Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

The airstones keep getting blocked. Dunno if this was because I didn't have them on 24/7, but I couldn't unblock them. Now the air just comes out of the 12-way manifold that came with the pump. Not the ideal amount of surface area for the air, I know, but you gotta do what you gotta do at short notice....

That's a bit strange. In my 1000L tank I have two of the stones (not the fibrous ones, the heavy stone ones) which come on with the pump, and they've never blocked up.

I have added extra air to my reef tank to help rid algea and taken them out after a few days. The next time I went to use them they were clogged up. A soak in clean water cleared them up. Of course this is a salt water tank. I have had the same thing happen on a small submersable pump in the same tank. Again, a long soaking cleared it up.

Mark

Do you mean soaking in salt water to clean up the air stones?

Just soaked them in fresh (bottled) water. They were still on the hose and pump and I would go every couple hours and try and turn it on. After a day they were working again. I figured they were just clogged up with salt. I assume the fresh water was enough to disolve it and leech it out. I assume would be true of disolved stuff in AP water.

Let us know if you try....

Mark

Still here, still getting trout at the end of winter, SP at other times.

Got to be happy with that Uncle Yarra

Thanks for dropping by, Uncle Y!

I hear ya charlie.
I thought it important for newbies to see that even if people aren't posting, this aquaponics stuff keeps going and isn't something that falls in a heap after 18 months.

Unfortunately I can't believe you unless you post updated pics of your cool set up

Guees I can gp away for a few years again....

And another pic.

Looking good Yarra... nice to hear from you again..

Yeh, that's some good output! My SP, which are a year older than yours, are nowhere near as big. The greenhouse must add just enough heat to keep them growing through the winter! Good to see you kept the trout through last summer too, that's awesome - what kind of cooling did you employ? I can only imagine it got stinking hot in that solar shed of yours...