Aquaponics Getting started.

[theremart]

RE: Bio char..

A floating raft system is what was recommended to me. With the pots
on top of it filled with charcoal. I'm not sure yet what the optimum charcoal
source is but for the most part, just about any biochar should remain inert
for a couple thousand years.

I think I can cook up some biochar in my small wood gas stove it has a blower that should give the oxygen needed to make the good char. Think I can test at least one pot, but will take me some time to gather enough char for one pot.

The biochar itself should be fine, but wood ash is what is used to make lye, so it needs to be rinsed off is my thought.

[Cherryman]

This reminds me of the "black soil" of Brazil.

Usually the rainforest soil itself is very poor and bad for agriculture. (Funny, such a rich environment on such a soil.)

But some parts of the rainforest haver world famous "black soil"" they dig it and sell it.

Researchers found out that the black soil was a result of an ancient civilization who mixed the forrest soil with charcoal ( not ashes! ) , by mixing the two together, and adding there garbage they created the best soil in the world.


I will try to see if i can find the article.

Edit: I remembered, it was ha video.

The Secret of El Dorado | Watch Free Documentary Online

[Savvypro]

This reminds me of the "black soil" of Brazil.

Usually the rainforest soil itself is very poor and bad for agriculture. (Funny, such a rich environment on such a soil.)

But some parts of the rainforest haver world famous "black soil"" they dig it and sell it.

Researchers found out that the black soil was a result of an ancient civilization who mixed the forrest soil with charcoal ( not ashes! ) , by mixing the two together, and adding there garbage they created the best soil in the world.


I will try to see if i can find the article.

Edit: I remembered, it was ha video.

The Secret of El Dorado | Watch Free Documentary Online

The last 8 mins of the video covers the Terra Preta. It's funny how the narrator states from 43:28: "charcoal seams to hold the nutrients in the soil, preventing them from being washed away by the rains”.

His description reminds me of activated carbon, where it starts off sucking up (if you will) all the stuff you don’t want (e.g.: chemicals in drinking water, fish tanks etc.). But there is a limit to how much it can remove, once its reached it, the stuff that has been removed is leached back. When that happens or before it starts to leach, the activated carbon is replaced.

From 46:20: "There are literally tens of thousands of species of bacteria and fungi in the soil and they suspect that somewhere among them must be unique microorganisms that allow the terra preta to grow."

Me thinks their looking for a needle in a haystack, trying to find that one or two magical species that make it all possible. Instead of realising that the terra preta with its "literally tens of thousands of species of bacteria and fungi" is what makes the soil grow.

[Aaron]

terra preta and earthworms

Comparable results (field test vs real terra preta) have been
accomplished without tens of thousands.

But for terra preta, the earthworm (peregrine) is needed to
consume, digest, carry and release the biochar/fungal deeper
into the soil - that is how the black earth is regenerated deeper
and deeper. The worms carry it down.

Now the peregrine is just what is in the soil down there.

Plenty of earthworm tests have been done showing that just
about any earthworm prefers high biochar content soil and there
almost doesn't seem to be a limit to the saturation %.

There are a few links here:
http://www.energeticforum.com/agricu...cumentary.html

I have quite a few documents on the earthworms, etc... but it is
all online anyway - pretty incredible what has come out of all the
terra preta research.

[ashtweth]

Guys what if you had a gravity feed system with pump and when the water falls back down into the fish it turns a small turbine and you recover some power...for lights or storage?

[theremart]

RE: getting more energy out.

Guys what if you had a gravity feed system with pump and when the water falls back down into the fish it turns a small turbine and you recover some power...for lights or storage?

Well ash, I run a flood and drain system. I was thinking along the same idea. only I was thinking in terms of building up hydrolic pressure as each time I fill the tank it puts in 60 gallons of water which it does in about 20 min.

No 60 gallons times 8 lbs force = 480 lbs force that is put into the tank then released It seems one could use this on a lever or a geared wheel to store this energy.

