We are having a problem with our tomatoes growing so tall that they are starting to fall over. This is happening because the tomatoes have no where to anchor their roots into, like they have in the ground. So to fix this problem we added wooden post on top of the system for the tomatoes to be tied to. This way they can grow straight.
A Second Harvest
The lettuce needed harvested before I left for the weekend. It was starting to grow into each other causing crowding to the tomato plants. Since it is so crowded on top of our system, our tomato plants have started to fall over.
More Brown Leaves
With the last days of our class coming to an end, we are noticing browning on the leaves. What we have figured this is from is a low nutrient level in the solution or the roots are becoming over populated and can not grow properly in our smaller system. We have also notices that the plants are drawling a lot more solution than normal due to the fact that the roots have started to grow down into the solution. This is not necessarily a bad problem because then the plants roots can grow as will, and hopefully solving the problem of brown leaves.
First Week of December
For the first week of december our plants seemed to be growing well. The lettuce will soon need harvested again so that it does not become over crowded and choke out the tomatoes. I had to come up with some times of rigging system because our tomatoes are starting to fall over because they have grown so tall. 
After Break
When we returned to class after thanksgiving break we were surprised to find that our lettuce plants had multiplied and grown rapidly after harvest. When I took measurements on the 28th of November our tomatoes were grown over a foot tall. The water level was a little low, so I added solution to the what solution was there. On top of our system there was a salt like material that seemed to gather around the down pipes on our system. I still have not found out yet what that is from. But there was some brown spots on the tomato leaves, so I checked the ph level and that was normal at a reading of 6.3 PH.
Harvest
Before we left for thanksgiving, Erica and I decided to harvest our plants. We did this the week of November 12th through November 17th. We harvested that wednesday November the 14th. The harvest we had was three large handfuls of lettuce.
Lack of Nutrient
For the Week of November the 5th throughout the 9th, Erica and I found the problem of lack of nutrient in our water. Our plants showed signs of wilting due to the lack of nutrient being provided in our system. The lack of nutrient was due to just adding water to our system rather than adding the proper mix of water and nutrient solution mix. We had to just add water due Hurricane Sandy and us not being in class to refill our nutrient water jug. Once we added the new solution we had to adjust the Ph level from 7.4 to 6.5 by adding Ph level dropping powder into our system. Here are photos that show signs of wilting in our tomatoes.
Hurricane Sandy
We did not have class Monday and Tuesday due to Hurricane Sandy. It was bad timing since we really need to fix our system. When we got to class our system seemed to be running just fine. It looked like are water level just got low and we did not notice. Due to the water being low causing the pump not to work it looks like our plants wilted. Here are some pictures to show you.
Problems
We received an email over the weekend saying:
I just went into the hydroponics lab and your systems were so low low on water that the pumps were starting to be uncovered and making loud vibration sounds. Had this gone on for another 24 hours, I’m sure the pumps would have seized.
I grabbed the only jug of solution Ir could quickly find (it was Damon’s & Julianne’s) and started pouring it in to your systems to refill the fluid. I refilled the jug with plain water 2 times to top off all of your systems.
Hopefully this will not hurt our plants. First thing Monday we will have to check out what went wrong with our system. Thanks Damon and Julianne for the solution!
Plants are Growing Strong!
When we went into class on October 24, 2012 our plants looked great. There is more growth on all three of the lettuce plants and the tomatoes are sprouting new leaves on their stems. They have grown to about the height of 5 “.
This is an overall photo of our system and the growth that is occurring. As you can see the lettuce has really multiplied. 
THE LEVELS
The PH levels are at a steady 6.2, and a water temperature of around 65 degrees