i simply adore you..for being not so girlie with this gardening stuff.. i remember conducting one workshop with a bunch of ladies from the Philippines and i told them enough of your girlieness.. you see many filipinas won't dare use a hammer or anything like that.. so i told them to start learning stuff ... i hope they will do it...
Thank you!!! I am so happy to read these words! For some strange reason I actually enjoyed sawing the boards by hand.. Plus it makes me sound like a super hero. lol.
I definitely feel you with wanting the farmer tax break. I started out taking samples to restaurants and local farmers markets. I also got into touch with a local community supported agriculture group and they were very responsive. Its also a good idea to get into contact with other local farmers who may have accounts and not be able to produce enough. I would recommend Crop King. Im very happy with their product and support.
I JUST STARTED AN AQUAPONICS SYSTEM ABOUT 2 MONTHS BACK IN A 10X10 GREEN HOUSE I THROUGH UP IT SEEMS TO BE WORKING WELL WITH ALL VARIETYS OF PLANTS WITH THE EXCEPTION OF SPINACH WHICH WENT STRAIGHT TO SEED. I BELIEVE IT WILL WORK WELL WITH YOUR SYSYTEM. I STARTED WITH 22 TILAPIA. I WILL START TO POSTING VIDEO ON IT SOON.I AM ONLY REPLYING BECAUSE YOUR SYSTEM LOOKS GREAT.
looks like a great setup. Oh cool just put the 1 inch rockwool cube in the holes, Right now my system is using pvc pipe and 2 inch cups. I think I want to switch over to only using the cubes.
You can also get a heat gun and warm up the end of the downspout and bend the end in a way where water won't leak. It's pretty easy. It shouldn't take you more than a minute per end. It's similar to pinching the end of a paper towel tube. If you have longer channels instead of 10ft channels, there are downspout connectors available. Instead of sealing the ends, you'll just connect them like legos. If you want it 100% seal, then add a large bead of silicone, but there's no point since it's a NFT system, and you're only going to have low level of water.
I had to go back and watch this video to see your initial set up. Well done, but this is a more expensive option. It looks like it works real well after watching your lighting test videos!
Super video and very informative.....Love what you are doing and Jamesokbo sounds like he is doing some great things too....I use to teach so I am glad to see the interaction between subscribers.....BRAVO and good luck to you and your viewers... Thanks Ken from Orlando, Fl
I really like the ease of just dropping in the one inch cubes. My first system used down spouting so I am very familiar with the pains of cleaning net pots. i also used to have to cut the bottoms out of the net pots so that my cubes were getting wet. My only complaint thus far with the 1 inch rock wool, is when I am growing basil. Once the plants start to mature they get to heavy and can fall over. I think this time around I may have to ad some type of support wire. Thanks for watching!
so the reason is because as water travels down the channels the plants suck nutrients out of the water. As this happens the levels of nutrients, pH and oxygen in the water changes. So 10 feet is the recommended length of channel. It sure would make this process easier to just let it flow from one channel to the next.
So how did the system work? Most importantly was the one light adequate. We are growing vertically in multi level towers, but it takes a lot of light fixtures. Hoping to cut back on light need. Thanks.
I work with light for a living. On can never "make" more light, to go bare bulb, just put milar reflective above it or in any direction where there is nothing growing. What a reflector can do is concentrate the light, which WOULD go good if you weren't growing on both sides.
So this might sound dumb: I've seen a few of these A frame designs out there. Why couldn't you just put all of your troughs on the ground next to each other and still have the same footprint?
The price of their Channels is actually pretty competitive. I would say it's slightly more than using normal PVC pipe, and i mean slightly. I would say the added cost is worth the time saved.
Love the cropking setup, but for large expansion, don't you think they get pretty expensive? To cap the end of the downspout, I was thinking of using regular foam and sealed with silicone. They sell large ones in homedepot. It might not be the best idea if you're going to have it outside in the sun though, but it should last many years indoors. If they break, it would only cost cents to repair. If you're planning on placing them outdoors, you can try making your own white acrylic sheets and cutting them with a jig saw or dremel. Might be more expensive, but very durable and waaaay cheaper than cropking.
