Spurr's: Aerated Deep Flow Technique (work in progress)

[Microbeman]

I just got a call and need to go out but I'll get back on this stuff later. Briefly; Ideally I'd use a separate pump just for extra aeration (off and on; the Hailea would suffice) and run the airlift(s) with another. If you are running 40 gallons and want some gusto, I'd prefer the ECO comm 5 (= or < 4 CFM) but for super results the ECO comm 7. (7 or > CFM)

I'm not an expert in brands of DO2 meters. You might get a deal on a Milwaukee from KIS. I had 2 but one quit now. The Milwaukee seems steady but I have no comparison. I always use 2 pH and TDS meters as well. I'm just anal.

I will get in touch with the student if I can.

I'm interested in doing more testing with diffusers especially in an airlift to do comparisons. Regarding just blowing bubbles, IME, fine bubbles mixed with medium sufficient to agitate the surface with diffuser worked better than no diffuser to raise DO2. The reason to break the surface is to allow for relaese of CO2.

 

[Microbeman]

Here it is I think.

PS. your email bounced back again

 

[quantic_soul]

Spurr,

A friend of mine who uses DO meters a lot for his academic work said they use the brand YSI often and they have been very reliable

 

[spurr]

@ MM,

Thanks, and I'll check my e-mail. It has been working lately ... odd.

@ quantic_soul,

Thanks for the brand suggestion.

 

[spurr]

Hey,

Good stuff.

Are you familiar with Alita Silicone Diffuser hose? Its amazing stuff and impossible to clog, never really needing cleaned.
EDIT - I just read another thread and saw that this tubing was already mentioned to you in another discussion.

Looking forward to more...

Nope, but I was just reading the older thread on that hosing: https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=44663. I want to learn the avg. bubble size and/or pore size. I think it may need cleaning if used with aerated compost tea (with millions+ of microbes) in my system, but that's only a guess. And if so, I assume scrubbing would suffice.

 

[thefatman]

I agree that a Milwaukee DO meter as deigned for the Reef Keepers is a good choice if your looking for economy. http://cgi.ebay.com/Milwaukee-SM600...981?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item439c765e8d

The better laboratory grades of DO meters are Thermo Orion and Hach. Very expensive. The mid range meters are Oakton Instruments and Hanna.

Remember with airlifts that the more airlift tube that is submerged the higher lift you can obtain. It is still debated whether large bubbles provide more lift (volume) in an airlift then a mass of smaller bubbles but it is well known that the larger bubbles only provide a notable increase in DO from water surface turbulence, where as the small bubbles produce incraesed DO both within the aorlift column and at the waters surface due to turbulence. Here is an airstone suppliers "research testing results" on fine air use in airlifts. http://www.alabdiffusers.com/Airlift.htm

I use regenerative blowers to run air lifts for Reef aquarium frag tanks for coral propagation. They produce copious volumes of air, but a single system such as you show in the forum would be to small for such an air source. A single small blower will run all the air stones in a large tropical fish store. http://cgi.ebay.com/Thomson-HRB120-.../120754971250?pt=BI_Pumps&hash=item1c1d8ea272

A good supply source for aeration equipment (diffusers and airstones etc.) is Aquatic Eco_Sytems: http://search.aquaticeco.com/index?...s&Nty=1&N=0&Dk=0&Ntt=air+stones+and+diffusers

These charts will give you a good idea of what a blower can do if you ever decide to increase your system to more than one unit.
http://www.aquaticeco.com/images/static/pump-curves/S11b.gif
http://www.aquaticeco.com/images/static/pump-curves/S11.gif

They are great for large under current systems. They do put out a whining noise though so placing the blower remotely (garage, basement etc) is a good idea.

