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Apollo
08-31-2013, 01:02 PM
Pipe Siphon by Apollo;

Thank you all for the advice on Bell Siphons and the use of a Continuous Flow System. After weeks of not getting the proper results . I figured out an easier and more efficient way of circulating the flow on my aquaponics system. No Bells, No Reducers, No Little Air Bleed Off Tubes, No Moving Parts, nothing to tinker with on a weekly basis, takes minutes not hours to set-up and costs less.

Pipe Siphon by Apollo is made from the same size pipe you would make your Bell Siphon stand pipe from. Just add a tee on the top of the pipe, two 90’s, two down pipes (all the same size) and no funnels, floating caps or restrictors. At the end of the two down pipes you need to add a media blocker. I bought two 6” round atrium gates at a cost of $7.31 each for my media blockers (Cutting your old media blocker in half, adding more holes or slots to the upper portion and capping off the tops would work too).

I have two 300 gallon GBs with a 850 gallon fish tank . My Pipe Siphons are made from 1 ˝ " PVC Pipe, Tee’s & 90’s . The top of my Pipe Siphon is about 1 ˝“ down from the top edge of the GB . Both down pipes stop about 1 ˝” from the bottom of the GB. (PLEASE NOTE! Both down pipes need to be even at the water line to help break the siphon at the end of the drain cycle). This is all connected to an existing 2” bulkhead fitting, one 90 elbow and about 20” of 2“ pipe and another 90 elbow at the end of that pipe (in the fish tank). This elbow helps to fine tune your siphon, point it up at a slight angle to help it “FIRE” sooner, keeping if closer to level will help it reset. Your pipe siphon will take several gulps of air before loosing enough water volume to break it’s siphon. I’m not sure how this will work if your pipe siphon and your drain are the same size pipe, but if your Bell Siphon System worked at least part time I think you’ll be fine.

The principle behind the Pipe Siphon by Apollo is it takes two down pipes for each stand pipe to fire the system. When the down pipes sucks air it cuts the siphon, which then shuts the system down. You should be able to run a higher volume of water into your GB. If at the end of the drain cycle air gulps fails to stop the system, decrease your water flow little by little to the GB until it breaks the siphon or turn the 90 elbow in your fish tank closer to level.

So far, so good, and I'm very satisfied with the circulating flow. My large GB's will fill in 8 minutes and drain in 4 minutes @ about 900 gallons of water flow per hour, per GB.

Now to let the system settle in and decide what plants and fish to put in the tanks. Anybody know of a good source for hybrid striped bass and freshwater prawns in Arizona???

I made a mental note of this sign when I was attempting to get the Bell Siphon to work!
I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

The inserts between the Tee and the 90's are just small sections of pipe.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4789&stc=1
Anyone need some slightly used Bell Siphons?
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4790&stc=1

GB & FT under construction, Quail cage in the back ground.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4791&stc=1

Pipe Siphon & Water Level Gauge just behind it.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4792&stc=1

Pipe Siphon by Apollo
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4793&stc=1

eddiemigue
08-31-2013, 04:38 PM
Nice. Rigid loop siphon, eh?

I had considered this some time ago, thinking that a single "U" would work. Guess you need a "T" and two down pipes. Glad to hear that your are having success. Nice looking setup, and kudos on the quail. I am considering adding quail to my backyard production at some time in the future...we'll see.

Roger L.
08-31-2013, 06:41 PM
Nice setup Apollo. Going to make for some nice scenery to look at while relaxing. Water control and the angle of my final 90 degree elbow is what helped me tune my bell siphon.

JCO
09-01-2013, 12:59 AM
Apollo, please don't take this the wrong way, the type of siphon you have made is nothing new except you got more elaborate than is necessary for it to work.

An elbow siphon is what I used when I was using a raft system in my grow bed and I wrote about it sometime back. I looked for the post but have not been able to find it.

It really isn't necessary to have a "T" at the top. A 90 degree elbow out to another 90 degree to take it straight down is sufficient. The screen around the bottom is a good idea as long as it does not get clogged with media or debris and restrict the flow of water.

I personally never did like the Bell siphon...to much work considering the simplicity of the elbow siphon.

Even though, don't ever let me or anyone restrict your creative juices.

Apollo
09-01-2013, 12:00 PM
I read your post where you're using a stand pipe for constant flow with a constant level. My question is how does that system get enough oxygen to the roots of your plants? If the water in your GB never drains out the bottom, it just drains from the top only. Doesn't that impede somehow with the circulation of the water in the GB? I would think that the water on the bottom 2/3 of the GB would go stagnant.

