Plant only filtration (why not popular in the hobby???)
- Thread starter JK47
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Nah, I am however going to do something with the test tank from my old thread and finish off the system. Aquaponics, the use of fish and plants works within the natural scheme of things. Fish create waste that in turn becomes ammonia, ammonia is turned into nitrite due to bacteria that grows on any medium within the water column. Other bacteria convert this to nitrates which are naturally harvested by plants. Fish waste products (solids) accumulate within a grown bed. Worms in that grow bed consume the solid waste and release chelated iron and growth hormones that actively encourage plant growth. All the while other micronutrients can be added if needed via seaweed compounds and or chelated iron. In the end i can grow very healthy fish and healthy plants without mechanical filtration or any sort of chemical addition to the aquarium or plants. No petrolium based ferts, no pesticides, just healthy plants and fish. All I add is food.
I do know that the ph will drop and that can be addressed with the addition of calcium carbonate which is natural and stops absorbing into the water column at around 7.4. Meaning that i can have a happy healthy ecosystem that basically only requires food. Plants and fish together is a very symbiotic relationship. Fish keepers everywhere could benefit from throwing away their fluval and adding plants imho.
I do know that the ph will drop and that can be addressed with the addition of calcium carbonate which is natural and stops absorbing into the water column at around 7.4. Meaning that i can have a happy healthy ecosystem that basically only requires food. Plants and fish together is a very symbiotic relationship. Fish keepers everywhere could benefit from throwing away their fluval and adding plants imho.
I would LOVE to get rid of the mechanical filtration part thing, what worms are you talking about, and do they go in the fill and empty, or like mine constantly submerged? These filter socks do get old changing them once a day or every other day.
Few years ago I did run no mech in the 160 for a while, and honestly never seen cleaner water, but worms would be a big plus if possible in my setup.
Few years ago I did run no mech in the 160 for a while, and honestly never seen cleaner water, but worms would be a big plus if possible in my setup.
http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=12752&start=30
reading here, I guess I can have it submerged all the time, I would have a few inches of rock above the water level anyway so they would have a chance to "get out" if needed. This is very interesting now. Also, I use lava rock, HOW bad would that be for the worms texture wise? Its cheap, light and what I have been using for years and like it
reading here, I guess I can have it submerged all the time, I would have a few inches of rock above the water level anyway so they would have a chance to "get out" if needed. This is very interesting now. Also, I use lava rock, HOW bad would that be for the worms texture wise? Its cheap, light and what I have been using for years and like it
as far as I know they grow in lava rock as well. And, yes you need a few inches of "dry" medium on top. This will actually help your plants as well when you branch out into new plants. A lot of plants cant handle their stalk getting wet as you already know. The extra space makes that a non issue. As for my setup I am dropping the fill and drain for the simplicity of the constant flood as I believe I will have more than enough dissolved oxygen to have very healthy fish. I believe most indoor people use red wigglers. If you get worms make sure they aren't packed in manure, if you are unsure of the medium rinse them several time and put them in cornmeal for a day to clear out their "guts". Also, the worms don't escape into your house; They much prefer the growbed to the bright light and dry air of your house.
Excellent! Blame jk for these plants and now blame you for using worms!
Might be a few months before I give it a try, I want to redo the system I have now, move some stuff around etc.
Out of curiosity, once worms are in, how do you determine they are still in there and alive, vs dead or fell into drain and got eaten by the fish?
Might be a few months before I give it a try, I want to redo the system I have now, move some stuff around etc.
Out of curiosity, once worms are in, how do you determine they are still in there and alive, vs dead or fell into drain and got eaten by the fish?
I guess you dig into the media and look. Generally the worms dictate their population based on available feed. If you have ample plants and let the solids get into your beds they will thrive. Worms do amazing things for your fish and plants. They release growth hormones that encourage plant growth. They feast on the solids and turn it into vermicompost which when dissolved in water like the water in our grown beds creates worm tea. Good things like Iron Chelate help with good plant health. The worms even help to control some diseases and bug infestations including spider mites! Having worms instead of a mechanical filter actually makes the system better. It's crazy to think that as home aquaria has advanced to use all of these crazy mechanical filters and water additives that the best filter is what nature has already made, plants and worms.
As it sits in the regular fish keeping world we only address 3 of the 4 parts of the natural cycle of waste. We can deal with ammonia with bacteria that naturally occur, same with nitrites. We are already adding food to the system to keep our fish alive and healthy. 3 parts. However the only way we deal with the 4th part nitrates is through water changes. The addition of plants to this addresses this issue. The plants convert the nitrates into growth. Nitrates are the natural fertilizer of the earth. This is why oil is used to create fertilizer. Think about that for a bit.. yuck. our food is grown with oil. In our aquariums we have a natural and balanced ecosystem which only rarely needs maintenance in the form of potassium or calcium and rarely in the case where worms are present iron. The plants take the place of water changes. It's fact not fiction. Fish food and water top offs provide most of all of the micro and macro nutrients the system will ever need. If the system needs a boost its a simple matter of adding the nutrient. We are no longer needing to remove the "bad" things because we now put them to use. I am sure I will have a ton of people tell me water changes are mandatory and have a million reasons for it. I say if you want to do water changes fine. You might even shock and or kill the plants if that what you use since the plants need what you remove in the water changes but meh. I for one will be enjoying both my fish and maybe even some fruit and veggies now and again while they will be vacuuming gravel and packing buckets of water around.
As it sits in the regular fish keeping world we only address 3 of the 4 parts of the natural cycle of waste. We can deal with ammonia with bacteria that naturally occur, same with nitrites. We are already adding food to the system to keep our fish alive and healthy. 3 parts. However the only way we deal with the 4th part nitrates is through water changes. The addition of plants to this addresses this issue. The plants convert the nitrates into growth. Nitrates are the natural fertilizer of the earth. This is why oil is used to create fertilizer. Think about that for a bit.. yuck. our food is grown with oil. In our aquariums we have a natural and balanced ecosystem which only rarely needs maintenance in the form of potassium or calcium and rarely in the case where worms are present iron. The plants take the place of water changes. It's fact not fiction. Fish food and water top offs provide most of all of the micro and macro nutrients the system will ever need. If the system needs a boost its a simple matter of adding the nutrient. We are no longer needing to remove the "bad" things because we now put them to use. I am sure I will have a ton of people tell me water changes are mandatory and have a million reasons for it. I say if you want to do water changes fine. You might even shock and or kill the plants if that what you use since the plants need what you remove in the water changes but meh. I for one will be enjoying both my fish and maybe even some fruit and veggies now and again while they will be vacuuming gravel and packing buckets of water around.
excellent, this shall become interesting when the time comes! once again thanks rivermud, always full of info
An aside here. In aquaponics they harvest their fish to eat. So this doesn't apply so much but it gives a good idea of how much fish we can have in these systems and maintain a good balance. A conservative rules of thumb for starters is to have 1lb of fish for 1cubits foot of media. In my case my grow bed is 2x4 12 inches deep. So, I have 8 cubic feet of grow media which will easily support 8lbs of fish! I can have a lot of tilapia or whatever I want in my 100 gallon aquarium.
scale info here.. average 10 inch oscar is 3/4 of a lb..... Btw this is also useful in terms of knowing how much grow media you need for your tank depending on how heavily it is stocked. people with large messy fish need more grow area to deal with the nitrates.
scale info here.. average 10 inch oscar is 3/4 of a lb..... Btw this is also useful in terms of knowing how much grow media you need for your tank depending on how heavily it is stocked. people with large messy fish need more grow area to deal with the nitrates.
