Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Sorry Cajun... fogot to factor in both the plants growing in the tank on the raft(s) and the four black tubs, which I assume are also growbeds or at least bio-filters....

Even so, I think things still stand.... take a water test... It'll help us help you.

how do i check for pump flow rate for the system i have.should i increase pump size.i have 300gph for plants.and 200gph for biofilter witch is filled with oyster shell.and now i have the pea gravel grow beds or do i need larger beds.

That should be enough flow, as Rupe says, for that amount of fish = more beds

But you need to determine and stabilise your water parameters firstly.... that may/will determine the modifications, if any, that are required.

lol +1 again damn water testing

got water tested from our local pet store. ammonia,0-2 ,nitrate less than 20,nitrite 0, hardness 300, chlorine 0, alkalinity about 60, ph 8.4 .i was able to bring ph down to 7.4 so far still woking on that,but water is green so i have an algae problem algae is not sticking to tank walls yet. sales person recomended to try a barley and lavender pack.not sure what that does.has anyone heard of this product. or should i just a more grow beds.

Sounds like you may want to shade the tank a little and get more plants growing to use up the nitrate so the algae won't have as much food to support it.

Part of your problem would have been the high PH

Dont bring the PH down to fast, fish wont like it.

Because you have no nitrite I dont think you would need any more growbeds just yet, plants will do a lot better with a lower PH

what can i use to control ph other than acids ,like the ph up or ph down solution found at pet stores.or is this safe to use in an ap garden. i also got more plants .

CC,I have a garden pond which suffers due to reticulated sprinklers using bore water which has a high pH. This pond id the reason I started on Aquaponics. It had bad algae and no ammonia or nitrites/nitrates could be detected using the Master test kit.

I have needed to control the high pH using hydrochloric acid. I have a bottle of diluted HCl which I add a little to the pond after each watering day. I have gradually reduced the pond water pH fron >8.8 to around 7.5
over a period of one week,
If I forget to treat the water after the sprinklers have been on, the pH goes to 8.0 and if I forget again, 8.4 and then 8.8, the limit of the Master "High pH" test.

By keeping the pH around 7.5 - 8.0 using the acid, the nutrients are measurable and the grow bed is starting to work. I had almost immediate readings on Ammonia & nitrites and Nitrates were measurable after a week.
The algae is now starting to disperse.

While I am sure that other means of controlling a rising pH are available (coir peat?), this has proven to be a rapid remedy with measurable outcomes.

Regards,
Tony

thanks everyone for all the info .i guess i'am trying to get results to fast because i'm new to ap .i will try those ideas and i'm sure i will have more questions or problems in the future.

pH around 7.4 will enable the system to begin stabalising and the algae will start to clear.... things should definitely improve... but patience is required.

The value of a water test should be apparent Cajun.... it's allowed both yourself and other here to diagnose and initiate a solution to your problem ASAP.

Keep a routine testing going for a while.... even as things improve.... you'll ultimately develope a sense by look, smell and fish behaviour of your water parameters.... that'll be reliably based on a history of recorded measurements and will become almost intuitive.

As your system matures, the pH will naturally want to come down.

i've never asked the question should i have a salinity test done. and should i add salt to the system as well as adding a carbon filter, would this be in my favor for better results when testing and keeping the algae under control.

No need to add salt Cajun, unless to treat specific fish problems... and then only at the rate of 3ppt....

No need for a carbon filter either.... the pea-gravel and growbeds are our bio-filters in an AP system... they'll do the job just fine as the system cycles and balances.

The algae will clear as the bacteria establish and the system cycles properly.... try and keep your pH around 7.4 to help this.....

The fact that you have a a biofilter drum filled with oyster shells will mean your system will tend to pull pH toward 8.0+..... something to watch, but adding more fish/feed as the system matures will pull the pH toward acidity anyway.

Deal with the problems but adjusting the immediate parameters/causes... don't go adding additional factors/changes to the system just now.... and only do so in the future but altering one variable at a time...