الاكسجه بطريقه Ù Ø ØªÙ„ÙÙ‡ Oxygenation By different way

Using pressure differences and gravity and capillary and the rate of water flow in the pipes make this simple function.......
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How to Cycle Aquaponics

Starting Up (Cycling) Your Aquaponics System

 This article was borrowed from our friends at The Aquaponics Source

Bacteria are the carburetor of an aquaponics system that takes the otherwise unusable fish waste and creates a near perfect plant fertilizer. In this article I will demystify the process of establishing a beneficial bacteria colony in your aquaponics system. This process is often called system “cycling”. By the end of this article you will fully understand what you MUST do to initiate cycling and to ensure its success. You will also understand what you CAN do to both make the process less stressful for your fish and your plants, and to speed up the process.

What is Cycling?

Cycling starts when you (or your fish) first add ammonia to your aquaponics system. Ammonia (chemical formula NH3) is a compound made of nitrogen and hydrogen. It can come either from your fish or from other sources. Ammonia is toxic to fish and will soon kill them unless it is either diluted to a non-toxic level or converted into a less toxic form of nitrogen. In addition, nitrogen in the ammonia form is not readily taken up by plants, so no matter how high the ammonia levels get in your fish tank; your plants will not be getting much nutrition from it.
The good news is that ammonia attracts nitrosomonas, the first of the two nitrifying bacteria that are present in the air and will populate the surfaces of your system. The nitrosomonas bacteria convert the ammonia into nitrites (NO2) (the golden line in the chart above). This is a necessary step in the cycling process; however, nitrites are even more toxic than ammonia! But there is good news because the presence of nitrites attracts the bacteria we are truly after – nitrobacter. Nitrospira convert the nitrites into nitrates (represented by the green line in the chart above), which are generally harmless to the fish and excellent food for your plants.
Once you detect nitrates in your water and the ammonia and nitrite concentrations have both dropped to .5 ppm or lower, your system will be fully cycled and aquaponics will have officially begun!

The Importance of Testing Tools

API Freshwater Master Test Kit

You must have some way of telling where you are in the cycling process – typically a four to six week endeavor. Specifically, you must monitor ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels as well as pH so that you know that all these elements are “in range”. If they are not, you may need to take corrective action. This is also the only way that you will know when you are fully cycled and ready to add your fish. Plus, watching the daily progress of the cycling process is fascinating and something you can only see through the lens of a test kit. By the way, once you reach the point that your system is fully cycled, you will need to do much less monitoring than during the cycling process. So get through the cycling process and look forward to reaping the fruits (… or should we say the fish) of your labor.
To do their testing, most aquaponic gardeners use a product by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Inc. called the API Freshwater Master Test Kit. This kit is easy to use, is inexpensive, and is designed for monitoring the cycling process in fish systems.
You will also need a submersible thermometer to measure your water temperature. Temperature affects both the cycling rate and the health of your fish and plants once you are up and running. See more on this below.

Starting the Cycling Process

Once you have your aquaponics system set up and your test kit in hand all you need to do to start the cycling process is add a source of ammonia. Traditionally this has been by adding fish and letting their waste be the ammonia, but I’m not a big fan of using fish as an ammonia source. Instead I prefer a technique called “Fishless Cycling” where an external source of ammonia is added to your aquaponics system. Why is this?

Typical Nitrogen Cycle

First, both you and your fish will likely experience much less stress because you will not be trying to keep anybody alive during the process. Second, you can more precisely control how much ammonia is added to your system during the process. For example, if you see that your ammonia level is creeping up to 8 ppm, but no nitrites have shown up yet, just stop adding ammonia for a few days and let the bacteria catch up. You can’t do this with fish!

The practical result of this is that with Fishless Cycling you can fully stock your tank once cycling is complete, versus gradually increasing your stocking levels as is recommended when cycling with fish. This is especially beneficial to those who are growing aggressive or carnivorous fish because they are less likely to attack each other if they are all introduced to the tank at the same time.