Geyser pumps are now the top designs in airlift pumps but they took down from their internet sites and pdfs drawings of the inside design of their airlifts. If you email the owner/engineer upon request he will have his shop people make small versions for model uses but he will want permission to use versions of your application drawings in his promotion efforts as he is trying to branch out into aquarium , aquaculture and agricultural applications as the majority of his sells at this time is generally water and waste water treatment plants. He will want drawings showing planned dimensions and your desire flow rates. He will also request dat from your experiments as far as the pumps performance in your application. It would be wise to just tell hin=m y=that it is a hydroponic system not a mj hydro system. The more you supply him with data and the more dat a you say you will provide him the cheaper and faster produced will be the airlifts. He made four working models of his ejector pumps for me two years ago. They were quiet a bit larger than you would want so they cost about $80 each. The better deal would be to just have him provide one airlift pump and just reproduce them your self.

http://www.airliftpump.com/
http://geyserpump.com/GPmanual.pdf (You must scroll down on the pdf document before any text is visible.)

 

[spurr]

Hey thefatman,

Thanks for the detailed response. I am familiar with air pump function and output, I get filter bags, air diffusers (Sweetwater) and whatnot from AquaticEco, they are a great company. Thanks for the links to the charts, I had seen those before but lost the URLs.

Your input on regenerative blowers was new to me, thanks. I was actually considering using one for the airlift(s), but after reading your response I will probably go with EcoPlus Commercial 5 (I think I may use two airlifts for higher possible flow rate), or Hailea 9730 (if it's sufficient).

I think for reservoir and tray aeration, I will use an Ecoplus commercial 7 to a manifold for multiple air diffusers; and I'll keep my Hela 9730 as backup, as well as using it for my small(ish) compost tea brewer. I'd rather not use muratic acid if it can be avoided, so I may see about testing that silicon hosing and/or getting custom drilled slots in PCV piping at a machine shop.

I think for the DO2 meter, I will do as you and MM suggest, the Milwaukee. I know a buddy who sells them, and I might to twist him arm, so he'll sell it to me at discount. However, ~$150 at ebay is a great price, that may be the lowest price I can find. In the near future I will upgrade to higher quality, and use two different brands.

Geyser pumps are now the top designs in airlift pumps but they took down from their internet sites and pdfs all drawings of the inside of their airlifts. The owner/engineer will have his shop people make small versions for model uses but he will want permission to use versions of your application drawings in his promotion efforts as he is trying to branch out into aquarium , aquaculture and agricultural applications as the majority of his sells at this time is generally water and waste water treatment plants.
http://www.airliftpump.com/
http://geyserpump.com/GPmanual.pdf (You must scroll down on the pdf document before any text is visible.)

Interesting, I do have a commercial venture in mind, eventually, but I don't see harm in allowing him use of my 3D drawings (once finalized) in return for a working airlift model I could test with my setup. I was going to use PVC from HomeDepot to make the airlift, but I would prefer something professional, considering your opinion of Geyser (esp. if it's free or low cost). I'll check out those links, thanks. Do you know the owner?

 

[spurr]

@ thefatman,

That Geyser airlift reads and looks like an excellent design. I like the comments on clogging, big bubble, etc. I wonder, what effects it would have on microbes ...

I read the PDF, do you think there is a Geyser airlift pump system for water that is equal to, or less than 12" deep? From the screen shot below, it seems the Geyser is made to be installed at least a couple of feet under water:

@ All,

In case others are reading the Geyser site, and notice how the first figure is obscuring the HTML text, I copied and posted the text below:

Airlift Pump is a superb technology due to its simple structure. However, it has the following weaknesses:

• Weak suction
• Unstable flow rate
• Frequent clogging
• Difficult flow control
• Low lift

To compensate these points, Geyser Pump has been utilized in various applications so far. Since the patent being granted in 2000, more than 1,500 Geyser Pumps have been installed for Return Activated Sludge (RAS), Waste Activated Sludge (WAS), flow equalization, grit removal, and internal recirculation. Due to the history of non-clogging, Geyser Pump has been recognized as a standard of sludge handling in the market.

...

 

[thefatman]

I have had communication with the owner enginner quite a few times however do to a computer crash I have lost his email and no longer remember his name. None of his regular production air lift pumps would be usable do to there large size and pumping volumes. In a couple of photos on his site he has posted several photos of model waste water teatment applications in which he provide working model geyser pumps. This would be closer to wahy he would make for your application. However I would suggest that if yor system is elevated that you put a sump next to the unit with cross flow pipes s o as to get increased dept for better utilization of an airlift pump. this would also allow you to use a large Geyser pump model that you could build yourself after receiving one model from Geyser. The geysers he produces are all just made of PVC pipe and PVC sheet stock.