Anyhow, my target is to grow plants that will be fuel like sugar beets which can be made to alcohol.

So many different ways to go with this. Algae grows thickly in the water, if exposed to sunlight It seems like an opportunity to make oil.

One experiment at a time. Food first :-)

[Cherryman]

Guys what if you had a gravity feed system with pump and when the water falls back down into the fish it turns a small turbine and you recover some power...for lights or storage?

Ash, i thought of that, but it would not be efficient.

the power you gain is the same you need to bring the water up in the first place.

So it could work, but only if you have a pump that already delivers enough height and that height get wasted; you could win some power back.

I want to try if i can use the weight of the dripping water to rotate the setup slowly. I'm thinking of weight displacement.

[theremart]

Latest update.

YouTube - 110 More expansion.wmv

Finished both new grow beds, update on plants, and strawberry tower almost finished.

[Cherryman]

Hi,

Welcome to the club :-)

Are you using a T fitting to create like a pulsar pump to drive the water up with air?

I am also getting parts to build an indoor aquaponics setup, I may use a pump on a timer, but looks like you have a good working system there.

Thanks for sharing!

Mart

Hi Mart,

Yes I use a simple T fitting at the lowest possible point in the water reservoir. I have currently two of those. Getting a good drip flow takes some tweaking sometimes, but it works. I raise the water to approx. 1.6 meters, and my pond depth is about 30cm.

By having two dripping systems, i do wonder if i create some "charge" as my setup is a metal fence and the dripping water.. Lord Kelvin :-)

It is all just quick and dirty installed for now, to test the principle. So far it looks good, i do worry however if the water stays healthy due to the fact i do not have much filtration.

The water dripping back into the fish tank is filtrated trough the plants roots and soil/rocks/hydro pallets. So only those few drops are the filtering part in my water system.

I'm thinking of maybe let the drip-system fill a reservoir with a siphon. Then i can use both methods, dripping and/or the flood and drain.

I hope to keep a good balance by having some plants in the water, and air bubbles. I try to think "nature" so i use a mix of hydro pallets and some crushed mixed rock (Not know the English name) for the soil beds, I added those rocks as i think the water will release some minerals from them, (As happens in nature as well) It might not be much, but i think it will add to the balance.

I will update soon, i did squeeze out a tomato and a red pepper above one of the pots, and within 4 days i had little plants popping up :-)

[Cherryman]

YouTube - 110 More expansion.wmv

Finished both new grow beds, update on plants, and strawberry tower almost finished.

You have an impressive setup!

Keep up the good work, i will be watching

[ashtweth]

Ash, i thought of that, but it would not be efficient.

the power you gain is the same you need to bring the water up in the first place.

So it could work, but only if you have a pump that already delivers enough height and that height get wasted; you could win some power back.

I want to try if i can use the weight of the dripping water to rotate the setup slowly. I'm thinking of weight displacement.

, I found a place here that uses gravity in aquaponics my friends ill go and film and bring some back ASAP.

check this out a pool conversion system with Chickens!
GardenPool.org | How we turned an old backyard swimming pool into a self-sufficient garden in a desert city.
Guys have not got time to search i think its FREE info, they have "shelf ponics" there


GP Blog | GardenPool.org | How we turned an old backyard swimming pool into a self-sufficient garden in a desert city.

[Cherryman]

Great site

Hi Ash,

Thats a great site, with some good info. Especially for those wanna start with aquaponics it gives a good overview of possibilities

[theremart]

Awesome video for strawberry towers.

YouTube - How To Build Your Own Strawberry Tower!

Check it out. Very sweet.

[theremart]

RE Ash Swimming pool conversion.

I have seen their videos, and love them, I might not have the chickens right over the fish tank as they do, but they have some great ideas.

I am getting some tips from a friend who has visited the grow power setup.

Pea and Sunflower Shoots on aquaponics | Aquaponic Lynx LLC

[theremart]

Seed starting

YouTube - Video 111 Seed Starting.wmv


Many different ways of starting seeds, and my rocket stove.