Cycling Without Fish

There are several ways to add ammonia to your system, but honestly the best is to simply purchase our Cycling Kits.  They come in 3 sizes – Small (< 100 gallons), Medium (100 – 300 gallons) and Large (300 – 500 gallons).  They come with all the ammonia you will need to fully cycle the corresponding size tank, powdered seaweed to provide a rich supply of micronutrients to get your plants off to a great start, and detailed instructions.
With Fishless Cycling you can add safely fish to your aquaponics system after your ammonia and nitrite levels drop to zero, or close to it, and you have measurable levels of nitrates.  This tells you that both the ammonia converting bacteria (nitrosomonas) and the nitrate converting bacteria (nitrospira) have become fully established and are ready to efficiently process fish waste.

Speeding up Cycling

Unfortunately nitrifying bacteria are some of the slowest growing bacteria in nature, and the cycling process can take as long as six weeks. There are a few things you can do to speed up this process, however.
• Temperature – like most microorganisms, nitrifying bacteria multiply more quickly in warmer conditions. Their optimal temperature is between 77-86°F (25-30°C). At 64°F (18°C) their growth rates is decreased by 50%. At 46-50°F (8-10 °C) it decreases by 75%, and stops all together at 39°F (4°C). It will die off at or below 32°F (0°C) and at or above 120°F (49°C).
• pH – Bacteria prefer a pH range between 7 – 8. Use hydroponic pH up and down products to keep your pH in this range during cycling.
• Oxygen – Nitrifying bacteria are aerobic and will multiply much faster under highly oxygenated conditions. Even if you are cycling without fish be sure to have as much oxygen in your tank water as you would if the fish were there. Think of the bacteria as just another living organism that requires oxygen in your system.
• Adding bacteria – You can “jump start” the process by adding bacteria from an existing colony. Good sources of beneficial bacteria are ranked here, leading with the best (the lower you go on the list the more chance you have of introducing a disease into your system):

• Our Microbe Lift Nitrifying Bacteria product (included with the Cycling Kits)
• Media from an existing aquaponics system.
• Filter material (floss, sponge, biowheel, etc.) from an established, disease-free aquarium.
• Gravel from an established, disease-free tank (Many local pet and aquarium stores will give this away if asked.).
• Other ornaments (driftwood, rocks, etc.) from an established aquarium.
• Squeezings from a filter sponge (any pet and aquarium store should be willing to do this…).
• Rocks from a backyard pond with fish in it.
• Rocks from a river, lake or wild pond.

When to add plants

We recommend adding plants as soon as you have started the cycling process.  The reason for this is that it gives the plants some time to put down roots and establish themselves before the fish are introduced and nitrates need to be absorbed

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DIY Aquaponics for Beginners 2014

DIY Aquaponics for Beginners 2014, a How To guide to making your first AP system

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An Aquaponics design for a beginner which encompasses the three most popular Aquaponics, NFT, Grow Bed and the Raft Systems.

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Like Minds but Different Skills

I was browsing over at http://www.aquaponicshq.com/ and came across a thread called my slimline aquaponics system.  This is an initial image before he added glass fish tanks and clad the entire system with the same elegant wood.   I immediately noticed that he used six bins plumbed together in two sets each connected to a bell siphon.  On the other hand, while my system looks pretty industrial and clearly shows its roots in my desire to repurpose and recycle items where I can, his system is elegant and sleek.  I found another thread by the same poster which features pictures of his compact chicken coop which he installed over a water storage tank.  It also shows the same high level skills of carpentry.
I noodle around with saws and hammers, drills and screwdrivers, but although Ive been proud of some of my constructions, usually it is because of a high degree of function rather than elegance of execution.

A few examples of my work are found in my living room.  I found kitchen carts with granite tops at a local store at a price that was less than the cost of the granite.  I purchased three of them.  I converted two of them into matching consoles that hold various items of my home entertainment system.  I cut about six inches off the legs, repositioned the bottom shelf and added panels made from matchstick place mats stained dark and mounted on thin sheets of plywood.  The fronts drop down for access to projector, speakers, DVD etc.  I left the third one tall but cut down the width and length to make a table that sits next to my back door.  The drawer holds keys, the top a mail sorting box, and a kitchen sized trashcan fits under the top.

Another project is a TV cabinet that fits in the corner of my living room.  The top holds a flat-screen TV and the bottom is home to childrens books and toys for when my grandkids visit.  I made it out of plywood and piano hinges with oriental hardware ordered from the internet.  People have mistaken it for an antique.  Ive made some nice frames for large pieces of stained glass, but most of my carpentry work is more functional than it is attractive.

