TwoRivers DustStorm System

tworivers

Well today I finally got started on a system that I have been wanting to do for almost a year now.

I have purchased two IBCs and started digging a hole to bury one of the IBC that will be a 1,000lt fish tank. Unfortunately i only got about 20 cm deep and was interrupted by this years first major dust storm, it's so bad you can hardly breath outside.

The other IBC I am planing on cutting into three parts creating two 300lt gravel grow beds and possibly use the middle section with plastic lining for a half buried DWC.

I still haven't decided yet on a design but here are the main factors I need to consider:

Temperature: In the summer it gets up to 55c so I am going to try and insulate it as best as I can, and hope that with the cooler evenings I can somehow keep the water temperature down and my fish alive. Because of this I am thinking I will have a constant flood system with water flowing constantly. maybe even bury some pipes for water to cool under ground.

Simplicity: I am building it as simple as possible because the goal of the project is to have it reproduced here by local farmers. It also is a sample for other third third world countries who have desert temperatures and shortages of water.

Fail safe: I need something that is not going to fail, as I can't spend a lot of time tweaking it and will need to leave it for weeks at a time and have someone else feed the fish and possibly make sure the water is topped off.

Electricity: Also trying to use as little electricity as possible, hope it will be solar powered eventually.

Charlie

Great to see you getting started there Tworivers :headbang:

You have a few challenges ahead but with correct planning and design you will surely prosper. Best of luck with the build.

jayendra

Nice to see someone in a really dry area doing aquaponics.

tworivers wrote:

Simplicity: I am building it as simple as possible because the goal of the project is to have it reproduced here by local farmers. It also is a sample for other third third world countries who have desert temperatures and shortages of water.

Desert Gold

tworivers

Ok, so I have done some work on the system and have a few more pictures to upload.

So here is the basic design I am going to start out with, if anyone has ideas I am posting this here to get feedback and input on how to make a simple and heat resistant system:

I am going to start with the pump in the fish tank pumping water to the first GB and later upgrade to a sump tank and have the FT overflow to the GB. The top of the FT and first GB are about the same level. The second GB is a bit lower but not much just enough to make sure things flow but keeping them on the same level so I don't need lift the water back up as much once it has run it's course. From the second GB I am going to bury a loop of pipe under ground to cool the water back down before it goes back into the FT.

I will have stand pipes with small holes in the bottom of each three holes in the first GB and one hole in the second GB and hope it is enough to fill it up. My very small pump will be on a timer and probably will have two pumps going all the time so that if one dies the back up system will already be running.

QUESTION:
As far as the flow of water I was wondering what would happen if I never let the GBs completely drain out? The water will be flowing slowly from the bottom of the bed so the water should all get cycled through eventually but I was thinking of only letting the GB drain 3/4 of the way so the plants have some water all the time. I think it will be a hybrid between a constant flow and an ebb and flow system. The purpose of this is also to help keep the plants alive if things go wrong while I am away, and also to help the plants not die in the extreme heat (up to 55c or 130f).

tworivers

jayendra wrote:

Nice to see someone in a really dry area doing aquaponics.

jayendra,

To give you an idea of how scarce water is here, all tap water in the city is a mix of sea water and river water sometimes it is saltier than others but always brackish. I plan on getting water to replenish the system from the condensation on my Air conditioners so that the system doesn't get too salty.

jayendra

and we flush our toilets with fresh drinking water

crazy!

tworivers

Ok so I am finally up and cycling.

Attachment:

File comment: My simple system with 1,000 L FT, two GB probably about 400 L each and a sump tank in the back that I have no idea how big probably around 500 L

Photo Apr 24, 11 08 32 AM.jpg [ 85.61 KiB | Viewed 137 times ]

I found a local guy at a nursery to help me out with the seedlings so I gave him seeds and he has started germinating them, seems like I will have some ready to plant this weekend.

Also found a local fish restaurant that is going to sell me a couple of their smallest fish when they get their fresh batch tomorrow evening. So things are looking up and I hope to have things planted and fish in the tank by my next post.

With just the tap water, I have found that there is a slight bit of ammonia and a good bit of nitrate

. Good old tap water! No one drinks the tap water because it is salty but probably the ammonia is not good sign...

Attachment:

File comment: The tap water test after a couple days in the FT without any fish

Photo Apr 23, 4 38 53 PM.jpg [ 52.8 KiB | Viewed 137 times ]

I have the system running on a timer that switches on and off but the amount of time on is the same amount of time it will be off. I have almost tweeked it to work with about 70 minutes on and 70 minutes off. I don't think it is ever draining completely out which I like.

Not sure what this foam is about? Also I can see mosquito larva in the water of my GB, will they die once I have fish or is my aquaponics system going to be a great spot for mosquito growing...

Attachment:

File comment: Not sure what the foam is, hope it isn't anything that will kill anything...

Photo Apr 24, 2 05 20 PM.jpg [ 57.22 KiB | Viewed 137 times ]

lifeoffaith

Actually the draining process leaving them without water at times and moving water should kill them I think.

tworivers

My mosquitoes larva continue to grow in huge numbers, mostly they end up in the sump tank which never is completely empty, So I finally went out this morning to buy a couple gold fish for the sump tank and hope they will take care of the mosquitoes.

Attachment:

File comment: A fresh batch of mosquitoes getting ready to be flushed into the sump tank.

Mosquitoes.jpg [ 41.31 KiB | Viewed 95 times ]

I think the mosquitoes are a seasonal thing, I will probably have to buy some food for the gold fish to keep them alive when the mosquitoes die off.

tworivers

So I was able to get a live fish from the local restaurant around the corner from our house. The smalest one they had was 1.6Kg so he is a pretty big guy.

Here is the delivery of fresh fish for the week.

Attachment:

File comment: Delivery of fresh Carp

Photo Apr 26, 8 45 27 AM.jpg [ 56.9 KiB | Viewed 90 times ]

When I saw how they were delivered I wasn't sure it would stay alive but three days later he is still swimming around. It was amazing though when I dumped the fish in with a few litters of the water he came in I had an immediate rise in the Ammonia!

Attachment:

File comment: Packed fish

Photo Apr 26, 8 45 38 AM.jpg [ 52.42 KiB | Viewed 90 times ]

I have my first plants in the GB. Since this is trial I am going to be planting a few of a bunch of different plants. Right now it is Watermelon, Cantaloup, and some type of bean.

Attachment:

File comment: Watermelon, Cantaloup, & Beans

GB.jpg [ 31.2 KiB | Viewed 90 times ]

tworivers

The local tap water has salt in it and I was wondering how much if any of this salty water I can use to top off the system without the salt levels geting way too high. I don't know how salty the water all I know is that when the water dries on pavement it leaves salt cristal outline and it tast fairly salty, not sea water but clearly salty.

Do plants take up any of salt in the water? or does the salt in the system never leaves the system unless you change the water?

Are there plants that take up more salt than others?

any other suggestions on how to manage a system where the main source of water has some level of salt in it.

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