well explained, cristal clear. Thank. The video that i was looking for to start my own system. Thank you. If you have one explaining the installation of your controlled system and which nutrient controller are you using.

[@benchbytes]

Oh man! this was all I wanted..great demonstration!

[@tulipsmoran5197]

Thanks!!! for the ratios - it makes mixing my 27 gal Hydro reservoir a LOT easier... and I don't have to remember so much of my chemistry ;) 3785 ml/250=15.4ml approx 15ml 15ml X 27 gal = 405ml 405 ml conversion to ounce US liquid = 13.69 oz approx 14 oz 14oz conversion to cups = 1.75 or 1-3/4 cup Gallon = 128 oz Gallon concentrate yields 9 reservoir changes Bi-weekly reservoir changes over 18 weeks or approx 4.5 months My greenhouse grow season is 9 months so I only need to mix 2 batches of concentrate per year. At 1.5lb= 680.3885g, each batch requires 1.5# each of Masterblend, MagSul and Calcium Nitrate. A 5lb MasterBlend kit would last me 2 years or 1 year if I use for my inground raised garden beds in my injector system. Easy peasy.

[@bites5943]

THANK YOU, this is great demonstration

[@ryanpatterson9710]

Love the video about making DIY hydroponic nutrients. Always wanted to know how to do it so thank you. 1 question though, where could I find the proper formulation for cannabis? Thanks! Big fan, keep up the great work!

[@rainbowzcannabis8903]

Thank you! Great info I’m definitely trying this

[@philipriddle8987]

thank u.....used your formula all last year...great

[@dingo5842]

This is awesome. I have a few ways I make it even cheaper (with fewer tools) and honestly, easier. First, I (like I would have to assume most people) use distilled water, which I buy in gallons for about $1.25. To make the "Part A" solution, I don't use a heater, I pour it from the jug into a pot and heat it to "quite warm" on the stove. I then add about half back into the water jug, insert a funnel, and gently pour the 600g of 4-18-38 into it. I then cap it, and shake until dissolved. After it is dissolved, I add the 300g of Epsom Salt and repeat. I then add the remaining warm distilled water until it almost reaches the top, then very gently squeeze out the air and tighten the cap. I then repeat the process with the Calcium Nitrate. Considering the very limited time of exposure to, and very limited surface area that biota might find their way to on top is so insignificant, I personally do not use the Sodium Benzoate. Of course, 1 TBS (15ml) of each Part added to a gallon of water makes the desired concentration for growing, and testing with an EC meter will verify this. I am personally experimenting with making Ionized or Colloidal Copper (using two pre-1985 pennies and three 9V batteries in series) to try to counter any algae issues (as opposed to adding something like Copper Sulfate). We'll see how it goes! Peace to you from Northern Maine!

[@fgjf1079]

Cool tip regarding the Calcium Nitrate. Halfway through my kratky pepper grow, I started getting deformed leaves in the new growth. After some research it turns out that it’s often a calcium deficiency symptom. I might have to try increasing the CalciumNitrate on future grows.

[@psoto222]

I have been using your formula, for over a year now and the results are amazing, one thing for tomatoes and peppers in a growing stage, should I use a lower ratio? because my tomatoes did grow roots everywhere and I think the ratio was to hight in the growing stage.... and thanks for this video.

[@coconorte6383]

@ChilLED Grow Lights@ thanks for your video and inspiration. @Atom izer@ made a critical comment which seems to have been overlooked. There is an error in the concentrate solution mixing method ... As @Atom izer@ pointed out ... "When making up a 1gal stock solution you should mark the 1gal line on the container. Add 3/4 of the water and then add the dry chemical and allow it to fully dissolve. Finally top up with water to the 1 gal line on the container. 1gal of water plus the dry chemical will result in more than 1 gal of stock solution so it wont be accurate." I followed your mixing method using one gallon of water and then poured the concentrate into a one gallon bottle, and end up with a messy overflow. By mixing the dry ingredients with one gallon of water in a larger container produces something less than a 250x concentrate so dosage may need to be adjusted. Tip: Microwave your RO water before adding nutrients and you wont need a heater to dissolve them.

