Cee Gwa Harvest in Pics

Harvested today.

These were growing on vines that had "escaped" from my greenhouse walls and were climbing on the adjacent fence.  Couple yellow overripe ones, but plenty of good ones here.

These ones were from inside the greenhouse. Have about another 6 there and its done.

Wine Cellar Update

Cooling system upgrade -- converted to a true wine cellar cooling unit.

The 12v power supply driving the cold air fans failed on my cellar cooler.  It was at least a day before I found out. After finding the fault, I replaced the supply.  The system was not as efficient though as it had trouble hitting the 66F that I kept the cellar at.  So it was time to replace the cooling system as the entire project had been proven successful.

I first got a CRU 4200.  This unit came and during the bench test I was only able to power from the side plug but it did blow air.  Upon opening the lid, I found the rear plug wires disconnected, and worse, the entire high pressure fan system was toast. Presumably damaged during shipping but the box was in good shape!!??

Anyway, I changed the order to a WhisperCool 3000.  Made the final cut in the wall (don't do this until you have bench tested!), and installed the unit.  I had to run a separate power line for the unit, and chose to use a 20A circuit -- you may be able to use 15A -- the user manual says 20A, but the unit has a label that notes max 15A protection.  My WhisperCool came with some errors in packing -- I had an extra temperature sensor that didn't even belong to this model, the foam weatherstripping were all one size instead of mixed, the bench test plug was missing, and the owners manual was for a different system (a split air conditioning system).  It turns out none of this mattered much as the manual is available on the net, and the unit can be bench tested with the actual PDT sensor -- you don't need the test plug.  The manufacturer (WhisperCool) was very helpful as was the seller (WineEnthusiast.com). The latter through the whole purchase, refund and substitute and also in getting me in touch with the manufacturer.

Because the WhisperCool will allow me to lower the cellar temp to 55F, I increased insulation.  This was accomplished by drilling holes and filling my indoor door with foam, and also by installing 1" foam insulation on the inner side of the door.  My door is a small non-standard closet door, and also I didn't want to get rid of the insulating cork decoration I had installed on the outer side.

View from the garage -- you can see the older cooling system on the bottom right (still there for backup)

View from inside the wine cellar.  I had to cut out 9 bottle spots to accommodate the cooler.  The display is when first turned on.  It took less than 12 hours to reach 55F and is holding fine.  Now I need to determine the duty cycle to see how reasonable the insulation is.

Late Season Results

My overgrown greenhouse.  The Cee Gwa  is liking the cooler weather and really setting fruit.  I will have a lot of vegetation to clear though once the harvest is done.

Cee Gwa grown in aquaponics greenhouse in hydroton substrate.  Yes, these are the same beds that I show in earlier posts with seedlings at the beginning of the year.

Even though I have ignored my outdoor garden for the most part this year, it still likes me :-)  This is a cherokee purple grown in a large container (old blue recycling bin, the type that's not used anymore).

Aquaponics Greenhouse Harvest Summary (in pics)

 

Oh yeah, bells think they are in the tropics.

2.25lbs!!

 

Soybeans -- yummy!

Summary: this project was definitely a success.  I will follow up with details on converting the gazebo to a greenhouse.

Aquaponics Greenhouse Status 06-2011

Tomatoes, bell peppers, long beans, luffa gourd

Soy beans, tomatoes, bell peppers

 

Tilapia

 

Sludge separator in action.

Freeland FP100 as Aquaponics Growbeds

I use Freeland FP100's for my growbeds.  I run deep grow beds.  That is, at least 12" grow depth for the plants.  This is not usual, but I found from my normal growing that plants do a lot better with deep roots.

I recommend the FP60 for those who are interested in this design. I just happen to get the FP100's at a good price.  As you see though, I effectively cut them down to FP60 size.

This is the starting point:

A nice unit.  Made in the USA. http://www.freelandind.com/fipolytanks.htm

Next I cut the top off using a sawsall.

Don't these look like very nice garden bed separators?  Good recycling use.  That's another post.

Note, the FP100 has a drain pre-plumbed.  This is re-usable, but the internal fitting is aluminum. This needs to be replaced with a 1" FT to 1" SLIP adaptor.  The FT portion just replaces the aluminum threaded fitting.  Put teflon tape on the plastic thread prior to putting the FP adaptor on to prevent slow drip leaks.

This is a picture of a completed grow bed.  It is filled with a hydroton mixture.  Due to the pre-fit drain, this setup is configured to drain from the bottom side.  Normally beds are made to drain down.  This works without tuning, but what happens is that the drain is not at a consistent speed. The drain starts quickly then slows down for the last third of the level.  It takes about 10 minutes to fully drain the bed.

You can see the overflow on the top left of this bed.  This is made with 1" hose and uniseal fittings. http://www.aussieglobe.com/uniseal3.htm
The small hose is for air being pumped into the bottom of the bed.

I will post the siphon design for this bed and also the media layers I use in future posts.

Cheers.

$1 Aquaponics Water Polisher

I saw this $1 "Mini Trash Can" at a local OSH.  Couldn't resist the idea.  Simple.

The "trash can" has a lid that turns to lock.  This is the key. It allows the filter to be easily opened to replace the media.

Cut out a 1.5" hole in the lid and replace with 1.5" PVC pipe (suitable straight length or as shown with a 90degree elbow).  Next drill 1/4" holes (two rows) all around the bottom of the can.  Fill the can with polyester cotton.  Put the lid on and you are ready to attach your new filter to the water return on your tanks.

















Another implementation of a polisher is shown below.

Cheers.