Hydroponic enthusiasts (hobby/personal growers)

[Chimera]

hes going commercial rfari

2 acres of land


300k initial investment

[hustla_ambition101]

The company for the tanks is Century Eslon up in Omeara Industrial Estate, they make them custom.

[timelapse]

Can your nutes work on Chilli peppers? I growing Scropion peppers using aero

[android79]

still looking for tilapia food ,pm or call 381-1893

[hustla_ambition101]

^^^NFM

[android79]

thanks i will call them.

[Chimera]

ppl use the rice bran as fish food not so?

[android79]

looking for hydroton locally. 381-1893

[rfari]

Best bet is to order it over the internet via raptor.it cost me 550tt for a 50lb bag. Pm raptor for a good deal

[mitsu_crazy]

started up an aquaphonic system a couple months now.
not fully complete but got one or two items growing.


pictures i have taken so far.

need to take some more. had a few changes since and a few talapia in the tank.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 2823251621

[rfari]

nice clean setup there man. what type of fish u intend for it?

[mitsu_crazy]

talapia....already in it.

one grow bed up

then realized how difficult it is to get washed 3/4 gravel...

wanted hydroton but seems expensive.

[DrunkenMaster16]

Hmm might copy your setup rory. Right now its only pumpkin and green fig in my beds, the tomato's died out and so did my cucumbers.

[mitsu_crazy]

Hmm might copy your setup rory. Right now its only pumpkin and green fig in my beds, the tomato's died out and so did my cucumbers.

right now recalculting and rechecking everything...one grow bed complete and i may be undersized and have to go up to 4 grow beds...

[DrunkenMaster16]

I have been doing fully organic in ground but have always been looking to do a simple cost effective aqua phonic setup. This year my grocery bill has dropped by an average of 150 a month. Im looking to offset the price of rum

[mitsu_crazy]

water tank 8-900

grow bed /fish trough - 4-450

plumbing under 300

i bought an oversized pump so i wont quote on price

gravel...- my nightmare....if national quarries would stop sticking it would be about $360 to fill a grow bed it only gets more expensive

earth worms...go digging

talapia - depends on where u get them.

then add water and
monitor

[rfari]

From my time using gravel i used 1/2 and 1/2 gravel that people use for landscaping after washing and rinsing multiple times.

[mitsu_crazy]

i thought of that and 3/8

but too small...

it have worms in there as well (added more photos)

plus as it is a flood and drain system it needs to allow air to get in-between.

as it is I'm prepared to buy half yard of gravel once it meets my needs....but finding it...sheesh...

considered hydroton but at 550 for a 50lb bag....that not making a lot of sense to me....just yet...

and i need to find some more earth worms....never knew it would be so difficult to dig up d buggers...

[rfari]

Or scn scn. Tuff decisions jed. One thing. I was thi king about getting the hydroton made locally by someone that makes clay products. I csnt recall exactly what.is added to the clay to get it to expand while in the furnace but that can be an option. Im sure that u can get it done for next to nothing

[mitsu_crazy]

well boi if they need clay.....i just have to dig....

got to 2.5 feet for the fish tank and met tons of it.

stopped right there... lol

something worth looking into
unless i can get it wholesale in the us and bring in a fairly large quantity via ocean freight.

I'd sell some of it

[Chimera]

Or scn scn. Tuff decisions jed. One thing. I was thi king about getting the hydroton made locally by someone that makes clay products. I csnt recall exactly what.is added to the clay to get it to expand while in the furnace but that can be an option. Im sure that u can get it done for next to nothing

hydroton is just a brand really and a expensive one

http://www.ehow.com/facts_7318077_leca_.html

Manufacturing Process
Lightweight expanded clay aggregate is made by heating clay, shale or slate in a rotary kiln. The kiln temperature may reach up to 2100 degrees Fahrenheit. The intense heat causes the material to expand and become lightweight aggregate.



Read more: What Is LECA? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/facts_7318077_leca_ ... z2AE7QexAl

http://www.aquaponics.net.au/forum/show ... php?t=1019

Originally Posted by RupertofOZ
Expanded clay balls... are made from clay... fired in a rotating kiln at 1200+ C....
& that there is why it's far cheaper to either buy the clay balls or use a different media (or as Dufflight suggested a mixture of both with top dressing)

I run 12+ furnaces (very advanced kilns if you like) every day @ work. some firing under air, others under vacuum.
Some short programs run at only 700+ Deg C for a few minutes,
Others run longer (overnight) 8+ hour programs holding @ 1865 Deg. C.

.....trust me.....it just wouldn't be feasible financially to bother making your own unless you were producing on a MASSIVE commercial scale,
I'd never bother to do it.....& I've got more equipment capable than your average 'back yarder'.

Cheers,
Shane.
__________________
In tank....66 Tandans, 51 Silvers.
Dropped dead....6 Trout, 10 Tandans, 1 Silver.
Grown out....45 Trout.

[rfari]

Good read there aba. Hydroton name stuck like sqezy and q-tip. As for the manufacture of it, taking into consideration that the kilns primary product would be clay pots, deyas etc would this drive the production cost for the leca down?

[Chimera]

note that they specify rotary kiln eh, thats how the balls would take shape i assume, from rolling.

this is a rotary kiln



this is a deya kiln lol

[mitsu_crazy]

big difference....lol

pressure....

[rfari]

Ohh. Well look at that. I learn something there. How about seeding a tray of clay with small pebbles and have it auto mechanically tilted side to side? Im thinking that moist clay would adhere to these pebbles and the tilting action would cause it to roll and maintain the spherical shape. When the balls are the right size place tray in the oven to bake. At the end of the year i might try that

[shake d livin wake d dead]

Hmm might copy your setup rory. Right now its only pumpkin and green fig in my beds, the tomato's died out and so did my cucumbers.

depending on variety of cucumber used,currently farmers experiencing a variety of diseases with it,hence the price of $700 ah bag.

[Chimera]

$700 a bag? u mistakenly add in a zero there by chance?

[rfari]

How many pounds dais?

[shake d livin wake d dead]

$700 a bag? u mistakenly add in a zero there by chance?

lol this was early last week at Macoya market,but if is $70 now sumting wrong.
@fari a flour bag filled is about 70-80lbs,3 pigtail buckets is usually used as a guide.

[rfari]

Sweet jesus. And how many vines and sq ft of land space is needed to reap 70-80 lbs?