Hi there, How much difference in flow rates are you getting between the top level and the lower? How much did you plan and mitigate for this? Nice clear video, Thanks
As the water flows through the channels pH, temperature, and nutrient levels change. I've done a fair amount of research and it seems to be consistent around 10-12 feet. It sure would make things much easier to just have one inlet and one outlet. These particular channels are from a company in the US called Crop King. Farmtek, I have heard makes a similar channel without the groove running down the center. Thank you for watching!
so far my reservoir temp is staying close to 60*F I think it helps that I have the mylar reflecting heat away from the tank. In the summer time I plan to put ice packs in reservoir once a day to keep it down. Thankfully my pH and TDS have been really easy to maintain .
Regarding drainage, have you considered placing porus material at the bottom to facilitate better drainage? I wonder if foam would work? This would likely act as a filter as well to get less dirt in the water, or does this system not use dirt?
How do you maintain the nutrient concentration in the reservoir? As in is there a strict schedule you follow? And is it done manually or you have some automatic system in place? Thanks.. btw, love the hinges idea.
About the water pump... You are currently feeding 9 channels with one submergible pump, what flowrate are you getting per channel? I'd also like to know about your pump specifications (gals/hr, watts, power). Thank you very much! Wonderful video and system by the way!
How often do would you have to replenish the nutrients or feed and what would be the costs of this feed per year?,I am considering such a system with perhaps bell peppers.You could possibly look at solar panels to provide your electrical supply for the pump and lights if you have decided to do this long term there are some good deals on eBay currently ( maybe craigslist too). Thanks for sharing your work.
Thank you for watching. I just started an aquaponics system in an ebb and flow system but would love to see the results in the nft system. Keep me updated. Did you buy your fish online? I wanted to do tilapia but found them to be too expensive.
electricity is expensive could you do it both natural sunlight and artificial light? The plants are exposed to light 24/7? will that be of any benefit?
I had just drew up a 3" sewer pipe design that looks Just like this Of course nowhere near as nice and high speed :-) , but wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Your video taught me that it is. The design looks like it works great. I have one question. Is it hard to remove the plant when it is at the end of its life cycle? The wholes seem very small so I wasnt sure how easily the root mass comes out of the flatter tubes and smaller wholes. Please let me know as I will use smaller wholes :-) TY
I enjoyed your explanation of this design. I am flirting with the idea of starting an nft system. I am looking to test ebb and flow against it head to head, and he vertical racking clearly gives nft the edge in numbers vs the available grow area of my current tables. Any input on comparing the two approaches?
I've actually seen people run more volume of water and be fine with the zig zag, just can't trickle it down. I've also seen people put 1/4 tubing on the start of the decline on each part of the zig zag to help deal with that.
katie good job i love growing plants i am growing perennials plants i just started a few days ago and i hope they come up just trying to find out how far do i want my light from the seeds to get them to grow
Thank you for sharing. How did you get started in this venture? Did you first go to restaurants and see what the demand was or did you start out with a smaller set-up and start at the local farmer's market? I am looking to supplement my income with selling produce and obtain the farming tax break to make it more bearable to live here in NJ. Would you recommend CropKing? Are they responsive and helpful? Thank you for the time to read my comments and I look forward to future updates.
When I first get it up and running after a thorough cleaning the water flows really nicely. By the end of the grow cycle it slows down and gets clogged up at times. I lost more than a few plants that way.
Its a 60 GPH pump but its not strong enough. It could use more water. I haven't experimented with different pumps yet because its working good enough but not as well as it could be. Let me know if your trying it and what you learn.
I'm currently thinking of installing a 300 GPH pump for 36 channels... That would provide 9 GPH per channel, which could be too much... You are currently getting 6.6GPH per channel if my calculations are correct. According to my research that's about optimal. I'll try mine, meassure it and tell you about my results! Thanks for the quick reply by the way!
Thank you for watching! I value the comments so much myself because I have received some great input and ideas. We can all benefit from open sourcing information.
