Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Get some clay soil from your backyard
add some powdered goat dung - this will burn out and give lots of surface area and holes ranging from 2 mm to microscopic
add some water
shake

next spread some goat dung onto a flat surface (I used foil and a baking tray because its raining so I'm doing this in my house, but spreading it out on the ground in the sun would be better)
Gloop your mixture over the dung - this will help it break into nice bits once the dung has burnt out and give it irregular shapes so that it wont pack flat- or you could score it to look like a yummy dung chocolate bar


If its outside on the ground, wait until its dry enough to pick up (doesn't matter if it breaks)
If its a small experimental batch put it on top of your heater until your house stops smelling, shall we say, agricultural. Once the yelling stops its dry.


build a fire over the top of it
I fired mine in my heater but to do it properly you need from memory 600 + deg C (dont quote me on this ... in fact don't quote me on anything) to finish the chemical change from clay to pot and up to around 900 + C to burn out carbon and sulphate's.

a piece of iron glowing bright cherry-red means your fire is around 900 deg C

from wikipedia
---------
Oxyhydrogen flame: 2000 °C or above (3645 °F)[7]
Bunsen burner flame: 1,300 to 1,600 °C (2,372 to 2,912 °F)[8]
Blowtorch flame: 1,300 °C (2,370 °F)[9]
Candle flame: 1,000 °C (1,830 °F)
Smoldering cigarette:
Temperature without drawing: side of the lit portion; 400 °C (752 °F); middle of the lit portion: 585 °C (1,085 °F)
Temperature during drawing: middle of the lit portion: 700 °C (1,292 °F)
Always hotter in the middle.
----------

drop the tiles on the ground

voilà!

If ya got clay soil and goat dung, as well as space and materials for a hot fire, could be a very handy way to make light weight media for yourself.

could it somehow be rolled in a cement mixer at some stage of the process to make it into little round balls ?

Oops!

got to give credit where credit is due... your misses must be the best to put up with that
ALL hail misses Bullwinkle

I made clay for a living once upon a time, and if there wasn't enough water in the mixer, balls would indeed form. So stage 2 will be ball formed, bloated, and with iron and trace minerals. I'd like to have at least a bucket full to try.


and less goat dung... stage 2 will have less goat dung... really don't like toasted goat dung

LOL oh my

Gross but cool at the same time!

Will it work with sheep dung? Pretty close in shape and composition.

It would be great to do this in the outdoor oven but, as I've mentioned before, the goats dismantled it (one reason I no longer have goats). I still have a fire pit though.

Very interesting Bullwinkle..... Would certainly be viable in a country where they have lots of time and poo on their hands..... (that doesn't quite sound right)

anything organic that will burn out should be fine.

I don't know how practical it is but it was in my head so had to come out

we get the idea

Is there anywhere on earth tho that has clay, goats, no coconuts, and no gravel ... who knows

Goats will eat anything. If I could feed them chelated iron, calcium carbonate, and clay....*



*dont do this!!!! clay or kaolin is a poo binding agent and treats diarrhea. Feeding goats (or anything) a high kaolin diet would kill them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But if I breed a new breed of kaolin resistant ........

I think you've got it bad, like worse than the rest of us bullwinkle! lol or has no sense of smell Well, you never really know what the next new topic could possibly be around here, do you?

While trying to secure (futile attempt) my goats I dropped a 2" drywall screw. A pregnant goat picked it up and ate it - to no ill effect.

Here in VT we have clay, goats, no coconuts and our non river gravel is too extreme PHwise to use. But just to confirm no poo is necessary, correct. If you had lots of inedible nuts or something organic you could use that. Not that I have that much free time on my hands...

no, no I can still smell it

Fascinating and not unattainable for most if the extreme need arose... Funny, too!

I just LOVE the resourcefulness and DIY mentality as well as the open source sharing of this board!!

Thanks for this bullwinkle... More info to file away!

CB