Here is the hydroponic garden we used for the 2016 growing season:
The frame is simple 2x4 construction and finished with Thompson’s WaterSeal for uv/water protection. Similar hydroponic systems are sometimes described as ‘raingutter’ systems. This system used 4” drain pipe and a small 9W fountain pump continuously circulates the hydroponic nutrients. The frame had rolling casters to allow easy re-positioning, although we left it in the same position for the majority of the season.
The basil seemed to do the best of all the plants attempted in this system. Unfortunately the pepper plants take too long to fruit and mature and all eventually suffered ‘root rot’ prior to maturity. I’m sure that this is due to the fact that the hydroponic nutrients were allowed to get too warm during the summer heat. The nutrient tanks white top probably helped keep the temperature down, but I recorded fluid temperatures of over 80+°F. Other plants that did surprisingly well included Watermelon, Butternut Squash, and peas.
The 2 major improvements that need to be addressed in any future iterations:
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The diameter of the nutrient tubes is too small. All three rows had flow rate problems because any mature plants root ball has little trouble filling up the diameter of the tube.
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The nutrient tank needs better thermal management. This setup left the tank out in direct sun and eventually heated up to where the plants became susceptible to root-rot. Burying the tank or simply shading it would go a long way towards keeping the temperature down.