Aquaponics Biofilter | Adding a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor to the Aquaponics System
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- Опубликовано: 17 окт 2020
- G'Day Folks. Decided I wasn't happy with the small static pack biofilter that's in the aquaponics system so have upgraded to a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor.
Am fairly happy with the build but might add a drain valve to it yet if I have issues cleaning it out in 6-8 months time.
Hope you enjoy this quick update & your gardens are booming.
Cheers all. 🐟 🌱🍅
Rob
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Cheers all & have a top one. 😊
Rob
Thanks Rob! I’m working on my own system at the moment!
Hope the build goes smoothly Kody. 👍👍
Good build Rob and another great video mate.
Thanks Mike. Cheers mate & have a top one.
I couldnt find this on your guide, freat video! Glad i found it on here!
ED to add, I thought this was the other Bio video. I just saw your comment there as well. 😉👍
Hey Pal thanks for sharing this brilliant video, we are thinking of setting up a moving bed soon for our koi fry pond soon!
Nice one HP.
Hope the build goes smoothly.👍
Cheers mate.
Great clip Rob
Thanks Dwayne.
Cheers & have a top one mate. 👍
Very nice and informative presentation brother
Glad you enjoyed it mate.
Have a top one DK.
Thank you mister 🐔👍
No problem 👍
This video is a testament to the strength, flexibility and durability of the uniseal
I've found them fairly easy to use as long as the larger ones are used with pipes that are supported in some way.
Way cheaper than a bulkhead set up as well. 👍
Cheers JM.
Rapaz isso vai virar um foguete,daqui a pouco o sistema do Rob está na lua.kkk
Bacana!!!!
Fico feliz que você tenha gostado do vídeo.
Obrigado e tenha uma ótima semana.
(Google Translate.)
I'm glad you liked the video.
Thank you and have a great one.
Man another great video been a while since I watched kinda gave up on the thought for awhile but now I Am getting caught up on things time to start learning lol. Thanks for sharing these videos make it seem like something a normal average man can do keep up the videos
Glad they are of some help mate.
Cheers Andrew & have a top one.
Excelente ideia ficou muito bom, o meu sistema é assim também.
parabéns.
gosto muito dos seus videos
Obrigado cara. 😁👍
Great video
Cheers mate. 😁👍
Still along way from building one but so many good ideas and information, without changing the pump add a T piece and tap releasing the excess air into the atmosphere or add another stone into the fish pond(but than the tap might be better on 2 pipes, minds over thinking could be scary.
Keep up the great information.
It's now set up so I have an open line going into the fish tank with a restricted flow running into the bio filter to control the movement of the media. 👍
Cheers IA & hope the videos are helping with your plans mate.
Good Day Rob! You need neither a smaller air-compressor, nor risk damage by restricting the flow! Simply, Add a 'Tee' fitting with an adjustable valve. Pump runs happily at what ever volume-pressure it wants, the air-volume you /DON'T/ want in the bio-reactor, simply open/adjust the valve off the Tee. Vent the unwanted air-volume elsewhere. Hell, you could vent the unwanted air back into main fish tank. More air for the fishies.
That's what I had on the first biofilter in the old IBC system but have lost my 6mm valve. I ended up teeing off the line & using that air to help dechlorinate the top up water. 👍
Cheers & have a top one.
Hey Rob, really love the videos. You'e an inspiriatonal dude....
Cheers Finlay. 😁👍
G'day Rob I missed this video 👍
Hope you enjoyed it mate.
I was watching “New Agrarian” on RUclips, he has a lot of deep water NFT and he talked about k1 biomedia. I bought some looking at your media. What I bought won’t move around with air because as it turns out k1 is too big to move around. I watched more videos and I feel like you bought k2 for a moving bed. Well I bought K3 biomedia, and I’m gonna bag up the k1 biomedia and put it on the bottom of my biofilter. I think it’s all gonna work out even better after my little hick up.
