ZipGarden™ by ZipGrow Inc.

Indoor Garden


ZipGarden™ is a small hydroponic system powered by ZipGrow’s patented towers. ZipGarden™ is designed and built for indoor use and brings small scale farming of leafy greens, herbs (and more) right into your home, business or classroom while providing a delicious sustainable product.

ZipGarden - Front View

Conceptual Direction


ZipGrow’s unique vertical growing Tower provides both individuals and small farms with the ability to grow many lettuces and herbs. Typically these Towers are wall mounted and generally used in a more commercial/industrial fashion. ZipGrow wanted to develop a freestanding unit that could bring their technology indoors for individuals looking to grow for themselves. The goal was to create a beautiful looking unit that would fit naturally in the consumer’s living space. We settled on a minimal aesthetic and warm wood tones that serve to highlight the natural beauty of an indoor garden.

Animated sketch of ZipGarden by ZipGrow

Design Definition


We were challenged to come up with solutions to a variety of end user focused issues including: a simple and effective means of removing the Towers from the unit while ensuring they reliably lined up with the water source, hiding the functional elements (ie. water reservoir, aerator, pump, electrical, plumbing, LED lights), integrate a strainer for solids, limit the exposure of water to light to prevent algae growth, and provide a convenient location for the seedling tray.  In addition, we developed the design to be optimized for shipping and minimal assembly steps for the end user.

Vertical tower installation on water pipe
ZipGarden Technical Drawings for Manufacturing

Mechanical Design


We carried our design from initial concept through manufacturing and provided a full 3D and 2D documentation package. The package contained a detailed bill-of-materials, assembly and part dimensions with revision control, critical assembly details, general dimensioning and tolerances (GD&T), and CMF documentation (Colours, Materials, and Finishes) for handoff to a manufacturing partner.