Advanced aquaponics
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Sand as a medium in a flood and drain bed?
I have taken an interest in using sand as a media in one of my grow beds again. Only thing is that my beds cycle permanently on flood and drain auto siphons. I am worried that the sand will pose a considerable problem in continuing this type of water circulation. One option is to put the beds on…
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Pumping Head !! What it means
When I think of head pressure I think of pumping up.. so when the pump data says it has 21 ft of head pressure does that mean horizontal or vertical or both?I will only be going vertically 6 or 7 ft but horizontal length of 30 feet. What should I look for in a pump?
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Criticism of Fish Care
I'm curious to know how people deal with criticism of the welfare of their fish. I have an indoor and outdoor system and I make sure my fish are well cared for and I really keep a low stocking density. The other day, I had this comment left on a video that featured both systems (…
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Remember the simplicity......
It has been a while since I added something here. The mixed aquaponics page got dibs on the sand bed experiment (which is going great!!) and I have been immersed in fisheries and aquaculture literature in preparation for a meeting that has just passed. More of a serious job interview than a…
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Monitoring in mature systems
I have been looking at a lot of input and my own experience. If a system is designed and managed correctly, what should we monitor in the end? Are performance issues not typically design flaws or operational decicions rather than ecological processes? The concensus from what I could read is pH,…
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Timed irrigation and towers
I am experimenting a bit with towers on timed flow. So far (winter) they are happy with 15 minutes on and 45 minutes off. Anyone have experience with towers on timer during hotter weather?
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No aerator update
It is now going into autumn, and I can now confidently state that the system configuration that I was testing - having no aeration originating from an electronic aerator, has been a success. I have not lost a fish (40 tilapia in 1000 liters) at all, and always managed to operate with a DO well…
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How long can we leave the media beds alone?
I have been running my system since late 2008, and in two different inflow configurations. The first try was gravity flow dispersed over the surface of the grave in a grid, and the second mode is pumped into the beds via submerged inlets. A year seems to be the limit for both set-ups in terms of…
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Water consumption in a fruiting crop system
I have never searched home system references for water loss ratios, but if I remember correctly, UVI data suggested a daily loss of around 1 - 2% of your total volume per day. I have been operating pretty comfortably even in the drought, but as my bigger plants are maturing, I have seen a dramitic…
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Changing ratios over time?
I have recently seen my water clarity go from pretty good to grim, without increasing my feeding rates or taking away any filtering capacity. What has happened though, is that I started focussing heavily on fruiting crops and I have a sneaky suspicion that the large root mass that I now have in my…