Hey Rob I’m a long term subscriber and really love your content. I was taught as an apprentice in the heavy transport industry to use something like Vaseline as a temporary lubricant for rubber and plastic. Maybe you could give it a go next time so that you don’t need as much force to push the pvc through the uni seal? Just a suggestion. have a great day my fellow Aussie
The manufacture warns against using Vaseline & the like as it doesn't break down. It can cause movement in the pipe & possibly leaks under pressure.
This is from the Uniseal Australia product sheet, "DO NOT use silicone, grease or Vaseline, as anything with a slippery or greasy base will cause the marriage between the pipe and the Alcryn in the Uniseal® to fail under pressure."
I remember someone also saying on a forum once that they used a commercial lubricant of some type & it broke the rubber down.
Soapy water is OK as it breaks down allowing the pipe to get a good seal with the rubber.
Cheers mate & have a top one.
@@RobsAquaponics I use just a little bit of soapy dish water. A little bit won't hurt the system, plus once you push the pipe through the uniseal, you can wipe the pipe dry removing most of the soap. And if you want to be super safe use Castile soap which is made with olive oil and is food safe.
Just got my K1 media in woot!
Sweet. Hope the build is coming along well.
Courgettes/Zucchini have a polymer in the skin that can be used creatively, see if it works as a pipe sealant or shellac or something~
Thanks for teaching me something new. 👍 Will have a look into that a bit later.
Cheers.
Nice
Thanks Peter. Have a top one mate.
Rather than increase back pressure on the larger pump just bleed off air into any part of your system through an open, but regulated line. Just about every part of your system can benefit from a little extra air. A pressure gauge might be useful.
If you want to reduce air without damaging the compressor you can put a T connector with a valve and bleed out some of the air without choking the pump
Ours are always split with one valve left open. 👍
Love your videos. All very helpful here in Northern California!! Could you please advise the name of the little things that look like pasta? I know you mentioned it but can not seem to find it
Hi Wendy. They are sold as PE03 Biomedia by Small Boss & the original brand was Kaldnes & it's sold as K3 by them.
Hope that helps.
You won't need the down grade the air pump in your new setup if you split the line between the 2 filters that way you have have the air flow wide open going to both.
I was restricting the airflow as it was churning the media too much. To fast a "boil" & the bacteria can be knocked off. As it set up now, I have an open line going into the fish tank with a restricted flow running into the bio filter to control the movement of the media. 👍
Cheers Walter.
Guardian said: You are too tangled in the Transparenty of the water.
Could you hook the solids output of the radial flow directly into the bioreactor, and have a flow of bioreactor water back into the radial flow to recycle solids while separating nutrient rich, clean water in the radial flow?
Hey Andrew. The job of the MBBR is to primarily convert the ammonia in the water through to nitrate. The additions of solids would impede that process a bit I think.
You'd be better off running the solids from the RFS out to a mineralisation tank. There the organic waste can be broken down further into plant-available elements & returned back into the system.
Hope that helps some mate.
Lost all my notes in a clean up. Knew you had the ratio in a video somewhere. 1L of biomedia to every 500g fish. You sir, are a dead set champ. Hope all is well.... I Should have version 5 of the new system finished in a few weeks ;)
🤣 Version 5!
I'm on V4 at the moment & am still not quite sure what the next one will look like. Have you thought of playing with sand at all mate?
@@RobsAquaponics I'm trying to find a suitable bed to give it a go. Will be running a seperate pump on a timer though, I like the idea, but don't trust/like the on off times for fish health.
@@owensfunhouse7582 I have a few 600L troughs spare 👍 Hit me up through FacePalm if interested. 👍
@@RobsAquaponics Cheers mate, sent you a message.
Please do a video on the Barrel System, bit with a bio filte or a solids filter pleaseee😊🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼😂
Do you mean this one? ruclips.net/video/Z2tgrUvSnbM/видео.html
Apologize If i missed it. Great Video! What did you put on the end of the air tube? Just a single Air Stone, or the Junction bar so you can do many air stones?
Hey Andrew. It's just a "T" with 2 round air stones on the end. 👍
Awesome video! I want to inquire. Why do you prefer this type of filter than the bio balls? Thank you.