I know the slots on my media blockers are a little too large, but I covered them with 1/2" to 3/4" cinders. The cinders stop the smaller media from plugging the slots, plus with two media blockers it should that twice as long to plug up and restrict the flow of water. Time will tell...so far so good, it has been right on the money every time.

TO ALL THAT ARE READING THIS...IN ORDER TO MAKE THIS SITE WORK, YOU MUST REPLY ( SAY SOMETHING, HI, WHERE YOU LIVE, ANYTHING ) OR WE WILL BE NO MORE!

JCO
09-01-2013, 01:07 PM
There is a circular current of water in the grow bed because of the way the water comes in. All raft systems operate this way in order to maintain a constant level. :mrgreen:

Corey B
09-01-2013, 02:07 PM
So silly question is this better then a bell siphon

Apollo
09-01-2013, 02:21 PM
I tired for 3 weeks to get the Bell Siphon System to work, redid the design a dozen or more times. I even jack hammered through the bottom of my GB and the side of my FT and tried another drain set up. I could get it to start & stop but never to fire, without it firing my GB would over flow.

So my answer is 100% YES, my very 1st design took me 20 minutes to build and have it up and operating. From there I spent about 4 hours tweaking it to come up with a Pipe Siphon that has never got struck at the end of the drain cycle, leaving my GB dry and allowing all your plants to die. It has never fail to fully engage or fire on the drain cycle, so it has never allowed all of your water to over flow my GB which would do major water damage and leaving my fish in little to no water.

Even if I had finally got the Bell Siphon to work my confidence level would have been so low I would have a hard time sleeping, working, just doing anything for fear that it would fail.

Roger R.
09-02-2013, 08:51 AM
I like your design, it's basically an internal loop siphon. My only concern with completely burying it in the media would be possible root clogs.

Maybe I was just lucky but my first bell siphon worked perfectly from the start and has been working non-stop since last October. I had tried an external loop siphon and couldn't get that to work consistently.

Apollo
09-02-2013, 09:13 AM
You could use the same kind of media block that the Bell Siphon uses just add one to each down pipe. Or place it in a corner and block off the whole corner. My thought is if the PVC barrier on the Bell Siphons gets root bond you'll still need to pull it out to clean it from the outside. About the same amount of work the pull and clean either one, but with the Pipe Siphon having two media barriers and my smallest PVC tubing is 1 1/2" not 3/4". it should go 6 - 7 times longer before it needs to be cleaned (a lot less work over time).



A picture of my underground control box. Center is my quick water return back to aerator ring. The small 1/2" PVC is hooked up to my tree water system, can refill FT 2X a week. Or I can close the value and hook a hose to my rain barrels to keep full.

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4794&stc=1

I added two Street 90's to each return pipe, makes it easier to fine tune and water dumps to the center of FT. In the center of both GB's you will see my old Media Guards. I pull the bell out and made the stand pipe taller, I now use it for my emergency over flow return (just in case...).

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4795&stc=1

Picture of my child/dog proof cover. Still waiting for the rest of my Media for the right side GB. Waiting for more rain in my rain barrels to finish filling FT.


http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4796&stc=1

Aloha Don
09-03-2013, 04:45 PM
Looks nice.
Looks like it takes a little more room in your GB but if you NEVER have to tinker with it....it would be worth it.
With it completely buried, you never intend to have to do maintenance on it?
Since that corner is for the siphon use, have you considered just sectioning off the GB and no have media in that area?
It would allow easy access just in case...
Keep up the good work.

Apollo
09-03-2013, 05:32 PM
On both of my GBs, I originally started with the Bell Siphon in the middle of each bed. Found out that it was harder to dig out and keep the media from floating back in on all sides. I abandon those because of the 1" drain pipe, and tried a more direct approach with a 2" drain pipe. The corner is easier to dig out and control the floating media.

You could use the same kind of media block that the Bell Siphon uses and not bury them. My thought is when the PVC barrier on the Bell Siphons gets root bond you'll still need to pull it out to clean it from the outside. About the same amount of work the pull and clean either one, but with the Pipe Siphon having two media barriers and using larger diameter pipe with no restrictors it should go 2 - 3 times longer before it needs to be cleaned (much less work over time).

I was planning boxing off that corner for easier maintenance but since it was operating so well I decided to bury both of them. Maybe plant something that doesn't root too deep or just not plant there at all.

On my 1st drain system in the middle of both GBs, I just remove the bell and lengthen the stand pipe...they are now used as my emergency over flow.