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Design Changes to BFL Collector Vermi Hut Ordered

My son critiqued my finished project and recommended that I cut the pipe in half to allow access to the ramp from above.  That seems logical.  At this point Im looking forward to delivery of the larvae.  I have engaged another family to save their food waste so there is plenty for the little critters to eat when they arrive.  Ive also ordered a Vermihut, which is similar to the Worm Factory as a worm composting environment.  As I understand it, worms are somewhat pickier eaters than Black Soldier Fly Larvae.  While the BFL will eat almost any food waste with the exception of potato skins and dairy products, worms prefer more of a salad type of diet.  My aim is to have protein supplements for my chickens and the fish I eventually plan to raise in my aquaponics setup.  Some of the worms I have ordered will go directly into my grow bins, hopefully to serve a useful purpose in breaking down the organic wastes.  The rest will take up residence in the Vermihut.  From what Ive read online, the Vermihut may run somewhat hotter than the Worm Factory, due perhaps to the design of the latter which is elevated.  It seems to me that setting the Vermihut on top of a few concrete blocks would serve to add ventilation, achieved in the Worm Factory by longer legs on the bottom of the system.  Who knew I would be eagerly anticipating shipments of worms and maggots?

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Different types of Aquaponics

Some of the descriptions and images come from The Aquaponic Store 

NFT (Nutrient Film Technique) - A method of growing plants in which a thin and even film of  aerated nutrient solution flows down a channel into which the roots of the crop are suspended. It is very important to filter the water well before sending it to an NFT trough since fish waste in the trough and on the plant roots will negatively impact the plants growth.  NFT aquaponics requires separate solids and bio-filtration.  While the reduced amount of water needed to fill the system may seem like a benefit, it can mean greater temperature and water quality fluctuations in a short period of time.

DWC (Deep Water Culture) - DWC is often referred to as Raft where the plants grow suspended over a tank of water in which nutrient rich water flows with supplemental aeration.  In most situations filtration needs to occur before fish water is sent to the raft area of the system.

CHIFT PIST (Constant Height In Fish Tank Pump In Sump Tank) -  Maintaining a constant volume/height in the fish tank with a sump tank at the lowest point and a fish tank at a higher point.  The pump lifts water from the sump tank to the fish tank and water flows from the fish tank to the grow beds which drain back to the sump tank.

CHOP (Constant Height One Pump) - Basically the same thing as CHIFT PIST.  With CHIFT PIST there has not normally been a distinction between the variation where the fish tank drains back to the sump directly and the pump pumps to the grow beds and they might drain to the sump or the fish tank.  With CHOP it was normally assumed that the fish tank got the water from the pump and drained to grow beds which drained to the sump.
CHOP2 - The variation of CHIFT PIST where both the fish tank and grow beds drained to the sump and the sump pumped to both the growbeds and fish tank
Flood and Drain- The plant growing space is allowed to flood and then drain either by the use of a pump on a timer to fill the bed and then allow it to drain while the pump is off or by the use of a siphon or other intermittent outflow device where the bed is constantly filling and then the siphon will drain the bed quickly.
Advantages: providing ample oxygen to plant roots and bio filter bacteria without the need of extra aeration.  Many plants like some dry time especially if the water is not super aerated.
Disadvantages: Water level needs to fluctuate in the system to provide the water for flood and drain.  Flood and drain offers more media to air than media to water interface which can have an exaggerated heat exchange effect on water temperatures.

Ebb and Flow - The same as Flood and Drain except you are usually pumping up through the bottom of the grow bed and then when the pump turns off, you are draining back down through the pump.

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A Different Twist on a BFL Collector

I am going to be receiving some BFL from reptiworm.com in a few days.  I want to give them a home, but Im not equipped to make the Garden Pond BFL collector or pay for a BioPod.  So this is the design Ive made.  The body is a Lowes bucket, cheap at less than $3.00.  The ramp is a length of 2" ABS pipe.  I have some stainless steel screws left from my fish tank construction and lots of lumber ends and pieces for the stand at the back that gives a tilt to the bucket and keeps it from rolling. 

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