How hot is the light (what’s the Kelvin temperature?)

Nice.

If you are brand new I’d recommend buying a hydroponic solutions kit, Ph tester, PPM tester and only buying water that’s been through a membrane (they sell it at organic stores for 10 cents to 50 cents) so that you can avoid mixing your own solution and not having a low/high Ph or low/high PPM [...]

I had the same issue with dying plants and it was the Ph (had nothing to do with the temp). Switched out the water and added the new nutrient solution and the plants came back after a pruning.

Simple as that. Just make sure and have your reservoir above (this causes downward pressure and allows the bubbles of water up the tube)

I’m assuming that you are following the DIY windowfarm directions on the web with a max of 5 (although you could split it and have multiple columns).

I used the t-lift method with a simple aquarium pump and it works great

http://our.windowfarms.org/2011/10/17/my-setup-10-ft-ceilings-w-pvc-pipe-bucket-and-concrete/

You can also use fishing line and tie some torn cloth on the end and run it through…

Which method are you using? T-valve or the needles?

You may also want to think about making your reservoirs larger. Smaller the reservoir, the faster you have to swap out/add nutrients/water.

You could also try the extension cord, soda can reflector, screw on lamp base, 5500 kelvin CFL bulb light setup I did here: http://our.windowfarms.org/2011/11/30/cfl-light-reflector-tweaked-design/

That way you’d be able to position your lights as you need them. You could even use coat hangers as mounts on your PVC pipe for the lamp bases.

Awesome setup.

Don’t forget to paint your bottom reservoir to inhibit algae growth!

Greg

Looks great! Thanks for sharing!

the tetra pump makes hardly any noise. That being said I have it on for three minutes every three hours.

Great base!

Thanks Dave!

A suggestion that I have on cutting these is using a pair of scissors to cut the side of the can and a can open to cut the top off where the spout is. Doing it this way ensures the sides aren’t that sharp (maybe the scissors dulls the side of the can making it [...]

You could always cover the bottom bucket with concrete with a nice wooden box. You can also paint the PVC pipe/bucket to match the wall/plants/whatever.

You could also do this http://www.ikeahackers.net/2008/02/stolmen-bike-rack.html and instead of the bike racks have your bottles.

@dhult Dave, Can you tell me what make/model bulb you are using? Also how did you attach the homemade reflector onto the bulb (did you just follow the directions on the link or improvise?) I’m having some issues with heat coming off the can which I’m afraid will melt the plastic on the base of my [...]

Great farm! Thanks for posting.

It looks like your reservoir is open (but I’m having trouble as the pictures aren’t clear). Is that the case? Have you had any algae/evaporation issues?