Revision and Progress

After a quick trip to Florida to witness the marriage of my youngest son, Im back in Utah getting things going with my aquaponics set-up.  My middle son, the guru of anything he puts his mind to, strongly advised me against the use of wood in my fish tank design.  Not only the moisture from the tank, but the condensation created by a large amount of water would threaten the material.  Ive decided on a similar design, but  using various types of PVC instead of wood.  This should save me on the liner since the PVC itself is waterproof and chemically inert.  After all, Im using PVC pipe for the water supply.
I drove up to a quarry/manufactory north of Park City for my expanded shale/slate in the form of Utelite.  The back of my small pick-up was filled almost to the brim by a large loader.  Fortunately I have a cover for the back which prevented other drivers from getting cracked windshields as I made my way home past Rockport, Jordanelle and Deer Creek Reservoirs with a view of Timpanogos, still in her winter robes, and Bridal Veil Falls.  It was a picturesque trip.  Regional Supply delivered the plastic I ordered the same day.  With a pile of gravel, stacks of other supplies, and the promise of good weather, I have a lot of work to do.

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Pictures

Google Earth view of Utelite factory near quarry.  Look for the long roasting tubes where the slate is heated and expanded.

Views of Deer Creek Reservoir with Mt. Timpanogos in the distance and Bridal Veil Falls.

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Progress Report FISH

I attended the 2nd Annual Aquaponics Association Conference last weekend in Denver and learned some new things about my hobby. One of the sections addressed the care and feeding of rainbow trout. Today Spring Lake Trout Fishery delivered more than 60 trout ranging in size from 2 inches to more than 4 inches. They are slender little things but they will grow large and fat if they survive. Fortunately my water temperature is in the right range, which is likely a bit too cold for my tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberry vines and probably explains why only the bed of mint is truly thriving. I redesigned my grow trays, making them hold more water in keeping with the idea that they are semi-deep water culture instead of being NFT. I purchased seed for growing winter crops that the trout lecturer indicated were successful crops to use with trout. A raccoon or some similar pest got into my greenhouse a couple of weeks ago on the night when my latest grandson was born. All but two inches of the fish tank were emptied. Fortunately the gold fish I already had in the tank survived. At this point the gold fish are fat and doing well, but the Spring Lake man indicated that as the trout grow larger they will probably eat the gold fish.

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Two Weeks and Fish are Thriving In Spite of Some Problems

When I was dealing with 20 cent feeder gold fish I didnt feel the economic pinch too much if a bunch of them floated to the top of the tank a day or so after I brought them home. I feared at first that I was responsible but a reliable source told me that feeder fish are notoriously infected with various things that make them short lived. The survival of two of the original gold fish through last winter, living on algae apparently, surprised me when I noticed them at last. The trout represent a greater investment. I paid for them by the inch as well as paying for delivery. Fortunately the delivery cost was split between me and another aquaponist in the area who ordered larger fish from the same trout farm. In addition, the man who delivered the fish threw in a few extra. Actually he threw in more than ten extra. But he didnt want to carry a load of water and a few small fish all the way back to his trout farm. Following his recommendations, based on the number of fish, I fed them about a cup of fish pellets from Intermountain Farm Association where I purchased 50 pounds for just a little over $35. Even though any remaining pellets should be discarded after 3 months, this still beat the price of fish food from the pet store. Then I discovered that my three hens are crazy about fish pellets. I had read somewhere that hens fed on fish meal produced eggs with higher levels of omega fatty acids, so I consider it a win/win situation. The fish pellets are twice the cost of layer pellets for the chickens, but with no need to worry about wasting the pellets after ninety days have passed, I figure all is good. At any rate, feeding the fish at the rate of a cup a day didnt work out well. The fish let a lot of the pellets sink to the bottom of the fish tank where they became food for algae. Suddenly my pumps seized up from algal clogging and the water in the system turned nearly opaque. After cleaning the pumps and getting them started again I put a piece of polyester upholstery foam in a rectangular plastic colander and set it beneath the outlet from the fish tank into the sump. The following day, Thursday, we didnt feed the fish. On Friday the filter was filthy, the water in the fish tank was crystal clear and the fish eagerly ate the handful and a half of pellets fed to them. No casualties were detected. I was happy to learn that even commercial aquaponists use chelated iron as a supplement. I have used it with good effect. My tomato plants had turned a sickly yellow green earlier this month but an application of chelated iron brought them back to a lovely green. Ill wait until the greenhouse gets too cold to support them before pulling them out and replacing them with cold weather crops.

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