The owner/engineer has quiet a huge ego so write to him with a manner showing you are knowledgeable but do not write to him as if he is your his peer as he will just ignore your an email or will send you an email blowing his own horn by telling you of his degrees and all of all his industry connections. His pumps are so expensive that usually only government owned facilities (typically researach facilities) or large treatment plants purchase his pumps.

 

[spurr]

Hey again,

Thanks for all your excellent contributions.

In a couple of photos on his site he has posted several photos of model waste water teatment applications in which he provide working model geyser pumps. This would be closer to wahy he would make for your application. However I would suggest that if yor system is elevated that you put a sump next to the unit with cross flow pipes s o as to get increased dept for better utilization of an airlift pump. this would also allow you to use a large Geyser pump model that you could build yourself after receiving one model from Geyser. The geysers he produces are all just made of PVC pipe and PVC sheet stock.

Can you elaborate on this, I cannot visualize what you are describing:

"However I would suggest that if yor system is elevated that you put a sump next to the unit with cross flow pipes s o as to get increased dept for better utilization of an airlift pump. this would also allow you to use a large Geyser pump model ..."?
​

The owner/engineer has quiet a huge ego so write to him with a manner showing you are knowledgeable but do not write to him as if he is your his peer as he will just ignore your an email or will send you an email blowing his own horn by telling you of his degrees and all of all his industry connections. His pumps are so expensive that usually only government owned facilities (typically researach facilities) or large treatment plants purchase his pumps.

Okay, thanks for the heads up. It's sad how many people are like that, esp. when they are business owners. It's fine with me, I just want to test out that airlift

 

[spurr]

Materials for prototype tray:


Opinions, suggestions, corrections: all are welcome and wanted. I'm focusing on low cost, ease of setup up and breakdown, ease of customization, etc.

• Particle board to make the bottom and walls of the tray.
• 2"x4" lumber as an 'exoskeleton' to hold walls in place securely, and give rigidity to walls and bottom of tray.
• Insulation (hard or soft?) around the outside of the tray walls and reservoir (help keep tray and reservoir cool)
• I think I will use "flexible" pond liner from HomeDepot to line the inside of the tray, held in place with glue to the particle board.
• Thick Styrofoam for the lid, cut to shape (low cost and helps keep tray water cool).
• 2"x4" lumber as grid frame just above the Styrofoam, so there are at least two different pieces of lumber (at two places) at any one hole diameter edge
• I will attach the net pots to the lumber.
• I will paint the Styrofoam red, making sure the wavelength is ~630-660 nm (IIRC that is the "Pr" (red phytochrome, aka "PhytoA") range).
• Misc. building tools and supplies, protractor, chalk line, etc.

Materials for airlift:

• I will use PVC, and I will test what has worked for Microbeman, and hopefully test a Geyser airlift.
• Non-fine pore air diffuser, for DIY airlift.
• Plumbing to connection to bottom of tray.
• Plumbing to connect to side of reservoir; however, I may just put the airlift in the reservoir itself, so I won't have to cut the reservoir.

 

[thefatman]

Hey again,

Thanks for all your excellent contributions.



Can you elaborate on this, I cannot visualize what you are describing:

"However I would suggest that if your system is elevated that you put a sump next to the unit with cross flow pipes so as to get increased depth for better utilization of an airlift pump. This would also allow you to use a large Geyser pump model ..."?
​

If the bottom of your reservoir is say 2 foot off the floor then attach a reservoir to the side of the existing nutrient reservoir that will extend all the way to the floor and be at least the same height as the water line in your nutrient reservoir ( it would of course be safer to have some extra height above the water line). Install the deep reservoir with pipe(s) so that the level of the water at the top of both reservoirs will be the same. By putting the airlift in the deeper reservoir the lift above the water height can be greater as it is best to have a deeper reservoir then you indicate to get greater lift height. This will allow you greater height between the bottom of your net pots and the top of the reservoir water.. Doing so will allow you a greater distance for good aero roots before the roots reach the water in the reservoir. This should get you a greater proportion of lateral roots and hair roots. There are general guidelines that show what is the preferred length of the airlift pies below the versus for differing lift heights. The lift height is the difference in height between the reservoirs water surface and the height the waters discharge from the airlift pipe. There are also good designs for the head of the discharge pipe that prevent water splatter and salt creep due to the water vapor created by excess air that accumulates at the top of the air lift pump. I will have to find the link to those drawings.

