Portable Farms® Junior Aquaponics Systems Assembly … · Portable Farms® Junior Aquaponics...

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©2008 – 2015 Colle Davis – This information is protected Intellectual Property. A utility patent application was filed December 23, 2013. All content in this course is copyrighted under United States Copyright Laws and is intended for use only by assigned subscriber. Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain is investigated by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and financial penalties.

Portable Farms® Junior Aquaponics Systems Assembly Manual©

©2008-2015 – Colle Davis, All rights reserved – Utility Patent Application Filed December 24, 2013.

Section F – Clarifier – Part A

The Clarifier is multi-part component consisting of a plastic drum (food grade and thoroughly cleaned using a safe and non-toxic cleaning solution) containing a circular baffle inside, plus the plumbing to connect it to the Fish Tank and the Grow Tray and mounted on a sturdy stand to keep the top of the Clarifier a foot or more above the top of the Grow Table. This elevation allows the water to flow out the

overflow pipe and into the spreader bar in the Grow Table. A 35 to 55 gallon plastic drum is what we recommend because they are readily available and are easy to modify. Here is an online resource for a 55-gallon (food grade) plastic drum with a lid: http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-9945BL?pricode=WT919&utm_source=Amazon&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=S-9945BL&utm_campaign=Material%2BHandling And, of course, you can paint the plastic drum to match your color scheme for your farm. You can see we nearly always paint ours.

Here’s how it operates: The ‘waste’ water from the Fish Tank is lifted up (with an air pump and pushed through PVC pipe) into the Clarifier where the solids settle out and remain in the bottom of the drum to be drained out later. The Clarifier is fitted with a cover that can be secured; this is mostly to keep out mosquitoes. The fittings for the Clarifier consist of an inflow pipe, an overflow fitting and a threaded drain fitting to which a valve and a fitting for a garden hose are added. The bottom fitting is for draining the waste (the lumpy fish poop) out of the Clarifier on a regular basis. In any climate that has cool to cold weather during the day or the night during the spring, fall or winter months, the Fish Tank and Clarifier should BOTH be insulated.

This Clarifier design is unlike any other settling tank or filtering system currently being offered by anyone else.

Craigslist is a great place to locate plastic drums and the easiest and least expensive Clarifier is made from a plastic drum in the 20 to 55gallon size.

http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-9945BL?pricode=WT919&utm_source=Amazon&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=S-9945BL&utm_campaign=Material%2BHandling



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The heavy duty pickle barrel or drum does not have to be reinforced, they are incredibly tough and we highly recommend taking the time and effort to locate a 35 to 55 gallon drum of this type for your Clarifier. Make absolutely sure that whatever was in the barrel before you bought it was not toxic in any way or you may kill both fish and plants. Oils, soaps, detergents or food stuff are all usually fine as previous occupants of the drums. Anything smaller than 15 gallons is too hard to plumb and has to be cleaned too often. The drums below in Photo 1, 2, 3 and 4 are examples of the type of Clarifier drums we have used and recommend. They are built well; they’re easy to obtain, easy to work with and will last basically forever. The building sequence below covers how to build an insulated Clarifier to use in most situations to keep the water warm and function flawlessly for many years. We have shown both types of drums because the process of building the stand/box is very straightforward and slightly different because of the bottom design.

Photo 1 – 20 gallon drum and 15 cone bottom drum Photo 2 – The tops are very different

Odd fact: The diameter of the 20 gallon food grade drum above is exactly the same as the 15 gallon cone bottom drum which is used mainly in mixing chemicals and in biodiesel production. Notice also they are of similar height and this made building the insulted box to demonstrate both styles VERY easy.

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Photo 3 - Typical naked Clarifier on simple stand Photo 4 - 2 Exterior plumbing on naked drum Clarifier

Please note the placement of the Clarifier is very flexible. Offset near one end of the Grow Table usually works best. Notice in the Photo 4 (above) that the lid and the top of the naked Clarifier have not been painted. This is to keep from having the paint flake into the water. Shown here in Photo 3, 4, 5 and 6 are ½ inch PVC coming up from the CAD Pump in the Fish Tank and a ¾ inch Overflow Pipe. These show the placement of the two fittings on/in the Clarifier sides. All fittings on the Clarifier are to be 1 inch in size.

