Seed starting setup

Now that I've ordered all my seeds and am actually awaiting their arrival, I've started to get a little nervous about my plan to start them on top of the refrigerator. I think a slightly better setup might be in order, since I'm starting darn near everything indoors, and I'd hate to waste that much time. I was reading the MDC gardening forum today and someone posted a link to their seed starting setup. It's really simple and built from PVC to accommodate fluorescent shop fixtures. I priced most of the parts online at Lowe's and it looks like building something similar would be affordable. I'm only planning to build one shelf this year, because I'm not starting that many plants. If it's a success and I start more seeds next year, it can always be expanded because of the way it's constructed.

I think Zack and I may take a trip to Lowe's tonight. Unfortunately they don't have any of the lighting fixtures listed online, but they should be in the neighborhood of $10 each; if they are, I think we can afford to build this. At the very least I'd like to get the pipes and have them cut, so I can assemble the majority of it and buy the lights when the seeds actually get here.

I'm worried about the cats attacking the seedlings, and since the fluorescent fixtures will provide all the light that's needed, I'm thinking about putting this in the closet in the office. I'm really pleased to have run across this today, because I think this will work really well and is within the budget. I think, too, that I may use it to try to start some herb plants to grow indoors on the kitchen windowsill so I can get an early start on having fresh herbs in the kitchen again.