[@chrisw1462]

To deal with metal stirrers, disassemble any plastic parts, protect any fitted areas with masking tape, and give the metal 2 or three coats of a clear polyurethane or epoxy. Reassemble once it is Fully Dry, but don't use it for at least three days, up to a week if it's cold and humid where you are. You may want to use a small paint brush to coat any areas where metal meets plastic to seal the joint.

[@theophrastus9029]

Way to go, you could be bottling this concentrate yourself yet here you share the recipe for free. Mucho apreciado

[@claytonmcgalla7392]

Based on current prices (2-19-21) it costs about $15.08 to make the concentrate to make 250 gallons of nutrient solution. Compare that to whatever mix-and-go nutrient solution you use and I bet making it is cheaper. Feel free to check my math but I am pretty sure I crunched those numbers correctly.

[@alejandrogutierrez8330]

That's a pretty awesome set up you have. Hopefully you are still going strong. What's the biggest challenge you had when mixing the nutrients and in creating your own solution?

[@mateuszpiechowiak2891]

That is great! Thank you! So this mix is good for any herbs and greens?

[@szpisti78]

I absolutelly love your video. It gives me a good starting point. May I ask where do you get info about how much and what type of nutrient requied by a certain plant? For example how much phosphorus need a tomato or a carrot to grow well. I start looking on the internet but as of now I did not get an exact answer. Thank you.

[@lexbraugh5454]

what...that can not be.... your nerd powers are over 9000!! i bow to you my good sir of science first both love and hate your build. being able to grow greens and not greens off one tank removes a lot of time and pain in the bum steps. i hate the fact you have yet to install it into my garden space. lol going from video to video trying to work out three different problems that keep showing up in my system no matter what i did or tried. The use of Sodium Benzoate and how it is reacting to the PH and to produce Benzoic Acid is both impressive and makes it safer then a can of soda. something you said during explanation of you why made me think of something that i am quite sure what is the root of all three the issue in mine build. If it was not for this i'd still be searching for my answers. so Thank you kindly for this understanding stay safe my friend

[@gumpf3522]

what is the mix for plants around my yard love your work man go baby go

[@ReefEco]

Great video! Do you aerate or keep your concentrate solutions agitated in any way? I've heard different methods for this so just curious...

[@janetexner7846]

HI ! great channel !! thank you - what do you use for pH down?

[@philfox8878]

Rainwater a kettle for use with rain water only saves an hour. the rust adds iron particles into the mix no problem.

[@greghammond193]

This is fantastic!

[@GuGoBe]

I really like your pump system. Did you design it yourself? Where did you buy your pumps? What is the flow of your pumps? Thank you for the video.

[@SuperVazz]

Great video, when do you know is time to change the water? does the EC has to be a certain level?

[@InfiniteDATUM]

Great video for the noob. Thanks. How often are you changing you water or adding water to your system?

[@endgameliberty5587]

Great stuff and always informative! Vitaly, got a question. For how many months can I keep the mix without Sodium Benzoate and still have an effective A+B solution? What if I use a none transparent plastic bottle to hold the solution in a dark place. Would that help keep algae out? My fear is that I'll not find Sodium Benzoate easily here in Europe. How do you create your PH up and PH down (do you have any video on that? wink wink)

[@insurroundsound]

wow....just found your channel....your setup and garden looks amazing!!....what's your general separation between net cups for your leafy greens?....i'm thinking about building an indoor setup myself [much smaller scale, of course -- i'm a newbie with limited space -- working with a newly-purchased 4x4 grow tent]...thanks in advance

[@alexdobson4132]

Great video, thank you. just wondering what camera you used?