Here is a good paper that towards the bottom of the document page deals with submergence ratios (height of lift versus depth of submergence of the airlift pipe. The amounts pumped are a great deal n more than you need to produce but you can see how the the different submergence ratios effect volumes pumped and also how it relates to air volumes changes and or requirements.

http://www.northidahokoikeepers.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/air-liftpresentation.pdf

 

[spurr]

thefatman wrote:

If the bottom of your reservoir is say 2 foot off the floor then attach a reservoir to the side of the existing nutrient resrvoir that will extend all the way to the floor and the same height as the water linein your nutrient reservoir. Install the deep reservoir with pipe(s) so that the level of the water at the top of both reservoirs will be the same. By putting the airlift in the deeper rervoir the lift above the water height can be greater as it is best to have a deeper reservoir then you indicate to get greater lift height. This will allow you greater height between the bottom of your net pots and the top of the reservoir water.. Doing so will allow you a greater distance for good aero roots before the roots reach the water in the reservoir. This should get you a greater proportion of lateral roots and hair roots. There are general guidelines that show what is the preferred length of the airlift pies below the versus for differing lift heights. The lift height is the difference in height between the reservoirs water surface and the height the waters discharge from the airlift pipe. There are also good designs for the head of the discharge pipe that prevent water splatter and salt creep due to the water vapor created by excess air that accumulates at the top of the air lift pump. I will have to find the link to those drawings.

Here is a good paper that towards the bottom of the document page deals with submergence ratios (height of lift verus depth of submergence of the airlift pipe. The amounts pumped are a great deal n more than you need to produce but you can see how the the different submergence ratios effect volumes pumped and also how it relates to air volumes changes and or requirements.

http://www.northidahokoikeepers.com/...esentation.pdf

Very interesting, thanks. That explained it well. So, if I understand correctly, the following (amazingly awesome ) picture I made is accurate? (the picture below includes the distance from reservoir to bottom of tray, for use with biopoincs)

I could use a large drain pipe just below the water surface of the main reservoir, to the add-on reservoir, as in the picture below. With sufficient water agitation in the main reservoir, using a large drain pipe just below the surface of the water may work just fine. (I realize the water surface in the main reservoir will not stay at the level I made in the picture)

P.S. Now I think about it, I could use something else as a reservoir, like a 50 gallon trash bin, or 55 gallon rain barrel (both are over 2' tall). But for use with fish, I think longer and wider is needed (so they can freely swim around). It may be that I should use a setup as in the picture above instead of a single tall reservoir that lacks length and width.

The only problem with using such a setup, using a tall add-on reservoir, is loss of room above the tray. An important factor for me at this time. If I include at least a 2' tall reservoir, the total height of my system (not configured for fish) would be ~34", and my height restriction is 7'. I like growing SCROG, so I may just start flowering sooner to keep them from getting too tall. Along with other 'tricks' to keep plants stocky and internodal distance short (as possible).

 

[Microbeman]

have you tried that Alita Silicone Diffuser hose?

No

Interesting, and yup I see your point. For an indoor grow, which is often height restricted to ~7-8' (in most homes), that could be an issue if using HID lighting.

In the screenshots I posted, I didn't add a foot or foot and a half space between the top tray and reservoir. That space would be needed for biopoincs system(s) to add and attend to the fish, as well as to provide light for the fish (with or without ACT at the same time).

