Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have a fully functioning (beautiful) system. beds are about 12'x 3'x6". I started almost everything from seed months ago and I have more tomatoes, chilies and celery than I know what to do with. I have other plants too, but these are the biggest and producing the most at this time. I bought the system from someone else and it has been working great for MONTHS. however, about a month ago, the bell syphons quit dumping.....now they just dribble all the time. I cleaned out roots that had gotten into a couple of them. That didn't help. I cleaned out the pump (it had some slimey stuff in it. That didn't help. so I started watching it. The beds aren't filling up fast enough anymore to cause the bell syphon to dump. I have the water pumping in at full strength and that used to work. Why did it stop being enough? Do I need a more powerful pump? I don't know what to do with it and I don't want to lose everything. I had several (large) goldfish in the system and those have died. I used them as starter fish in another system I had (much smaller), but their death was about the same time as the syphon issues. Any ideas?

If the pump capacity is still on the body you could simulate its performance over time taking into account the head height. The pump could have suddenly lost or damaged a major component causing poorer performance.

If the siphon issue started showing up around the same time your fish started dieting, I would start by looking at the pumps trash screen. Dead fish = bodies migrating around that could clog up the screen. If the pump seems clear, then the issue could be a clog somewhere in the supply lines ( provided the pump is still performing at or near specified flow rate) especially around any control valves you might have. Those 2 places have been where my issues in the past have generally been, especially at the trash screen where leaves get caught and restrict the flow.

So I need to pull all my lines apart and check them? I’ve cleaned the pump and the barrel it’s in already and it made a difference, but didn’t correct the problem.

Is there a way to keep the pump from getting clogged up with all the good green stuff in it? Or is it simply a part of maintenance to clean it once in a while?

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR REPLYING! I’ve been worried I was going to lose everything!

+1 - check for obstructions in the pump or perhaps a cracked housing. Then you may need to clean (flush) your water lines to remove slime buildup. Return the water to it's normal flow and most problems will clear up.

However, this is not a likely cause for fish death, unless the water slowed so much that biofiltration is severely reduced. Check your pH, ammonia and nitrite.

just point of clarification... (maybe it doesn't apply here - not sure from your post - pic's would help).

you shouldn't be running the pumps with filters or screens attached to it (the pump).
eg. with many pond type pumps typically remove as much as you can except the outer housing screen.
Particularly remove the plastic/sponge filter blocks etc if the pump has these.

this enables "dirty water" to flow up through pump and off to inline filter (drum filter etc) or direct to grow bed.
Conversley back to FT if your run a CHOP2 or CHIFT PIST.

To answer your question of "do I need a bigger pump" - what is the size of the pump and how big is your fish tank & system ?

Best way to check pump is to disconnect your pipe near the pump and see how much water pours out
(that will confirm the pump and initial discharge). Then have a look at how much is coming out at the grow bed/fish tank. That will decide whether you pipes are an issue.

Finally - have you made some inspired modification to your system recently ?
added pipe, moved pipe or changed location of pump etc

>> the bell syphons quit dumping.....now they just dribble all the time
ah siphons - the most over-rated part of AP
contributor to a disproportional number of posts & threads....
you can always remove the siphon bell for a while and run it as a constant flood.

>> However, this is not a likely cause for fish death
it may be if it is related to DO and/or poor circulation - would be a mixture of chemistry, DO & circulation then.
and presumably they would have been gasping.
poor circulation can end up with bacteria growth in the system - that grey/brown fluffy stuff.

Thumper, hi....

You say the syphons stopped working! The chances of more than one syphon stopping working at the same time is very slim so I would take a guess and say it's not the syphons......

Next ..... If the syphons are just dribbling and the pump is working as it should then where is the water going?

If you have an overflow and its overflowing then the pump is fine. Eg if your pump pumps out 20L per minute (10L to each syphon) and suddenly the syphons start dribbling, where is the 20L going? If it's going via an overflow back to the tank then your pump is fine. If it's not going anywhere then it's your pump.

Next if your pump is pumping but water is not getting to the syphons like it was then it's a blockage.

The fact you say that 'about a month ago' the syphons stopped dumping followed by fish deaths sounds like a circulation problem that lead to a build up of toxins.

What next? As the others have correctly suggested above check your pump (it's obviously turning because of the dribbling syphons) but how much is it pumping? You don't need a bigger pump if your system has been running great with the one you have. Although you may need a new pump by the sound of it.

Last of all..... If you have had fish deaths then make sure you test your water before putting new fish in once your pump or blockage is sorted