Apollo
09-28-2013, 08:46 AM
Just added a battery back up system.

________________________________________

I made a mental note of this sign when I was attempting to get the Bell Siphon to work!
I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

Battery Back up; two 6 volt golf cart batteries wired in series and a 12 volt water pump.

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4797&stc=1

Drop in one divider board with vent holes cut into it, a battery charger with a tickle charge setting.

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4799&stc=1

Water proof top, just snaps in place. When power goes off, just close two values and open one. Then just connect the water pump to the battery.

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4798&stc=1

Aloha Don
09-29-2013, 01:23 PM
Looking good but you should think about an automatic transfer switch in case you are not around when the power fails
I did a quick search ... but this looks fairly inexpensive and may work for you...

http://www.chargingchargers.com/powermax/pmts-30-transfer-switch.html

Apollo
09-29-2013, 03:08 PM
Thanks Aloha Don

I'll be looking into that on Monday, it looks like it will work with a little modification to my existing set up. I'll also check to see if there is away to hook another one to my solar panels so when the grid goes down. I think if it can make the switch fast enough it will allow my solar electric to keep my invertors running.

Got another question regarding the forum, I'm not listed anymore on the topic board. How do I get back where people can view my progress?

Roger L.
09-29-2013, 06:33 PM
Does it do any good to have an automatic switch when you have to close two valves on the water side?

Apollo
09-29-2013, 07:28 PM
That's where the "it looks like it will work with a little modification to my existing set up" comes in. I would just run the water directly to the GB not having it hooked into the drip ring around the GB. That way all values can stay in the open position, it will just bypass the ring.

I'm doing a 8 minute flood and a 4 minute drain from my 1,650 gph pump, about 850 goes by to the aerator ring in the FT. The other 800 gph is split between both GB's at 400 gph to each, but my battery pump is only 300 gph divided between the GB's is only 150 gph. At this rate it will not fire my pipe siphon, water comes into the GB's from the top and is siphon off from the bottom. Kind of like a continuous flow GB...is this OK? Can it run like that for 8 hours a day before going back the full power?

___________________________________

I made a mental note of this sign when I was attempting to get the Bell Siphon to work!
I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

Apollo
10-19-2013, 07:47 AM
I've been told that my water temp. which was running 76 - 78 needed to be cooler. With the cooler night time temps my water is now running 72 -74, with no deference in the fishes swimming or eating activities.

I have about 50 (four inch) Hybrid Pink Tilapia's and 8 (three inch) Gold Fish, they seem to be doing fine. About 70% will surface anytime I walk up to the tank when their hungry. I read that the optimal temp 74 - 80 for the Tilapia & 65 - 75 for the Gold Fish. I have some extra black pond liner that I was going to cover 1/2 of the fish tank during the day to heat the water. At night I have a spar cover I can put over the tank to hold the heat in.

My system is not fully cycled in yet, my readings are: PH 8.2 / Ammonia 0.25 / Nitrite 0 / Nitrate 60. My question is should I bring the temp up to 75 which is great for both fish types or wait until it finishes cycling in and my PH & Ammonia levels are lower?

Apollo
10-30-2013, 08:30 PM
Just remake the cover for the FT, got rid of the galvanized metal mesh that I was using as a safety barrier for the Grandkids. Went with black vinyl window screen and vinyl lattice work with more wood reinforcement. Cuts down on the debris and probably the heavy metals in the FT, should be better all the way around.

I used a hot tub cover over the FT last night, the water temp was at 70 at sundown and went up to 72 by morning. Pretty good...not only did it hold the heat in went up by 2 degrees, even with the outside temp dropping to around 50.

Fish are large enough to get a decent picture of them now.

Nitrates are up and I will be putting my starter plugs in shortly.

If you want to see my before pictures go to "Fire Pit ... AP" by Apollo. Thanks

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4800&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4801&stc=1

Roger L.
10-31-2013, 08:47 AM
Your setup is so very aesthetically pleasing. I bet it is nice to just pull up a lawn chair, have a cold beer, light a good cigar and just watch fish swim and plants grow. Very nice job!

Apollo
11-11-2013, 03:31 PM
Thanks Roger, Looks nice and sounds even better...you can hear the sound of a mountain stream clear into the house.

Thanks JCO in the "Breeding Tilapia help", I went by Goodwill on the way home from work and spent $15 for something just a little more decorative (ceramic pots and a cookie jar). On the underside of the cookie jar lid, I cut notches for the frys to hide. Kind a like nursery addition to the main house.

