Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

pH 6.4
po4-3 8ppm
ammonia 0.25ppm
nitrites 0.25ppm
nitrates 20-30ppm
fe 0ppm

I believe the high ammonia is bcause I was juggling the pump time to try ans save money and the tank water quality dropped from a visual point of view. I got a smaller pump and now have the water cycling through the bed more which seems to have fixed problem. the water has ceared up again so I always take that as a positive.

sorry Nick, what's po4-3 8 ppm? Also, what test kit do you have? Interesting that iron is at zero

phosphate. isn't that a little high? not that i'd know really.

might be an algae time bomb

yeah the guys at works said that the phosphates were high but I thought plants took up phospahtes. and my system actually has less algae in it than when I first set it up.

Any suggestions on how to lower this would be good.

The tank is in a semi shaded spot with a piece of corro over the top to keep out the sun. Could the high phospahtes be from the food?

chuck some tommies or any fruiting plants in, i'm fairly sure phosphate requirement is high when fruiting.

yeah their are tomatoes in there at the moment and they are about to fruit in a big way so will have to check the levels again post tommies.
Thanks Steve

Can the pet shop test potasium Nick. It is iron and potasium that are meant to become deficient in an AP system. Gotta say I think some of my plants look a bit deficient and I add iron, so maybe I need potasium.

VB, i'd have said there was shite loads of potassium in the fish food, quite a common element. Phosphate is usually whats limited. Could be wrong though

here is some pics of my basil for VB, i thought your leaves were smaller than these.

Same stuff I think Nick. I have found that when the plant turns into a bush - like mine are - then the leaves tend to be a bit smaller. The ones low on the plant are bigger.

BTW - the trunk on my basil plants are about 3cm - the rain the last few weeks has been a killer. The added weight when rain gets on a big unsuported plant like that often makes it snap at the base. I lost a huge amount the bulk of my basil plants. Not concerned from a food perspective (cause I still have heaps of leaves) but I reckon these plants were responsible for taking a lot of the nitrate out of my system.

nick, just reviewed your reading on your fisrt post.

How is you PH?

haven't checked it since then. I imagine it would be in the same area as I have done nothing to alter it. every time i go to the produce store i forget to get shell grit. but am hading out tomorrow so will have a look then.

nick if you pinch out the top(you prolly know this anyway) lats will develop as will the roots to achieve better stability... and will be less directional

at 6.4 i'd be checking it. 6.0 seems to be the "assume the crash position" level, and 6.4 may have been why you had a little ammonia in the system

Steve

well the system has undergone a few changes since last posted with the additiion of a new bed tank and pump.

I have one growbed left to come online but need to cut down a tree first to allow for acces of pipes and sunlight. any way I have the silver and goldfish ( used to have a pleco in here but think he might of died when the weather turned around here) and they ar eall getting good size on them.

I have cut feeding in both tanks to afternoon only and feed a little more and it is all gone by the next day, in the barra tank it is all gone with in a half hour( but they do have a 300w/1000l eheim eate rin there tank set to 25 degrees, so they are not even feeling winter) the eheims are a good heater and are quoted for up to 1000 litres of water and they doo it with ease.

The barra are getting bigger now and would definately be ready for the table but am being a softy and letting them grow bigger.

I currently have tomatoes, zuchini, herbs, chillis, silverbeet and lettuce going in the beds and the tomatoes are growing but I think if I put them in in summer they would go balistic.

Any way I know how you guys like pictures so here goes. They are a little old so will take some even fresher ones when I get the camera back.