All Discussions Tagged 'inflow' - Aquaponic Gardening2024-03-28T11:12:00Zhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/forum/topic/listForTag?tag=inflow&feed=yes&xn_auth=noSiphon won't initiatetag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-07:4778851:Topic:4210952012-12-07T16:59:44.316ZMichael Brewerhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/MichaelBrewer
<p>Hello there! I'm new to the group, but am excited to learn more about aquaponics here!<br></br><br></br>I've got a small "Barrelponics" system that I've set up to try and learn about aquaponics and work the bugs out so that I can take it overseas. I modified it slightly because I want to set up systems with no moving parts, and that system uses a toilet flush valve to flood the growbeds. <br></br><br></br>I switched to a simple, u-curve autosiphon and it works good- when it initiates. I can get it to…</p>
<p>Hello there! I'm new to the group, but am excited to learn more about aquaponics here!<br/><br/>I've got a small "Barrelponics" system that I've set up to try and learn about aquaponics and work the bugs out so that I can take it overseas. I modified it slightly because I want to set up systems with no moving parts, and that system uses a toilet flush valve to flood the growbeds. <br/><br/>I switched to a simple, u-curve autosiphon and it works good- when it initiates. I can get it to initiate if I increase my inflow, but that causes my growbeds to get flooded to often. I am shooting for a flood cycle every 45 minutes, and right now it is just under 20.<br/><br/>Does anyone know a way to get an autosiphon to initiate regardless of inflow? Extra reservoir, extra u-curve, submerging the outflow in water, etc?</p> Fish Poo Pavement and Media systemstag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2010-10-31:4778851:Topic:193632010-10-31T16:12:01.000ZTCLynxhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/TCLynx
Ok, not sure this is the best place for this but...<br></br><br></br>So anyone ever notice how the gravel right under a constant flow single inlet to a siphon F&D bed tends to get gunked up and the water starts spreading out before it can go down into the gravel?<br></br><br></br>I've been calling this fish poo pavement. Though that term might not be entirely correct since the bio-slime that builds up anywhere in an AP system where there is constant water flow is probably just as responsible for this…
Ok, not sure this is the best place for this but...<br/><br/>So anyone ever notice how the gravel right under a constant flow single inlet to a siphon F&D bed tends to get gunked up and the water starts spreading out before it can go down into the gravel?<br/><br/>I've been calling this fish poo pavement. Though that term might not be entirely correct since the bio-slime that builds up anywhere in an AP system where there is constant water flow is probably just as responsible for this effect as the fish poo and uneaten food is.<br/><br/>Anyway, I have experienced this situation in my original system set up where the pump drew water from the fish tank and ran constantly feeding the grow beds which drained back to the fish tank by auto-siphons. The place where the water entered the gravel would get slimed up and the water would spread out before going down into the gravel and that corner of the bed would always be kinda water logged and even make some plants resentful of wet feet unhappy. I would stir that area of gravel with a stick or trowel which would often reduce the problem a bit for a time and more worms might also help some but "poke it with a stick" didn't really seem to be an elegant long term solution.<br/><br/>Some systems deal with this problem with distrobution grids. This just shifts the problem to needing to clean out the grids when they clog instead of "poking the slimy spot with a stick."<br/><br/>Another option is timed flood and drain. If you only feed water to that one spot intermittently and give it a little time to dry out between when the water flows in, the bio-slime and fish poo pavement doesn't seem to build up in the same way. The trick here is how to filter your water enough while still giving the gravel at the inlet time to avoid the slime? Well on my big system and my 300 gallon system, the indexing valves have kept the area under the water inlets from getting fish poo pavement, well at least for the beds being fed by the indexing valves. <br/><br/>I do still have some beds that have constant inflow and the slime does still build up. I have tried a few different things on these. One thing was to put a square of filter material right under the inlet and when it starts to slime up, I flip it over. I usually find this bit of filter material to be full of worms happily working away at eating the slime and fish poo. Or, one might arrange a movable inlet so when one stop starts to get to slimed up, one stirs it and moves the inlet to another location. Still all these methods involve some one checking regularly and doing something.<br/>