This post is intended to give a few more details on the hydroponics rigs that I constructed, and am currently testing with Greg O. I built these rigs in collaboration with John Gourlay (jgourlay@mail.ubc.ca), who is a technician in the Botany Department workshop (room 1363; directly underneath the room that houses the growth chambers). John was able to create these rigs in less than a day after I described them to him, so if you’re thinking of starting a hydroponics project, you should consider having him do the work for you. He charges a small amount, and does the work very quickly. He’s also a very nice guy.
The rigs are based on a design that is pretty common in the world of hydroponics. The version described below is similar to one developed at Duke University by Jessica Selby and Kevin Wright (John Willis Lab). The idea is to suspend the roots of the plant in a nutrient solution, and provide oxygen to the roots via bubblers. As Greg says, the method requires development. However, it appears to work well for sunflowers (not so much for my plants). Anyway, here is the basic process of constructing the rigs.