Cool. Thanks. I just got mine up and running yesterday. I used PVC cement. So far no leaks. How do you like it now that you've had it for a while? Mine is outdoors.
I'm so excited that you are trying this. If you get a chance check out "TwoBrosHydro" on TH-cam. they made an A frame in a greenhouse using PVC. I personally love the smaller wholes because I can just drop a rockwool cube in the whole and that's it. No messing with net cups and cleaning them out. It does damage the roots a little bit when you pull them out but its not enough to hurt the plant.
I was wondering why you decided to do the setup this way. instead of putting the two blocks back to back, making it an A frame, and that would also solve the problem of the top rows getting ample light?
+Vijay Anand She would need two banks of lights to achieve the same exposure. 1 x row lights in the middle, 2 banks of veges on either side vs 2 banks of lights on either side and one "A-frame" in the middle. 1/2 the lights, 1/2 the operating cost. If the single bank of lights was right at the top of the A-frame, none of the lower rows would get light.
you only have a 400 watt ballast!? and you plan on using ac 1000, well do you have fire coverage in your homeowners insurance? you can not use a 400 watt ballast with a 1000 wATT bulb. The bulb consumes way more power than a 400 watt and you will blow you bulb and may cause a fire. i could have sworn you said a 400 watt ballast with 2 1000 watt bulbs all from craigslist or wherever. i could be mistaken but just giving you a piece of advice if you dont want a fire you need a 1,000 watt ballast. and i would go with a digital one as well.
Great engineering. Have you tried mirrors for sunlight? Perhaps motorized to optimize sun tracking... what I like most is your cute voice... typical guy thing... :>)
you should eliminate the hoods and go vert, thats the light style that goes with your grow style. youtube some vertical stadium or vertical coliseum grows, you will be gaining so many lumens. grow pot, its more lucrative lol
It seems that running that much wattage on your lighting system will make for a very costly hydroponic growing. What was your energy cost for the first 30 days, I wonder?
Want to try hydroponics? Get our free guide to growing lettuce (or other plants) in a bottle! ►ldggardens.com/grow-lettuce-in-a-bottle
i simply adore you..for being not so girlie with this gardening stuff.. i remember conducting one workshop with a bunch of ladies from the Philippines and i told them enough of your girlieness.. you see many filipinas won't dare use a hammer or anything like that.. so i told them to start learning stuff ... i hope they will do it...
Thank you!!! I am so happy to read these words! For some strange reason I actually enjoyed sawing the boards by hand.. Plus it makes me sound like a super hero. lol.
Very funny you mentioned Crop King in your video, I live in Lodi and didn't even know they sold anything. I'll be checking them out, thanks.
Brilliantly constructed id say
You did a really nice job of explaining your set up. Looks good too, Congrats.
Cool setup, I'm planning to do something like this with corrugated pipe and aquaponics. I like the rack design, it looks simple and efficient.
Hello in 2021, u r such a pioneer in hydroponic
I definitely feel you with wanting the farmer tax break. I started out taking samples to restaurants and local farmers markets. I also got into touch with a local community supported agriculture group and they were very responsive. Its also a good idea to get into contact with other local farmers who may have accounts and not be able to produce enough.
I would recommend Crop King. Im very happy with their product and support.
I JUST STARTED AN AQUAPONICS SYSTEM ABOUT 2 MONTHS BACK IN A 10X10 GREEN HOUSE I THROUGH UP IT SEEMS TO BE WORKING WELL WITH ALL VARIETYS OF PLANTS WITH THE EXCEPTION OF SPINACH WHICH WENT STRAIGHT TO SEED. I BELIEVE IT WILL WORK WELL WITH YOUR SYSYTEM. I STARTED WITH 22 TILAPIA. I WILL START TO POSTING VIDEO ON IT SOON.I AM ONLY REPLYING BECAUSE YOUR SYSTEM LOOKS GREAT.
Interesting...thanks for taking the time to share your project with us.
amazing..you explained it well, and it is inspiring that you have done everything by hand as you said...wow! you are a farmer!
looks like a great setup. Oh cool just put the 1 inch rockwool cube in the holes, Right now my system is using pvc pipe and 2 inch cups. I think I want to switch over to only using the cubes.