If you were going to incorporate my sewer pipe design (I’ll do a little sketch later), for efficiency sake you would need to have your reservoir up in the air accessed by a step ladder, etc. or just use a very tall skinny reservoir, the effects of which on ACT quality I’m unsure of. Other than that you would have no worries concerning height restrictions as your lights are vertically oriented in the middle. (oops I just realized doing it like that would present a problem for returning fluid to the reservoir; another airlift? Of course you could restrict your pipe heights to 3 to 4 feet)

Geyser:
The only advantage I can see at present to using the Geyser (but don’t forget I’m slow) is that it may give you the rise necessary to overcome the previously stated problem. In their literature, they made mention of a lift up to 23 feet. If this is accomplished in fact, it is indeed impressive, however it is only mentioned in passing and there does not appear to be a discussion of practical applications of this ‘feature’. If it is discussed I missed it. The other important issue which I could not see mentioned was the resultant DO2 of the Geyser, compared to regular airlifts.

I did enjoy reading the other little PDF about history and use in Koi ponds. Thank you ‘thefatman’! I was relieved to see that someone else knows that airlift technology has been known of for centuries and not discovered by some German ‘whenever’ The Egyptians and Romans would be quite put out if they heard this.

As is made clear by the literature and my personal fiddley farting, the obvious weakness of the airlift is its inability to raise water very far beyond the surface level of the body of water into which it is submerged or adjacent to. There is a lot of descriptive language outlining the greater lift resulting from greater submergence but in my practical experience there really is not a heck of a big difference between using a riser pipe in a 5 gallon pail and the same diameter riser pipe extended from the bottom of a 50 gallon barrel utilizing the same air input. An explanation of this is not forthcoming from me, as it took me quite by surprise. It is likely that when one gets into depths closer to 6 to 10 feet that this will be more noticeable.

For your purposes a simple airlift from an adjacent reservoir with a continuous water level at or close to that of your tray/table level will be your best option in my opinion.

Regenerative Blowers:
We used a 95 CFM regenerative blower for our 1200 US gallon brewer which used 4 to 8 four inch airlifts. The reason for using 4 inch is just that’s what was laying about on the farm. Regenerative blowers are great for large systems and I designed a 1000 gallon system being used on a hay ranch in southern USA which uses an awesome 200 CFM Sweetwater blower. I’ll try to email you videos. It thunders like a freight train and could actually run two or three 1000 gallon brewers. The reason for the overkill on the blower is because I had a physics argument with several hydraulic engineers and Aquatic Eco. I hypothesized that so long as one had sufficient CFM to push the water contained in the riser and to generate the desired DO2 over the water volume, that the depth of the water and the PSI depth rating of the pump used was not a factor in an open system such as my design {I sent diagrams}. They said absolutely not! The pump will be stopped by the pressure at the depth of the tank (8 feet as I recall) if not rated for that depth. I argued that the back pressure is more or less equalized by the gravitational force from the water outflow from the tank to the riser pipe [my crazy way of thinking/expression…you know]. Anyway, I did not wish to get blamed for a failure and went with the giant pump….turns out I was right and they were all wrong

Slotted Pipe:
You mentioned getting pipe drilled at a machine shop. It is actually slots that we use but holes could be interesting. PVC machining is quite a specialty and finding someone to do it could be a challenge. I can send you some if you let me know what sizes you are working with. You will probably want 0.75” for your internal diffusers and 1.25” for in the body of water. I can design you some diffuser chambers (inject air into water at bottom of riser inside airlift) if you like.

P.S. any input you have is very welcome, ex., your thoughts about running a continual large scale hydro-ACT hybrid system in terms of inputs, population flux, pH, etc.

This is of course going to be a trial (& error) by fire exploration. My thoughts on it are to attempt to achieve desirable pH levels through establishing some fungal infection and growing high fungal numbers in ACT. I’m guessing that the biggest fight is to keep from going too alkaline. What do you think?

I know you’ve done some research on using citric acid. It would be interesting to see the effects on microbes.

I think maybe keeping food inputs simple and minimal may be key. I’m thinking that black strap molasses is going to be your friend, then proceeding to fish hydrolysate but….?

I am thinking about using two airlifts (water inlets into the tray) and two water drains (water outlets from the tray); I think I will copy your setup in terms of PVC size and plumbing.

2 airlifts would be good for more even DO2 and water distribution across your tray/table.