It's amazing what light refection off from water can do the a picture, I had to take the last picture right at sundown. All pots, rock and tower are one to two feet underwater, fish are mostly on the surface. The lattice work, trees and sky are just the refection off the water.

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4802&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4803&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4804&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4805&stc=1

Apollo
01-19-2014, 10:04 PM
New update...Got Vertigrow??

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4806&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4807&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4808&stc=1

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4809&stc=1

Apollo
02-27-2014, 11:37 AM
Well, my Pipe Siphon has been operating non-stop now for over 6 months. No cleaning, tweaking or adjustments, I even change to a small pump, added vertical towers and change my plumbing when I added my Whirlpool Filter. I planted my radishes right on top of where I buried the Pipe Siphon...because they have a short root system.

On my potato plant it sprouted up 2 days ago, looks like it should do will in the GB. It would be nice just to reach down into the media a pick your potatoes with out killing the plant.

JCO
02-27-2014, 02:59 PM
You're livin' the life :mrgreen:

David - WI
02-27-2014, 04:09 PM
Very nice setup... I would be proud to show that off!

dead_sled
02-28-2014, 07:30 AM
Well, my Pipe Siphon has been operating non-stop now for over 6 months. No cleaning, tweaking or adjustments, I even change to a small pump, added vertical towers and change my plumbing when I added my Whirlpool Filter.


Very nice! Definitely a good looking system. Will you be able to run the system year round? I am curious about how the summer heat will affect your operation.

Apollo
02-28-2014, 10:58 PM
Well, my system was up and running though August 2013 and the temp stayed between 78 - 82. The FT is on the east side of my GBs and receives morning sun up to noon before the shade from the trees give them afternoon protection. Being in the ground and shaded in the afternoon, plus I have two umbrella stands build into the east and west side of the FT. I seemed to work out all right...trees can be trimmed or let grow as needed.

On my organic garden that I built before learning about AP, runs with a shade screen (50% shade) all year round on just the west half of garden area. Plants seem to do fine all year round with out removing the shade screen.

_______________________________
I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

Apollo
03-06-2014, 12:39 PM
I went on an AP tour of a large Constant Flow Raft System…his plants were doing awesome, way better than mine in a Ebb & Flow Media System. He had also stated that he started out with media in both of his large GB’s and later pull out all the media in 80% of the GB’s and changed over to Raft System.

I have seen several AP system using the Ebb & Flow Media System and the FT water was 90 - 95% clear…plants were doing OK.

The two Raft systems I have viewed the FT water was only about 15 to 20% clear, you can see what appears to be fish but that’s about all…plants were doing awesome. WHY ? ? ?

1. Does the media act like a sand filter removing a lot of the smaller particles?

2. Is it possible to change a Ebb & Flow Media to a Constant Flow Raft System, without the Raft and used the media instead?

3. Water flow: :arrow: fish tank, whirlpool filter, back into the grow bed though a aerator ring on top of the media, water being remove from the bottom of the GB by a non-firing bell siphon.

The media will give the plants the root support, give my red wiggler worms a home and act like a sand filter to keep the FT water 90 - 95% clear. Your plants will benefit with 100% of the water all the time, same as in a Raft System. :idea:

Apollo
04-10-2014, 09:30 AM
I had to modify my Veritgrow Towers;

Water feeding the towers were damaging the foliage by keeping it too wet. I added a down cap, which also allows me to increase my water flow.

Water as it trickled down the towers would exit the towers at the back corners of the openings. Making a mess and not completely watering the bottom plants in the towers.

http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4810&stc=1

Adding water diverter cap...look at the tower in background, see the water mess.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4811&stc=1

Add "Plumbing Goop" in a U shape around the opening.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4812&stc=1

This step needs to be done before installing and planting.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4813&stc=1

A much cleaner look.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4814&stc=1

dead_sled
04-10-2014, 10:04 AM
Nice solution to the problem. Are the rings that were added below the opening made from cutoffs from the pipe?

Apollo
04-10-2014, 10:08 AM
Yes, I had enough scrapes to make up just over half of the openings...had to buy a 10' piece to make up the rest.

sandra
04-18-2014, 03:52 AM
New update...Got Vertigrow??
Extremely nice Apollo.
Everyone should be doing this! :D

Apollo
04-20-2014, 10:09 AM
Thank you, Sandra

I've got 30 strawberry plants growing in them, they are doing better than the ones in my GB.

