Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I haven't used the curtain so much in the last couple of weeks because the weather has been getting better.
I'm thinking of taking it off to let more light in through the roof.
We're getting warm - hot days and cold nights this last week.

Pete.

Went out to Buxton Trout Farm to collect the fish this morning and met Mick who also happens to be an Aper.
We discussed different systems and other like minded people in the area.
I showed some of my latest photos and told him of my education into this field via the BYAP forum.

They were processing a 3.3 kg Salmon $87.00 (see pic) at the counter. Mick described the difficulties of rearing them and how that demands the higher price.
Mick took me for a tour to see their largest two pet Salmons 1 @ 8 kg and 1 @ 12 kg which I caught on video.

My Trout came out of a round black poly tank 3 x 1 m with about 15000 siblings.
I quizzed Mick on how I could get another batch in four months but a smaller size for overlap since the next lot wouldn't be available until July-Aug.
He said these ones are over fed to encourage fast growth, tens of thousands of their siblings are held back by limiting their feed so they grow slower and the farm can sell trout all year round. So they should be smaller than mine in four months.

Pete

At least two of my trout have died already.
In the beginning they were quite cagey sticking together under and around the pipe, a couple of hours later they were playing in the bubbles grouping up and going through as though it was a dare.
Another couple of hours and I could hear donking noises and there were some racing around like crazy and head butting the wall as if they couldn't see it.
At one stage I counted five lying on the floor, I picked them out to find they were still breathing so put them back, some seemed to have recovered we'll see how many are left in the morning.
They don't seem too interested in food yet.

Pete.

Eek! Fish too zoomy to live? I hope they settle down soon (and that you've covered the opening with something that will bounce them back in...)

I was wondering if others had this issue and thought of hanging plastic sheet inside to minimise the

Pete.

yeah, a lot of people running trout have to put up nets or covers to stop them trying to fly to freedom

They're not jumping out of the water, they're swimming eratically round and round then off to the other side and into the wall. I watched one do it three times in a row before it knocked itself out.

Maybe it should have padded walls and be called an adjustment tank.

Pete.

Bummer, not Bumper Fish! How long was the ride home in the bag? Mine took a while to get used to the boardwalk over their FT. I found a few knocked out after feeding time.Yes, it's freaky.

Sounds like there is something wrong with the conditions, probably that, and they're seeing you and think you're a predator. My guess is your visits were at different times of the day when the lighting conditions were different. Maybe you're being backlit sometimes and the light hits you from in front others. Too much light might also be a possibility and trout are very sensitive to electrical currents as well but mostly I think they sound stressed and they need some quiet time without visits. Make sure the water has 1ppt of salt added for stress and dim down the light a bit if you can.

The travel time was 30 minutes and they were covered Boss.

Scotty,
I approach slowly and no change in activity happens until I'm right at the opening. Later when I knelt down to pick up the dead some of the others came over to be around my hand.
Even though I have a heavy shade cloth over being a white tank there is certainly more light bouncing around.

I have the recommended 3 ppt of salt. Mick the Aper from the hatchery says he doesn't use salt in his constant flood system and question why I was putting the fish into a quarantine tank. He also said to just pour them in and not wait for acclamation.

There are only 8 left alive now... I seems that the larger of (50-60 mm) the 30 were the first to go.

Pete.

Sounds like he's confident the fish are in good shape. Acclimation can be a mixed bag - don't have time to explain at the moment but there can be problems either way.

typically would be fear related panic or water parameters....

when you said they hung around the air bubbles that sounded like something irritating them and looking for relief.
that can often be a water chemistry issue (as is larger fish dying first).

other thing is DO - but seemed you had enough of that - any signs on the fish gills /eyes ?

>> He also said to just pour them in and not wait for acclimatisation.

given your system was at pH 8+ that may not have had very good consequences.
and the forum is well populated with posts where people add new fish straight in with consequences.

Did you
(a) test the water they came in
(b) test your QT water
(c) what salt did you use.

else maybe that IBC has too much light - wrap a blanket, shadecloth, or tarp around.

[edit] also water temperatures are important, what temps were they at when got home and what temp was QT tank water.

I can't add much to what you are already doing, but I think trout need really high DO levels. I had posted some links to info I found on trout DO needs on Brian (boss) page. When I picked my trout up they salted the water then pumped air in to my cooler to make sure it was super saturated with air for the drive home. I've been fortunate that I only lost one but mine were a lot bigger to begin with so might have been a bit more hardy, the only one I lost was due to it jumping out of the tank so I had to put netting on it. Mine do bump in to the tank walls a lot, not as much lately as when I first got them but they do swim fast and bump in to walls and jump at the surface for food.

This morning I thought I'd reduce the salt level to 1 PPT so I bailed 2/3's out cleaned the bottom and added 2/3's of stored degassed water.

I asked the guy how long they'd last in the bag he reckoned 3 hrs but by the time I got home it was deflated as it is in the pic.
I didn't test the water they came in. I acclimatized them for 20 min.
I didn't measure the temps of either containers before release although they felt similar and very cool, too cool for me to swim in.
There is a quarantine test on the 10th and the ph looks in the low 7's.
The bubbles seemed to be of amusement as the tank they came from had 35% of a 150 dia pipe river water dropping 300 mm into their tank for supply and aeration.
The dead fish didn't feel unusually slimy or coated in any thing they looked perfect, when they dried off they felt a bit sticky.

Only 6 left now, I'm assuming the damage has already been done.

Pete.

what is the status today ?