Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

No.




Plumbing for me is a little bit guesswork so take this with a grain of salt. Most people here including me would say that on the gravity side of the system, bigger is better. Think about the drains in your house compared to the faucet opening size. I would run at least 3" pipe (3.5" OD), for the SLO and then from the FT to the GBs. Run the big pipe to the growbeds and then start spliting off to each GB. As long as the SLO can handle all the flow from the pump then you have the sizing right so just guarantee that you have big enough pipe to do this. If you plan on a bigger pump later then you may want a fudge factor built into the SLO sizing (keep in mind a totally different 2nd system might be a better way to use some new growbeds).

The pipe from the pump sounds fine at 1.5 inches it might be able to pump faster with slightly larger pipe due to less friction loss but plumbing it with larger pipe will cost more.

For draining the growbeds I use drainpipes that are the next size up from what was used for the inflow to the growbeds.

So I was talking about the plumbing from my fish tank to my grow beds. So sizing that at 3 inches sounds good? The return from grow beds to ST should be bigger than the 3" line? The reason I was going to use 1.5" for the pump is because that's what its largest size is. I'm sure I can increase that with another fitting but I was gonna just use the max size as that's what it says will produce at X lift.

Hey thanks, the tank is slowing down as my job has me working quite a bit more as of late so it's progress has slowed down. Not a bad thing as it has allowed me to plan things a bit better. Because I gotta run some electrical out to the tank and I'm trying to make sure I can tie everything together via same trenches as I'm hoping to have everything up and running the same day the trenches are being dug. So that way I will know for sure before I button everything up I don't have any plumbing issues.

Heh, I'm gonna have some trench work fun for sure. I got a few buddies that'll be helping out. May get some family out to help as well.

P.S
What about running multiple pipes of let's say 1.5" that way I can have water draining from 2 sides so I can move solids from both sides instead of one location? I have tons of 1.5" fittings so this way I won't have too buy anymore.


Sorry for typos I'm typing on my iPhone.

I believe so but can't say for certain, you can always reduce the amount being pumped back to the fish tank if the plumbing can't handle it (Just split the line from the pump and have one branch loop back to the sump - you can control the flow with ball valves).

Having multiple pipes is ok but they do need to be at or close to the same water level or you'll get more out of one than the other. It also means drilling more holes in your fish tank. Two 1.5 inch pipes doesn't really equal one 3" pipe.

Area of a 3" circle = 7.068 inches squared
Area of two 1.59 circles (actual internal pipe size) inch pipes 3.971


Doesn't need to be in my opinion. Usually the SLO pipe won't be totally full as it exits the FT so you won't be handling a full 3" pipefull coming in anyway.

So what size should the return pipe from GB to ST? 3 inches? I was thinking 1.5" pipe, but I can go bigger as it doesn't matter. I just want to make sure everything is functioning properly on start up as I'm gonna have to trench a good 25-30 foot run to the GB and I don't wanna leave the trench open for people to fall in haha.

I think you already know the answer, Use the 3". If you leave the section of piping from the GB to the Sump Tank un-buried it may be easier to remove any roots if they cause a blockage (it's common for roots to grow down into the drain). On my system I did not glue this section which means I can take it apart but I haven't had to so far. In one of my tubs I had a tomato plant send roots into the drain and down into the sump. I discovered it when I found the roots in the sump tank.

You can twist the gravel guard around the standpipe occasionally, this will cut most roots that have found their way in.

I wish I could leave the plumbing unburied but I am gonna take this stuff across my yard and I don't want people to trip over it and mess up my system (they can eat some dirt lol).

What about running them under the growbeds maybe? Remember it's only the section draining from the Growbeds to the Sump. If you have to bury them use something easy to dig out.

Growing in the ST? After doing a little thinking and pricing, I'm going to make my own ST, I was thinking of making it out of quickcrete and sealing it with Drylok (everywhere I read says it's fish safe once cured). I'm going to make the tank 6 feet long, 3 feet wide and 2 feet deep. I was going to use the remaining OSB to create the box, and dig a hole and set it down, with something like 2-3 inch gap all around it. Planning to just drop quickcrete around the sides and water it in and letting it cure.

