Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have had my barrel system up for a week now and just to rush things I dropped in 9 bream from our pond. Haven’t really fed them much so far. My PH is staying 7.4-7.6 range, fish still look healthy, I have been testing the water and so far no build of ammonia. Yesterday my water started turning a green color, my drums are white plastic. Am I building up algae and is this what is supposed to happen?
Will post a picture if needed.
Thanks

Checking my system's water today I found
my PH had shot up to around 8.4 (should I water change and fix that right away)?
Ammonia- hard to tell, the sample is still yellow, but seems not as yellow as before, I read it as zero
Nitrite - now showing 0.25 ppm
Nitrate - still zero

I added about 2 cups of water from my pond to help get bacteria going, was this the wrong thing to do?

Thanks for any responses,
Mike

Adding pond water was likely okay to help with bacteria though you can bring in other less than desirable things as well. With high pH, the fish will be less tolerant of the nitrites. I know some of the group here will have some ideas of good ways to address the pH. The nitrites just have to be waited out, though it is good you are getting them... means you at least have bacteria to convert ammonia to nitrites.

Mike,
Lots of water plants preferentially take up ammonia and will rob it from your growbeds. As is pointed out often here, one major problem with lots of algae is that you get big swings in oxygen and ph, often enough to damage the fish. Shade helps: wrap the barrel to reduce light through the sides and put something on top to shade it some. The thread algae is also a bugger on clogging pumps.
Here is a posting of a chart of nitrites vs ph vs temperature showing danger levels. viewtopic.php?p=130392#p130392

Oh, nuts! That's the ammonia chart!
*grumble mumble frig... growl .....*

There was a great article about temps, pH, nitrites, etc. in the first issue of the BYAP magazine that you can download here: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2654&hilit=+magazine

The article starts on page 27.

You want to make sure you understand the nitrogen cycle, I believe there is a sticky thread about it in the useful info or one of the other sections in the top on the main forum index page.

Ammonia is more dangerous as the temp and pH go up. though it looks like you already have some conversion to nitrite happening so I wouldn't panic too much about the high pH right. There is a good chance that the pH is swinging because of the algae. Algae can strip O2 from the water overnight leaving more CO2 which will give a low pH first thing in the morning and then through the day algae will use up all the CO2 leaving you a high pH late in the afternoon. Trying to combat these swings with pH adjusting chemicals is probably not a good idea or very productive. You want to shade your fish tank so you can reduce your algae load.

Green water, algae or pea soup stage is not uncommon in a new system where the fish tank gets too much sun light. You may want to shade the fish tank with something. Some algae on the walls of the tank is not a big deal but really green water makes it hard to see your fish and can reduce O2 levels enough overnight that your fish may suffer for it.

Patients.

Wont be able to cover it until Monday..ugh work calls.. but I did add an air pump to help with the O2.
Thanks everyone