Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have been looking through others systems and getting ideas for our final plumb out and was wondering about the return water line into the tank. Most people seem to just dump the water back into the tank and I was wondering about running the return pipe across the diameter of the tank and drilling out holes on opposing sides for each side of the radius so as to create a circular whirlpool type current around the FT. Has anyone done this and is it benefitial to trout, I thought they liked moving water so wondered why people don't do this? We will be pumping back to the FT from the sump using an Ebara pump so I expect we should be able to get some water movement in the tank with the pressure available.

Any device that operates like this, uses water pressure to rotate.
This means you need to put more energy into moving the water.
As it's gravity fed, that's ok, excepting that maybe if you tried it, water would back up in order to provide enough head to operate it, and your drains might not work so well.
IMHO you'd need bigger drains.
as for why ppl don't do it? I don't know, nobody in aquaculture does it. Fish seem happy to play in a single dump, I've just never considered it.

Some people put the return at an angle (on the round tanks) to cause a swirl effect and push the crap to the centre. If you are running CHIFT PIST which it sounds like the pickup would be best at the bottom centre of the FT. I suspect the volume will not be as great as you imagine and one big angled dump would give you greater swirl than lots of small ones.
This is only my opinion and I have not tried this (apart from spray bars on aquariums) could take one for the team

If you angle the return line feed... with an elbow.... it will setup a circular flow...

Cool looks like one 40mm angled inlet is the go.

Kudapucat, we will be pumping the water anyway so there would be very negligable energy difference.

I use the spray bar on most of my tanks and I find it works well, especially if you have a central drain as you can get all the crap out of the tank. Shallower tanks work the best though. Trout do love to swim in a current too, mine spend all day just swimming around in circles!!

Rupe, what are the 2 little clear hoses used for that come out of the top and side of the elbow in that last pic (100_2231 (Medium).JPG) ?

I am guessing they would be venturis. As the water comes past it sucks air in the pipe and adds additional air into the water.

lol u must have lazy or boring fish then, all mine love a current to play in

I mean the single dump provides current enough for them to be happy. rather than around the tank, according to the duckweed moved by said current, it goes down one side and up the other. this creates at least in my tank, a lateral current at both the top and bottom of the tank, and a vertical current at the ends.

Starting to get a bit more support for a spray bar then Maybe I will try it, easier to take off once the tank is full than put on me thinks.

I have mine coming in at a 45 degree angle to the water so as not to restrict return flow and it is situated around 3 inches off the side of the tank swirling it clockwise. all the debris moves to the centre and the pump sucks it up. works a treat. the perch like swimming into it and the koi are getting used to it.

If the purpose is a swirl current effect, the single large point entry will probably be more efficient and give a better current when the pump is running.

The spray bar effect would be better for aeration of a tank with fish that are not as fond of a strong current. The spray bar is more likely to put more resistance against the pump and loose you a bit on efficiency there though. If you drill enough big enough holes to avoid restricting the pump, then you will probably not have enough pressure on the small streams of water coming out to get as much current swirl effect.