Progrow sells a range of submersible pumps, air pumps, air stones, nutrient chillers and tank heaters with relevant fittings, spare parts and replacement pumps. Our years’ experience means we supply the most reliable equipment to you.
A Hydroponic submersible pump is most often an intrinsic part of your Hydroponic system, delivering nutrient to your plants from a reservoir tank. As such reliability of your Submersible pump is paramount, they should also be maintained and cleaned of residue salts that can build up over time. Progrow sell hydroponic submersible pumps that are well proven in the industry from leading manufacturers such as Maxi-jet, Hailea and Aqua-king, they are well made and robust, designed for long hours of operation and consistent performance. Maxi-jets range of submersible pumps are used extensively in their Grow tanks, Wilma systems, Aeroponic systems and Ebb and flood range of Hydroponic systems. These pumps range from 320 l/p/h to 1000 l/ph and will provide years of faultless operation if maintained correctly. For larger indoor Hydroponic gardens, the Aquaking range of submersible pumps provide the best solution, with good lift height and powerful flow rates they are an ideal choice for larger drip irrigation systems such as the return to anywhere (RTA) Systems.
Air pumps are also widely used in Hydroponic applications, to oxygenate nutrient solutions in your reservoir tank or directly within the Hydroponic system used. At its most basic a reservoir tank is aerated with an air stone connected to an Air pump with silicon tubing, a single air stone for a 100 ltr reservoir tank is perfectly sufficient to oxygenate your nutrient solution. Haileaʼs Air pumps possess an ‘advanced air-compression system’, their air pumps are extremely quite due to the dampening system and multilevel muffler. If you have multiple or larger tanks to oxygenate then Secohʼs linear air pumps provide a quality solution, these air pumps are super efficient, compact and lightweight they are workhorses that can be relied on in your chosen Hydroponic application. Progrow supply manifolds up to 18 outlet meaning there is no end to the amount of individual plants you can oxygenate if you oxygenate the rhizosphere of your plants in your system. Autopot recognise only too well the benefits of oxygen at the rhizosphere and have made a product that allows you to ‘inject oxygenʼ at the roots of your plants in an Autopot system. These clever devices known as air domes sit in the bottom of your pot covered with medium they create a ‘bridgeʼ where oxygen is released underneath the dome through porous pipe. Progrow have many discounted air dome kits for the Autopot system based around the Secoh high performance air pumps, as well as all the fittings, silicon tubing, leaky pipe and spare parts for you to construct your own system to oxygenate your plants. Reverse osmosis machines remove particles of contaminants and bacteria from tap water through a system of filters and membranes, and as such is a method of water purification. Reverse Osmosis machines are able to remove 98% of contaminants and 99% of bacteria from standard tap water, water is forced under pressure past a mechanical pre filter which will remove larger particles likely to damage or block the finer filters. In most RO machines it is passed through a carbon filter which will filter contaminants such as chlorine and larger particles likely to damage or clog the semi permeable membrane. The water is then in its last stage forced past the semi permeable membrane, it is at this stage a vast majority of chemicals including sodium, Flouride, Chloride, Sulphate, Calcium, Potassium, Arsenic, and metals such as iron, lead, nickel and mercury, as well as organic, inorganic bacteria and pesticides are removed to waste, in most instances reducing contaminants to 0.001 microns. It is always a good idea to test the water you are intending to use in your Hydroponic system, in most instances using reverse osmosis water simply enables the hydroponic gardener to better control the ‘foodʼ in the mineral salts of the nutrient solution provided to plants. If your water has a high EC out of the tap (most likely in Hard water areas where water passes through limestone or chalk, calcium and magnesium carbonates, bicarbonates and sulphates are dissolved into the water as it percolates through this sedimentary rock) it may be that it contains beneficial elements for plant growth such as calcium or magnesium, however the quantities are uncontrollable, can fluctuate and be in ratios that create adverse conditions for growth. Removing these ‘contaminants’ give the Hydroponic gardener peace of mind that all the EC value he adds to reverse osmosis water making up a nutrient solution will be beneficial for plant growth. Progrow provide Reverse osmosis machines from Grow-max who produce two and three stage filters. Their 2 stage carbon filters are able to remove 99% of chlorine and 90% of particles above 5 micron, whilst the larger Grow-max Mega Grow is able to produce 1000 litres of reverse osmosis water per day for Hydroponic use. Our Pumps and waterworks section also contains reverse osmosis machines from D&D Aquarium solutions, with three stages of filtration consisting of:
1 – A 10″ 5 micron pre-filter to remove sediments and particles from the mains water to protect the membrane from clogging and extend its life. This is housed in a clear membrane to allow you to monitor the colour and life of this disposable and replaceable element. Progrow recommend that this low-cost filter is changed at a maximum interval of every 6 months.
2 – A 10″ 10 micron block carbon filter. This carbon filter is designed to remove the chlorine from the water. It is also recommended that this filter is changed every 6 months.
3 – The RO Membrane and housing. This stage holds the membrane itself. All D-D membranes are high quality thin film membranes. These machines are easy to install, supplied with self piercing tap connectors to 15mm copper supply pipe, consideration should be given to waste water produced.
It is important to measure the temperature of the water supplied to plants in a hydroponic system, and from there be able to heat or cool your nutrient reservoir as necessary. In hydroponics we use tank heaters to maintain a consistent water temperature, particularly during the winter months in the U.K. and Northern Europe. Tank heaters should be shatterproof, glass tank heaters tend to build up salts on the surface and will shatter this can be extremely dangerous as often they are placed on a plastic reservoir tank that the exposed element can burn through. Progrow only supply quality shatter proof tank heaters, simply set the thermostat and let the heater maintain the nutrient solution temperature. And on the flip side in warmer climates or during the summer months the hydroponic gardener may need chill the water in their reservoir tank, this can be particularly true of NFT systems where the continual action of water movement heats the nutrient solution. Haileaʼs nutrient chiller range are incredibly effective at maintaining water temperature and utilising digital control technology.
Progrowʼs Pumps and waterworks section also contains clever pump controllers such as the nutrimatic drip irrigation timer, innovative products such as the Bubblegen and bio filter and of course all the spare parts or extras you may need in the way of filters, fittings and pipe work.