rubber spatula was a good idea. Screen looks good.
rubber spatula was a good idea. Screen looks good.
Water parameters as of Sep01:
1. pH: +7.2
2. Ammonia (NH3): 0.0
3. Nitrite (NO2): ~0.1+
4. Nitrate (NO3): ~40+
5. Phosphate (PO4): 0.0
I thought I'd mention that both last Saturday and today there was HUGE growth on the screen. It appears to be all green hair algae and hanging off the screen several inches when I took it out of the scrubber box for cleaning. I'm very happy with the amount of growth. Now to see how long it takes to get the nitrates down. As you can see from my water tests on the first, there is still measurable nitrite, which is kind of odd.
The plumbing project I mentioned 3 weeks ago was to replace the hose, drill out a hole in the bottom shelf of the table and suspend the main pump from the hose coming out of the bottom of the plastic garbage can. My original construction resulted in too much vibration noise; so I thought if I used softer hose and suspended the pump then less vibration would make its way into the wooden table and the garbage can top.
I replaced the original reinforced poly hose with silicone rubber hose. By drilling out the bottom self to lower the pump, I was able to extend the length of hose from the bottom of the garbage can and I think the extra length of soft silicone rubber dissipates the vibration more effectively. Net result is much less noise, so the fix worked. I'm happy.
1. The suspended pump and hose assembly passing through the bottom table shelf:
2. The airline imputs just above the top shutoff valve:
3. The airline splitter just below the input into the bottom of the garbage can:
4. Full view:
That's about as clean of an install that I've ever seen.
Water parameters as of Oct01:
1. pH: +7.2
2. Ammonia (NH3): 0.0
3. Nitrite (NO2): ~0.0
4. Nitrate (NO3): ~40+
5. Phosphate (PO4): 0.0
What a terrific solution. I have been searching for a solution to removing nitrates from culture tanks of Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. My plan is to culture PL10 to 3 gram individuals in a nursery, then transfer them to grow-out tanks. For both, I plan to use MBBR (Moving bed bio-reactors), of my own design but very similar to yours, as you do, sized correctly. The pacing problem for me is how to deal with nitrates, since the large biomass will produce massive amounts of nitrates. This is such an elegant solution I can't begin to say how much I appreciate your publishing it. One notion of mine: did you consider using an airlift rather than a submersible pump to provide the water flow for the scrubber? I have ample air (regenerative blowers), am really attracted to airlifts, use them whenever possible and they are essential to MBBRs in any case. Plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery so I will copy what you have done. Bravo amwassil.
Last edited by perlboy; 10-06-2015 at 12:01 PM. Reason: correct typo
Thank you for the positive feedback. I'm really glad you think the concept will prove useful to your project! I wanted to keep the algae scrubber out the moving bed so it would not interrupt the overturning water. This necessitated a waterfall type, although I did consider adding the scrubber to the outflow. I am planning to build another upflow scrubber in my main fish tank using a long airstone repurposed from an 'air wall'. I have two smaller upflow drops (Santa Monica 1.2x) in the fish tank now which are working. I'd like to move those two drops to a couple of smaller tanks which would benefit from nitrate removal.
What you have done is so inspirational I had to look at a variety of different containers. Rubbermaid Brute containers are very desirable: cheap, strong and the gray, white and yellow versions meet USDA Meat & Poultry certification and comply with HACCP guidelines. You may not intend to eat your turtles but my shrimp will be marketed to very fussy consumers. Best about Brutes (you may already know this): The round ones come in 10, 20, 32, 44 & 55 gal sizes and the 32 and larger have domed lids as well as the more familiar flat lids. Unfortunately, the square Brutes only have flat lids. Also, I may build a simple inside stand for the Expression boxes made of 1/2" PVC. Two will fit side-by-side in larger Brutes. Man, I think you dear amwassil have solved my nitrate problem. If you need a source of Brutes, try USP, www.usplastic.com.
Last edited by perlboy; 10-06-2015 at 02:48 PM. Reason: correct typo
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