NFT Hydroponic System by The Lettuce People

This is my newest verticle hydroponic system built to grow lettuce for restaurant and farmers market sales. It uses Crop King NFT (nutrient film technique) channels spaced horizontally on an A-frame to provide optimum water, oxygen and nutrients to the roots of each plant. The plants seem to be doing very well with 2 400 watt metal halide grow lights. The current setup can grow 270 perfect heads of lettuce a month.

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NFT Hydroponic System by The Lettuce People

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20 Comments

  • Vijay Anand

    I was wondering why you decided to do the setup this way. instead of putting the two blocks back to back, making it an A frame, and that would also solve the problem of the top rows getting ample light?

  • vape guy 261

    katie good job i love growing  plants  i am growing perennials plants  i just started a few days ago and i hope they come up just trying to find out how far do i want my light from the seeds to get them to grow

  • montroserealestate

    So how did the system work?  Most importantly was the one light adequate.  We are growing vertically in multi level towers, but it takes a lot of light fixtures.  Hoping to cut back on light need.  Thanks.

  • darkfire1622

    So this might sound dumb: I've seen a few of these A frame designs out there. Why couldn't you just put all of your troughs on the ground next to each other and still have the same footprint?

  • darkfire1622

    So this might sound dumb: I've seen a few of these A frame designs out there. Why couldn't you just put all of your troughs on the ground next to each other and still have the same footprint?

  • James Walker

    Hi there, How much difference in flow rates are you getting between the top level and the lower? How much did you plan and mitigate for this?
    Nice clear video,
    Thanks

  • Gabriel Tariman

    You can also get a heat gun and warm up the end of the downspout and bend the end in a way where water won't leak. It's pretty easy. It shouldn't take you more than a minute per end. It's similar to pinching the end of a paper towel tube. If you have longer channels instead of 10ft channels, there are downspout connectors available. Instead of sealing the ends, you'll just connect them like legos. 

    If you want it 100% seal, then add a large bead of silicone, but there's no point since it's a NFT system, and you're only going to have low level of water. 

  • Gabriel Tariman

    Love the cropking setup, but for large expansion, don't you think they get pretty expensive? To cap the end of the downspout, I was thinking of using regular foam and sealed with silicone. They sell large ones in homedepot. 
    It might not be the best idea if you're going to have it outside in the sun though, but it should last many years indoors. If they break, it would only cost cents to repair. 
    If you're planning on placing them outdoors, you can try making your own white acrylic sheets and cutting them with a jig saw or dremel. Might be more expensive, but very durable and waaaay cheaper than cropking. 

  • MalawisLilleKanal

    Nice setup, but I'm thinking you would be better of using LED's even though you have to pay more.

    Less heat to worry about and you'll spend a lot less in the long run with the reduced power consumption.

  • BROTHER RAY

    Blessings. I'm a Christian Farmer Pastor and we trying to grow fresh food for the poor people in our area to add to our regular can food, Food Pantry. Can you please let me know where I can get the Channels, and the rest of the equipment we will need to start,than we try to get donations so we can get all this.  I believe is beautiful what you doing great plan, go for it, I know you will do it at commercial level  pretty soon. Keep The Good Work. God Bless You! My E Mail is B r o t h r a y i n J e s u s [ a t ] p r i e s t [ d o t ] c o m . I will be waiting for your answer please!

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