This style of media moves more freely & has slightly more surface area per litre from what I've seen Michael. 👍
In saying that, I've also never used bio balls.
Got half of what i need greenhouse lying in the weeds,
tore down a hog barn.
1 inch plastic 160# pressure water pipe 100s of feet.
the auger to distribute food 3 Inch plastic 400 ft
Nice one Charles. How large is the greenhouse?
@@RobsAquaponics 30 by 60
@@charleswieand4445 That's a decent size mate. 👍 Would like to have something like that to play with here.
Once again, great video. As sent via email.
I was wondering if you swapped the outlet and inlet pipe around so the in flow water enters and goes to the bottom of the barrel and the outlet collects the top water that has been through the reactor, would that work to??
I was thinking that the water has to go through the "K" media with bacteria before exiting, Would that be better? or maybe it wouldn't matter as it gets churned over by the air
Hi Dave. Just found this & will paste in my reply I sent via email to help those that might read this down the line.😉
You can swap the inlet & drain around if you want with no issues. 👍
I did have a few issues with the media impeding the flow of water out through the top drain so that's why I swapped the positions in the original MBBR & set the present one up the same way.
I don't think there is a real issue with the drain being ½ way up the drum (like in ours) as the air stones in the base are creating a current that cycles the water through the drum fairly efficiently.
The only reason I have the drain ½ way down the drum is that I ran out of pipe & didn't have enough to reach the base of the barrel. 😉😁
I am confident the water has enough contact time with the media for the bacteria to do its job so am not overly concerned.
Hope that helps some mate.
Rob.
Hello Bob...
I have some questions... could you please answer that...
Is there any culture of bacteria in the bio filter(media)? If have then what's the bacteria name...?
Can i make this bio media by myself using plastic straw? Or I need special kind of material to make it?
Some folks will culture the bacteria in labs. I find it just as easy to allow the bacteria in the air around us colonise the system . You can also get some media from a healthy aquarium or a friends aquaponics system to help kick start the colony in new beds or filter.
No special medium is really needed as they will set up colonies on any surface they can. A few people I know have used the plastic bottle caps from drink containers as their bio media. They aren't as buoyant as the media I use but they do the job.
Hope that helps some.
Hey RB, I've got a question for y'all. I've been running one of yer cut & flip gardens for the past 6-months now. I have an inground pond that someone threw away, it has water lilies and an arrowleaf growing in it.
Where'd y'all get those pumps from? I'm wanting to use the water from the pond in a horizontal bed to put my Bok Choy into or maybe some lettuce; I'm really not sure as I am new to this practice.
At the moment I'm using a Aqua Zonic Sumo series pump to move the water. Not sure if they're available worldwide though.
Jebao & SunSun are 2 other cheap yet reliable brands that I have used over the past 10 or so years. Resun are also good but are a bit more expensive.
Hope that helps some.
Awesome job Rob! I have a question, do you have the pump working 24/7? Also was wondering if you always buy the baby fishes, or do they reproduce in the tank? Thanks in advance
I leave the pump running 24/7 so the water is continuously cleaned for the fish.
The Aussie native fish we use won't breed in the system but others like Tilapia will quite happy reproduce in these small systems.
Hope that helps some.
G'day mate. I'm brand new to aquaponics and your videos have been an incredible resource! I am trying to establish my own system based around a 55 gallon tank for the fish. Would you consider helping me design a system, for a fee of course? I'd be happy to pay you for your knowledge
Hi Rob.
I have a 3 barrel RAS system radial flow settler into MMBF into a mechanical filter/sump.
I believe my discharge heights on each barrel maybe slightly out. Should I always have discharge height lower than the previous barreling the system? I adjusted barrel heights which helped a little but had an interesting thing happen today when I increased my airflow into the MBBF the 75lts per minute raised the water level causing the radial flow settler to backup. Now I'm not sure on the fluid dynamics but if I fed an airstone up the inside of my MBBF discharge pipe maybe I could create a airlift and increase my discharge rate out of this barrel and prevent the preceding radial flow settler from backing up?? Do U think this may work? Or a can always make a new barrel:(
Having the outlet lower than the inlet will help a lot. I also oversize the pipes I use so even if at the same level, there should be no issues with water backing up in the settlers/filters.
