05 November 2011

As promised, more pics of the growing system

You can now see how the system will look.  The roof is on and the grow beds are in place. We have a 1,000 litres tank for fish which can support 1,000 litres of grow beds, depending on the stocking rates of the fish.  So we'll have 3 grow beds of 300 litres each in which to plant our veggies.  Shaun has decided on Jade Perch, which do well in tanks and are fast growing and good eating.  He has also been busy sourcing gravel for the grow beds, which you think would be a fairly straight forward task.  Shaun has been contacting local suppliers for blue steel, only to find that its a blend.  If there is any limestone in the blend, it will play havoc with the pH of the system, so we'll need to avoid that.  So he's has been bringing home a few pockets full of different gravel samples and putting them in some vinegar.  If they bubble, then the dreaded limestone is present and it fails the test.  We are still looking...

This is the view from the driveway
Once you walk up the stairs, you can now see the grow beds in place.  Shaun took great care in making sure they were level. 
Shaun wasn't happy with the bracing of the sump, so he dug it up and put some reinforcement on the wall's surrounding it.  Given the amount of water it will hold and the pressure from the third grow bed on top, he wanted to be sure...
Since taking these photos, Shaun has plumbed everything together and is testing the system for leaks.  Once we source the gravel, we'll be able to plant, with the fish following some weeks later once the system has stabilised.  More photos then.


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