Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hey guys,

I finally managed to put together all parts for my first system and build one.
Now i need to cycle it. Looking for source of ammonia.
Here are some pics:

do a search on peeponics..... for cycling

Hey Tom, great looking system there!
I see we have the exact same pipes (the grey PP) as I had previously noticed from molj's system thread.
(I did extensive research and they are quite safe BTW).

Can't wait to see your great system perform and visit soon!

As for ammonia: I have pure ammonia, bought in a store. It's often found in the "cleaning" department of the supermarkets.

I can't bring myself to be a big fan of peeponics for so many reasons.

I read in a member thread (and the info was supported by EB himself if I recall correctly) that fish food will work if you let it decompose a bit.

Let me know when and where you find a decent complete water test kit, I can't seem to find an adequate one for the life of me and would rather save myself from ordering one via the internet.

Antonio

Thanks for your answers guys

Tojo, i asked for water test kits in aquarium shops here, but they told me they are not allowed to sell them (crazy government rules), so i ordered API Freshwater Master Test Kit from amazon.co.uk for 42,74 EUR (20,05 GBP + 13,98 GBP for postage) . I got it in 3 days.

Here is my first test.
Got high PH, everything else is 0.

Wow, super strange law about not selling water test kits...?
(Maybe has something to do with making one's own drugs?)
I will try for the API since everyone on here is using it if I can't find one before say wednesday.

Hey ezone, you have pretty much built the identical system to what I'm building. How many of those concrete blocks did you need?

I used 12 blocks for 3 growbeds. I didn't use blocks for FT.

Here are some images how i did it:

cool graphics

yeah that looks pro. Thanks for the answer

Graphics are made with Blender which i'm more used to work with then Sketchup. I didn't bother with details tho.
I imported models from Sketchup file from this site.

I added ammonia two days ago and here are my today readings. There's no nitrites yet but i got some nitrates, probably because i added a bit of seaweed.

Do a PH high test and see where it comes in at

Yeah, stupid me! I should check that too.
Ok i guess i have a quite high Ph around 8.2.
Any idea hot to solve this? Is lemon juice way to go?
Thanks

As the system is just starting the cycling process, the pH is at the level of the water plus media. When the nitrification process kicks in the pH will drop and if left to its own, the system will eventually stabilise and "find" its natural pH level.

You can add shell grits to the system to act as a pH buffer to mitigate against sudden and large pH drops, although at the moment it wont actually do much in the system (although the calcium in the shells will aid healthy plant growth).