A Community and Forum For Aquaponic Gardeners

Biofilter

I world like to know how a Biofilter work in a system and if you could share a design for making it myself.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jim Fisk on February 20, 2013 at 2:47pm

Hey Juan, The biofilter design will certainly be based upon the size of your system and without one before your raft beds you WILL end up with root rot. I tried. Not pretty. Here is a design I am about to throw together in a few days that will take care of 5 ibc raft beds. It consists of a 55 gal outer barrel and a 15 gal inner barrel with a swirl filter in the 15 and surrounded by old recycled bird netting in the 55. The drawing should explain the rest. This should easily handle all 10 gbs should I decide on that many. I feel half raft and half media is a good balance for us. Woops: I just noticed a reference to gravel in my plan but we decided (thanks to Jon) to use the bird netting instead as it is much easier to clean. The solids can be removed occasionally with the same wand that I clean the fish tanks with.

Permalink Reply by Harold Sukhbir on February 20, 2013 at 8:06pm

Hi Jim,

Looks great and very inventive! Let us know how it performs. I've a much simpler design and it works well. BTW, you can if you wish, plumb a bulkhead fitting center base with external valve for easy solids removal.

Permalink Reply by Juan Carlos Narbon on February 20, 2013 at 9:50pm

I have now a clearer notion of the biofilter my system needs and how to make it. Thank you.

Permalink Reply by Jim Fisk on February 21, 2013 at 8:36am

Hey Harold, I have been debating the drain you refer to but I have to go thru the 55 and into the 15 which makes things a lot more difficult especially if I want to break it all down occasionally. I use a 50' garden hose and a 3' pvc pipe with a vac crevice tool which once primed makes a hell of a FT cleaner and will certainly clean out the center swirl solids trap in short order. I keep meaning to post a pic of my little device but have yet to take a pic. I do have the advantage of building the GH on a slope so the siphon strength is amazing as the end of the hose is well down hill. I can pull it out of one FT and go to the next and never loose the prime. NICE! Now I need to fabricate some catch system for those solids so I can put them in the worm bin (which is doing great by the way). Nice weather coming soon. So many projects, so little time

Harold Sukhbir said:

Hi Jim,

Looks great and very inventive! Let us know how it performs. I've a much simpler design and it works well. BTW, you can if you wish, plumb a bulkhead fitting center base with external valve for easy solids removal.

Permalink Reply by Harold Sukhbir on February 21, 2013 at 10:27am

Hi Jim,

That solution works! As far as catchment goes, i empty into a barrel, let it settle out,remove the solids with a built-in bottom center drain. Return the water to the system and solids to my garden plants.

Permalink Reply by Jim Fisk on February 21, 2013 at 12:25pm

Nice Harold! I'll have to set that up soon. Although we're having so much fun with the AP we might not have a dirt garden this year. Well maybe for potatoes and the like. But there is the worm bin and the worms feed the trout so all is well.

Harold Sukhbir said:

Hi Jim,

That solution works! As far as catchment goes, i empty into a barrel, let it settle out,remove the solids with a built-in bottom center drain. Return the water to the system and solids to my garden plants.