After Tuesday's meeting, I thought of a simple design that might serve as a good starting point. I built frame for meshing to collect nitrate with PVC piping and it cost $6 total, although I had some left over. The box is 2 ft. x 2 ft. and the part that sticks out is 15 in.
It was very easy to assemble, I was able to cut the pieces and put it together without help, and it took about 45 minutes.
Image link: http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll219/amariah118/Inventors%20Club%20Competition/IMG_7359.jpg
This is an overview picture - I tried labeling each piece of PVC and also the joints, I hope you all can see it. Everything is 1/2 in. pipes, except "top" and "bottom", which are 3/4 in. and meant to slide over the 1/2 in pipes that they are placed above and below of, #5 and #6. "Top" and "bottom" will have mesh between them, so when you slide it over #5 and #6, it will be held out in the water. Joint "E" is where the whole thing will be hung, so you can easily have as many as you want of these in a row. To remove the "top" and "bottom" bar: when it is hanging in the water, you press on #1, so the whole thing will rotate, and the mesh will come out of the water, when you can remove it and take off the things on it.
Here is a picture of it when it is put together:
http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll219/amariah118/Inventors%20Club%20Competition/IMG_7365.jpg
And here is a picture of how the 3/4 in. pipes will slide over the 1/2 in. pipes
http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll219/amariah118/Inventors%20Club%20Competition/IMG_7364.jpg
I hope that made sense, and if you have questions, I am happy to answer. There are some improvements that I can already think of.