Well, I decided to get all my DUCKweed in a row…went to Home Depot got $3.50 worth of PVC tubing and four 90 elbows. The window shade screen was left over from when I built my Self Sustainable Breeding Tank and the Plumbing Goop was left over from my Vertigrow Towers.

Duckweed floating raft will go into my main FT right beside my breeding tank, it will be 24” wide X 30” long and 5” deep. I also have a small aquarium that will serve as a back up duckweed tank, it will get more sunlight, water exchanges from main FT. Once a week or so I will transfer some duckweed between the two growing area’s. I will also be adding some DW to the center fountain of my Organic Garden...who knows it might love it, will improve the look of the water too.

I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

Top rail is not glued at this time, using it to mark size...will later be seal to the 90's to make it water tight.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4815&stc=1

3/4" thin wall PVC used to provide more air space...fastening screening to PVC side rails.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4816&stc=1

90 angles are custom fitted to the 5" corner supports, sealed at the top...to hold air.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4817&stc=1

Now just cut and glue are four corners.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4818&stc=1

Duckweed needs still water...if DW raft floats over to the aerators will that cause too much movement?
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4819&stc=1

Apollo
05-29-2014, 12:04 PM
HELP HELP MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After my system cycled back in Dec 2012 my PH which was running at 8.2 - 8.4 it took 30 days before it hit 7.4
I then added quail egg shells which kept my PH between 7.4 - 7.8 and my plants were doing great.

In March the PH when to 8.2 - 8.4 all plants a doing less than OK, I removed the egg shells but can not get the PH down.

PH = 8.4
Ammonia = 0.25 ppm
Nitrite = 0 ppm
Nitrate = 160 ppm
Temp = 80 deg.

Can what I planted be affecting my PH levels? Maybe the onions or potatoes?

topz
05-29-2014, 10:11 PM
Are you trying to lower it naturally over time or are you willing to put in phosphoric acid to lower a little faster. If you do use the acid use small amounts

Apollo
05-29-2014, 10:20 PM
I was tiring to let the system recover by itself, or at the very least figure out what was driving it up.

My thought was to find and fix the problem, then let the system recover by itself. With no dead or sick fish, GB's are clean, my thought was that I might of killed off my red wiggles worms with maybe too many water exchanges. Too much chlorine over a short period of time or I damaged the bio filter. when I was tiring to bring my Nitrates down from the 200 range.

I have never used phosphoric acid to lower the PH, about how much should be used on a 850 gal setup?

topz
05-29-2014, 10:35 PM
I use 1 tablespoon in my 300 gallon system when my ph climbs due to bad pea gravel in one of my beds.

JCO
05-30-2014, 06:47 AM
Too much chlorine over a short period of time

Why would you have chlorine in your water. If it is tap water, let it set (even aeroate it for quicker results) and the chlorine will evaporate :mrgreen:

Apollo
05-30-2014, 07:08 AM
Probably one of my biggest mistakes, I had read that if you do a water exchange of less then 50% that the amount of chlorine would not affect the fish. Since I was doing less than a 25% exchange per day I thought that was even a better safety margin.

I did not take into consideration what it might do to the bio filter or worms in my GB's. On top of all that I later discovered the PH on the city water was at 8.4

I did bring down my Nitrates but in doing so drove my PH levels too high. I was hoping that time would bring if back to normal, but it's been over 45 days with no change.

Apollo
08-31-2014, 12:29 PM
Well, my plants may not be growing very fast, my PH is still too high, my Nitrates still high but my fish seems to be doing fine.

Over the winter with the water temp dropping to 58 deg. about half of my Pink Tilapias turned almost totally black. Now that the temp is back to 82 - 84 deg. they are turning back to their normal color.

The larger Tilapia in the upper left hand corner is about 9" long and was almost completely black with the winter temp.
http://www.diyaquaponics.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=4820&stc=1

Apollo
10-31-2014, 06:03 AM
Quick update; pH is under control now, plants are doing much better.

My Pipe Siphon went for 14 months before I had to tweak the tail pipe on the North GB, not sure if my floating Duckweed raft or a fish might of bump it. It moved real easy, maybe the water flow on that 90 had loosen it up some.

News on my Whirlpool Filter / Fry Catcher, I went to clean it and found two, 2" and two, 1.5" Tilapias that were living in it. My guess is that I had Fry's born twice in the main tank, the four little guys went though the pump and was caught in the 55 gal filter. I'll be adding more places for the future Fry's to hind in the main FT.

