Comment

Comment by Dukie Dixon on May 9, 2013 at 4:58pm

Hi I was looking at my IBC tank today and don't like the scummy brown stuff that is all around and stuck to the sides. Is it ok to wipe off like I would a regular aquarium? I am pretty sure it's algee. The water is very clear.

Comment by TCLynx on May 9, 2013 at 5:58am

Zac,

    Best bet is to do nothing to lower your pH once the water is in the system.  If your media is causing high pH, then nothing you do will help unless you change out the media.  If your source water is just very hard, I would suggest adjusting it before putting it into the system using something like phosphoric acid or hydrochloric acid.  But you shouldn't need to do that much since the bacteria in a system will lower the system pH over time so unless you tap water is liquid limestone (and if it is perhaps you should be using RO water or rain water), you might just need to wait and let the pH come down naturally.  To raise pH when it gets too low can be done with some limestone chips in a stocking hung in the tank or occasional doses of potassium bicarbonate.

Kimberly,

As long as the white barrels didn't contain anything that you thing might be bad to have in your food or fish tank, the fact that they are white doesn't hurt anything.  It just makes them a bit less UV stable so you should protect them from the sun as best you can (paint or cover them) which will also reduce algae growth in them.

Comment by Kimberly Irene Lewis on May 9, 2013 at 5:47am

Well I have barrels that is a start. Unfortunaly they are white and not blue. The IBC totes are white. Do you think it will make much diffrence?

Comment by Zac Kind on May 8, 2013 at 10:54pm

What is the most natural way to higher and lower your PH.  Should we just add more oxygen to the water and change out the water?? I want to do as much as I can without adding things that dont belong.  

Comment by George Johnson on May 5, 2013 at 9:59am

I read her book last year. I got 3 of Murray Hallums dvds too. Thus the reason for building a chop mark 2 system.

Comment by James Stratton on May 5, 2013 at 9:38am

This is not to be an advertisement but will likely read like an endorsement. The one thing a beginning aquapon should do is purchase a book explaining aquaponic gardening. I finally bought Silvia's book six months into my new addiction and learned (in one weekend) what I'd struggled to uncover since the beginning. Had I purchased this book first, I'm sure I would've saved money and heartache while growing my system. Not saying it has to be this book, but that's the one I bought, and it put all major components of aquaponic gardening into perspective.

Comment by Linda Logan on May 4, 2013 at 12:55pm

There is flexible indoor/outdoor tubing that is specifically for water.  Quite spendy.  It uses a shark-tooth fitting to connect.  I've used in underground for over 5 years.  I found it at Home Depot.  I believe it comes in various sizes.  Don't know if this is what you're looking for.

Comment by TCLynx on May 4, 2013 at 10:51am

I think sylvia might sell them on the shop here at the aquaponic source.

I personally don't use flexible hoses for my aquaponics (the additives to make PVC flexible seem questionable to me to have in my food) so I just use regular hard pvc pipe and fittings for the most part. Not hard to work with and cheap/easy to find/get.

Comment by George Johnson on May 4, 2013 at 10:01am

TC where can I get the quick connect fittings for the hoses? Was doing some recon at home depot while getting unloaded there and they have not heard of them.

Comment by George Johnson on May 4, 2013 at 9:37am

The video didn't and I have not read the plans totally but will when I start. Bought $127 in power tools yesterday while waiting for a load. I drive truck for now.

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• …
• 66
• 67
• 68
• 69
• 70
• …
• 145
• Next ›
• Page