How To Make a Check Valve

Check valves are handy but they can be expensive.
Here are two similar ideas that you can build for very little cash.

How To Make a One-Way Check Valve - For Cheap!!

 

Making A Zero Back Pressure Check Valve

 

Read More..

How to Trim a Tomato Plant Garden Guides

I planted tomato as an experiment.  I wanted to see if they would grow, and set fruit indoors, but it is becoming obvious that I will need to do some trimming as I dont have the space they require.
This article is short and simple.  It describes the method of trimming indeterminate tomato plants in order to produce a better quality crop.

Basically the method involves breaking off the suckers in order to direct the energy to the main stem.
Other sources indicate that these suckers can then be propagated and grown as individual plants which will space out the peak production over a wider time.

Some may disagree with the use of a knife or shears, opting to break the suckers off because it is less likely to cause infection and spread disease.

If the suckers continue to grow back it is important to continue breaking them off.   In addition to breaking off suckers some also recommend topping the plant near the end of the growing season in order to let the last few tomatoes mature and ripen.

How to Trim a Tomato Plant | Garden Guides

Read More..

Aquaponics External Tomato growing in fishtank

Ive been away for a few days.

It was nice.

One of the best things about aquaponics, is the fact that it takes care of itself. I came home to a system overflowing with produce, and with lettuce that was ready to eat, where when I left, it was nowhere near ready. Its amazing what a few days can do.

Also, not seeing my system for a few days made me realise just how big my tomatoes were getting.

Thats them hanging off the side of the little grow house.

Im calling this experiment a complete success. I had to tie the foliage to the growhouse to support it, because it was starting to pull the roots out of the water.



Theres fruit forming everywhere, and in spite of the late start due to pruning it all back to only a few leaves, I think it will be a good season. Once the capsicum season is over, I think I might just pick up the tomato, and move it back inside for winter.

The tomato grows through a PVC pipe to stop it growing inside the growhouse, and the roots are all just hanging inside the fish tank. There is no media involved, and it relies on the water being oxygenated by the water movement, and the nutrient it gains from the fish.

This has been a lack luster post.

Im sleepy from too much driving.

Read More..

Electronics Aquaponics Demand fish feeder software

As far as I know, the software is all working on my demand fish feeder.

Its a bit of a mess, with a few goto statements and a few unused variables. Ill fix it in time, but for now Im going to move onto getting a finished product up and running. As far as I can tell with the software simulator everything works, but the real world might be a completely different story. (the breadboard version also works)








A switch lever extends down into the water. If a light near the lever is lit, the fish can press the lever and feed is delivered. Feed can also be offered with an override button that sets the light on and the feed on if the fish hit the lever (so you can show people how it works)

Dawn detection seems to work. In the end I went with two startup options.

1. A human who holds down the FeedNow override button during startup, then taps out the approximate number of hours since dawn. This skips the code that searches for a new dawn.

2. An abnormal restart with no human. This stops all feeding (there might have been a blackout, and subsequent ammonia buildup) (note to self - add code that flashes some lights to indicate the device is in abnormal start mode so a human can reboot it if they desire). Feeding resumes after night time is detected, and a dawn is detected.

The user can select (via a screwdriver to resist little finger making their own adjustments) ...

 - the feed amount per day in tenths of a second of motor on - from 0 to 65 (Im guessing Ill use 1/2 a second per feed event) The motor turns an auger under a hopper full of feed. So there is another adjustment available

- The number of feeds in a day that are offered (0 - 255 per day)

- The level of light at which dawn is detected. This allows for a system built in the glow of a streetlight or whatever. At dawn each day, all the numbers reset. This is a bit of a problem as far as reading how many feeds were delivered in a day, but for now Ill leave it as it is. My fish feed like crazy at dawn, so I want to give them the greatest opportunity to feed. Eventually Ill add a data logger, so it wont matter when it resets.


The system reports...

- the number of hours since dawn

- the number of feeds since dawn

- The number of false hits to the feed lever when the FeedIsAvailableLED is NOT lit (these will go down to near zero once the fish learn they can only get food when the light is on)


I ran out of feed a while back, and have been feeding my two big silvers on duckweed, lettuce, and worms, so I will need some pellet food before I can test it in the real world. (I still have the PVC device from the first version).

Ill also need a motor as my original one is no longer with us.

The feeding regimen isnt very intelligent at the moment, but Ill do a bit of research, and add some code that tries to deliver the maximum amount of feed in a day that the system can handle. This will probably involve allowing 3/4 of the feed to be dumped at will, with the rest being spaced out over the day ... or something. I havent given it enough thought because I dont really know what the fish need. My experience in fishing for wild fish indicates that the feeding pattern is far from a constant grazing all day long. Ill work it out.

But...

Its going to work. In fact, it already does.


120 Things in 20 years Thats all. Just 120 Things in 20 years.

Read More..

Why And How of Aquaponics

Im still learning about aquaponics, but Ive become vested in this and want to learn everything I can to be successful.  In the beginning I ignored the problems others were having, and looked only at the positive results.  Its human nature to approach a new interest with optimism and look only at the positive results.

But I want to say right up front, this is not a hobby you can afford to make too many mistakes with.  You may watch Murray Hallams videos and think its as easy as plopping a few fish in a tank and growing some veggies in the water.  I dont wish to discourage anyone, but aquaponics is a carefully controlled environment that requires a lot more than meets the eye. 

A knowledge of aquaculture is a big plus.  Preferably you have experience with aquariums, and gardening before getting in too deep.  A well designed and maintained system will tend to run smoothly, but attention  to maintaining your system is important.   Water tests and careful monitoring of temperature, light, and nutrient levels is a must.

As I come across excellent studies pertaining to the design and operation of aquaponic systems I will include the links here with some commentary.  This will be an ever evolving post

To begin - Heather Oaks has made a short video of the a well engineered aquaponics system. - Heather Oaks Aquaponics.  Its very impressive and inspiring!  But remember this system is maintained on a professional level.  It does not just happen without a lot of expert knowledge, well defined procedures, and a fair amount of work.  This is dedication on a very high level, but smaller backyard systems still require the same attention.

I am not attempting to discourage anyone.   I simply wish to bring reality to the table.  Small systems tend to be more difficult to balance, but its a good way to gain the basic knowledge of aquaponics and find out if this is for you.

This article by Keith Connolly addresses the reasons why aquaponics is superior to other methods of farming.   He also explores the requirements of sustaining a healthy and productive system with facts and scientific research.  - Optimization Of A Backyard Aquaponic Food Production System.

My blog is about my aquaponic experience.  I present it so that others can learn from my failures as well as my triumphs.  Aquaponics is something anyone can learn to do.  Its very rewarding and as the world transcends further and further from self reliance this cutting edge paradigm shift is providing a much needed alternative to our food resources.  I hope you too will find aquaponics rewarding and fun.

Read More..