Snails have invaded my filter system, they are keeping it a lot cleaner. I took about 100 small snails that was in the filter bag and feed them to my quails. Made for a good snack...they love it.

topz
11-07-2014, 07:06 AM
Awesome keep up the good work. Glad to hear the snails didn't clog things up.

Apollo
11-15-2014, 10:00 AM
So if the snails that are in my whirlpool filter that are eating up all of the algae and slug build up inside of the filter, keeping it really clean.

If they were to get into the GB's, why would that not be a good thing? Would they not be doing the same thing that the red wiggles worms are doing?

topz
11-16-2014, 09:42 AM
guess it depends on if the eat plant roots or plant stems. In your grow bed there is little to no chance the snails will be eaten by a predator.

Apollo
01-02-2015, 06:23 PM
Quick up date, with temp here dropping below freezing for 4 nights in a roll…high daytime temp between 44 to 51 degrees. I had to rethink my entire system, I’m shutting down the water flow to my Duckweed tank and switching from my Pipe Siphon to my Constant Flow during the night and the coldest part of the day.

With only one 500 watt heater my temp hit 50 degrees last night, 51 the night before. Lost one of my smaller Pink Tilapia yesterday another one not doing so well today. Ordered another 500 watt heater this morning and have been adding hot water to FT to hold temp at 52 degrees.

JCO
01-03-2015, 12:08 AM
I would say your efforts are almost too little, too late. Always prepare for the worst and hope for the best in Aquaponics as in life. How long have you lived where you are now? :mrgreen:

Apollo
01-04-2015, 08:28 AM
14 years at this location but have been in the valley since 1959, as a professional house painter I’ve watch the weather very closely over the past 42 years. I do not recall weather being this cold for this long.

How right you are JCO…last year I only had to run my heater for maybe 4 weeks, to keep my FT at 60 degrees or above. But I should have picked up another heater, I wanted to make sure this brand was reliable.

With my system mostly buried in the ground the water temp changes slowly, with cold snaps only lasting 1 to 2 days, things were fine last year. With 5 straight nights below freezing, cold days, plus the addition of 6 vertical towers, above ground swirl filter and my above ground duckweed tank. All adds up to a lot of heat loss, closing off the water flow to the DWT and changing over to a Constant Flow the last 2 nights has help to bring the temp up.

Will redo the plumbing to the swirl filter by adding a bypass for the cold nights and the coldest part of the day until the outside temp reaches 60 degrees or at least a few degrees about FT water.

Aloha Don
01-05-2015, 05:06 PM
Apollo - In May 2014 you said you were trying to bring down your Nitrates.....How were you doing this?

Apollo
01-05-2015, 06:22 PM
Sorry to say...NO! I've have been doing massive water exchanges. Like 150 gals per day for 5 to 6 days in a row. Ran out of rain water than started at 55 gals per day with well water that had sat for 24 hrs...for another 5 to 6 days in a row. Got it down to 160 ppm, with in a week back to 200 to 300 ppm. Then did another 1000 gals exchanged with rain water and got it down to 160 to 200 ppm. Need more plants...less fish food...more rain.

JCO
01-06-2015, 07:16 AM
I should inform you that nitrates are far less harmful than most people know so you can slack off on wasteing your water reserves. My KOI tank sometimes runs as high as 600 ppm without any stress to the fish. High Aeroation is the key. The main thing to remember is when nitrates are high, more aeroation is needed. Algae bloom will eat up most of the nitrates and fish like algae.:mrgreen:

Apollo
01-06-2015, 05:20 PM
Thanks, I've never had a Algae bloom...my water has always been crystal clear. The high Nitrate levels have not bothered the fish but seem to be taken a toll on my plants. Maybe I'm wrong but it seems like the high levels are burning up most of my plants. Bell peppers, leafy stuff and strawberries are doing well...most the other stuff will do alright for a short period then will start to dry out and die.

Apollo
02-07-2015, 01:06 PM
JCO you stated that an "Algae bloom will eat up most of the nitrates and fish like algae." so is there a way to produce an algae bloom? In doing so, I could get my Nitrates down to a level that is not burning up my plants.

Do you have Butterfly KOI? Do they swim slow enough to allow the Tilapia Fry's to avoid becoming their lunch?

JCO
02-09-2015, 08:14 AM
Is your system outside in full sun? If it is and you've never had an algae bloom, you've got one heck of a filtering system. All it takes to produce an algae bloom is nitrates and lots of sunlight. As for the nitrates burning up your plants, I don't think that's the case.