Awesome Setup ! Nice and detailed explanation, would be doing a similar setup soon for lettuce .
You can also get a heat gun and warm up the end of the downspout and bend the end in a way where water won't leak. It's pretty easy. It shouldn't take you more than a minute per end. It's similar to pinching the end of a paper towel tube. If you have longer channels instead of 10ft channels, there are downspout connectors available. Instead of sealing the ends, you'll just connect them like legos.
If you want it 100% seal, then add a large bead of silicone, but there's no point since it's a NFT system, and you're only going to have low level of water.
I had to go back and watch this video to see your initial set up. Well done, but this is a more expensive option. It looks like it works real well after watching your lighting test videos!
Super video and very informative.....Love what you are doing and Jamesokbo sounds like he is doing some great things too....I use to teach so I am glad to see the interaction between subscribers.....BRAVO and good luck to you and your viewers...
Thanks
Ken from Orlando, Fl
I really like the ease of just dropping in the one inch cubes. My first system used down spouting so I am very familiar with the pains of cleaning net pots. i also used to have to cut the bottoms out of the net pots so that my cubes were getting wet. My only complaint thus far with the 1 inch rock wool, is when I am growing basil. Once the plants start to mature they get to heavy and can fall over. I think this time around I may have to ad some type of support wire. Thanks for watching!
Very nice your HYDROPONIC system
Looks like a sweet system! would love to see it planted!
Awesome stuff. What's the spacing in between each channel?
nice setup! im still in the research stage before i start my experimenting!
so the reason is because as water travels down the channels the plants suck nutrients out of the water. As this happens the levels of nutrients, pH and oxygen in the water changes. So 10 feet is the recommended length of channel. It sure would make this process easier to just let it flow from one channel to the next.
So how did the system work? Most importantly was the one light adequate. We are growing vertically in multi level towers, but it takes a lot of light fixtures. Hoping to cut back on light need. Thanks.
Thankyou! The 8 inch spacing is permanent, however the holes are in the lids and can be removed and possibly augmented.
I work with light for a living. On can never "make" more light, to go bare bulb, just put milar reflective above it or in any direction where there is nothing growing.
What a reflector can do is concentrate the light, which WOULD go good if you weren't growing on both sides.
I have to say... Dri
ill your wood before you use screws. it will stop all those splits and will last much longer. great setup.
So this might sound dumb: I've seen a few of these A frame designs out there. Why couldn't you just put all of your troughs on the ground next to each other and still have the same footprint?
great job! nice innovation! keep exploring and sharing please!
The price of their Channels is actually pretty competitive. I would say it's slightly more than using normal PVC pipe, and i mean slightly. I would say the added cost is worth the time saved.
I also laughed about the 'other growers' having to sell their expensive lighting for much less... lighting does not discriminate as you said, ha ha.
Love the cropking setup, but for large expansion, don't you think they get pretty expensive? To cap the end of the downspout, I was thinking of using regular foam and sealed with silicone. They sell large ones in homedepot.
It might not be the best idea if you're going to have it outside in the sun though, but it should last many years indoors. If they break, it would only cost cents to repair.
If you're planning on placing them outdoors, you can try making your own white acrylic sheets and cutting them with a jig saw or dremel. Might be more expensive, but very durable and waaaay cheaper than cropking.
i hoping to see what pump youre using.
Hi there, How much difference in flow rates are you getting between the top level and the lower? How much did you plan and mitigate for this?
Nice clear video,
Thanks
great ideas.
I think I hear strawberries. that is what I am cultivating. TY
Is it best for indoor or outdoor?
As the water flows through the channels pH, temperature, and nutrient levels change. I've done a fair amount of research and it seems to be consistent around 10-12 feet. It sure would make things much easier to just have one inlet and one outlet. These particular channels are from a company in the US called Crop King. Farmtek, I have heard makes a similar channel without the groove running down the center.
Thank you for watching!
I always end up with leaky connections at the half inch to quarter inch connection
so far my reservoir temp is staying close to 60*F I think it helps that I have the mylar reflecting heat away from the tank. In the summer time I plan to put ice packs in reservoir once a day to keep it down. Thankfully my pH and TDS have been really easy to maintain .
