Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Looking good! I am sure that my first time with ferro-cement would look worse.

I fail at looks but at least it seems to be functional. I would be very disappointed if i ended up with a misshapen 1 ton lawn statue. WOOOHOO It holds water!

Tomorrow I am going to do the last layer on the outside, then i will cap the exits and try to fill it all the way up. I still have some ideas for improving the aesthetics.


Later this weekend or maybe later tonight i will try to post my material list.

brian

Put a trellis around it and plant nasturtiums. They look nice, and they attract ladybugs and pollinators. Plus they are edible. No one will even notice the rather minor imperfections. That is the only problem with building your own stuff. You are your own worst critic. If someone else built it, you would think it was great.

Great work bcotton.

Don't worry about the bumps, it look good and should work like a charm

Not a bad first attempt at all....

Im impressed!

Ronmaggi,

Good call, i have a similar idea that better fits my goals.. I am mentally designing a trellis to grow hops up and over the tank. The hops can serve a dual purpose in that the tank can get good shade during hot months and then hops will die down to the roots during the fall so the tank can get full sun when it is cold.

I will use the hops to home brew.


thanks for the positive comments. I filled the tank to the top after dark and there seems to be leaks around the pvc. I will have to work out a way to seal that area better, porbably silicon. I'll post picture tomorrow when it's light outside.





brian

Nice job on the tank!

A couple of questions;

How is the pH of the water?

Could a person embed pex tubing into your design to heat or cool the tank if necessary?

Ok, my rough estimate of materials and cost to this point. This would be much more accurate if home depot had of started doing the e-mail receipt thing before i started this project instead of halfway into it.


10x 10' 3/8" rebar ($3.50ea)
3x 48" x 84" remesh ($7.25)
10x 27"x 84" steel lath ($7.57ea)
4' chicken wire (dunno, already had it)


6x 92.5 lb Portland Cement Type 1-2 ($8.95ea)
24x 50 lb play sand ($3.58ea)
6x 60 lb sakrete sand mix ($5.55ea)

spreadsheet says (without tax)
10x 3.5= 35
3x 7.25= 21.75
10x 7.57= 75.7
6x 8.98= 53.88
24x 3.58= 85.92
6x 5.55= 33.3
305.55

Like i said before, I think i can do this with 30-40% less cement on my next tank.

I will get started on the grow bed later this week or this weekend. It should go faster and i can see if i can really improve on what i have learned. I am looking forward to it being a smaller job, the 800 gallon tank wore me out.


This cost doesnt include any sealers which i think will cost about the same. I am thinking i will use a cheapish waterproof/resistant garage floor/driveway type epoxy for the outside. And for the inside I am thinking I will be doing pond shield.


The latest pictures are of the filled tank. You can see the last coat of outside ferro. Still choppy, but i plant to try to hide it with a trellis and hops. Some very slow seeping is taking place at the pvc, but it's just cement there with sealer, silicon or adhesive not yet added around the joint.

You a fellow home brewer bcotton?

I have no idea what the PH is, i havent tested it, but i am sure it is very high. The water is to help the curing process while i build the grow bed. I will eventually drain it, dry it, and cover it with an epoxy to prevent leaching.




Guilty


brian

That 92 lb bag of Portland cement is a buck cheaper in San Diego... I like your idea of hops too. Actually, you may come to appreciate those slow leaks, they save you from having to remember to water the soil based plants around it...

If you can get hold of a little bentonite and mix it in with your GB cement, it's good for giving
The finish a little more resistance to seepage.

damn you bcotton!

now there's something else I need to try

thanks a lot...jerk

/sarcasm/

How? Thinner walls? Better reinforcing? Different application method?