The air lift might help & it would be easier than having to build another filter.
Sorry it took so long to get back to you.
how do you size the bioreactor to water water volume? is there a ratio or is it based of flow rates?
I've been told that 5+ min retention time would be best. This unit has a fraction of that due to its size but it's the best I can do for now. 🙄
Ser how can last the filter midia??. Thnks for feedback..❤❤❤
I've been using filter material that is over 10 years old & it's still holding together just fine. 👍
hey rob... isn't running the excess air onto the sump tank so that there would be no chance for mosquitoes to even land on it....😅😅
The water moves too much as it is for mozzies to get established with all the beds draining back into it.
Cheers.
Hi Rob, I'm in the process of setting up a chop and flip system, the only difference is that I'm using an external pump. I wanted ask what size hole do you use for a 50mm and 25mm uniseal respectively.
I'm in South Africa and they are called grommets here
If it's the Uniseal brand seals you're using then the 50mm pressure & DWV need a 76mm hole & the 25mm require a 44mm hole.
Not sure on other brands sorry mate.
Hello Rob how much fall do you have on the pipe running between the radial flow filter and bio filter ? please
They are set up at the same level Raymond. 👍 I've found the 50mm/2" pipe handles the flow quite nicely.
I had it set up the same way in my past systems as well.
Cheers mate.
@@RobsAquaponics thanks for that Rob,👍👍👏👏👌👌
Rob I am using lava rock as my bed material. Is a moving bio filter needed or am I going with over kill? I am getting a radial flow settler added. I am changing to a split flow system as where I'm moving my setup out will be more suited for
As long as you have enough lava rock you should be good to go John. 👍
25L/6.6gal per fish you want to grow out to 500g/1lb will do the trick.
Cheers mate.
@@RobsAquaponics thanks yes right now I have one chop and flip. So I think I'm good...i will integrate it into a bigger system as I go.. Great videos and thank h you for all the help..
That muck in the media is what I’m worried about I’m the system I’m trying to build now cause the MBBR will be right after the settler (as it should be). I was actually considering using two radial settlers but would that just be an unnecessary (& extra) maintenance pain?
I use two settling tanks in my system, and I still wind up with a bit of fine solids in the MBBR.
For amusement, I did a "muck measurement" in the two RFFs about 3 months into operation, and it looks like 10% of the solids make it through into the MBBR. Of the 90% capture, ⅔ winds up in the first RFF, with the balance in the second. So, it's worth doing if you have the room.
The movement of the water should keep the media fairly clean DeadFred. Can't hurt to add on some extra filtration if you have the room for it though.
Hi Rob,
Thanks for the great videos! I was wondering why did you decide to replace the static pack biofilter with a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor? I'm building my first system and I was hoping to get away with just a Radial Flow Settler in my CHOP 2 system.
Hi Greg - I'm not Rob, but I'll venture some insight on this question: The moving bed biofilm reactor has more surface area, and by its operation process, promotes more oxygenation. This, in turn gives better bacterial filtering/conversion of NH4 into NO3. The "static pack" biofilter quickly becomes a solids-settling tank with degraded(think clogged up or smothered ) bio-surface. Worse yet: the static-pack, can become anaerobic and the eventual subsequent bloom of anaerobic bacteria WILL poison your fish!(very quickly!) This is why, even with flood-drain systems and hyroton-clay, you periodically need to empty and wash the hydroton to remove all sludge. At these scales - it is far safer, system-wise, to have a dedicated bio-film reactor(+oxygenation) and a dedicated sludge remover. Sludge remover (Radial-Flow or Other) protects the bio-film reactor. The bio-film reactor filters NH4, NO2, and protects the fish. You will never regret building a moving-bed bio-film reactor from the onset. You will be angry and frustrated building one /after/ you come out oneday to a tank full of dead or poisoned fish. Best Regards, -- Physicist.