Photo 5 - Incomplete Interior Plumbing, note bottom drain Photo 6 - Interior Plumbing on Finished Clarifier

The Clarifier is plumbed AFTER it is placed so do not cut holes in it before you have it in its final resting place. As you can see by the fitting you can make the plumbing fit the situation if you don’t get it perfect the first time as with the 45 degree fitting on the blue taped fitting below.

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Photo 7 – Plumbing on naked Clarifier Photo 8 – A different plumbing arrangement

The circular center baffle was a huge improvement in removing the waste from the water stream because it guaranteed a much longer distance for the water velocity to be reduced. Most baffles in other systems inflow from the top and outflow through the bottom. The circular baffle was designed originally as a Clarifier for huge aquariums where thousands of gallons per hour needed to be processed and which could have the waste drained off without stopping the system. We downsized that design and present it here.

Photo 9 - Baffle with Inflow pipe hole (small hole near top) Photo 10 - Larger drain holes further down

This 6 inch size PVC pipe for the Baffle is listed in most home centers as a 6” Raiser Pipe and you may have to ask for it specifically or in some communities actually have to order it because some home centers do not carry it in stock. Most major plumbing supply stores carry 24” lengths of 6” PVC or they can cut you a piece to the size you need. Oddly enough this is the hardest item to find on your list of materials.

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The bottom of baffle needs to have the first holes as close to the bottom as possible to have the greatest distance for the waste to settle out. From six to eight holes of two inches in diameter are drilled into the bottom 4 to 14 inches of the circular baffle. Offset the holes to enhance the water flow being slowed down as much as possible. The Circular Baffle originated from our work in the tropics and worked so well we incorporated it into our regular design. Both the Inflow (Up-Pipe) entering the Clarifier from the Fish Tank and the Overflow pipe are 1 inch PVC at the Clarifier. To install these fitting to the Clarifier in the correct positions in the Insulated Clarifier Box requires some careful planning and execution. Please consider using the shortest and least complicated routing for the Clarifier plumbing. In Photo 13 and 14 below, show the plumbing for the Fish Tank under the end and under the middle of the Grow Table, same Grow Table. The Plumbing and Grow Table Sections also cover this topic in more detail.

Photo 11 - A Clarifier mounted before plumbing Photo 12 - A non-insulated Clarifier in the tropics

The Operations Manual© - Section Q - fully explains the cleaning and maintenance of the Clarifier.

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Photo 13 - An Un-insulated/naked Clarifier Photo 14 – Different view, different Fish Tank location

In Photos 11 – 14 demonstrate the routing of the plumbing and are on NAKED Clarifiers. They are shown here to illustrate how flexible the plumbing actually is for the Clarifiers. Below is the information needed to build the insulted Clarifier box. Insulated Clarifier installations: To build the insulated box for the Clarifier (20 gallon) you will need the following materials. For the 55 gallon size you will need to approximately double the material.

½ inch plywood or flake board 4x8 sheet 1 sheet (for Clarifiers shown)

½ inch plywood 4x4 sheet 1 sheet

2 x 2 lumber – 8’ 6 pieces

1x4 lumber 8’ 1 piece

1 ½” or equivalent insulation board 1 sheet

2” hinges 2

Misc. screws from 1 ¼ to 3 inch 1 small box of each size

The fittings and components for plumbing the Clarifier of any size (not the whole system, see Section L on Plumbing the entire system), please note the two lists accomplish the same end:

1 inch PVC threaded male fitting 2

1 inch threaded female fitting 2

OR 1 inch Uniseal (NOT BOTH) 2

1 inch ‘T’ fitting 1

1 inch elbow 1

1 inch PVC pipe 2 ft

The sequence covered below makes several assumptions. 1) You have both the power and hand tools to build sturdy wooden items and, 2) that you are comfortable using them. If either of

