Aquaponics System, Passive Solar Greenhouse build - Page 4

Daox · 03-11-15, 01:31 PM

Wow, you're bringing this together fairly quickly.

pinballlooking · 03-11-15, 01:43 PM

Thanks from this side it seems like it is taking a while. I have a new contract for work and it is having me work a lot of hours.

So I can’t work on this new aquaponics project as much as I want to.

I am working inside but I would like to be outside welding up my grow beds.

Work always gets in the way of what we want to do but it pays for it so I plug on.

I should be getting my new fish tank in the next couple days.

I will have to cut a hole in the top to get better access to the fish.
I have not been able to find a used tank big enough so I am going to get this one.

Xringer · 03-11-15, 02:24 PM

I knew that building looked very familiar, but kinda nakid..

That's quite the solar farm you have on your farm.

pinballlooking · 03-11-15, 03:04 PM

We really like it. Power is the thing we have been the most successful at growing so far.
I hope to change that with the new aquaponics system.

I am glad for the warmer weather. The last few days my wife drove 228 mile only on solar power no gas.
This is normal in the summer but not in the very cold winter. It is 77 deg here today.

Xringer · 03-11-15, 03:31 PM

77F !! It must be nice living in heaven..

It's amazingly warm here too. Up to 50F and my radon/basement heater blowers are running again.. After being dominant since the fall..

I might break out the telescope tonight.. It's going to be in the 40s this evening..

The navy cloud sat is looking okay right now..

NEXSAT, NRL/JPSS Next Generation Weather Satellite Demonstration Project
But not so sunny for SC right now..

Our solar hotwater tank is warming back up.. I turned off the A7 heatpump this morning when I got out of the shower..

The snow drifts are melting like crazy this week.. Glad to see the roof isn't going to cave in.. That was a little scary this year..
I've learned my lesson..
Keep the roof clean, since the next one might drop 3 or 4 feet..
I should get a 55 gal gasoline tank, I'll be making a wide trench, all the way around the house next winter..
I hate trying to snow-rake roofs while on snow-shoes!
Texans can't candlepin bowl or snow-shoe!

pinballlooking · 03-12-15, 05:17 PM

I now have my fish tank tractor supply had a decent price on a 550 gallon tank. They have a 10% off coupon on the internet and that really helped.

That made the price cheaper than the online tank guys.

I was having no luck finding a used tank. But this tank should work well for the fish.

I also grabbed a cattle panel to hang up in front the 55 gallon barrels to tie off climbing plants.

pinballlooking · 03-13-15, 03:48 PM

I ordered a Vent fan for the Greenhouse. It has 3 speeds that should help keep the cost for running it down some. I already have a thermostatically controlled switch for it.

This will go on the other side top on the greenhouse. I picked this up the other day.

pinballlooking · 03-16-15, 09:55 AM

Fish tank is in place and we have collected 330 gallons of rain water so far.

I filled the fish tank then realized the bottom plug was dripping so I pumped it all back to a IBC sealed it and pumped the water back.

We are digging the hole for the sump tank. I used my tractor to dig the first hole. Then we saw the transformer and were not sure where the underground power lines were so we switched to digging by hand.

I have a call into the locating service I hope they come today.

The sump tank is 5’ tall and we want only 6” up out of the ground. It has a 4” base I would like to put under it.

I have a good helper my youngest son.
We moved dirt around the building pad to slope water away from it.

I went out today to look at it and it is filling up with ground water.

Xringer · 03-16-15, 10:50 AM

Wow, that's a pretty high water table.. Is the ground water always that high?
If it is, that there, is GSHP land fer sure!

It's so neat how boys love to dig..

Must be in our DNA..

Is that a cell-phone tower in the background?
That tower sure seems like it would protect your farm from being hit by lightning.

We lost two of our security cameras last summer, and the lightning hit wasn't even near our house.

pinballlooking · 03-16-15, 10:59 AM

Two nights ago it rained so hard for many hours. We have standing water everywhere. Normally we would never see water at this depth.

He worked his butt off digging a good part of the day with me.
The boys pressure washed one IBC and the sump tank.
My oldest boy got his hand pinched on the post hole digger I hope it is not broken. He was out for the rest of the day.

Yes It is a cell phone tower. It is a private tower so more than one carry is on it. Att is on it so we have great reception they have not upgraded it to LTE yet


Yes I bet you are right it should attract lighten.

I am going to connect two gutters to my IBC I need to collect another 625 gallons of rain water. the system will have around 1,000 gallons of water just between the fish tank and the sump.

The sump is such a pain to dig but it will be worth it when it is done.