I found that it wasn't processing the amount of ammonia that the fish were creating as their feed amounts increased. I was starting to see both ammonia & nitrite in the water flowing back into the fish tank, something I prefer not to see.
The extra air running through the media will help boost the amount of ammonia the bacteria can convert as they don't perform well in low O2 environments. There's actually a chance that they may start robbing O2 from the nitrate converting it back into nitrite if there's not enough dissolved in the water.
I did have a similar solids/bio trickle filter working fine in the aquaculture system I was running with about 50 fish. The drum I used was larger & there was more air in the media which helped the bacteria do their job.
Hope that helps some.
I have a system heavily inspired by your channel in my garage and I am tweaking the radial settler. Any chance you know the flow rate of the water running through your radial settler?
watched more vids! ~1500L/hour. thanks for sharing
Glad you could find it Kyle.
Hope the build goes well & happy growing. 👍🌱🐟
Hi Rob, great video, I couldn't see solid filteration unit? May be I missed.
The first part of the clip was me moving the radial flow settler Birendra. That's the only solids filter on the system. 👍
In saying that, solids will also collect in the biofilter & the grow beds as well. 😉
Hope that helps.
@@RobsAquaponics oh i see, thanks
@@RobsAquaponics great video my friend , do keep up the good work , two quick questions , from your experience with bio filters ,which do you think does a better job ? Moving bio filter or a static bio filter ( shade cloth etc ) , secondly , I am currently building a bio filter and leaning towards the static bio filter because I can't get the k1 or similar to purchase in my country ..what recommendation can you give to assist me in choosing the best materials to be used as a bio filter .. thanks a million :)
@@fazimabdool6437 Hi Mate. I think the MBBR works better from what I've seen in our system. The movement of the media helps the solids to stay mobile until they can move out to a grow bed or filter/settler to be collected.
I have seen folks use plastic milk, juice & soft drink/soda bottle caps as a static pack bio media & that looks to work OK. A mate used the caps along with bird netting & shade cloth in his. I think it would pay to have some sort of fine particle filtration before it like aquarium filter pads or the floor scrubbing pads I used on top of ours.
Hope that helps some Fazim.
@@RobsAquaponics thanks alot my friend ...it's more than a big help , do keep up the good work brother , your videos are a great inspiration for us small diy guys ..cheers
Hi Rob, I have setup the IBC chop and flip, I have followed the bell siphon as per video with the exception of using a 50mm pipe for the bell, the issue that I'm experiencing is that the siphon does not stop after the grow bed drains. Could this be linked to the size of the bell?
Hi Ralph. Sounds like it's a flow issue. Try turning the flow into the bed down & see how that works for you. If you have a 45 or 90° elbow on the drain under the bed, make sure that it's not turned too far up stopping air from traveling back up the drain as well.
Sorry it took a while to respond. Would like to know how you get on mate.
Cheers.
@@RobsAquaponics Thanks Rob I have manged to tune the bell siphon so that it flood and drains the grow bed, it take about 30min to flood and about 25min to drain. The other issue I'm facing is I have overdosed the system with ammonia, I have removed 150l of water from the system and replaced it with tap water but the ammonia is still sitting at 5mg/L.
Please advise if I should remove more than a third of the water. I had about 500l in the tank
@@ralphdavid2962 Are you seeing any nitrite forming? If you are seeing nitrite you might be able to get away with leaving the water as is.
Have you checked your DO without adding the air into the bio filter?
I haven't as I don't have a meter sorry.
Hello may i know the air pump spec on this build? Thank you!
Hi mate. It's this one here,
guppysaquariumproducts.com.au/electromagnetic-air-pump-70l-min-x-10-outputs-aco-05.html
Cheers.
What kind of tank do you use for the fish?
I prefer to use round ones if I can as it helps to draw the water/solids to the centre at the base for removal.
You can buy proper aquaculture tanks but any UV stabilised food grade tank will do.
