We are looking for a PVC alternative that won't break the bank. Anybody have any thoughts on PVC toxicity and viable alternatives? PVC is cheap and easy for hydro, but is using metal any better? Copper won't work, steel is probably too heavy. Not sure if I want my veggies growing in Aluminum.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

DnA

pvc isn't going to release anything into your water. it's not soluble.

What type of glue do you use for glueing PVC together. Regular PRV Glue would leave a bad odor, I think? Any help is appreciated. thanks, kevin

Kevin-
They make a special PVC glue -- and you can purchase a small container of it inexpensivly at the same place that you buy the PVC pipe -- probably in the same isle. It does smell and emits nasty fumes when applied, so you want to do this outside or with the windows open but once it cures, it's safe and oderless (meets codes for drinking water in the US if you use it with purple primer).

You should also wear latex gloves when applying it, as it's hard to get off your skin.
-J

What material do i use to secure the roots of my plants into the pvc bottle halves in my DIY hydro garden?

My question is: given that it's such a compact system, why not position the water reservoir in such a way that you wouldn't need the pump at all? It's hard to describe without diagrams, but basically, if you have a water tank of some sort (like an old Igloo 5-gallon water jug) that is taller than it is wide, then attach the pipes to come out of the base of the tank, then you could match the height of the water in the tank to the height of the water in the growing bottles by just filling up the tank to the appropriate level. No pump, electricity, etc. would be needed => cheaper, lower tech, no motors to be replaced, more eco-friendly all around.

Jon: The water pumped up to level for a period of time then drained off to give the roots oxygen. This is done every 5-15 minutes if I remember right. There is no practical way to do this without a pump.

I need to know what media to use in the bottles that hold the plants.
Charles form Ga.

Charels you should use expanded clay (reuseable) or you can use a 50/50 perlite/vermiculite mix (very cheap)

use hydroton and germinate the seed in 1"x1" rockwool cubes. I used a milk crate turned on it's side (with the opening facing you vertical and long ways on the floor) to support the piping and bottle then i used flexible hoses and various fittings to attach to the PVC so that the reservoir would be removeable without disturbing the plant. just find a suitable reservoir that fits inside the milk crate. and no matter how hard i tried i wasn't able to keep the roots from growing inside the PVC just use larger diameter PVC.

I seem to remember a way to grow bean sprouts hydroponically in a mason jar. Any help? Know where to go to find out?

It doesn't say anything about the pump coming on and off every 15 minutes. how would you control something like that? a standard house timer won't do it.

you dont use a standard house timer,
home depot or lowes will have a multi setting timer
(like for ramdon on/ff of house lights when you go out of town) should have upto 14 times a day

Hey man my only concern with this type of PVC system, is that the roots on certain types of plants grow really big, where would they go to? Is there enough room?
Or maybe this system would be only suitable for those interested in growing short plants...

If you want to control your roots from going into the PVC, I recommend using landscape fabric, or something similar that is water-permeable, but will not let roots grow through. If you want deeper pots and such you can probably use some of the PVC bulkhead connectors and use any ol' pot. I was actually thinking of doing a 16 pot version (4x4) and using plant troughs the length of the runs and put 4 bulkhead fittings in each one. Then use different light strengths above them to grow similar shade/light loving plants in each trough. There are also various PVC fittings out there to make pretty much any size container...in case you want carrots ;).

I want to start an outdoor hydroponic setup. My question is, how do you control the amount of h20 in the nutrient when it rains? I live in Florida and Im thinking this would drastically effect the nutient concentration in a waterfarm-type setup.

I've created one of these and it is amazing! Big crops last year, still working on doing more this year. The best part is that you can easily expand the system to include more bottles for ~$3 for 4 addn'l bottles. If you've got questions or would like to see pictures, please email me. My main peice of advice is that many people will say to use perlite or expanded glass... I strongly discourage this as perlite floats. If you have water coming up from the bottom, like this describes, your plants will float and not get water to the roots. Suggest using fired clay pebbles, as they hold water while still sink in the water. Any questions, email me at dslunsford ... this is at Liberty, dot edu.

Watch out, the roots will grow down the tube and 2L's and clog your pipes.

If you want to help reduce the need for pipes you
might try capillizing- this means that you can plant
them in gravel and use its properties to bring water
to the roots no pump required.
If yo let the roots grow to the bottom you will only
need to water daily give sunlight and air-out for 30
minutes.
note: after airing-out add more water

These pop bottle systems are great, the only drawback is that they have a tendency to clog the necks of the bottles because of dense roots!