[@minooghaffari7435]

Great video, Thank you

[@buzzardel]

Add a thermo constriction tube over the metal shaft and you avoid corrosion.

[@CoolKoon]

He'd still get corrosion on the bottom though....

[@manmln]

Great video! I have a few questions: 1. How stable are the concentrated solutions?This was published almost 4 years ago, can someone share experience on storage? 2. What is the resulting ph after mixing with water (assuming water is 7)? 3. If I want to add PhDown or PhUp to the concentrate (if it is possible at all), which of the solutions is appropriate for that? Thanks!

[@johnoneill2848]

Great information. Thank you for sharing. Wondering if anyone has experience to share regarding the nute strength. Will this mix work well from seedling to maturity in a dutch bucket system? Or do you really need to start off with a weaker solution and build up to strength? Thanks!

[@user-zq7wd5he1l]

Good Day to all. I would like to know when using this 2 part hydroponic liquid nutrients, what is the best EC or PPM should I use.

[@blinddogroofer]

I've been using 12 grams master blend, 12 grams Calcium Nitrate, and 6 grams Epsom salts per 5 gallons of water per MHP Gardener's recipe. I've had good results. Scaled up, that matches 600 gr per 250 gallons. This blend is mostly for tomatoes, but I've had good luck with cucumbers, lettuce, swiss, chard, etc. It would be easier to have a pre-mixed liquid concentrate though. I've been using well water, although occasional batches have had distilled water and no problems. I enjoyed the video and will be mixing concentrates instead of from the dry ingredients. I concur that the title should say mixing. Very nice, thanks.

[@Haitigotpwned]

Followed this tutorial and my plants love it. However, after 3 months, it looks like my part A (NPK) concentrate is much less green and more brown in color. They have been exposed to some indirect sunlight; will this degrade the nutrients?

[@ruben7807]

Great video!! Thank you!!

[@gulldaw272]

So you make a big batch and then you can use it when you need to change the water? How often do you need to change the water in a system

[@manglagardens]

Thanks for sharing Great video

[@marzouqhumoud2616]

Quick question please Can i pour this mixture of 1 gallon in a 250 gallon tank ??? How can can i keep the mixture in the 250 gallon ??

[@mvs6380]

I wonder if for the part B, regarding the solids if pouring through a cheese cloth might be able to catch them.

[@Vladmir008]

hello im learning so much from you thanks ! Is it okay to use same nutrient solution mix after changing calcium nitrate to 600 grams and arrange ph for tap water ? I can only measure ec and ph so im not really sure if my tomatoes will be alright . I will be happy if you can answer. Thank you for amazing work and information.

[@shanlay3045]

Hello i m doing like you do.but why my veg is yellow color not Green.can i know what is wrong ?

[@DasSnakeBoy]

Can you use citric acid as a preservative instead of the sodium

[@joelfreehling3650]

Excellent tutorial on the Masterblend formulation! Straight to the point; a perfect visual aid for those who may only be familiar with other MB vids (like mhp’s, etc..) I was wondering why your ratio for the Calcium Nitrate was more than twice the standard recommended equal parts as per the MB weight than is usually used (in this case being 600g MB / 600g Ca(NO3)2) - thanks for the noting of Calcium inclusion/concentrations in various water sources and adjusting the ratios to compensate! I hadn’t really taken that into account, but was just thinking along with the standard equal parts MB/Calcium Nitrate that is the go-to ‘standard’. Do you use this formula with the higher ratio of Calcium Nitrate with tomatoes or your bell peppers? I’d wonder about the higher levels of N and subsequent blossom drop issues (potentially). With labeling this a 'General Purpose Recipe', I was just curious if you may have encountered such issues with any specific crops that may be more sensitive with high N during bloom/fruit stages... or do you just 'dial it back' at that time(?). That lettuce & kale looks EXCEPTIONAL… speaks for itself! Thanks Vitaly!