Do you use bio carbon in you filtration?
Have you ever? Do you know how to make it or use it?
I have used biochar but not in the aquaponics. Don't really see the need for it in aquaponics if the other filters are running OK.
Cheers Michael.
I have a problem that I need some help with. I am very tight on space with my grow bed I can’t raise it due to it being in a grow tent (the maximum height I can have it is the height of a milk Crete off the floor) and having my lights hanging inside, I am using an ebb & flow grow bed and I am trying to figure out a way to flow water out of the bell siphon back into my 55 gallon drum fish tank if you have any tips for me I would be forever grateful.
Hi Darryl. I think I need a bit more information on the system. Any chance you could upload a video to RUclips?
Sorry it took a while to get to your question.
Rob can you use a 55 gallon drum instead of the green bin for the moving bed part?
I would have preferred to use a 55gal/200L drum to increase the retention time Steve but just don't have a lot of space around the system.
Cheers mate.
@@RobsAquaponics thank you Rob!
@@RobsAquaponics how big of an air pump and how much bio media would you recommend for a 55 gal drum?
@@alaefarmestatesllc The amount of media needed depends on the amount of fish feed the fish will be getting at maximum weight & they type of media.
I work on 1L/quart of the PEO3 (5 spoke) biomedia for each Jade perch we raise to 500g/1lb.
As for amount of air, I like to have the media turning at a "slow boil" as that will keep the media fairly clean & bacteria well oxygenated.
Does that mean that i could have a lower temperature in the fish tank and then heat the water in the biofilm reactor so the bacteria kicks in?
I think it's probably best just to eave it all one temperature Thomas. That way the bacteria will become more accustom to the general climate.
rob how big of a pump do i need for that system.
That depends on the size of the fish tank & system in general Les. This video might give you a few ideas. It's a look at our current system just after it was set up.
ruclips.net/video/1q_MN4kZRlY/видео.html
I have swapped the pump to a larger one after adding another bed. It currently has a pump running at about 5-6000 lph in it.
Cheers.
what type of plastic does the media need to be? could you upcycle some chopped up plastic bottles or something?
I have seen folks use plastic bottle tops, bird netting, shade cloth (like I do) & even balled up lengths of the plastic pallet strapping.
👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
👍👍👍
How much amount of K1 media should be used for 500 liters tank
It depend on how many fish & fish feed they get as you'll be processing their waste.
I work on 1L of the PE03 media I use to process the waste from 1 fish & grow out to table size.
Awesome video!! You didn't add a venturi to the bio filter??
Not enough water flow from this pump Michael. The next build will use venturis in the biofilters as the pumps will be sized to accommodate them. 👍
Cheers.
@@RobsAquaponics is it ok to keep using just a air stone??
@@michaelcurtis640 Air stones are better in some ways as they sit on the base & keep all the solids suspend in the water so they can be collected elsewhere. I found the venturi allowed some solids to settle out on the base under the outlet.
Hi rob where did you source the bio media from?
Sorry I missed this DW. The mob we got it from no longer sells in bulk. This mob down south in NSW is about the cheapest I've found that sell bulk now.
freshbydesign.com.au/aquaponic-aquaculture-products/biological-filtration/mbbr-bio-media/
Do you have a book ? If not you should write one.
Am in the process of sorting out a PDF download for folks that are looking at starting out. Is still a work in progress though.
could you explain this video via diagrams or animation? It's too complex kind of system now.
I don't have a diagram but this video is a walkthrough on how the system is set up now.
ruclips.net/video/dL1Nr-woc0c/видео.html
Hi rob, is I possible to use polyester as media in Aquaponic? Your views please
I have seen folks use it as a solids & bio filter media. I probably wouldn't as it is hard to clean & may need replacing more often than other material. Are you wanting to use it as a solids or bio filter?
@@RobsAquaponics hi thanks, I was wondering if it can be used as both.
@@birendrachoubey6122 I've seen folks use it as both. in smaller systems. 👍
@@RobsAquaponics hi Rob, actually looking to implement in large system, pl suggest if possible ,whether to use it as biofilters or solid filters or possible combinations. If you have some surface area calculations related to fish density then that would be great.