If your Bell peppers, leafy stuff and strawberries are doing fine, then I would say the problem is possibly a lack of iron? potassium? calcium? Someting is lacking somewhere and the other plants aren't getting everything they need to prosper.

I don't raise butterfly KOI and they don't swim any slower than regular KOI, however once KOI are about 3 to 4 months old they go from being carnivorous to vegeterians. The will even eat shredded lettuce as long as the pieces are small enough to get in their mouths. They are also worth more per pound than any other fish you can raise and are much easier to raise and care for.

Apollo
02-12-2015, 09:52 PM
My system gets morning sun, high noon and evening shade from the trees...water has always been super clear.

How can I test for lack of iron? potassium? calcium? What might I add to the water that the high Nitrates do not provide?

You stated that butterfly KOI don't swim any slower than regular KOI. Well, I bought 3 that are about 4 inches long and placed them in my floating duckweed tank. They can dart at 45 degree angles faster the I have ever seen a fish move before...kind of cool looking in both appearances and in the way they move.

JCO
02-13-2015, 02:38 PM
Apparently your system does not get enough sunlight for algae. I wouldn't worry about it since it's clear you can at least see your fish. My 4,000 inground fish tank constantly looks like pea soup :lol: :mrgreen:

Apollo
02-15-2015, 08:22 AM
JCO stated "If your Bell peppers, leafy stuff and strawberries are doing fine, then I would say the problem is possibly a lack of iron? potassium? calcium? Something is lacking somewhere and the other plants aren't getting everything they need to prosper."

Let me revisit the words (well or fine) and changed it to alive for an extended period of time, but could be doing so much better.

JCO I think you nailed it on the iron, my systems runs mainly on rain water...probably not much iron in it. I order some FeEDDHA which will work with pH levels between 5.8 to 9, also order a test kit to keep an eye on the iron level.

Thank you for the help, glad I found all you guys!

__________________________________________________ ________________
I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

Apollo
02-20-2015, 05:30 PM
Red, Red, Red ! ! ! Wow, I turn all my Pink Tilapia's into gold fish...just added 6% Iron EDDHA. Made my crystal clear water look like strawberry pouch, looks awesome??? :? :o :shock: :lol:

Has anyone used this product? Does the red go away? I did bring my Iron level from zero to 0.8
I was trying to get it between 2.0 - 3.0 but not sure if that's a good idea or not.

Any suggestion or help out there? Add more iron, stop, start doing water exchanges?

Apollo
06-24-2015, 08:07 PM
No more RED, and iron levels are coming up...I will never use 6% Iron EDDHA again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

topz
06-25-2015, 01:02 AM
wow what product was it for future reference?

Apollo
06-30-2015, 04:07 PM
Sorry, for not relying sooner but this new site doesn't notify when someone reply's to any of my post. So I don't get on here much anymore.

The product is from Allied Aqua, it's IRON DTPA Chelated Iron 11%

Jason
06-30-2015, 05:30 PM
Sorry, for not relying sooner but this new site doesn't notify when someone reply's to any of my post. So I don't get on here much anymore.

Check your spam folder for the emails as some email hosts filter them out. Just a thought as others are receiving them.

Jason

Apollo
09-06-2015, 11:35 AM
Hello Jason, I do not run spam on my email...so I accept all that comes to me. Since you redid the site I get nobody that comments on any of my post or wants my opinion. Not sure why it has changed, I also get no notifications on newbies joining the site. The old site had a section on the home page of the recent topics and most popular topics, that alone brought a lot of active to my posts. Pipe Siphon by Apollo has almost 16,000 views yet only 60 replies, that mean only about 20 members had posted a response to my questions or concerns. This site has lots of members looking for knowledge but very few wanting to take the time to share their own knowledge with others.

OK, lets update it's been over 1 year since I posted this on 9-06-2015 it's now 9-23-2016. Pipe Siphon by Apollo had almost 16,000 views, it now has 24,000 views, that's over 8,000 views in just over 1 year. With almost no "Replies" I would like to do an experiment! If you can read this PLEASE reply...if nothing more than to say HELLO.

After that send me an person message (PM) to say HELLO...I'm tiring to see if the lack of REPLIES has something to do with this site or just that people do not wish to take the time to respond.

With that being said...I wish each and everyone the feeling of pleasure and delight on you're journey though life.

Jason
09-06-2015, 09:45 PM
The last three contacts from this site came from you...two of them was you wanting me to rejoin the group.

NOW THE SITE WANTS ME TO GET PERMISSION TO PROFORM THIS ACTION...not a very friendly site to use!

