Small NFT Hydroponics System

Step 4 Plumbing

You'll need to drill a hole with a spade bit suitable for your tubing in each of the end caps. Drill the holes at the height that you want your water level to be at. I didn't think about it at first, so you'll see in the pictures that they're at the edge, I later had to adjust this, but there's a picture of that, too. Make sure your water level is high enough that the bottom of your cups will be submerged.

My pump came with a removable attachment for the tubing, so I wrapped one side of it with Teflon tape and used plumbing cement to attach it to a piece of tubing long enough to reach from the upper tube to the bottom of the reservoir. I then pushed the tube through an end cap's hole. Push another piece long enough to reach from the lower tube to the reservoir. Then attach two end caps via tubing long enough to fit on both pieces of PVC.

When I tested the system like this, it ran surprisingly well, with a just a few small leaks. Use the plumbing cement to seal around the outside of all the tubes. Plumbing cement isn't the most safe substance (toxicity wise), and even though it's probably OK, by just sealing the outside, it at least makes me feel better about. Luckily this stuff cures in two hours, so you can do another test run pretty quickly.

A lot of people recommend cleaning everything with a heavily diluted bleach solution to help ward off algae. I did this before I had drilled any holes. It was easy to fill the pipes and then shake them with the end caps on.