I am also thinking about hooking up the air pump(s) to some type of variable electricity controller (at adjust output of air pump(s); ex., fan speed controller). Thereby I hope to better control (increase or decrease) water flow rate and agitation/recirculation of tray water, as well as to DO.

Not sure I get the reasoning for this.

P.S. I am considering adding a slight decline to the reservoir, maybe 0.5 or 1 degree angle of decline, with the airlift at the 'low' end of the reservoir. Thoughts?

This should not pose a problem but what is your reason?

 

[spurr]

@ MM,

Thanks for the detailed response, I need a few minutes to digest it all. I'll get back to you soon.

 

[spurr]

If you were going to incorporate my sewer pipe design (I’ll do a little sketch later), for efficiency sake you would need to have your reservoir up in the air accessed by a step ladder, etc. or just use a very tall skinny reservoir, the effects of which on ACT quality I’m unsure of. Other than that you would have no worries concerning height restrictions as your lights are vertically oriented in the middle. (oops I just realized doing it like that would present a problem for returning fluid to the reservoir; another airlift? Of course you could restrict your pipe heights to 3 to 4 feet)

Yea, that is what I have been mulling over my in head too. RE: the return of water to the reservoir from the tray, if both water levels are near equal elevation. I too think an airlift may be the only way, otherwise maybe a drain pipe from the tray to the reservoir (slightly lower in elevation), may work.

Geyser:
The only advantage I can see at present to using the Geyser (but don’t forget I’m slow) is that it may give you the rise necessary to overcome the previously stated problem.

That too is what I was thinking, as well as there seems to be greater flow rate control with the Geyser, maybe. I think using a Geyser could be the best option, but I would like to test both the Geyser and a traditional airlift.

I am thinking about using a galvanized metal horse water troth, in place of my Bontaicare reservoir. The think the troth is deeper than my reservoir, which is only ~12" deep. The bonus is the troth would make a good compost tea brewer (re: issue of tall and thin vs. tall and wide).

Something like this:

As is made clear by the literature and my personal fiddley farting, the obvious weakness of the airlift is its inability to raise water very far beyond the surface level of the body of water into which it is submerged or adjacent to. There is a lot of descriptive language outlining the greater lift resulting from greater submergence but in my practical experience there really is not a heck of a big difference between using a riser pipe in a 5 gallon pail and the same diameter riser pipe extended from the bottom of a 50 gallon barrel utilizing the same air input. An explanation of this is not forthcoming from me, as it took me quite by surprise. It is likely that when one gets into depths closer to 6 to 10 feet that this will be more noticeable.

For your purposes a simple airlift from an adjacent reservoir with a continuous water level at or close to that of your tray/table level will be your best option in my opinion.

I tend to agree, especially in terms of simplicity. However, as you pointed out above, doing so brings its own set of challenges. I do think the Geyser could offer distinct and worthwhile advantages over traditional airlifts, but I'm unsure if indoor reservoirs are too small (shallow) for effective use of Geyser technology (as thefatman pointed out).

Slotted Pipe:
You mentioned getting pipe drilled at a machine shop. It is actually slots that we use but holes could be interesting. PVC machining is quite a specialty and finding someone to do it could be a challenge. I can send you some if you let me know what sizes you are working with. You will probably want 0.75” for your internal diffusers and 1.25” for in the body of water. I can design you some diffuser chambers (inject air into water at bottom of riser inside airlift) if you like.

Yes, that would be most welcome! Thanks. And then I can compare such a setup to using Geyser, re flow rate, DO2, etc. Do you have my new phone number? I think you do, if so, and if you have some free time in the coming week, would you give me a call so we can chat?

P.S. any input you have is very welcome, ex., your thoughts about running a continual large scale hydro-ACT hybrid system in terms of inputs, population flux, pH, etc.

This is of course going to be a trial (& error) by fire exploration. My thoughts on it are to attempt to achieve desirable pH levels through establishing some fungal infection and growing high fungal numbers in ACT. I’m guessing that the biggest fight is to keep from going too alkaline. What do you think?

I know you’ve done some research on using citric acid. It would be interesting to see the effects on microbes.

