Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Chlorine dosen't last long in a pool in the sun it will used up in a couple of days.

But over the years there may be metals or other chemicals which could have been
introduced as a contamination with the pool chlorine, salt, stabiliser or acid.

I would still have patients,your cycling might be just slow,leave the ph where it is,this will help nitrification,the plants won't like it much,but when cycling is finished you should see your ph start to fall and positive improvements from there. PH 8.4 is not uncommon in cycling media.
I have a concrete pond,in the beginning when I filled it up ph was up around 8.2/8.4 ,now down to 7.2 today,it was down at 6.8 before the rains started,the nightly water changes seem to have raised it slightly,could be run of from the roof.

Please don't ask me to explain this and sorry it's a little of thread,when I finished my pond I hired a Thai plasterer to render it,I ask though the wife about it cracking ,curing and sealing. The answers didn't make a lot of sense but trusting him I let him carry on. When he mixed the render he added a thick liquid the consistency of snot,excuse me it does describe it. They covered the pond when finished and let it go off for a couple of days,then on his return he used Builders lime filled the pond and let it stand,then drained it,refilled it,this time floating banana trunks in it,this was left for an agonising month.
After refilling and starting up the ph was high but nowhere near what you would expect from a new pond or pool,three years on still ok.
Saying that most probably get home today to find no water in it, sods law.

Thanks for that. Just diving into the unknown, don't want to get down the track and then discover I should
Have changed the water or something
.

have added an air flow system to the pond.

The air compressor runs for about 30 seconds every 1hr 20mins.

I'd be concerned that a compressor would be putting oil in the water. If it doesn't I'd use one myself heh

That is an interesting air supply system you have devised, Slowboat, although it has me a little concerned. My own air compressor has a label on it warning that the air produced is not safe to breathe. I assume that the warning concerns some element that has been added to the air, perhaps oil, making it unsafe rather than it warning of the obvious - that pressurised air may blow holes in your lungs if you put the hose in your mouth!

Good point PLJ, could the compressor oil fumes contaminate the water.
excuse me while I turn it off!

I have started an experimental test system.

So I can compare growth rates between pool / pond to 'tap water' or 'fish tank-ex pool water'.

using an old 300x300x600 aquarium and 2 off my small GB's

After 3 goes at getting the pump right ending up with an Ap1000,

now the the decision to be made is which fish:-

from the indoor Aquarium or the pond?

as I was getting worried about dissolved O2

So while waiting for the new air pump to arrive found some fountain nozzles to play with.

also put a pump in the pond to add a bit of agitation. cycling on 15 off 45 min.

gets a nice clockwise swirl going in the FT, are fish left handed or right handed?


still pretty red from the Chelated iron

Slowboat - fish don't have hands. If they did, I'm pretty sure they would be right-handed.

Regarding the plants in the pic above, are they Blue Sedge and Umbrella Reed?

right finned?

As for the plants I have no idea they came with the fish?

sludgy muck on roots! is this normal or Does it indicate I need more BSA or a biological filter?

Is that muck on the roots of the pond plants? If so it likely just means the muck is staying in the media around the roots of the pond plants, probably not a whole lot to be done for that. Extra aeration and extra filtration are in order if it stinks at all.

That's from the grow beds, and yes it does stink.

I'm thinking that a lot more filtration is needed?