Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Well i have been reading through these forums religiously for the better part of a year now and have been extremely interested in aquaponics every since finding this place:P I have been making some designs and am ready to share them for comments / suggestions / or simply pointing out the craziness of it all



Ok Here goes the attempted explanation:

1. "pre filter Synaptoman" - This is the three compartment filter used in one of his commercial sites from his website. I have bought his book and read it. It is good and explains a lot of things in an easy to understand way. The filter has three "Compartments" that are 4' X 10' x 12" deep. Compartment 1 has gravel as the filter media and perhaps some cloth for finer removal, Compartment 2 is filled with sea shells and oyster shells for pH, and compartment three is deeper with fingerlings in it. It is a settling compartment where the fingerlings clean for food

2. The 4 tanks are 10' X 4' and employ a sloped bottom with center siphon drain to get the water to the pre filter and on down the raceway to the sump.

3. Once in the sump it is pumped to the 200 growbeds that are halved PVC pipes with a 2' diameter. Ends sealed and gravel filled etc.....

4. The beds drain back to the raceway where the water is returned to the sump.

5. There is a dirty and clean sump labeled on the pic, this is because i want to stock as intensive as possible so if the grow beds wont do the trick and it would be too much to handle to add more, i would make a DIY Bead filter like the one from the thread here by danDman and run the "Dirty Sump" water through it and on to the "Clean Sump" for redistribution to the tanks.

The water would be aerated in both sumps and all tanks using fountain pumps as opposed to diffusers which would turn the water over at a minimum once per hour.

I have quite a few more drawings that break each component down individually but want thoughts and such on the main idea. I appreciate any comments anyone is willing to share with me. thanks

Welcome Bigguyben... so you're going big... and by the looks of it, duplicating Synaptomans system...

Didn't know he had a website, or a book... what's his URL???

http://synaptoman.wordpress.com/

Ya i really like his ideas that he shares and everything i have read says use a proven design However this is in the planning stages and i intend to contact him with the idea to be sure not to infringe or anything.

Hi. Maybe you should also take a look at the UVI model and the works of J. Rakocy.

I don't know how wide your raceways are but cover them up, where ever they are not needed to transfer water- in or out. Not only will it keep out potential bugs and algae, it is a safety precaution for your employees. One slip and they could end up with a concussion or worse, face down in the water and drowning- and there goes your business, your house, your car...
My full scale commercial system has such raceways in the design and they are covered with 3/4" marine grade plywood- it is waterproof (used for boat building) and it is strong enough to walk on. An ouce of prevention, you know the rest.

How long do you anticipate those large PVC pipes and their framing will last exposed to the sun and with their water and gravel load? How easy is replacing them, once they are in position? Can it be done with equipment- a small 36" skidsteer maybe or are you looking at manual replacement, which will greatly add to the replacement costs? Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing Synaptoman's system- every system has merit and every system can be tweaked for better performance and longevity. His system is productive but it still hasn't been stressed tested with time. I don't think any large commercial system has, with the exception of DWC. Make sure in your projections that you include replacement costs sometime later down the road or you may have a nasty future expenditure.

In my first commercial prototype, I have 6 mil common, store bought plastic pond liners but that is a start up trade off- commerical grade pond liners have a life expectency of 30 years and concrete even longer. If you plan on going commerical, you have to look at ease of operation, which includes maintenance and actual tear downs, without disruption to the entire system. You can't break down the grow beds or weather an unexpected disaster (tornado, wind storm, ice damage, etc.) and not have a contingency plan for the fish growing in the pipe line- a commercial system doesn't stop, unless you want your business to grind to an expensive halt.

Thanks for the replies all:

I have looked at the UVI system.

Angie:

Good idea on covering the water ways. I put a lot of thought into the workers who will deal with the tasks daily, Row spacing, bed height, Walking surfaces, etc.... So the suggestions fits right in.

The pipes, i am not sure how long they will last. I expect to get a good amount of service from them. It is not on the plan but since i am in the Philippines i will have a dense net roof over the beds to keep the glaring sun off them. In my small system i set up at the house, the vegetables such as cucumbers and tomatoes seem to do much better that way. However, they are only 10' long and there are 6 halves (Three Pipes) in each row. So replacing them wont be a problem and amount to roughly 100 USD per row.

The Rearing Tanks are sloped bottom concrete and this will also have a roof structure although it will be solid. There is a center siphon drain to feed the pre filter which in turn as i am sure you know feeds the sump, etc...

Any other comments or suggestions are more than welcome

Do you have a market for your produce... and have you looked at licencing and food safety regulations???

Angie ,, absolutely NO need to use marine ply. It;s expensive because it is designed to be flexible when buffetted ,, Yes as in baot hulls,,, NILL need for that in your application.
Also check additives of these ply's ,, leachate probably contains arsenic

Okay Chappo, you gave only half an answer- what would you use instead of marine grade plywood to cover the raceways. As far as toxins, Fresh Water Institute built their gravel grow beds out of this material, for a commerical S&S style greenhouse operation in West Virginia.

I am sure their beds where lined with plastic?
Just normal treated plywood will do the same job ,,,they wasted a lot of money for no reason.
You ,,,I believe are wanting material as a TOP cover ,, steam up condense and water plus nasties back.
Also to be used as walk-=ways....... Steel mesh ,, I think TCLynx called then cattle gates? cattle ???
Sling cheap pond-liner underneath to catch the dirt etc.
Cheap as chips and no nasties.
My hot-house central walkway will have same

Rupert: Yes there is a market, With the lack of reliable suppliers where i live, the big chain grocery stores are very eager to jump on a steady quality source. I have talked with the main one several times already. Also as a fall back there is the public market which is a very busy place.

Are you intending to sell the fish as well??

Produce is pretty safe and unlikely to cause food poisoning... unless handled without proper hygiene....

Fish on the other hand... are highly perishable... and very likely to cause food poisoning...

I have always believed that two heads are better than one and brainstorming is better still. This is one of the reasons why I joined the forum.

Yes, the plywood was painted as well as lined. I will do more research into the manufacturing of these products. As you pointed out very correctly, there is the risk from condesation, if the product is not completely safe. I don't think that regular plywood would be as sufficient however, even if it was painted, as it is likely to eventually deteriorate with the excessive moisture and regular painting maintenance is not desirable, if there are better alternatives.
Walkable steel mesh are called catwalks and in some cases, grates- and are used for stairs, crossings and open drain covers. Although I do have some catwalks in my design for viewing down into large tanks and as an area to keep plumbing and O2 inlets out of regular foot traffic, I don't think they'll will work well for the open raceways, even with a double layer of plastic. This is my reasoning- the plastic will degrade and require eventual replacement and leave the raceways exposed to contaminates falling through the grating as well as sunlight to generate algae, unless you buy EPDM (a high expense). And as far as opening up the raceways, a double layer would be a hassle to remove and replace. It is a good suggestion but one layer is better for convience, if at all possible.
Even if the marine grade plywood is not a viable option, I'm sure there are wood alternatives as boat docks and piers are made of wood and constantly exposed, either through direct contact or through moisture. There is also the option of solid metal covers, although painting will still be required, unless one went with stainless steel or aluminum.
At least you gave me something to think about- thank you for your imput, Chappo.

Angie , I'm needing a similiar solution ,, I want a cat-walk as centre aisle in the green-house , otherwise near 30% of the area becomes unused., where-as a catwalk over sump with yabbies ( craw-dads) can happen .As you said many hands make light work. Hopefully a combination of thinking will resolve the problem.