03-11-15, 01:31 PM	#31
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Wow, you're bringing this together fairly quickly. __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

03-11-15, 01:43 PM	#32
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	Thanks from this side it seems like it is taking a while. I have a new contract for work and it is having me work a lot of hours. So I can’t work on this new aquaponics project as much as I want to. I am working inside but I would like to be outside welding up my grow beds. Work always gets in the way of what we want to do but it pays for it so I plug on. I should be getting my new fish tank in the next couple days. I will have to cut a hole in the top to get better access to the fish. I have not been able to find a used tank big enough so I am going to get this one. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by pinballlooking; 03-11-15 at 02:38 PM..

03-11-15, 02:24 PM	#33
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	I knew that building looked very familiar, but kinda nakid.. That's quite the solar farm you have on your farm. __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

03-11-15, 03:31 PM	#35
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	77F !! It must be nice living in heaven.. It's amazingly warm here too. Up to 50F and my radon/basement heater blowers are running again.. After being dominant since the fall.. I might break out the telescope tonight.. It's going to be in the 40s this evening.. The navy cloud sat is looking okay right now.. NEXSAT, NRL/JPSS Next Generation Weather Satellite Demonstration Project But not so sunny for SC right now.. Our solar hotwater tank is warming back up.. I turned off the A7 heatpump this morning when I got out of the shower.. The snow drifts are melting like crazy this week.. Glad to see the roof isn't going to cave in.. That was a little scary this year.. I've learned my lesson.. Keep the roof clean, since the next one might drop 3 or 4 feet.. I should get a 55 gal gasoline tank, I'll be making a wide trench, all the way around the house next winter.. I hate trying to snow-rake roofs while on snow-shoes! Texans can't candlepin bowl or snow-shoe! __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

03-12-15, 05:17 PM	#36
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	I now have my fish tank tractor supply had a decent price on a 550 gallon tank. They have a 10% off coupon on the internet and that really helped. That made the price cheaper than the online tank guys. I was having no luck finding a used tank. But this tank should work well for the fish. I also grabbed a cattle panel to hang up in front the 55 gallon barrels to tie off climbing plants. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by pinballlooking; 03-13-15 at 12:33 PM..

03-11-15, 03:04 PM	#34
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	We really like it. Power is the thing we have been the most successful at growing so far. I hope to change that with the new aquaponics system. I am glad for the warmer weather. The last few days my wife drove 228 mile only on solar power no gas. This is normal in the summer but not in the very cold winter. It is 77 deg here today.

03-13-15, 03:48 PM	#37
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	I ordered a Vent fan for the Greenhouse. It has 3 speeds that should help keep the cost for running it down some. I already have a thermostatically controlled switch for it. This will go on the other side top on the greenhouse. I picked this up the other day. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by pinballlooking; 03-16-15 at 11:21 AM..

03-16-15, 09:55 AM	#38
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	Fish tank is in place and we have collected 330 gallons of rain water so far. I filled the fish tank then realized the bottom plug was dripping so I pumped it all back to a IBC sealed it and pumped the water back. We are digging the hole for the sump tank. I used my tractor to dig the first hole. Then we saw the transformer and were not sure where the underground power lines were so we switched to digging by hand. I have a call into the locating service I hope they come today. The sump tank is 5’ tall and we want only 6” up out of the ground. It has a 4” base I would like to put under it. I have a good helper my youngest son. We moved dirt around the building pad to slope water away from it. I went out today to look at it and it is filling up with ground water. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by pinballlooking; 03-16-15 at 11:54 AM..

03-16-15, 10:50 AM	#39
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Wow, that's a pretty high water table.. Is the ground water always that high? If it is, that there, is GSHP land fer sure! It's so neat how boys love to dig.. Must be in our DNA.. Is that a cell-phone tower in the background? That tower sure seems like it would protect your farm from being hit by lightning. We lost two of our security cameras last summer, and the lightning hit wasn't even near our house. __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

03-16-15, 10:59 AM	#40
pinballlooking Super Moderator Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: SC Posts: 2,923 Thanks: 172 Thanked 564 Times in 463 Posts	Two nights ago it rained so hard for many hours. We have standing water everywhere. Normally we would never see water at this depth. He worked his butt off digging a good part of the day with me. The boys pressure washed one IBC and the sump tank. My oldest boy got his hand pinched on the post hole digger I hope it is not broken. He was out for the rest of the day. Yes It is a cell phone tower. It is a private tower so more than one carry is on it. Att is on it so we have great reception they have not upgraded it to LTE yet  Yes I bet you are right it should attract lighten. I am going to connect two gutters to my IBC I need to collect another 625 gallons of rain water. the system will have around 1,000 gallons of water just between the fish tank and the sump. The sump is such a pain to dig but it will be worth it when it is done.