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  1. #1
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    Vermiponics School Project

    I had a choice of presenting an innovative idea for my biotechnology class, so I decided to go with a vermiponics system. I have the schematics and the worms, and all I need is some constructive criticism, so that I don't have a Red Wiggler massacre.

    Materials:

    4X 200 gallon barrels- Two of these barrels will be cut in half longitudinally and inverted to create 3 grow beds and one water tank. These grow beds will be filled with 3/4 inch gravel (or whatever is close that I can find at the nearby park).
    The other two will be used as rain barrels. One should suffice for this system though, so the other barrel is for expansion later on.

    12X yogurt containers- these will have 1/2 inch holes drilled all over it- these containers will be filled up with organic waste (paper, banana peels, stuff you'd normally throw away in the green bin). All this waste will be ground using a grinder, and the mixture will be poured onto the yogurt containers. I kinda don't get how the worms are going to get to the food, but I've read that worms don't actually eat the decomposing matter itself, but the bacteria that grows from it. That being said, would it be a bad idea to have a slow fill, fast drain recirculation system? Would the worms have a chance at eatin' the bacteria before they get flushed away from the fast drain?

    Red Wiggler Worms- Got these from an elementary school who was doin' a vermicomposting project. Maybe they missed their little buddies, but a $40 pizza party later, they don't seem to care one bit. Right now the worms are raised in a conventional peat moss/newspaper/banana peel composting bin. Most will be transplanted when the system is finished, leaving a few for a nursery/feed cushion (better to underfeed than overfeed).

    5X magnetic drive 400GPH pumps- you only need 2 to run the basic system (1 if you get kinky with the bell siphon), but a good deal- and a desire to get this to work as easy as possible before this assig is due, made me use 5. 3 goes for the grow beds (1 for each growbed), and one will be used to water conventional soil based potted plants (pots = ice cream containers; supplier=my diabetic dad). The last one will be added to the rain barrel, to pump water to the vermiponic tank when water runs too low. Of course, these pumps will be hooked onto dollar shop timers, so no over watering.

    0.75 inch tubing + screw in pipe clamps- to create a tight network for 'worm tea' and water transport.

    Plants- Easy fast growers; I'm going to cover half the planting area with seeds, and the other with seedlings- I only have one month's growing time. This isn't so as much to set food on the table as to get an A on this presentation- but I do want to keep this system for years to come, and that's when I'll start experimenting with harder crops.

    I will upload my schematics after I'm done drawing and scanning them. But please comment on the general idea; what are the holes? What can be done to improve this system? What would you do differently to ensure success of the system?

    I'm going to make a video presentation of everything (to present to the class), including the benefits of the system, and how to build it, step by step. It will also be posted on youtube once its done, along with updates.

    So stay tuned.

  2. #2
    Moderator urbanfarmer's Avatar
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    Yea, it's hard to comment because I'm not sure what exactly you are doing. A few things stick out at me. You have half a barrel as the water tank, but it's supposed to flood 3 barrels somehow? That doesn't seem to add up.

    Where are you putting the cups filled with ground up food waste? I hope on the top where it doesn't get much action with the water in the flood/drain cycles.

    I don't think you should bother with so many pumps, but how the heck are you going to manage all the pumps even if you do??

    You need to fix some problems in the design phase because it sounds like you may have quite a few.

  3. #3
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    Quote Originally Posted by urbanfarmer
    Yea, it's hard to comment because I'm not sure what exactly you are doing. A few things stick out at me. You have half a barrel as the water tank, but it's supposed to flood 3 barrels somehow? That doesn't seem to add up.

    Where are you putting the cups filled with ground up food waste? I hope on the top where it doesn't get much action with the water in the flood/drain cycles.

    I don't think you should bother with so many pumps, but how the heck are you going to manage all the pumps even if you do??

    You need to fix some problems in the design phase because it sounds like you may have quite a few.
    I guess everything will be clarified once I post the schematics.

    Those three grow bed half barrels will be filled with 3/4 inch gravel, so the space between the rocks should leave about 1/3 to be filled with water, which is why the 3:1 growbed to water tank ratio, which is also employed in aquaponics.

    The cups will be added near the top. I may stick to cream cheese containers instead of yogurt containers if the yogurt containers reach the bottom. Thanks for the heads up.

    The pumps are 400gph magnetic drive- ie. low maintenance. They also operate via. timer, and so, by using the timer settings, I can get the water to circulate to where its needed, without over flooding.
    Wattage is a problem though, so if anything, I will use T couplings and one pump to water the growbeds, and with the rainbarrel and potting soil pump, I will have only 3 pumps.

