A Community and Forum For Aquaponic Gardeners
Aquaponics For Beginners
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This is a place where Beginners can post questions and find answers.
Advanced Users are welcome to help the Beginners out.
Please KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) .
Members: 672
Latest Activity: Feb 2, 2019
Discussion Forum
A few fish for sale or good home
Started by Linda Logan. Last reply by Linda Logan Feb 2, 2019. 1 Reply 0 Likes
I need to shut down my indoor system for a few months. I have 2 mature Shubunkin, 1 albino Hypostomus to clean the aquarium. There is another small fish living in the sump.I live in SE Portland and…Continue
Aquaponics system as filter for swimming pool
Started by John Wilson. Last reply by Wade J Rochelle Jan 25, 2019. 3 Replies 0 Likes
Hi all, we've just purchased a property with a large indoor swimming pool. Around 80,000L with a greenhouse roof and plenty of room around it for grow beds. However, this is far too big for us to…Continue
Not for human consumption!?
Started by Nichelle Hubley. Last reply by Nichelle Hubley Jun 30, 2015. 7 Replies 1 Like
Well, I think I messed up big time. I've been feeding my precious tilapia koi food (I like in a small place and it was all I could get... :( ) for about 2 months and last night I read on the back of…Continue
Help!! Help !!! with new filtration and set-up.
Started by Henrique Miguel. Last reply by Wayne Mcbryde May 14, 2015. 2 Replies 0 Likes
Hi,I have a set up of 2 55 gal blue barrel with Tilapia and guppies separate. I have young ones and they are growing well. Issue of overcrowding and feeding. 1. I would like to use a water…Continue
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Comment by Sheri Schmeckpeper on May 2, 2012 at 7:25pm
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:)
Post pictures when you get it done!
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Just thoughts off the top of my head:
Molasses feed shouldn't present a problem unless it was pumped with hormones or antibiotics. Was it organic feed?
Once clean, the color shouldn't be an issue. If it's just the feed that colored it, bleach should help. But I think they color some totes to indicate they aren't food grade. I'm not sure, though. You may end up painting the totes black anyway to keep light out for algae control. We faced the same questions about the color of some totes we have that were used for an organic algae fertilizer. With our totes, the color is off, but the product that was in it would only benefit the system. :)
Again, my main concern would be hormones or antibiotics permeated into the plastic that could leach out. Chris' note about letting it stand for a while might be the answer for that.
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Comment by Tony Gilliam on May 2, 2012 at 7:16pm
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Sheri, I'm not sure i will even mess with the molassis totes. I already have 5 of them, one with fish in it, but they are alot of work to clean and then i would still have to built a cage.
Thanks for your comments on the greenhouse. It has taken me two years to get it to this point. I hope to have it up and running this fall.
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Thanks for the advice Sheri and Parker, I will be able to check them out tomorrow for solar degredation, and it sounds like i should get some baking soda to clean them. These 6 shouldn't be that hard to clean but the other ones i have with the molassis based animal feed contents is still in need of cleaning. Any thoughts?
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Comment by Parker A Davis on May 2, 2012 at 6:34pm
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Good point Sheri....the other thing I would be concerned with is how long they have been dry and if they have had any solar degradation occur to the poly?? If you see any spider webbing or frosting on any of the poly tanks then they are not long for this world. We used to clean a lot of these tanks with just Tide and bleach, but make sure they are triple rinsed afterward.
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Tony, are you planning on burying your totes? If not, are they structured differently than the totes with frames? I'm just concerned that they will bulge, particularly when you've cut part of the top off. And if you're using them for growbeds, you'll definitely need support.
Chris is right, acid is neutralized with alkaline, like baking soda. It could be interesting process to watch (remember the baking soda/vinegar volcanoes?). Wear goggles and be ready to duck. LOL!
Filling them with water may absorb what's left of the acid, particularly if you have hard water. Bleach will kill living matter (anything living in that acid?) and help clean the plastic.
I envy your greenhouse!
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Thanks Chris, for keeping me safe. Thats what it is all about. This site is dedicated to sharing knowledge and furthering the aquaponics culture.
I'm still poppin buttons for getting these totes for free. YYYEEEAAAHHH!!!
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Comment by Chris George on May 2, 2012 at 4:49pm
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Tony, good luck to you in your cleaning process. I just read something interesting, after cleaning the tote, fill with water and let stand a few weeks (until algae forms), empty and then you are good to go... I think all of us are mad scientists that love aquaponics, just don't want to see you end up in the hospital...
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Chris, These tote have been completely empty for some time now. In fact they are totally dry inside. So i am dealing with dried on residual acid. I could fill them and test the PH first before adding the bleach. Hell it may not even need bleach. I will get them delivered tomorrow and test them before adding bleach. Thanks for trying to keep me from hurting myself. By the way, I AM A MAD SCIENTIST!!!! Just ask my wife.
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@Tony - I'm no chemist, but I'm pretty certain you don't want to use bleach to neutralize acid. Baking soda might work to neutralize it.... Just check with a good source before going forward....better safe than sorry...no sense in having a mad scientist 'event'....;-)
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