I think maybe keeping food inputs simple and minimal may be key. I’m thinking that black strap molasses is going to be your friend, then proceeding to fish hydrolysate but….?

Good input, thanks. I will do more testing and with citric acid, etc., in the system. I do think simple inputs is also key, not only for biota, but also for DO2, temp., etc.

2 airlifts would be good for more even DO2 and water distribution across your tray/table.

Yea, I think so too. Doing so when the reservoir is (nearly) adjacent to the tray may be a bit troublesome though.

I am also thinking about hooking up the air pump(s) to some type of variable electricity controller (at adjust output of air pump(s); ex., fan speed controller). Thereby I hope to better control (increase or decrease) water flow rate and agitation/recirculation of tray water, as well as to DO.

Not sure I get the reasoning for this.

I was thinking I could use such a setup to reduce air flow form the air pump, to better control flow rate of water in the system, if it's too high. If I used two inlets (airlifts) and two drains, I thought I may get too great of flow rate. But I could be in lala-land!

P.S. I am considering adding a slight decline to the reservoir, maybe 0.5 or 1 degree angle of decline, with the airlift at the 'low' end of the reservoir. Thoughts?

This should not pose a problem but what is your reason?

I was thinking it would help keep organic matter suspended in water, as well as increase flow rate and efficiency of airlift (due to increased pressure(?) from water flowing downward to the airlift). But I could be in lala-land!

 

[Microbeman]

Yea, that is what I have been mulling over my in head too. RE: the return of water to the reservoir from the tray, if both water levels are near equal elevation. I too think an airlift may be the only way, otherwise maybe a drain pipe from the tray to the reservoir (slightly lower in elevation), may work

I'm attaching a PDF of a 'rough' sketch using 2 airlifts run by an Eco 7 pump. The horse trough idea is exactly what I was thinking of. It is fairly shallow and has a large surface area which are great components for an ACT brewer. You may be better to use a plastic one like

You will need a valve to adjust/equalize airflow between the two airlifts. I think the return lines will work out if you keep your height distance to a minimum to keep it working. It would be nice to not overcomplicate things but I've included an optional third airlift used exclusively for the brewer part of the process. This is in case the airlifts and return from the table is not sufficient to keep up the DO2 and operate efficiently as a brewer. One configuration in my patent I submitted which I rarely use, is to empty the 'brewer' airlift into a mesh basket/bag which contains the compost. If this worked efficiently to grow out the microbes it would handle organic matter issues with your table. I used this system with my 1200 gallon brewer using 800 micron mesh. It worked very well. Alternatively with the microbulator we run a diffuser into a mesh bag adjacent to the airlift.

I'll try to do another sketch utilizing my idea with the sewer pipe.

One consideration is that the return line might be assisted by a small impeller pump, since the preservation of hyphae on the return is not as critical as on the output. Not 'clean' but something to think about. It could be that the geyser is going to be the solution.
I'd like to hear some stats about the rise which can be acheived with it combined with the effect on flow.

Do you have my new phone number? I think you do, if so, and if you have some free time in the coming week, would you give me a call so we can chat?

Yup & yup.

I was thinking I could use such a setup to reduce air flow form the air pump, to better control flow rate of water in the system, if it's too high. If I used two inlets (airlifts) and two drains, I thought I may get too great of flow rate. But I could be in lala-land!

You will not find this necessary.

I was thinking it would help keep organic matter suspended in water, as well as increase flow rate and efficiency of airlift (due to increased pressure(?) from water flowing downward to the airlift). But I could be in lala-land!

You have a point with the organic matter but the effect on the airlift would be negligible.

 

[Microbeman]

Spurr; I'm attaching a very rudimentary sketch. I tried sending you videos but my email was rejected again stating that your mailbox is full. Aaargh! Ooops. I guess I'm not attaching my sketch because it is larger than 1mb. Failure.

 

[spurr]

Hey MM,

Oh, my mailbox is full? I'll fix that in like two hours. Can you re-send the sketch later tonight?

 

[Microbeman]

Here I JPEGed it.

I'll try to remember to email the videos later.