Welcome back Apollo.

I have disabled the email notification when you have been away for a while as it seems to bother you, but am not sure what you mean by "NOW THE SITE WANTS ME TO GET PERMISSION TO PROFORM THIS ACTION...", can you please explain. As I have said in the past I am willing to try to solve any issues you have. You just have to drop me a PM.

Jason

Apollo
09-06-2015, 10:34 PM
The site wanted me to log off then log on again, it said I took to long to reply.

You disable my email notifications, not sure what that means...you stop the notifications that have to do with my post or people try to communicate me. You did this because I hadn't been on the site for a while...how would you know if it seems to bother me?

Jason
09-07-2015, 09:33 PM
No Apollo, you misunderstood me. I did not disable your emails in any way. I had disabled the emails that were sent out to all members when a member had not been on the site for a while. You know the ones I mean, the "We want you back". You had mentioned those emails and I had thought you had meant that they might be annoying. I have re-read your email and as I must have read into it more then you meant, I will re-activate them. When someone responds to your posts, you should be receiving an email. I am just not sure why you are not other then emails from me.

Jason

Apollo
10-26-2016, 10:51 PM
Well, I gave it my best...I can grow fish, duck weed, salsa peppers, jalapeno peppers & bell peppers. Aquaponic Gardening for me has not worked to produce plant life...all plants in my Organic Garden have grown 2 to 10 times better.

I have seen it work...but not for me. Love my fish tank and I will keep the system up & running but will grow 95% of plants in my Organic Garden.

After 3 years, 2 month and 25,335 Views, I guess I'm DONE. Good Luck too all and remember in order to keep the FREE KNOWLEDGE coming, you as a viewer have to do your part. Sad to see all of the old crowd gone, the ones with the real knowledge. This site gave me 95% of what I needed to be a success before it died, maybe with just a bit more knowledge I could have been successful.
__________________________________________________ ________________________________________

I HAVE NOT FAILED. I'VE JUST FOUND 10,000 WAYS THAT WON'T WORK. Thomas A Edison

Jason
10-28-2016, 08:48 AM
Hi Apollo,

I am sorry to hear that things did not work out for you, but am glad to hear that your "Organic Garden" is working great. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors.

Sincerely,
Jason

Apollo
12-30-2016, 11:01 PM
Lost this 3 1/2 year old Pink Tilapia when my power went down doing a rain strom. I went to work with out checking on the tank...no water flow = no oxygen from splash return and water temp got down to 55 degrees. All fish were breathing air from the surface about 12 hours after power had gone off. 1 fish died about 24 hours after system was restored and one died 3 days later.

When I bought this fry he was about 1/2" long...now he's part of my Organic Garden.50105009

Apollo
03-31-2017, 07:35 AM
What is the life expectancy of a Pink Tilapia? I now have one of my 3 1/2 year old fish playing possum on the bottom of the tank. She has been doing this for weeks...laying on her side not moving. As soon as I try to net her she swim away like nothing is wrong...old fish or sick fish?

Is she eatable or not? Leave her in the tank or end her life? Maybe the lack of oxygen from 2 months ago did some brain damage?

Hope to hear back from someone.

Thanks, Apollo

Jason
03-31-2017, 09:47 AM
Hey Apollo,

Great to hear from you. While I have not had any experience with the Pink Tilapia breed, they are part of the Tilapiine Cichlid family, so I would expect the life span of around ten years. So your pet at this point is still young. How many do you have left, and are they all playing possum or just the one? Could it be protecting a breeding spot? Just guessing.

Jason

Apollo
03-31-2017, 01:55 PM
I have about 15 older Tilapia, 20 younger ones, two 8" Gold Fish, two 17" Butterfly Koi. All are doing fine...Ive seen them rest on the bottom of the pond before but never laying on their side. Not in any special spot

Apollo
12-22-2019, 09:11 PM
Well, it has been 6 1/2 years and my pipe siphon has been running like a champ. I only had to pull it out once, and that was to clean out the roots that were restrict the flow of water.

I would love to hear from any of the old timers, but I know that since the site has been reworked I have not gotten many notifications. Out of over 37,700 views I thank I only had 70 reply's and that was all in the early days,

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.

Apollo has left the building!

Apollo
03-06-2023, 07:02 AM
Apollo here, I am no longer am doing my aquaponics and will be selling or giving away all of my stuff.

If you want something, please email me at rodreynolds72@gmail.com. or reply to this post.

This site has been viewed over 90,383 times...it's been fun...good luck...Apollo has left the building.