@@birendrachoubey6122 I wouldn't use it in a large system myself as it will be an ongoing cost to replace it.
I would use a settler filter like the radial flow settler & then a stand alone bio filter like the moving bed biofilm reactor.
why did you stop using venturis?
I don't have a need for them at the moment as the pump I have is sized just right for the beds & fish tank. 👍
I have also had water pumps fail previously & almost lost the fish so like to keep a dedicated air line in the tank now.
Will probably be adding one to the bio in the next larger system we build though.
What size are your air pumps mate . Toowoomba area here
Hey Bradley. The pumps I'm running are about 4000lph. Not sure I'm getting that amount through to the stones due to water depth so that's why I over sized them a bit.
Cheers from down the hill. 👍
@@RobsAquaponics
Thanks bob , I got a 82L/min air pump now .
My water pumps are 2 x 5000LpH with speed control on 4 x 1000l ibcs .
Thank you for sending my order for uniseals so fast aswell , I can finish my 2 filters and mineralisation tanks now .
Keep up the great work
@@bradleysmith4787 It's no problem at all mate. 👍 Hope the build goes smoothly, sounds like it's going to be a decent-sized one.
Can you tell me where to get the k2or k3 bio media thanks from robert
Hi Robert. Did you ask over on FB as well?
If not, Mathias from iTech Aqua is one chap you could get in contact with if you're in the US.
This is his Bio media page if it helps,
itechaqua.com/biomedia/
If you're in Australia, many aquarium stores will sell some version of it but you may want to enquire with the larger aquaculture suppliers if you're after bulk.
Aquason'c have some listed at a decent price if you're here in Australia,
www.aquasonic.com.au/Filtration/Biological/pl.php
Cheers & have a good one.
@@RobsAquaponics yes I tried to reach you on Facebook also. Thanks for checking but I tried to get in touch with him but I couldn’t guess he is busy I hopefully I can find someone that I can order some bio media tomorrow everyone I have spoken with so far is out of stock
@@robertmilam6607 I saw Mathis liked the comment there so he may just be busy with his day job at the moment. 👍
@@RobsAquaponics ya I figured he is thanks have a great day
My ph is at 7.6 and I was told that lime Juice can bring it down I am just trying to see if you have done this and if it works
Sir what is real purpose of k1 media?
It provides surface area for a bacterial colony to inhabit. It's these bacteria that will oxidise the ammonia through to fish friendly nitrates. 👍
Hope that helps.
@@RobsAquaponics thank you sir
... typo 15lt media < 13.2gal
No typo. At 12:45 I said 50L worth 👍😉
Cheers.
It's really too bad that someone out there can't design and manufacture a small swimming pool type vacuum on a wand that can be lowered down to vacuum the solids off of the bottom of the bio-filter tank/barrel. A robot tank skimmer/cleaner with an attached hose to ride around the inside of the habitat tanks to clean the tank walls and bottoms would be a bigger version of the mini cleaner/vacuum.
Since you came up with the idea, why not take advantage of the idea you have and design a prototype, and if it works then you get the reward. All successful people start out with an idea. Perhaps you can research it and see if there is anything in line with what you are thinking and it it's not "GO FOR IT"...who knows, this may be the start of something BIG but you won't know till you do it.:)
I have made a wand attachment that fits to the drain that does that job with a bit of fiddling around.
ruclips.net/video/zETpcZmm8QE/видео.html
Haven't used it for a few years though as most of the systems are self cleaning.
hi Rob. Do you sell the biomedia or have a link for it?
No sorry mate. The folks I bought it from no longer sell it. Are you here in OZ?
@@RobsAquaponics yep. SA
I actually managed to get a heap of those and also the plastic ball type bio filter stuff for nothing.
@@albertwilson3396 Nice4 score & sorry I missed your question at the time.
@@RobsAquaponics I would have collected all of what they have but can only use so many
Why don't you use PVC cement?
