Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

looking good.. I started out with the same containers - they hold up well.

I have used brocoli boxes for my seedlings for some time now. They hold 50 * 50 mm forestry tubes perfectly. I partially fill them with water and the seedlings are self watered for days. I lost 450 tree seedlings one weekend I went away before I started using the boxes. If you leave them in the boxes too long, they actually put roots into and through the box - then they leak.

I still strike most of my cuttings in them - they sure are handy!

My system is not functioning very well at the moment . Problems I currently have:

1. Too few fish for the number of grow beds, hence inadequate nitrogen.

2. Auto-syphons are clogged with roots and are more continuous flood rather than flood-and-drain.

3. Chooks love the leafy greens and eat and scratch the growbeds.

4. Inadquate light (too much shade).

An urgent overhaul is required (in progress).

derek

p.s. daughter filled camera with gatorade (lid came off in her bag) so a photo update will take some time

Ouch, when it rains it pours.

is a week long enough? I have been hearing 4 weeks.

I think Derek was referring to running his setup for a week to make sure the siphons etc were working correctly before adding fish

So Derek, when you get out to Roma, will you be putting fish in the dam?

your right a system needs about 4 weeks to form bacteria before you could get plant growth

I'd like to stock the dam with some Yellow Belly. It currently has yabbies and a small fish commonly referred to as 'Poddy Mullet' - good live bait for Murray Cod in the Condamine river. Unfortunately, I don't get out there as much as I'd like to. I grow trees, Cypress, they don't need to be tended too as often as cattle.

Stick with it Derek - you will solve all these problems in due course. My pipes clogged with roots also when I had narrow ones like yourself. I too ended up with a continuously flooded style of system - still worked though :-).

Derek - regarding problem # 3, chuck some thrive in .

Yes the infamous silver perch killer....

I have finished rebuilding my new system and this time I hope it's more simplified and therefore will not encounter syphon blockage. I cannot show you any photos just yet 'cause you remember my daughter filled my camera with powerade. I'll use her new mobile phone (xmas present) to take some soon.

My system design is influenced by Murray, LKB and others. I have a 100mm end cap drill to take 25mm union and socket fitting. The stand pipe has 5mm hole drilled at the 30mm and 100mm mark and 4 * 12mm holes drilled 30mm at the 200mm mark.

As water is pumped in, it starts to trickle out through the 5mm holes until the water level rises enough to pour out the 12mm holes. These 12mm holes are 30mm below the top of the gravel.

When the pump is off, the water slowly drains from the 5mm holes. One thing I'm happy about but didn't plan for was the inlet pipe now becomes a syphon. If roots clog this pipe it only adversely affects the fill cycle not the drain cycle and hence overflows should a thing of the past.

It's probably best described in pictures. I like seeing pictures of other systems because it helps me adapt my ideas.

cheers
derek

Wow, I like the dual input/output pipe. That makes it so the the outflow can be very simple. Hmmmm. I need to build a second (smaller) setup for my tilapia "love shack". Ideas ideas ideas....