Wow, that has to be a quote from a while ago! LOL The 14/18 worked really well. It is a bit tall, but that's only an issue if you have vertical limitations. I'm sure I'll use those again. The other ones I mentioned -- the (basically) 5 gallon pot in a 5 gallon bucket, only held about a gallon of water and needed to be filled daily. The plants in them got to be 5+ feet tall, so if you are going that way I would start late so they don't get root-bound.
If you are going to run SIPs outdoors, I recommend either digging a hole and dropping the res part in, or using something like straw or some light colored fabric to keep the res out of the sun. I think keeping the water cool is good for the standing water, and good for the plant. The bottom line for me is that since I'm in a situation where I can put plants directly into the ground, nothing beats mother earth. SIPs are great for outdoor patio gardens, or if you are only doing planter/pot gardening. But if you have access to good soil and open ground, for me that has grown the sturdiest healthiest lowest maintenance plants. YMMV