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these requirements is missing then please recruit someone who can fulfil them. Safety is always to be at the forefront of any construction project. To help speed up the building of the insulated Clarifier box you can request that the home center (hardware store or lumber shop) rip the plywood/flake board to the height of the sides before you bring it home. The flake board in Photo 15 and 16 was ripped 25 inches wide before it left the store. Again, this sequence is for the 15 gallon cone bottom tank. A 55 gallon drum will require more material, but interestingly they are mostly the same diameter. The completed Clarifier box is relatively HEAVY (it contains a full sheet or more of plywood/flake board and over a dozen+ feet of lumber) so be prepared. You will be well served to build the box where it is convenient and then move it and the additional components, with some help, needed to finish near its final resting place. In any installation where the Fish Tank is to be insulated, please insulate the Clarifier also. In most instances where insulation is necessary, consider placing an aquarium heater inside the insulated Clarifier to maintain the heat in the system. Unless you live in a tropical climate, you WILL need to use aquarium heater(s). In Southern California, we used aquarium heaters in both the Fish Tanks AND the Clarifiers to maintain 78 to 80 degree water temperature year round. Since the heaters were able to be set with a thermometer to maintain a temperature range, they didn’t come on much in the summer months, but we left them there just in case the weather became cool. Suspend this aquarium heater near the top of the Clarifier or it will get baked on fish-waste residue on it very quickly. You have been warned; don’t complain if your heater fails due to baked on fish-waste residue.

Neat trick we have used: Place the aquarium heater inside the top end of a 2 inch PVC pipe the same length as and attached to the baffle. This pipe prevents the fish-waste residue from coming in contact with the heater and is out of the water stream coming in from the inflow pipe. The heater will still have to be cleaned off occasionally, so remember to unplug the heater FIRST.

IMPORTANT: UNPLUG the Clarifier heater when you clean the Clarifier, otherwise the heater may break. Again, you read it here and you will follow directions, right? Starting with the plywood/flake board, cut to correct width/height, Photo 15, and following the steps outlined below will result in an insulated Clarifier box that is ready to be plumbed to the Grow Table. The drain pipe and fittings will have been installed and the hinged top will be installed when it is in place. The finished Clarifier Cabinet will be HEAVY so have someone help you place it near the Grow Table to be plumbed.

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Photo 15 – Flake board ripped 25” w/2x2’s in place Photo 16 – One finished side of Insulated Box

Photo 17 – Marking a STRAIGHT line on bead board Photo 18 – Cutting bead board with straight edge

Photo 19 – Finished side piece w/insulation installed Photo 20 – Two finished sides with overlapping side piece

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Photo 21 – Checking for fit on 20 gallon drum Photo 22 – Making sure the entire drum fits inside

Photo 23 – Internal side struts to mount side pieces Photo 24 – Gap that can be filled with foam peanuts

Photo 25 – Final side, notice bottom piece overlap Photo 26 – Final side in place

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Photo 27 – Fitted and ready to install legs and top Photo 28 – Lines drawn from oppose corners across center

To install the Clarifier drain, mark the center of the bottom of the insulated Clarifier box and drill a hole in it for a ¾ inch PVC fitting to pass through it. The easiest way to find the center of a square /rectangle is to lay a straight edge from opposite corners and draw a short section of line near what is half way across, then, holding the straight edge across the other two corners draw a line that crosses the first line. Photo 28 shows the results. Start drilling the hole from the top and finish from the bottom side. Then place the drum inside and drilling through the hole you just finished in the center of the bottom, drill slightly into the bottom of the drum to mark the spot. Remove the drum from the box and complete the drilling of the drain fitting hole. In this hole in the drum place a ¾ inch threaded male fitting with a liberal dose of Silicon seal on it before inserting it from the outside, then apply another bead of Silicon seal on the fitting on inside of the drum and fasten with a conduit nut on the INSIDE. Tighten way past finger tight for best results and no leaks.

Portable Farms® Junior Aquaponics Systems Assembly … · Portable Farms® Junior Aquaponics...

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