[@Chilledgrowlights]

Hi Joel, it is the only one I use for the entire run. As I mention in the video it works well for me because of all of the leafy greens that are also on the same recirculating solution. So those plants will pull the nitrogen out faster and leave less available for the fruiting crops like tomatoes, bell peppers. So in the end it works very well for me and have not had any issues one might experience with excess nitrogen and the plants are not excessively vegetative either and tend to stay well balanced. Of course for others who may not have the same setup and mix of crops it may be best to adjust the formulation.

[@althahabiya]

Hi, i have two questions here, first is will this nutrition mix works for all planes, from strawberry to tomatoes, second is where to buy the pumps that add the nutrtions to the main tank.

[@kevinchandler7356]

How do you quantify the amount of nutrients remaining in the water after some time with the plants?

[@cbhlde]

Gallons will make it easier for you guys! I have a feeling that there are a metric ton of people, who would disagree! :)

[@abhishekroy5119]

Masterblend is not available where I live so I'm not sure what it really is. Is it NPK + micronutrients? If I had to create a masterblend at home, what all would I need to mix together?

[@james98731]

sir if my masterblend doesn't have trace elements then how to get the trace elements ?

[@steveraman4562]

ecellent info thanks

[@waynemiracle1746]

Does anyone know what the "shelf life" of this mixture would be once the sodium benzoate has been added? In other worlds will any leftover concentrate still be viable the following year?

[@christianblicher1358]

Great videos. i am extremely jaloux off the clean setup you have in your basement. I see in your video that your target on EC (in rOS water) is EC 2.0 / 1.000 PPM. But in one of your other videos i saw strawberry plants! those are often recommended for much lover EC. which EC are these running on? Best regards from Denmark

[@MurrayFCohen]

Hi. Thanks for the great video. Would you suggest this solution to grow lettuce? This is a perfect solution to buying bottles of nutrients. I don't want to mix all of my own ingredients anyway. (BTW, it's super hard to find the Yak's blood that they call for.)

[@muqeetmustafa3289]

Hi. great Video. Can I use calcium chloride or calcium ammonium nitrate instead of calcium nitrate? calcium nitrate is not easily available in my country. Any suggestion?

[@catlegs6233]

materials: 1 gallon of mineral free water (250g nutrient solution, sodium benzolate (preservative), 600 g masterblend tomato special watersoluble fertilizer, 300g epsom salt

[@starseed5275]

did you purchase or make the automatic mixing equipment?

[@ismailkmpaleri2228]

Good information 👍👍👍

[@user-zx7ts9fz7l]

Please give me the type and percentage of the nutritious solution for tomatoes in the aquaculture plant.

[@carlososorio8291]

que mas desde colombia buen video conque puedo remplazar grams Masterblend 4-18-38

[@555luckyme]

you can filter the part b with painters mesh....easy

[@w.maximilliandejohnsonbour725]

Nice video.

[@james98731]

how to make tomato special masterblend ? please make a video on it

[@Paintingtube]

How long does Concentrated Formula last? And do you recommend placing it into the refrigerator

[@pmsuhra4779]

Hello, can you simplify the measurement of water in one litter(1000ml) instead of gallon please .I would like to make small quantity of nutrient because I have only few plants..hope you help.

[@hersheyboi18]

How about if i will going w/ 1 L will i also change the quantity of sodium benzoqte? Thanks!

[@villanuevaruth21]

Hello there, why not put it all together the (NPK) I have been doing it for quite awhile the growth is ok, or I just did not get what it means, need help, thank you.

[@futureskills1881]

Fantastic video! Are you using NFT hydro?

[@maykaur3866]

Will baking soda work for antifungal? In my mind, it's better than sodium benzoate. How much baking soda per gallon will you put, so pH is not affected significantly. This is for Kratky method by the way. Many thanks!

[@lordango]

is there an alternative for Masterblend? I'm from the Philippines and it is hard to import fertilizers to our Country.

[@tedzone5544]

Will a paint mixer hooked up to a small motor mix any faster/better.