AP update 04/19/15

We are waiting for the nitrogen cycle to commence before adding more fish.  The first batch of (10) 1.5" feeder fish died the first night, probably too much stress from cooler water temperature and higher pH than pet store.

When water is reasonably clear, nitrogen cycle is present and general water conditions (temperature and pH) are stable, THEN we will add more goldfish.  I don't think the family can handle another massive fish "friend" die off again.

Day 1 - Starting conditions 04/13/15

• Temp:  55F
• pH:  >7.6 (upper limit of test)
• Ammonia: 0 ppm
• Nitrite: 0 ppm
• Nitrate: 0 ppm
• kH: not measured

Day 6  - 04/19/15

• Temp: 68F
• pH:  >7.6 (upper limit of test)
• Ammonia: 0.5 ppm
• Nitrite: 0 ppm
• Nitrate: 0 ppm
• kH: 70 ppm

In the meantime, I added a seaweed nutrient to the water to get some plants started.  Poured in a whole bag (10.7 ounces) of Maxicrop powder (bag states 1 teaspoon/gallon, our system is ~ 250 gallons)

The Maxicrop turned the water to Guiness (ok, just the color and opacity of Guiness).  Research indicates this should clear up in a couple/few weeks as the plants take up the nutrients.

Planted yesterday and today.

4" starts from Home Depot (Bonnie brand)

• Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum)- start harvesting at 4-6 leaf sets, annual
• Sage (Salvia officinalis)- similar to basil, but lightly first year (year??)
• Leeks (Allium ampeloprasum)- package: 80 days to harvest at 15-18" tall
• Orange Bell Pepper (Capsicum annuum) - package: 70-80 days to harvest at 4-5" long peppers
• Lemon Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) - snip stems as needed after it gets bigger, perennial

 Seeds from Botanical Interests
    Planted 2-5 seeds per piece of cotton ball, placed cotton balls just at grow bed high water line

• Dwarf Blue Curled Kale (Brassica oleracea) - expect sprouts to emerge in 5-10 days
• Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) - expect sprouts to emerge in 5-10 days 

     broadcast seeds on top of growbed, attempted to poke down any visible seeds, watered over top to help set seeds into media

• Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) - expect sprouts to emerge in 5-10 days 
• Arugula (Eruca sativa) - expect sprouts to emerge in 10-15 days  

Aquaponics Install Complete

We hit a major milestone in the Aquaponics Adventure this week.

First, let's just admire the lovely green concrete support blocks.  There was some skepticism in the household about whether or not this was a good/feasible idea.  I'm delighted to write that painting these was as easy as pie.

OK, now onto the important parts.  A good friend, Dr. McNie, assisted with the plumbing and a good thing that was too, she definately prevented what could have been some costly mistakes!  

I got all the parts from The Aquaponics Source Store to plumb a 3 IBC system.

It took a couple of days to get it all installed and tested.

Thanks to my guys, we got the lights hung up (the windows provide some light, but it's not really strong enough for robust plant growth).

and the beds filled with Coco-Puffs!

 Just kidding, the fill media is called Hydroton.  It is small balls of expanded clay.  This kind of media is ideal for the system has it lots of tiny crevices inside the balls, which will eventually get colonized by the beneficial bacteria that keep the whole system running.

and Voila!

Now we wait for the beneficial bacteria to colonize the system and start doing their groovy thing.  They turn ammonia (fish poop) into nitrates (plant food).

For the true geeks out there:

Nitrosomonas bacteria convert Ammonia (NH4-) into Nitrite (NO2-)
NH4+  +  1.5 O2  =  NO2-  +  2 H+  +  H20  +  84 kCal/mol of Ammonia

Nitrospira bacteria convert Nitrite (NO2-) into Nitrate (NO3-)
NO2-  +  0.5 O2  =  NO3-  +  17.8 kCal/mol of Nitrite


 for everyone else:
Ammonia and Nitrite BAD, Nitrate GOOD