Swirl Tank

So the two hundred plus or minus koi fish have been rescued from certain death from abandonment at my neighbors pond and are residing comfortably in my talapia tank. Now I've got to put it in gear and get the system plumbed and running to keep their world habitable. Although they have been living in a stagnant, algae filled, slime pool without air for the past year. So I've probably got some time.

An inexpensive swirl tank 

 I started off by moving about four hundred gallons of their water with them to start my thousand gallon tank off with some good bacteria. I'll fix the algae problem later. To build a good swirl tank on the cheap I started with with a Rubbermaid Brute 44 gallon trash can. Into that I put a 1 1/2" thru hull fitting at the bottom of the can for the clean out valve. The swirl tank needs a cone shaped bottom to direct the solid waste down to the clean out. I made my cone from an old dome style trash can lid. I cut off the lid handles that were sticking out then made a cut from the outer edge to the center. This let me pull the two cut edges past each other to make a cone shape. This cone is then put inside the can at the bottom and let to expand out until it fits snug to the sides. It will still be overlapped and cone shaped. I used a sharpie marker to mark the cut edge. Then remove it from the can.

I rebent the lid until the cut edge lines up with the sharpie mark, then run in a couple of 1/2" sheet metal screws thru the lip from the outside towards the inside to hold it in shape. This way the point end of the screw won't poke into the can wall.

I cut and glued up a piece of 1 1/2" pipe and 90 degree fitting and put it in the through hull fitting at the bottom of the can so that the 90 lands in the center. I cut that 90 so that the end that is pointed up is only a quarter inch long. The part that I cut off I used to scribe the center off the cone that I made earlier. This is then cut out with a saber saw so that when the cone is put back in the can it will fit snugly over the PVC 90.

I caulked around the PVC 90 and the outside edge of the cone with 3M 5200 marine caulk. This is a tuff caulk that will hold it in place without screwing through the can wall. I also used it on all the through hull fittings.

On the outside of the can I reduced my clean out down to1" pipe and put a butterfly valve inline. I then put a 1 1/2" through hull fitting through my fish tank a the finished water level height that I want, then lined up that fitting with my swirl tank on the outside.

A matching 1 1/2" through hull fitting was installed into the tank and PVC pipe was press fitted in to connect the fish and swirl tanks. I only press fit these as there is so little head pressure that high up in the tank. It also makes it easier if you have to move it later. This pipe gets a 90 on the inside and a short piece of pipe kicked at an angle to get the swirl going. The last fitting goes in a couple of inches lower than the inflow line and a piece of pipe is stubbed up to establish the tank water level. This is the outflow line that goes back to the sump tank. So now you have an inflow an outflow and a clean out line. The solids come in from the fish tank, swirl around, settle to the bottom, and are cleaned out as needed. The clean water rises to the out flow and exits to the sump.

Chicken Tractor

Chickens enjoying bug brunch

Baby chicks exploring their new coop

Chickens are around the most enjoyable creatures that you can have. They require little attention, are inquisitive and personable, and add a lot of character to your aquaponic garden.

Although not directly part of the system, they are an integral part of our overall sustainability effort. We enjoy their company so much that we put a table and chairs out in the yard so we can sit with them in the afternoon.

Fresh eggs 

Maybe have a glass of wine and share some blueberries with them before dinner. Our rabbits share the same common area with them but are not nearly so engaging.

Our chickens split their time between a fenced enclosure, with the rabbits and a chicken tractor. The tractor is a combination mobile coop and secure yard on wheels that allow you to move the chickens to fresh pasture every couple of days. You can really taste the difference in the eggs when the chickens get all those fresh greens and bugs in their diet.

Here are some images of the chicken tractor that I put together for our small flock. It is light weight and strong. It is the same construction technique as the arch frame greenhouse only smaller. Attached to that light weight frame is 1/2" hardware cloth covered with a 6oz white tarp.

Chicken tractor under a shade tree

The tarp covers the top for shade and extends down around one end to the ground the keep the feed dry during rainstorms. I can wheel this one around the yard with one hand. This is not my first attempt at constructing a tractor. My first one was a 2x4 and sheet metal affair that moved more tank like than tractor. It must of weighed 150 lbs While I was building this one I put a black soldier fly compost box in the coop area so that I can load up the kitchen scrapes into it once a week or so and the finished larva drop down the chute into a feed tray. One less thing for me to do. I keep a regular feed dispenser in the coop but they chickens much prefer the fresh greens and bugs. The coop and nest boxes are upstairs with the feed and scratch area down below.

The whole thing weighs about 50 pounds. So not so bad to move around the yard. The wheels are removable, so once it's where you want it they come off and the tractor sits flat on the ground. This helps to keep the predators out. I stapled a small, bunched up, rope of bird netting around the bottom edge to make a 'snake stop' gasket. It's loose enough that it expands into any holes that may be in the ground around the base. When the birds are small like these guys the king and indigo snakes will try and slips for a quick snack. Once they're full size that's not so much of a problem. If this tractor looks like something you may want, we are working on a video on the construction process that will be on our web site www.shamrockaquaponicfarm.com soon.  Mat