Crafts & DIY
Master Gardener Shows How To Build Budget-Friendly Hydroponics System At Home From Tote
Now I can finally put all my old totes to good use. There's nothing more freeing than growing your own food.
Kate Miano
08.18.21

It feels good to grow your own plants at home. But what are you to do if you don’t have access to a lot of land or soil? Fortunately, there is a way to grow plants no matter where you are, and you can use materials you probably already have.

Hydroponics are a helpful way to grow plants without soil.

Hydroponics is the act of planting and growing a plant in water. This comes in handy if you live in a place without soil, such as a city. It’s also great for growing plants year round without having to worry about how soil changes in the winter.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

Sometimes hydroponic systems yield a bigger crop, and they typically use less resources than planting. You can grow plants and veggies anywhere at your convenience!

You’re gonna need a sturdy tote.

Preferably a plastic storage one, to make it extra sturdy and water resistant. Additionally, you should get a PVC Cutter, and net cups to hold the plants. After that, have 10 feet of pipe to hold the tote frame, PVC frame and elbows, and a tape measure.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

Once you have these supplies, measure the tote you have by length and width.

Then, you can start cutting and fitting the PVCs to fit into the tote.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

You’ll need to measure everything so that you can fit the PVC Pipe to the Tee.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

When you start fitting everything together, you can use PVC glue to make sure they all hold together. You want a tight fit inside the tote. Each tote will have slightly different measurements, so you should make sure you measure carefully.

Then, you start installing water sprayers inside the tote.

Hydroponic systems rely on water. So you’ll want to make sure you have plenty of water sprayers, both 180-degree ones and 360-degree ones. You’ll install them by drilling holes into the PVC pipe and then fitting the sprayers in there.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

Then, you’ll connect the water pump to the PVC pipes that have the sprayers in them.

The pump will sit at the bottom of the tote and pump water up to the system. The next step is to create a drain by fitting a grommet into the tote and attaching the drainpipe to that.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

After that, it’s time to set things up for the plants.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

Cut holes into the top of the tote. They’ll need to be big enough to fit the net cups, but not so big that the cups risk falling through. Some totes already come with a cupholder, so you can use that as a sort of stencil for cutting your own holes.

Add 10 gallons of water.

In this step, you’re trying to make sure that your hydroponic tote is watertight. Adding this much water will ensure that there is enough pressure built up so that the pump can bring water to the sprayers.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

Connect the pump to the sprayers and plug the pump into the electric outlet. Pretty immediately, you should see the water begin to spray out of the top of the hydroponic system. Also in this test, you can see that nothing leaks out of the tote.

The last step is to put the lid on and start planting.

The roots of your plants should be attached to Rockwall or some other kind of hydroponic planting material.

This nutrient solution will help the plants stay healthy without soil. Then, you put the plant in the net cups and secure them with neoprene.

YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot
Source:
YouTube Screenshot - Family Plot

Once that step is done, your hydroponic plant system is good to go. Your plants will have a lot of nutrients and can grow no matter where you are.

Watch the full video below to see the step-by-step tutorial and happy planting!

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