Barrelponic School System

[GreenPhoenix]

So as a high school teacher I have always had an interest in projects that can help lead my students to learn something new, and hopefully even interest them to the level that they WANT to learn more on their own... To that end, this year I decided that I was going to involve my extra-curricular club in a little project called "Barrel-ponics". They had no idea what they were in for! We were able to "free-source" most of the materials (It is amazing what people will donate to a school!!!), and we bought the rest for a total investment of about $250 (which the school generously footed).

I don't have any pictures of us building the setup, these are as it stands today. There is a bit more work that we are going to do - namely adding a second Bell Siphon to a growbed and building a solid framework to hang our grow lights from. But we have plants (Basil and Strawberry) and a few goldfish. Soon to have some Tilapia (thanks Badflash).








Our school year ends here in about 3 weeks, so I think that I am going to be managing the system over the summer, but I hope to get a full greenhouse for the kids over the summer and find a way to either move this system outside, or build some new ones out there and keep this as an indoor display system...

Either way, I think I have my kids hooked and since they are finishing their freshman year now, I will have them in this program for at least a few more years. Two of them are already talking to their parents about building systems in their backyards over the summer! I think that it is safe to say that they have been bitten by the bug.

Phoenix

[wolfracer]

Very nice! I am glad to see this as part of the classroom. Keep up the good work.

[davidstcldfl]

Very nice....

[JCO]

You sound like a very dedicated teacher and the students are lucky to have you and in this day and time if you can touch and inspire the mind of even one child then you can consider yourself a success.

[REEFBUG]

Hi Phoenix, system is looking good. Great job, I am glad to see a teacher that cares enough to show kids how something works and put in the effort for something they can touch and really see what's going on and end up with "fruit" of their labors. (pun intended).

Keep it up.

[GreenPhoenix]

Ok so I have my first problem (I think) with this system..... Today we finished installing the second bell siphon (works great!), but one of my kids noticed something in one of the growbeds....

Specifically it was in the growbed that is NOT directly under the light. It seems like a thin filamentous white fuzz that is growing between the hydroton balls..... I have had water running through this bed for almost a month now and nothing. But this has now appeared less than 48 hours after I planted some dormant strawberry roots.

Any ideas?

Phoenix

[badflash]

Might be mold or fungus of some type.

[jackalope]

Ok so I have my first problem (I think) with this system..... Today we finished installing the second bell siphon (works great!), but one of my kids noticed something in one of the growbeds....

Specifically it was in the growbed that is NOT directly under the light. It seems like a thin filamentous white fuzz that is growing between the hydroton balls..... I have had water running through this bed for almost a month now and nothing. But this has now appeared less than 48 hours after I planted some dormant strawberry roots.

Any ideas?

Phoenix

I think badflash is right ..... I'd dig down a ways into the bed and see if'n it is doing the same down below ..... possibly becuz you've been trickling water instead of F&D .... I'd check and see if'n the bell siphon is working correctly ..... if you've trickled water in or if it was filling to a different level each fill, it's possible that it may have allowed some mold spores to take hold without being washed away by one of the higher fills ...... if you find more mold/fungus down below where it is appearing, I'd empty the whole thing, put the clay balls in hot chlorinated water to kill the mold, let it dry out completely (maybe in an oven in the Home Ec room), then put it back in the barrel/GB after you install the other bell siphon .... Just my 2 centavos

[GreenPhoenix]

Ok, that sounds like a whole lotta work.... Looks like I know what I might be doing this weekend.... Is there any way that I can treat the bed, without having to remove all the grow media? I don't have access to a large oven or anything to dry out the media, though I think that I can get a large tub to soak them using chlorinated water...

Here is a pic of what I have growing.... It is only in a few spots, but it seems worst near some of the strawberry roots that I added a few days ago.... I never saw any sign of this stuff until 24 hours AFTER I put in the strawberry roots... Could the spores come from them?



Please tell me what ya'll think this is... Also, thanks for the supportive comments about teaching and such. They mean a great deal.

Phoenix

[jackalope]

Ok, that sounds like a whole lotta work.... Looks like I know what I might be doing this weekend.... Is there any way that I can treat the bed, without having to remove all the grow media? I don't have access to a large oven or anything to dry out the media, though I think that I can get a large tub to soak them using chlorinated water...

Unless there is a safe way of diverting the chlorinated water from dropping into the FT, I don't know how else you would do it. As far as the oven, that was just an extra precaution that might be possible if you had access to one ..... probably not absolutely necessary .... my wife says that everything I do is 'Overkill.'

Here is a pic of what I have growing.... It is only in a few spots, but it seems worst near some of the strawberry roots that I added a few days ago.... I never saw any sign of this stuff until 24 hours AFTER I put in the strawberry roots... Could the spores come from them?

Sounds possible to me I think you're on the right track

Please tell me what ya'll think this is... Also, thanks for the supportive comments about teaching and such. They mean a great deal.

I wish more teachers would take as much interest in teaching like you do, rather than worrying about whether kids are eating candy, whether kids are wearing American Flag T-shirts, or whether kids are taking down foreign flags that have been placed above the US flag (breach of flag protocol).

Phoenix