Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi all,

Just starting out in the AP game - have caught the bug very quickly though

Managed to get my hands on a second hand 'Entertainer' BYAP system which I have recently got up and running. Have attempted uploading my first photo from the first day of the set-up, hopefully this works..

I do have an issue though, everything was running well, fish were happy little fishy fish but then we had two hot days in a row which increased the temperature of the water significantly - I don't actually have a thermometer but when I originally added the fish the water was cold to the touch, now when i put my hand in it is fairly tepid!

Since then my fish have started flashing and swimming erratically, this has been happening for two days now. I haven't seen any white spots but haven't taken them out to have a good look either..

I think my levels are all okay, as shown below (pls let me know if they are not though!):

PH: 6.6
Amonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 10

Given my readings I am assuming that the problem has been the increase in water temp but I am not too sure on what to do to help them become more happy again

I was thinking of salting the water to 2pts??

Any ideas / thoughts on the issue would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance people,
Armchairbenko

I am new too and salted to 2ppt. Strawberries die but all else ok. Everyone including the guy I bought the fish from say to do it.

nice photos. how do you reduce the file size to upload? Says mine are too big.

Welcome

What kind of fish do you have? If they are trout, yes its possible its too hot, they are only good up to about 22 deg. If they are silvers, the hotter the better as this is what they prefer.

Adding salt will stimulate the fish into producing a slimy coat which will help with any parisites etc.

You didn't mention the type of fish you have?

Do you have an air pump to provided extra DO?

A thermometer would be a good thing to have. I think they are around $10-$15 for a floating type from a pet store.

from another poster that might be of interest to you.....

- What level of salt should I maintain in the system, after all this is cleared up, and will it impact plant growth ?

It's not necessary to maintain a level of salt in the tank...

Although any treatment for parasites.. or fungal infections will require salting to between 3-6ppt...

You can just let this dissapate through (some) plant uptake... and by subsequent water top ups...

3ppt of salt will affect strawberries in particular... most other plants can handle up to 6ppt... for the life of any disease treatment....

Small/new seedlings can be impacted...

Thanks for the replies everyone

I have approximately 30 Silver Perch in the tank (1000 litres) with the two 500ltr GB's. I also have about half a dozen Yabbies which are hiding in some PVC pipe that i put into the tank and below / around the pump...

Having just typed that I am now wondering if the PVC piping has anything to do with it... but the water levels still seem all good

I don't actually have an air-pump but do have the two drainage returns going into the tank, one drips directly in from the GB with the other going under the water...

Will do the salt when I get home tonight, only drama is how do I put it in the tank?? Just put two kilos directly in or am I better of to dissolve it first in a bucket of water and then add it...

Any info would be grand

Thanks again,
Armchairbenko

Well I put the salt in the tank last night - dissolved it in a bucket of water from the tank first - and also added some more oxygen by making my second drainage pipe drip into the water as opposed to having a pipe going down to the bottom of the tank.

Now both by drainage pipes drip into the tank which is definitely giving

Not too sure if the fish are any better this morning though, however; they are no longer swimming erratically but they are still flashing, almost as they are stationery in the water... I am not too sure if that means they are getting better or are now just so weak they can no longer swim erratically...

Hopefully I won't be coming home to a tank full of dead fishy fish tonight

Armchairbenko.

It may be time to sit back and watch now and not make too many little changes which may have a delayed effect causing you bigger problems.

Hi guys this subject seems quite relevant to my situation.
I have just set up a CHIFT PIST system in the southwest, 6 300L growbeds and a 900L fish tank. I organised 30 trout fingerlings but when my girlfriend got home with them they are mostly around 130-150g bloody big fingers I recon. Anyway I was thinking about salting at 2 PPT as a preventative measure- all fish are happy and healthy after 3 days in the system.

It was mentioned elsewhere that I shouldn't use cooking salt? Is this seriously going to be a problem?

Also as I have such mature fish and such immature plants ( the majority are snowpeas which are growing like stink but only 4 or so inches high at the moment) Am I likely to have nitrate problems shortly ? Currently they are at 5mg/L. I'm thinking about putting in a largeish dwarf lemon tree or similar to act as a nutrient moderator until the veges mature... But yea I'm very new to this.

Cheers, Will