My Indoor DWC Hydroponics System

Step 7 The Integrated System With Room For Many Improvements

And there you have it, when you put everything together you end up with a freakin' awesome DWC hydroponics system.

However, I barely have it finished and I can already think of a few improvements to be made:

>Integrating the air pump's power cord into the electrical system so that it can be controlled via an on/off switch. (DONE)
>Painting the lid of the reservoir white so that it reflects light back up to the plant rather than absorbing it.
>Running all of the wires through the CPVC pipe for an even neater look.
>Adding a water pump to circulate the nutrient solution through a UV sterilizer to keep out unwanted organisms.
>Sewing together a fabric cover to slip over the frame and help keep out ambient light while trapping in growing light. (In Progress)
> Addition of a third growing light. (DONE)
> Adding solar cells, a battery bank and a power inverter to make it run on free electricity. (In Progress)
> And of course, expansion, expansion, expansion!

I will soon add some more steps on mixing the nutrient solution, testing and adjusting the pH, setting the light timer and eating fresh picked vegetables whilist up to my ears in snow!

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed this instructable and I welcome any constructive feedback. Happy growing!

Comments

[nafango22]

banana pepper seeds. mmmhmmm, im sure.

[LancePenney]

lol when they start growing I'll update with pictures and you can see for yourself!

[grampa tom]

Im having trouble getting setup for your PRO membership.. I wounder if you can accept checks on line. would appricate hearing from you.. You have a nice site . keep up the good work. espically like your hydroponic s im trying to learn how to grow indoors. Thank You

                                                                       Grampa Tom

[calikoala]

why would you care about the ambient light in the step where you mention a fabric cover? I would think that since you are in a very small place, having lights on all the time would be annoying and a darkening cover to reduce the amount of light being emitted from the frame to the surrounding area would be more appropriate.

[LancePenney]

A fabric cover would do the trick of both keeping ambient light out and keeping growing light in. In certain stages of the plants growth, it's just as important to have darkness as it is to have light. In most cases, many stages of the plant's development are triggered by the amount of time it is exposed to light. For example, when I want the plants to start flowering (the flower eventually becomes the fruit) I will need about 12 hours of dark and 12 hours of light in one cycle. If somebody enters the room and has the lights on even for an hour or so when it's supposed to be dark, it can throw off the whole flowering stage. Also, the inside of the cover can be covered with a shiny material to reflect growing light back to the plant and maximize the efficiency of the light. Ambient light from a normal bulb in the room wont do the trick because it does not contain much of the specific wavelengths of light that the plant uses the most (reds and blues). The grow bulbs however, give off light that is rich in these wavelengths.

[dp69_2001]

I was just going to say that you could put foil on the inside of the cover but you kinda beat me too it. You could paint the lid of the tote metallic also. That would be enough to make your banana peppers grow like crazy!