What am I missing?

[Deon Oddie]

I have both, a Hydroponic system and a Aquaponic system. I can't seem to figure out what I'm doing wrong with my Aquaponics. I have about a 160 gallon tank with about 50 talipa in it. My lettuce stems are getting taller but not blooming. My zucchini plant leaves or pal green to yellow and brown on the tips. I feed the fish koi fish food from the pet store and I've add about a 150 red worms to my clay pellets. What else should I try? Also I'm using a consistent flow and drain approach.As you can tell I'm new to this. I saw a you-tube video and I went to work on making my own. 

[Deon Oddie]

Also I just check my PH is through the roof 8.5 can I use baking soda in my IBC system to bring the PH down?

[TCLynx]

NO Baking soda will raise the pH!!!!!!!

The algae may be causing the pH to rise during the day.  If you measure the pH before dawn and again in late afternoon and you see a swing, it is because of the algae.

Do as Vlad said, block the light from the fish tank and see what happens.  Have a little patience since it can take a few weeks to kill off algae, make sure you have extra aeration and keep cleaning the pump screen till the algae clears.

[Jon Parr]

Hi Deon. You don't need a sump unless you want one. The function it serves is to collect all water at the low point of the system, and/or to contain a fluctuating water level. For instance, if your fish tank is lower than your growbeds, the fishtank itself is the sump. This is fine and works well, except that if you have twice the GB volume as FT volume as is commonly recommended, and you use flood and drain style, and you fill all beds at once, then you will pump the FT dry in order to flood the GBs. A sump added to the system will contain this volume difference, all the while keeping the FT clear full. Another sump purpose is to organize multiple growbeds, rafts, fishtanks, digesters, swirl filters, etc, all draining to a common sump and thereby mixing the water and housing one or many pumps. Hope that helps.

[Deon Oddie]

Thanks for all the help guys. So far I,ve covered all sides of my IBC system with black cloth. Also I,ve now got my Ph under control and the water/algae is starting to clear....Thanks again for everyones help.

[Deon Oddie]

I got a question for the panel... I'm getting solid fish waste in my gravel bed with alge...any ideas please let me know I have the IBC system ...

[Jon Parr]

Hi Deon. Algae needs light and water, so I assume your getting your gravel wet all the way to the top. Try lowering your flood level to 2" down from the top, so it stays dry. That should solve the algae. The solids can be filtered before the beds by filters or a settling tank, or let them reach the beds and add composting worms right inside the beds to work the solids over until they diminish, which of course requires a large worm population and favorable worm conditions. Personally, I've recently discovered Gammarus (a little shrimp-like crustacean that eats detritus), and I'm cultivating them in a pre-growbed settling tank

[Jon Parr]

Oops, I just reread your OP, and I see your constant flood. Constant flood can work if you have high flow rates, to ensure enough oxygen to keep worms alive and prevent anaerobic zones. Flood and drain is better, IMO. If your sold on constant flood, then I would presettle solids. I'm guessing anaerobic root zone may be part of your trouble, too plugged up with shit and roots.

[Deon Oddie]

Thanks guys, let me work on your suggestions.

[TCLynx]

 a little bit of algae and goop right where the water enters a grow bed isn't that big a problem, However if you are getting algae all over, you need to do as Jon says and lower the flood height so that the top of the media stays dry.

[Deon Oddie]

Hey guys,I think I'm starting to get the hang of things my nitrite and nitrate are up is that do to not enough plants to cycle the tank? what causes this...

[TCLynx]

Too much ammonia or nitrite means you don't have enough filtration or circulation through that filtration or you have too many fish for the filtration you have.

Too much nitrate means you need more plants to use up the nitrate from your fish.

The plants don't cycle the tank, Cycling up a system is the term we use when we are talking about establishing the bio-filter bacteria colonies that convert the ammonia (toxic to fish) into nitrite (also toxic to fish) and the nitrite into nitrate (which the plants use).  See Aquaponics is more than just plants and fish, the most important part of the whole system is the filtration and the key to filtration is the bacteria.  An aquaponics system can be kept going for a time without plants or without fish but it doesn't function at all without the bacteria.  Without the bacteria you can only do sterile chemical aquaponics.