    Again, thanks for your points- I really appreciate it.

  4. #4
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    interesting idea..
    maybe go up to 1" pvc instead of tubing

  5. #5
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    Quote Originally Posted by keith_r
    interesting idea..
    maybe go up to 1" pvc instead of tubing
    I'll probably do that for the solid system (pumps in the water tank), as 1'' pvc would increase flow rate of solid sediments such as worm castings. The bends in the tubing may clog up the system. The rain barrel pump will use regular tubing, as no sediment will be transported.

    I've also decided to downsize to 2 growbeds instead of 3, and use a smaller water storage tank, due to space constraints, and the number of worms I have available to start the growbeds, and meanwhile, grow the worm population in the regular compost bin. In due time, once I have amassed enough worms, I will expand to 3 growbeds.

    Only thing I worry about now is the stability of the system. Less water volume in the system = more pH and temperature fluctuations. However, the frequent addition of water from the rain barrel will add to a bit more stability, and worms are known to survive a variety of conditions- large pH and temperature ranges.

    I have also cut down the number of pumps I need to 3.
    I'll be using two of these pumps (one to water the plants, and one to transfer water to growbeds):

    http://cgi.ebay.com/580-GPH-AQUARIUM-PO ... 43a6dd4bd0

    540gph each, magnetic drive and a low number of moving parts to ensure reliability and unhampered flow of solid sediment.

    And one $25 240 gph regular pump that will pump water from the rain barrel to the water tank.
    http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-pets-accesso ... Z280168673

  6. #6
    Moderator urbanfarmer's Avatar
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    Looks okay

  7. #7
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    What plants to grow? What about winter?

    I decided to use the growbeds to grow fruits and fruit bearing vegetables: melons, strawberries, blueberries, bell peppers, and okra. I will use the soil pots to grow a variety of herbs, green beans, okra, and eggplants.

    I want to take advantage of the nutrient profile of worm castings, which easily allows trace mineral intense crops such as blueberries to grow. http://www.pollardworms.com/where_to_buy_worm_castings/

    An aquaponics based vermiponics system also provides optimal drainage, preventing plants with soft fibrous roots such as blueberries from developing root rot.

    The indoor environment will also provide protection for more delicate plants, such as melons.

    I also want to have a chance to eat my berries and veggies before the insects do.

    I am also stumped as to what to do once winter hits. Temperatures can get below zero in my sun room, and my folks aren't too keen about bringing the system indoors. I'm not planning on growing crops during the winter, but I do want my worms to survive. Installing a water heater to the system, and lining the outsides of the barrels with insulating material such as old sweaters and blankets should do the trick, correct?

  8. #8
    Moderator urbanfarmer's Avatar
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    Old sweaters and blankets will help (depends on what kind of blanket too), but you better pile them on to get some really good insulation!

    Having the system indoors shouldn't pose a problem, and it might make the sun room a lot more fun and interesting. If I had a sun room, I would definitely fill it with plants in an aquaponic system!!!

  9. #9
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    only as long as the fabrics are dry and they maintain the air spaces within the fabrics.

  10. #10
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    Re: Vermiponics School Project

    The sun room is also my bike workshop- pretty neat place if only it had enough insulation.

    UPDATE

    - I decided to scrap the bell siphon mechanism, and go with timers, mainly because in Toronto, timers are cheaper than PVC pipes. That, and the system is indoors- not subject to the rigors of outside weather. It also me to not run the pump continuously, therefore allowing for savings in power. Only problems I can think of is the worm castings not being expelled from the system effectively, which could pose a threat for the worms. Of course, the plants above will be using the nutrients, so that might offset the toxicity, but is it still enough? Clogging of the drain hole will also screw up timing, which would therefore require periodic cleaning of said hole, as well as employing a long drain interval to ensure nearly all the water gets drained.

    I'm also wondering if it is really important in a vermiponics system like this, to not have the top layer of rocks get wet? Would I risk an algal bloom if the top layer of rocks were wet? Cyanobacteria, which is mainly responsible for algal blooms, do reside in any conceivable environment, but are mostly situated in aquatic environments involving fish. Hence, with a system dealing only with worms, the risk of algal blooms is negligible, right?

    Anyhoos, I got everything I needed except for the 3/4 inch gravel and plants, and I will be posting up vids on Monday hopefully.

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