I posted this same idea in the Hardware but no one is biting (or maybe no one has done it). I'm doing the math and the cheapest IBC I can find around my area is roughly $70, or $80 delivered. If my math works out correctly I should be able to create the custom shaped tank for roughly the same price or maybe $20 more depending on if I need two gallons of Drylok.

The reason I think this will be superior is because with an IBC stuck in the dirt what happens is the depth of the IBC messes with my pumps lifting, so with an IBC buried fully it will give me a depth of 3½ feet, so being able to decrease the depth with the concrete tank I can keep the pump GPH higher. I was thinking it would be interesting once sealed to fill it up with rocks (make a separate location for the pump without rocks), and using it as an additional GB. I think the Concrete tank sounds the best, and if I want I can clearly increase the size for a GB accommodation, sure it may cost more but it will also give me additional GB.

On another note I can partition the tank and use it as a breeding/fry tank that would probably have a really stable temperature.

Gah the things I can do with the ST that I hadn't considered.

Markymark, the height of the water surface to wherever you are pumping to is what determines the GPH. This is called the "head height". If we call the water surface zero and your pumping to a height 2 ft above this then the head height is 2ft. The concrete tank won't help your flow rate if the surface of the water is at the same height in both tanks.

There are several builds that used concrete for tanks and/or growbeds. Brian's system comes to mind. Have you considered just digging a hole, lining it and then surrounding it with landscape blocks? Very easy to do. Much easier than mixing concrete I would think.

Well I've been milling over the idea of the concrete, but I want to make it somewhat presentable. So it was going through my head that I might need a permit to make that GB out of concrete, and if I wanted to buy 3 IBC's from the guy it would be $195. If I did the concrete I could make it in a shape I wanted and it would probably be cheaper per gallon and look much nicer.

Plus I am not a big fan of relying on wood in the ground and just looking at what a pond liner would cost to fill the ST would be similar in price. Mixing concrete ain't a huge deal, what I have to do is figure out the thickness needed for the concrete, I also need to read up on making the form. The location of the sump has an area of 7' by 12'. So I was thinking of maxing that area out. The ST would be 3 feet deep but 2 feet below ground with 1 foot above ground so no one accidentally falls in. My dad thinks the concrete tank will look nice as well. Lot to think about.

Also what I'm talking about regarding the pump is (maybe I am misunderstanding) my fish tank is above ground, but my sump tank will be below ground. If I use an ibc the one I was looking at is 42 inches tall or 3.5 feet tall, let's say i bury that to a depth of 3 feet. Now wouldn't the pump have to lift the water 3 feet to ground level and then 4 feet above ground (my tank is 4 feet deep) which would make a lift of 7 feet?


Sorry for typos I'm typing on my iPhone.

I'm not certain how to explain it to you, I think it probably has something to do with the water at or below the surface being neutrally bouyant but I'm no physicist and I'm not sure why they do it this way. You don't really need to be concerned about the water below the surface.

Head height is the difference in height between the surface of the water you are pumping from, to the highest level you are pumping to, so you have 4ft or slightly more of head height (because you're pumping to a level slightly above the surface of the water). Pumps are rated to deliver a certain flow at a certain head height. Here's an example table showing the relation of head height to flow for the Laguna Max Flo pumps.

http://www.azponds.com/laguna_maxflo_chart.htm

Try and find a table or graph like this for whatever pump you choose. Use it to be certain that the pump can deliver as much water as you need to the final height. It's a good idea to give yourself a decent amount of additional pump capacity because of other factors, like the length of pipe, the size of pipe and the number of tight bends. These can affect the pumps ability to deliver what it's rated for - I just think of the specs as showing what it can do under ideal conditions. You can always loop some of the flow back to the sump.

I've already got my pump and liners. All That needs to be done now is plumbing, and trenching.


iPhone Typos

So you were concerned about the pumping capacity based on the 7' height? How does your pump capacity look based on the 4.x head height of your system and the volume of the fish tank?

That's the pump I got there.

http://www.pondfilter.com/lagunamax-flo2000pump.aspx


iPhone Typos

So it looks like you'll be delivering around 1500 GPH and you figured about 1080 for the fish tank volume - sounds like your set. You did well with your choice, the only thing I would have suggested is that the 2400 runs on the same wattage and pumps a bit more (the initial cost is higher so it's a trade off).

Keep up the good work