FLC Composting

The University here in Durango has a very cool tool called a Rocket Composter.

A UK based company called Tidy Planet makes all types of waste disposal units that make the most out of our waste stream.  

The school purchased an A900 rocket composter a few years back and has been turning the campus food waste in to compost.  Rocket composters are cool because they can save money in waste removal and disposal by turning 900 gallons a week or 8 dumpsters full of material into a valuable compost product in a 2 week time period.  

They are very energy efficient and simple to operate, for example the A900 the school has uses about 60kw biweekly, $1.04 at current electric rates and requires one person to load food waste and remove finished material on a daily basis (which is minimally time intensive).

The main pitfall is the initial investment cost is about $50,000 shipped and installed, but pays for itself relatively quickly by cutting waste removal and landfill costs.  (Aka, landfilling 900 gallons every two weeks or a 4cu. yard dumpster every day)

A900 Rocket composter

Control board

Operation specs

Finished material

The finished material still needs to be traditionally composted for another month before it is ready for application.

Locations on campus that could use some compost .

Chemistry/ Bernt Hall courtyard

Chemistry Hall courtyard

 Center for Southwest Studies court/garden

 Art Building Courtyard

 

 

In front of Library

 

Side of Library

Spring in January

Pictures before garden construction.  We will be terracing allot on this property, adding compost, Azomite rock dust and adding a thick layer of wood chips.

GH 12x8x8

Hoophouse 12'x8'x8'

Hoophouse 12'x8'x8' V.2

SketchUp drawing of just the frame

Wiggle Wire 

Roll up sides with T-bar

Roll up sides with gear box

 Greenhouse Materials list

Raised bed and work bench Materials list

Aquaponic System Materials list

 Greenhouse Controls Material list

LED lighting Materials list

Total Combined Price

Super Soil Recipe

Super Soil Materials and Prices

Indoor Lighting Materials and Prices

Vermiponics System

Hoophouse Materials

Vermiponics and Chicken Materials

Control Materials

HVAC Materials

Lighting Materials

Live Materials

Total Materials

Flow Chart

Aquaponics/Vermiponics, Worm Composting, Thermophilic Composting and Chickens 

All in one system

Hoop House (GH 12' x 20' x 6.6')

Drawing, Planing and Pricing of 12' x 20' x 6.6' hoop house

End wall and door

Side view

 Top view

Plastic film pattern

Materials List and Prices

Belated Photos

Mostly finished electric panel installed by the professionals

Still need a few more 15A lines run.

The heater required Three double pole 40Amp breakers

Incoming service line, 1/2" thick (nuts)

The electric coming through the greenhouse wall

North Wall

Heater all wired up

Greenhouse Controls, timers, switches and thermostats, joy.

Relocating the Bio filters/ Fluidized sand filters to the front

Self cleaning debris filter in the location on the bio filter.  

The water sprays out of the delivery pipe, passes through a 100 micron stainless steel screen, falls to the bottom of the barrel where it returns to the tank.  Any debris larger than 100 micron cant pass through the screen washes in to a secondary filter with 100 micron filter socks.  The socks need checked at least every 3 days under normal operation.  Plankton are a crucial part of the ecosystem and it is crucial to not remove to much of the population.  With a 100 micron screen size about half of the desirable plankton in the system are filtered out.

Got this Idea from MR1SUPERB, he gets all the credit for this one, way to go man, keep up the good work.

Notes on Plankton

There are three main types of plankton.

 (phytoplankton, zooplankton and bactrioplankton)

(Plant)             (Animal)             (Bacteria)

Megaplankton  >20mm

Macroplankton 2-20mm

Mesoplankton .2-2mm

Microplankton 20-200 micron

Nanoplankton 2-20 micron

Picoplankton 2-.2 micron

Femtoplankton <.2 micron

When the temps get low atoms contract, well the atoms in this plastic contracted enough with the cold to shift the plastic enough so the drain holes no longer lined up.

 The plastic used to sit nice and flush with the bed sides, @ 32degF it no longer sits flush.

14g wire run from the top down

LED 40w transformer

Used IBC totes Justin got delivered for 140 each.  They were used to store ferric hydroxide in a previous life.  The totes measured 36"L x 42"W x 36"H with a 11' square footprint and 33 cubic foot / 222 gallon volume. (11,33,222) weren't a good sign.

Cut the top off and cleaned them out with Scotchbrite pads and water.

IBC tote insulated and fitted with a lid.  It took two 300 watt heaters to keep the temperature at 82 degF in a insulated and sealed system

We ordered 1500 tilapia fry and they were not delivered on time (overnight shipping) and 1000 died.  This was hard, I don't like to see animals suffer.

Weighing fish to determine weight.

Bucket of dead fish.

Scale and ground up fish feed