Regarding drainage, have you considered placing porus material at the bottom to facilitate better drainage? I wonder if foam would work? This would likely act as a filter as well to get less dirt in the water, or does this system not use dirt?
Thanks for your video!
How do you maintain the nutrient concentration in the reservoir? As in is there a strict schedule you follow? And is it done manually or you have some automatic system in place? Thanks.. btw, love the hinges idea.
Does the water have to flow all day and night ( 24/7 )?
About the water pump... You are currently feeding 9 channels with one submergible pump, what flowrate are you getting per channel? I'd also like to know about your pump specifications (gals/hr, watts, power).
Thank you very much!
Wonderful video and system by the way!
How often do would you have to replenish the nutrients or feed and what would be the costs of this feed per year?,I am considering such a system with perhaps bell peppers.You could possibly look at solar panels to provide your electrical supply for the pump and lights if you have decided to do this long term there are some good deals on eBay currently ( maybe craigslist too). Thanks for sharing your work.
so if you don't mind me asking, how much money have you made off this setup so far?
I have a really dumb question i need answer. For the feeding tube how do you close the top part? You put a cap on the poly tube?
What are the white pipes that the plants are grown in? I cannot find them at crop king website
Isnt it expensive on electricity?
New sub I liked your video! Can't wait to see the update. Thanks for sharing :)
Thank you for watching. I just started an aquaponics system in an ebb and flow system but would love to see the results in the nft system. Keep me updated. Did you buy your fish online? I wanted to do tilapia but found them to be too expensive.
Good luck. Is the spacing of 8 inches hard coded?
Where did you get the metal frames?
What pvc channel is it and where can i buy?
electricity is expensive could you do it both natural sunlight and artificial light? The
plants are exposed to light 24/7? will that be of any benefit?
that's cool. That was 2012 ... what do things look like now? Did you stick with it, stay the say, shrink or expand?
With that angle do you have trouble reaching some of the plants?
I had just drew up a 3" sewer pipe design that looks Just like this Of course nowhere near as nice and high speed :-) , but wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Your video taught me that it is. The design looks like it works great. I have one question. Is it hard to remove the plant when it is at the end of its life cycle? The wholes seem very small so I wasnt sure how easily the root mass comes out of the flatter tubes and smaller wholes. Please let me know as I will use smaller wholes :-) TY
I enjoyed your explanation of this design. I am flirting with the idea of starting an nft system. I am looking to test ebb and flow against it head to head, and he vertical racking clearly gives nft the edge in numbers vs the available grow area of my current tables. Any input on comparing the two approaches?
I've actually seen people run more volume of water and be fine with the zig zag, just can't trickle it down. I've also seen people put 1/4 tubing on the start of the decline on each part of the zig zag to help deal with that.
katie good job i love growing plants i am growing perennials plants i just started a few days ago and i hope they come up just trying to find out how far do i want my light from the seeds to get them to grow
Thank you for sharing. How did you get started in this venture? Did you first go to restaurants and see what the demand was or did you start out with a smaller set-up and start at the local farmer's market? I am looking to supplement my income with selling produce and obtain the farming tax break to make it more bearable to live here in NJ. Would you recommend CropKing? Are they responsive and helpful? Thank you for the time to read my comments and I look forward to future updates.
I would love to see your system and hear how it works with aquaponics. Im worried about clogged lines. Thanks for watching!
When I first get it up and running after a thorough cleaning the water flows really nicely. By the end of the grow cycle it slows down and gets clogged up at times. I lost more than a few plants that way.
I would also recommend that you design your own system because there pre-built ones are quite pricey.
Its a 60 GPH pump but its not strong enough. It could use more water. I haven't experimented with different pumps yet because its working good enough but not as well as it could be.
Let me know if your trying it and what you learn.
Can I ask where you got the rectangular pipe system?
Crop King
nice set up, where can I get the plug to connect 1/2" feeding line to 1/4" + end caps for the 1/2". Thx
How big a water pump do you use on this or what size pump do you recommend? What is the tank size too?