This can be corrected by the use of square pots, with male and female threaded pvc fasteners on the Tee joint and inside the pot. The male fastener sits glued and sealed in inside the pot, resting on the lip of the fitting. In the pot you can glue a small screen over the hole to heep the media from clogging it. Since the sqaure pot has a level base there is no chance for roots to bottle neck. Works great. Put a littile plumbers tape over the threadings, Good to Go.

I built one of these a few years ago and it worked great!! the things i learned are that the tomatoes got root bound a bit from the container size, so make the containers big, and that the plants dont take up nutrients if the water is under a certain temp, so adding a small fish aquarium heater is a good thing...after bring the water temp up the plants took off!!! it was a lot of fun.

How do I glue in the caps without leaking? A Soda bottle cap fits perfectly into a 1" thread, I just need a safe, strong adhesive. Any ideas? I've tried hot glue and silicone, both were too weak.

Go to home depot and buy a can of pvc glue and primer. use the primer inside the pipe. then add the glue around the cap insert. it dries in 5 min. you will need to add some silicon around the edge of the cap for extra leak proofing.

If your resevoir is above the planting cups gravity will automate the pumping and all you'll have to keep an eye on is refilliing the resevoir when the water's evaporated too low and nutrient constitution/reconstitution. also hooking up a fish tank air stone and air pump will oxygenate the water better which your roots will greatly appreciate.

as long as one uses the white pvc there shouldn't be any problem to toxicity.. As for the black its usually used for sewage etc in bathrooms here in the states, not made of the same material. I learned the hard way the black isn't to be used for aquariums, only the white, therefore I come to conclusion the white should be safe ... on the basis if its safe for my fish then its safe for me. might also watch it with the pvc glue also, don't use the mildew resistance stuff.. i used the none mildew stuff when building my aquarium, the mildew based stuff is for bathrooms also.
just my 1%

as long as one uses the white pvc there shouldn't be any problem to toxicity.. As for the black its usually used for sewage etc in bathrooms here in the states, not made of the same material. I learned the hard way the black isn't to be used for aquariums, only the white, therefore I come to conclusion the white should be safe ... on the basis if its safe for my fish then its safe for me. might also watch it with the pvc glue also, don't use the mildew resistance stuff.. i used the none mildew stuff when building my aquarium, the mildew based stuff is for bathrooms also.
just my 1%

sorry for the double post, and I also have to apologize for my feedback, I have taken more time to do more research on pvc piping.. and I was in the wrong to say that is was an okay substance to use. My change of mind came from reading the ATSDR TOxFaqs found here http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts9.html .. which clearly states .. Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is found in many plastics. Exposure to DEHP is generally very low. Increased exposures may come from intravenous fluids delivered through plastic tubing, and from ingesting contaminated foods or water. DEHP is not toxic at the low levels usually present in the environment. In animals, high levels of DEHP damaged the liver and kidney and affected the ability to reproduce. DEHP has been found in at least 733 of the 1,613 National Priorities List sites identified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

There is alot more information on the site worth checking out.

When checking the EWG Investigation on tap water I came across this ..

In laboratory animals, fetal exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) causes significant developmental toxicity, especially of the male reproductive tract. In adult animals, DEHP causes toxicity to the reproductive organs, adrenal, liver, and kidney (Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction (CERHR) 2000).

In humans, exposures to DEHP in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic used in medical applications are of concern, especially for infants and toddlers. Exposures in these infants "can approach toxic doses in rodents, which causes the Panel serious concern that exposure may adversely affect male reproductive tract development" (Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction (CERHR) 2000).

if you cycle the system with activated carbon in a few pots for a week it will absorb most chemicals leached from the glues and plastics.

activated carbon can be bought at most aquarium stores.
some plant nursery's also stock carbon.

just be sure to remove it when adding ferts as it will absorb them as well

I thought this hydro-garden was for sale but I couldn't find it at the store. I just don't have the time to build it (and probably couldn't not very good at building stuff). Im looking to buy the one in this article. Please help!

I read through many of these comments, as well as examining the blueprints for the 11-plant hydroponic garden, and feel confident that I can duplicate the growing garden. My concern is that alot of comments were posted about the roots clogging up the pipes. Would using a larger diameter of pvc + 3 liter bottles vs. 2 liter bottles solve this problem? Or just three liter bottles with a larger tee joint?
Thank you for your time!