Can you have metallic screen above bed?

[foodchain]

Why not just use egg crate? This is stiff enough you don't need the PVC, and if you desire to lay plastic over it or corrugated plastic panels for a greenhouse effect you can.

AND no birds get caught in the netting for your neighborhood cats to eat, inevitably tearing up your growbeds while they do it.

[Jeff]

When you say egg crate, are you talking about those foam mattress pads? If so, how do you propose I position it so that 1) it doesn't block sun light, and 2) how does it stay in place (wires, string frame, etc)?

[foodchain]

NO no no.

Egg crate. Used with commercial flourescant lighting. It's a white grid type thing made out of plastic. Home Depot sells them for like $8 each. Marine aquarium reef keepers use them in propogation, etc.
Cut with wire cutters or sharp knife and zip tie together.
Non toxic, and if you take your time, doesn't look ghetto.

[keith_r]

yup, they come in 2x4 or 2x2 sheets

[Jeff]

NO no no.

Egg crate. Used with commercial flourescant lighting. It's a white grid type thing made out of plastic. Home Depot sells them for like $8 each. Marine aquarium reef keepers use them in propogation, etc.
Cut with wire cutters or sharp knife and zip tie together.
Non toxic, and if you take your time, doesn't look ghetto.

Well that would work a lot better than the mattress pad idea!

I was actually thinking about something like that, but I had no idea they were called egg crates. I think I could perhaps construct a frame from some kind of cord or wire....and then lay these on top of it so that they're suspended high enough above the beds so that they don't interfere with taller plants (like tomatoes).

[foodchain]

no need to. Assemble a 3 sided box, and set right on top of grow bed and be done with it.
You control how tall it is by which way you turn your sheet. You probably won't need it over 4 ft high. Wire cutters and zip ties and you are done. Whole thing will take you 5 minutes, maybe 10 max. Any more than that and you are over thinking this way too much.