Impressive....
hey nice setup. Question, what is the GPH of the pump?
I'm runing 2 400 watt bulbs with 400 watt ballast and a 1000 watt with a 1000 watt ballast
Thank you. Good luck on the research there is so much to learn. Let me know if I can help.
Hi Katie,
Can you please please provide an update? We'd love to see another video!
Thanks,
Manny
I did actually drop the hoods with great success. Check out the updated videos on my channel. Thank you for watching.
I was looking at my lights today and a couple of them have the socket part screwed directly into the hood. Do they make brackets to hang them?
I'm currently thinking of installing a 300 GPH pump for 36 channels... That would provide 9 GPH per channel, which could be too much... You are currently getting 6.6GPH per channel if my calculations are correct. According to my research that's about optimal. I'll try mine, meassure it and tell you about my results!
Thanks for the quick reply by the way!
Thank you for watching! I value the comments so much myself because I have received some great input and ideas. We can all benefit from open sourcing information.
I am very interested in doing just that. Im just not sure about the filtration in NFT. Any experience with NFT and Aquaponics?
How long are the channels
Nice setup. How do you keep the CropKing end caps from leaking? Did you glue them to the channel?
silicone from a fish aquarium store :)
Cool. Thanks. I just got mine up and running yesterday. I used PVC cement. So far no leaks. How do you like it now that you've had it for a while? Mine is outdoors.
I'm so excited that you are trying this. If you get a chance check out "TwoBrosHydro" on TH-cam. they made an A frame in a greenhouse using PVC.
I personally love the smaller wholes because I can just drop a rockwool cube in the whole and that's it. No messing with net cups and cleaning them out. It does damage the roots a little bit when you pull them out but its not enough to hurt the plant.
I'm looking for NFT pipes but can not find them, is there any website that sells some like your video?
Where you bought the square pvc
Nice! What is the GPH of the pump?
I was wondering why you decided to do the setup this way. instead of putting the two blocks back to back, making it an A frame, and that would also solve the problem of the top rows getting ample light?
+Vijay Anand She would need two banks of lights to achieve the same exposure. 1 x row lights in the middle, 2 banks of veges on either side vs 2 banks of lights on either side and one "A-frame" in the middle. 1/2 the lights, 1/2 the operating cost.
If the single bank of lights was right at the top of the A-frame, none of the lower rows would get light.
But she already has two lights (seems to be the case in the video) isnt it?
throw the hoods away and hang the bulbs vertically thats what the idea of vertical growing is!
That system is cute in a major way .... but does it work?
However if your using PVC you might not be able to do that because the bottom of the rockwool wont be supported by the bottom of the channel.
My CropKing channels and covers arrive in two days. I was going to build my own system but cost wasn’t much more.
How is your system a year later?
you only have a 400 watt ballast!? and you plan on using ac 1000, well do you have fire coverage in your homeowners insurance? you can not use a 400 watt ballast with a 1000 wATT bulb. The bulb consumes way more power than a 400 watt and you will blow you bulb and may cause a fire. i could have sworn you said a 400 watt ballast with 2 1000 watt bulbs all from craigslist or wherever. i could be mistaken but just giving you a piece of advice if you dont want a fire you need a 1,000 watt ballast. and i would go with a digital one as well.
Thanks for watching Manny. I posted an updated video today.
Great engineering. Have you tried mirrors for sunlight? Perhaps motorized to optimize sun tracking... what I like most is your cute voice... typical guy thing... :>)
Couldn't you pump to the top and let gravity feed through all the channels?
you should eliminate the hoods and go vert, thats the light style that goes with your grow style. youtube some vertical stadium or vertical coliseum grows, you will be gaining so many lumens. grow pot, its more lucrative lol
It seems that running that much wattage on your lighting system will make for a very costly hydroponic growing. What was your energy cost for the first 30 days, I wonder?
Mine was about $70/month on a 16 hour light cycle
theWretchedkage expensive lettuce.........ahem....
what size reservoir is that?
Great video..good for you
Thank you!
that's a great idea. Thanks :)