It's not always needed as you can get a secure water-tight seal using the plumbing tape & screw method I've found. Makes working on the plumbing later on a lot easier & saves quite a bit of coin over the years. 😉
@@RobsAquaponics ooooh
Where do you buy the uniseals?
I sell them Aaron.
Links in the description or you can just use this one,
www.bitsouttheback.com/uniseals
Cheers.
I’m in the US sir and was wondering where I could find them over here.
@@bethbrown4602 I have them listed on my **Amazon page if that helps,
www.amazon.com/shop/bnbob01
Disclaimer to follow. 😉
Hope that helps some mate.👍
**Rob (That’s me 😉) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Influencer/Associates Program, an influencer/affiliate advertising program designed to provide means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to www.amazon.com/shop/bnbob01
Sorry sir I just saw this. Also just watched the storm video that flattened your greenhouse.
@@bethbrown4602 Almost have the new one finished. Just need a hand with the hops & cloth.
Cheers mate.
That’s no biofilm that’s wheels and cheese
aquaponics better than Hydroponics?
I think for commercial purposes hydroponics is better and not that risky.
Not better: Simultaneously more complex and simpler. More complex because you need to deal with the fish, oxygenation levels, ammonia levels: If you are doing aquaponics think of yourself as a bacteria farmer. Without a healthy amount of surface area for nitrogen fixing bacteria, the fish will die. So you build a system focused on the Fish! and the necessary bacteria to process the ammonia (from the fish). Secondary to all of this, is a side benefit that the processed water carries /almost/, not all, but almost the nutrients for healthy plants.
Little chemistry to worry about except: *any chlorine components in water? (bad). *control the ammonia and nitrogen levels by controlling the fish feed. --> Still have to supplement some plant nutrients which are not available in the fish-feed.
Hydroponics: Simpler - no fish/bacteria to worry about. Hydroponics does not suffer risk from anaerobic bacteria "crashes" (which will wipe out the entire fish-stock).
However, you have to pay closer attention to chemical recipe(s) you use for your nutrient solution. The plus side is that all the micro-nutrients are there. The down side is that unless you've the chemistry set, you can't test for individual nutrient levels and must instead rely on product label (guaranteed analysis) and math to _Infer_ nutrients from a generic ppm or EC measurement.
In either case: you need to buy fish-food, or, you need to buy fertilizers and mix.
Note: You can plan and build a 'for fish' system, but run it as hydroponics until you are ready to make the switch to fish.
This gives you opportunity to practice your plumbing skills, and work out little bugs and leaks and drips in the system without fret of killing your fish-stock. Much less stress - good beginning point.
I've built out an IBC chop-n-flip system (As seen in Robs other videos/how tos) with 55gal blue-barrels split down the length for auxiliary grow beds.
I'm running the system as Hydroponics currently (with Master Blend + Epsom Salt + Calcium Nitrate) for my nutrient mix.
And --- When I'm ready to try fish.... I'll toss in some carp (no-guilt gold-fish) to start. Then I'll start feeding fish-food instead of mixing the hydroponics blends.
*NOTE* The moving bed bioreactor is a big fish-saver! All commercial aquaculture systems have designed in from first go.
OH Yeah! Big Importance: Hydroponics you can run on an intermittent pump. (I'm using 5 min ON, 15 min OFF) - This lets me use a low power D.C. pump (which is suitable for battery and solar panel). Aquaponics: Don't ever let your pump system die! Power outages more than 12 hrs -- fish will begin to die - Hypoxia. Required _system_ pump power argues for an A/C powered pump.... which puts you (your fish) at the whim of your local electric-gods. Note: Rob uses a 12VDC backup battery to power air-stones separately. This is a hard-learned precaution against power-outages.
@@Verfolnir thank you so much for your help and advice
@@thedarthlord7724 thanks for the reply
@@butchvandyk1051 no problem
Avoid using plastics! Use river rock where the fish live. filter water naturally with ground rock dirt etc.
To avoid plastics would mean using ceramic or stainless steel pipes & tanks.