Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

You get it done!

I hope it sorts out your nitrite problem.

With this change I hope you will give the biofilter time to establish. I would also recommend you covering up both biofilters so no light can get in.

Colum, me too!
Swede, I shouldn't have to wait too long. The existing bio is long established and I'm going to blend the 2 with the new K1, so I'm hoping under a week.

Should be done later today. My biggest concern, is my blower is adequate for the new mbbr.

Added about 6-7 cu ft to the new mbbr, appx 2 from the old one and 5 from 1 0f the 2 remaining boxes I had. Cleaned netting and hope for the best.

I netted all the goldies left in one of the fry tanks and added them to 1 tank. I will add my newest tilapia fry to that tomorrow. I moved the buck rabbit in with 1 of the does. He did his thing three times and now we should have some kits late next month. Going to wait another month for the other females and then try breeding them also.

Do you have a worm farm going for the bunny berries yet?

Yes mam! Going to be adding some additional soil beds as well as the vermiponics. There's a pretty good market around here for the bunny compost as well.

I've seen things where they put straw or other compost material directly below the cages and use a sloped screen to roll the berries to the side into the worm bin so you keep the urine out of the worm bin and you get two types of compost from one system.

We are not keeping rabbits and even if we were we would probably be doing the polyface farms model of moving shelters the way we are doing most of our chickens now. I haven't figured out how to get the goats to deposit their poops into a worm bin.

That's interesting. I'm just letting it all mix together under cages. I put pavers and some timbers under cages to catch the dropping and hay. I got 5 gallons after 1 week with 3 rabbits, and now have added 2 more bunnies, with 1 a soon to be mom. I already have a 55 gallon worm bin, but this should get me 10-15 gallons of compost a week. I've talked to a few dirt farmers who use rabbit/worm compost and they say they can grow everything easily with the mix. I hope so. It sure is easier to make a 100 sf ft dirt bed, then a 100 sq ft DWC or media bed! I love AP, but my little GH won't keep me in veggies. Hoping when I retire, that I will have a 7-8K Gh running on the now almost 7000 gallon RAS. Between rabbits, tilapia, koi, and veggies, we should have very little in terms of food bills. I plan on getting some chicks for laying also.

Goats have crossed my mind too. Ryans are pretty cool. But, I'm not keen on milking goats daily. So looking at other breeds for meat. Do you eat yours?

We are not interested in milking at this point either.
We only just got ours last spring just two so far from a neighbor and they are both mixed breed billys.
Currently the goats are really just weed/brush control and since we have 10 acres I really need more goats to keep it relatively clean.
I'm hoping to find a source of Kiko goats, they are meat goats. Otherwise I can probably find some Boar goats to raise which are another meat goat.

The nitrites are back up after being down for a few days. The new MBBR is slowly getting colonized...maybe another 2 weeks?

Pruned back the one over grown chile pepper in the grow bed to make room for the super hot(Carolina Reaper)


Pretty sure the crazy heat this Fall has my lettuce bolting already. The heat index was over 100 again yesterday, with no end in sight. Fish are happy, the lettuce & I are not.

Besides being busy at work, and trying to resolve the ever rising Nitrite issue in the RAS, I have started a new project. Our 15 year old bathroom is getting gutted and renovated. Removed all floor tile and tub tile/backer board and will replace tile with new 12 x 24 bamboo look tile. It has lines in it like bamboo flooring, Only porcelain for better longevity in wet areas.
New toilet, new vanity, sink, fixtures, fart fan, and of course paint. I have help also. Ben liked the linen closet once it was cleaned out.

How are the peppers and your hot sauce doing coachchris?

I was only able to grow one jalapeno this year from my gorwbeds. Plants never got taller than about 6 inches.

I had saved the seeds from a habanero I will try next year growing. (someone gave me one to cook with and I just let it dry out to save seeds)

Peppers did and are doing well. Still waiting usda for paperwork for hot sauce. Sent in in March, and am still waiting. A dozen phone calls and more emails.

Ah, the demo stage. Probably feels good to do a project in the house