Multi BB Mega Siphon CHOP TYPE system

[Erich]

Guys

I have a dream, and a heap of Blue Barrels given to me :) Any feedback you have would be appreciated so thank you in advance

My plan is to use the barrels, cut them longways (so laying them down), looking at 30 halves in the end and joining them in banks of 10 (I will build it with 1 lot of 10 and start cycling it). In the middle of bank 1 (so between barrel 5 and 6), I will add a mega siphon to handle the flush. 50mm will join the barrels to the mega siphon, approx 32 mm standpipe and a 50 mm back to sump.

I plan to deliver the water to the grow-beds under pressure. It suits my design and I can keep the pump head height down. Im thinking 25mm PVC with taps? Now my dilemma is I don't want to have to feed every GB, as that will get expensive. As the Mega Siphon will self level all 10 GB's well before it siphons, I would gather that if I set it up to feed say bed 3 and bed 7 with control taps (with the ability to maybe change beds every week), that would suit?

Im also going to Big Daddys place tomorrow to look at his swirl filter and to drop him off a Blue Barrel to play with.

Your thoughts would be great :)

Cheers
Erich

[chainsaw]

If your using 25 mm poly just run it the length of all 10 beds, try to have supply in the centre, leave the ends open and cut/drill hole/s at each bed. Even if you are running 5000L/hr pump your not going to have great streams of water gushing everywhere, and if the supply is too much for the BS there are other tricks so it works properly. Have the bell low enough inside the MS so that it drains the 50mm water out each time. Otherwise, If only feeding 1 or 2 beds, during equalization the water between beds will be pushed back and forth. (but will eventually be changed)

If you find that getting too many cycles/hr just stick the pump on a timer.

[Erich]

Cheers Chainsaw

Ive just costed up the siphon, it will cost approx $95 just for the nut and tail in 50mm DWV for the 10 barrels - so by the time I get pipe and build a mega siphon, it will cost >$175 each bank of 10 - just for the discharge side :(

[bigdaddy]

Hi Erich,

Cheers for that blue barrel mate,so my $175.00 for all my 50 mm fittings wasn't too bad then?

But really,in the trade,the cost of fittings does add up considerably.IMHO,It is always a good thing to sit down and explore different options for your plans like you are doing.

Your plans sound good.

Cheers.

[Erich]

Yup - and thats just for 10 barrels and not even the mega siphon + I need to do 3 or them :(

Im going to look at 25mm uni seals possibly now

[bigdaddy]

They are a bit hard to find,McClaren Vale irrigation were the mob I rang (I think),Uni seals are definitely a lot neater than having blobs of silicon all over the place,I reckon. 40 mm were about $5.70 ea,and 50mm were about $5.90 ea.

They had to order them in, approx a week's wait.

Cheers.

[bigdaddy]

Just thinking about the uni seals Erich,

I wonder how well they work on a curved surface like your barrels? Might pay to ask the irrigation guys that.

Cheers.

[chainsaw]

Hi Erich and BD, So other people know what I have been saying to you by email and keep them in the loop.

Will find it easier to use a product called "TopHat Grommet" can just plumb with it into pipes and of course blue barrels, lot cheaper and easier than Uniseals. As far as I know 25mm is the largest size.

Here is a Australian supplier link I found on Google............. http://www.wetearth.com.au/TopHatGrommets

[GaryD]

Hi,


Will find it easier to use a product called "TopHat Grommet" can just plumb with it into pipes and of course blue barrels, lot cheaper and easier than Uniseals. As far as I know 25mm is the largest size.
I used top hat grommets for my satellite pots and they are handy.....and certainly cheaper than Uni-Seals. Uni-Seals, however, come in large sizes (in fact they pretty much start off where top hat grommets end) and they are much better suited to plumbing larger backyard systems.

I'd relied on bulkhead fittings prior to Crusty using them to assemble my Mega Bin system but Uni-Seals are cheaper, more versatile and they make for a much tidier job.

All of these fittings have a place in aquaponics and it's great to see them being used to good effect.

Gary

[chainsaw]

Too true Gary..............Horses for coarses. I just put it out there to make people aware.