Design for swirl filter based on 200 litre PVC barrel

[kellenw]

Your welcome..........Guess the cold has you shut down......

Definitely can't ship fish safely right now, even with the 2 inch thick insulated containers we use, but the breeding continues. This is the busiest time of the year for us. Between taking orders, answering countless emails, breeding fish and grading them constantly it's hard to find time for much else. It's a good thing we enjoy doing it!

We're planning to put in an earth sheltered greenhouse of 1,500-2,000 sq feet in the Spring. This will allow us to keep our AP systems running all year round with minimal supplemental heat. Right now we have to transition all our fish to indoor RAS tanks during the cold months which uses more electricity than we'd like and is quite time consuming.

[frederickjh]

Hi Daveoponics!

I have search and search and cannot find the other thread with the photos. Can anyone point the way/provide a link?

Thanks!

Frederick

Hi Andrew


I got some good ideas on the design of my filter from this PDF

http://www.jpgo.co.uk/DIY-Bio-Filter...ri-Project.pdf

I have posted some more photos of my filter in another thread on this forum.

I made two filters and both are working well and easy to clean.

Here's the web site with the link to the pdf above.

http://leisure.prior-it.co.uk/pond.shtml

This web page has some other links to DIY filters.

http://www.mikebentley.com/ponds/homemadefilters.htm


Happy filtering!

Dave

[DaveOponic]

Hi Frederick

Here are a few of the photos that show the inside of the filter, top and bottom.

Dave

[frederickjh]

Hi Frederick

Here are a few of the photos that show the inside of the filter, top and bottom.

Dave

Hi Dave!

Thanks for the new picture (the second one). I think that one helped clear up a lot what you have built for a filter. I am guessing that the blue container with the holes in it is either a clothes basket or a trash can with holes. The blue material looks like the filter material that is used in air conditioning or furnace systems to filter the incoming air. Is this all correct?

What is the gray stuff in the bottom? Is this also a material to filter or is this more to weigh the blue container down so it does not float?

I think I also see a aeration of some sort in the filter. Is this to oxygenate the media or just to move water through the filter?

I have been looking at Jim's Crazy Bio-Filter, which I think is headed in the right direction, but his is a bit small I think for his setup. However it is hard to tell as he does not give the size of his pot.

Both your design and his combine a swirl filter on the bottom and then filter medium above to block the solids continued journey through the filter (upwelling filter). Jim is also using the media as a bio-filter and adds air with a venturi. Are you doing the same thing for the same reasons?

I would also be interested to know what your flow rate through the filter is. With this know it would be simple to calculate how long the water is in the filter. In another thread Murray says that with the commercial swirl filter the water should be in the filter for 20 minutes to let solids settle.

I am just trying to get a grip on all this before I start building my system.

Thanks again for your help!

Frederick

[DaveOponic]

Hi frederick

Yes, the blue container is a clothes basket. It neatly fits the barrel. I drill the base full of holes and line it with aquarium foam. The grey stuff is a bag of coral pieces. Helps buffer pH and more surface area for biofilm. The basket doesn't float cause it's a neat fit inside the barrel. At times I have used airstones in the top, but not sure of the extra effectiveness.

Yep. Swirl is at the bottom. Much of the solid waste drops to the botttom and is flushed out through a tap at the base. Some lighter sediment is attracted to the foam but easily washed out with a hose every 4 weeks or as needed.

Clear water gravity flows from the top of the barrel to growbeds. I don't use a sump.

I have no real idea of flow rate but pretty much continuous flow as I have a pretty big pump in middle of 1000 litre FT to suck out the poo.

All I know is it works. I will probably make changes to improve it but at present I am happy with the water quality and fish and plants doing well.

I tend to rush into things at times. i like to get things done without getting bogged down in calculations and measurements. It usually works out. If I was going commercial of course I would need a great deal more planning to make sure it didn't all fall down.

Dave