If there isn't enough water spilling into your standpipe to create a temporarily air tight seal, then your siphon will just trickle at the rate water is coming into the growbed. The siphon actions starts once there is just enough water to completely block out all of the air, after which gravity carries the water down the pipe, creating a low pressure area inside the bell. Once your bell siphon starts filling with water, then the only place air can get into the siphon is through your standpipe (the part where the water drains out). In order for the siphoning action to start, your siphon needs to create an air-tight seal inside of your bell. If you have a siphon that isn't triggering, then it usually means that water isn't flowing into your standpipe fast enough. Over 3 yrs online and never a problem if plumbed in correctly and that means an air gap or a vent right after the 2nd 90. Personally I would start over with my simple design and you will be amazed. I have a bunch of tools all set for production now from 2 drill presses to belt sanders and chop saws and templates but I started with a saber saw and a chop saw. If you have basic tools you can make one easily. You can see all my designs at my FB page under Smoky Mountain Aquaponics. The 2-1 Bernoulli top funnel and 2 90's is all you need assuming you you make a nice clean and sealed bell. I use ashes from the GH wood stove to sweeten the water the day before and I place about half a cup at the fill side of each (5) grow bed.Īs to bell siphons, I have now sold over 600 in all sizes and all over the world and I am here to tell you if your design is nice and simple you don't ever need no stnkn snorkel tube. Your bigger ones can look just fine but the babies can all die in the same water over night if too acid and mature AP systems will go acid. Also make sure your PH is right before you intro the little guys. Start with 4" and up as the bigger they are the tougher they are in terms of die off. Trout are the best meal ever anyway and have proved very hardy. Our cats did lousy as well but one has lasted for 3 yrs so who knows. Trout have been wonderful for us here in NE TN. A late frost last year killed the other gingko I'd planted the previous fall, so I'm keeping this one in the greenhouse over winter for a little added protection during it's dormant time. We'll see if the pomegranate and gingko trees transplant come spring. The stuff in the greenhouse should have been brought indoors sooner as they won't be out in the yard ever (lemon, lime, orange, banana). I planted another apple tree a couple years ago, so no fruit yet, but it's caught the same fungus. I'm going to try and get it pruned soon and then spray it in the spring. As to the fruit trees, there's on sad little green apple tree that was on the property but it's never been pruned so the fruit is way small, and it has some sort of fungus or something. The gal at the hatchery thinks they just don't do well in tanks. The next time it took about a week for them all to die. The first batch died within 24 hours and the hatchery gave me a refund, saying they had some trouble with that batch too. I did try some catfish last year, but they all died. I will go with trout or perch.I know it's too cold here for tilapia and, even if there were no problems with the greenhouse, I was only marginally supplementing the heat in there. I want to get food fish this time (that was the point of this afterall!). I do want to restore the system since it otherwise was working well - plants grew well and the goldfish thrived. (Have replacements on order, but that puts me another year behind in getting any fruit from them). One for sure is dead and I'm not sure I'll save the other three. I'm more upset that I foolishly left some fruit trees out in the greenhouse even after the first storm did some damage. I have some ideas about building a new door way. Most of the panels I'd screwed in, but a few I had not when I was just starting to put them in. Finally, another storm totally tore off part of the door track, which caused some panels over the door to blow away (one ceiling panel came off too). I was using polyethylene plastic to insulate the green house - like a wrap - and that got blown off multiple times. The doors were facing south and a previous storm had bent the track. My greenhouse is one of those 10 x 12 Harbor Freight ones - aluminum and polycarbonate plastic panels.
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