I believe my AFS is working because with the feeding rate I’m giving, it would not be possible to have parameters mentioned above.

PART ONE: QUESTION

Hi it’s me again. As you know lately I’ve been giving my koi heavy feeding again high protein koi food, the only constraint usually would be floating feces indicating the koi have been overfed, thus I would fast them for a day and then afterwards I would continue for a week with staple koi food. Lately I’ve noticed some foam starting to show up near the waterfall. I know this must be a sign of DOC build up, but what confuses me is that all my parameters are in check. Even last night I checked my parameters Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 10 mg/l, pH 7.5, TDS 58, ORP 470, but there was still some foam showing even just a little bit.

My question is, how does this DOC accumulate in my pond even though I clean my sand filter everyday including 3 more backwashes and a daily dose of clay to coagulate fine debris in order to enable the filters to filter them out faster? I believe my AFS is working because with the feeding rate I’m giving, it would not be possible to have parameters mentioned above.

Due to this problem, again I surfed the web to further learn about DOC’s and from a reef aquarium site it was mentioned that there are no bacteria that we can cultivate to take care of DOC’s, that is why the author advises activated carbon. Here is the link and the excerpt:

http://joejaworski.wordpress.com/2008/05/09/does-a-reef-tank-need-carbon/

QUOTE:

"Don’t confuse organics with ammonia, nitrites, or nitrates. The bacteria responsible for breaking down these nutrients naturally thrive in all aquariums. Most tanks are nutrient rich and provide lots of food for these bacteria to thrive. Organics on the other hand, consists of complex metabolic compounds including phenols, organic acids, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and hormones. To break these down, we don’t (and can’t) grow the right bacteria in our aquariums. In fact, detritus on the gravel surface and in the bottom of the sump are organic compounds that have reached such high concentrations that they fall out of solution. These particles remain inert as long as pH, oxygen, and ORP levels stay constant. Any wild swings or disruptions will trigger detritus particles to release these pollutants back into solution, causing an avalanche effect that will fuel a tank crash like there’s no tomorrow."

From here I dug deeper into how activated carbon works in solving the DOC problem, and it turns out there are several alternatives which among them were montmorillonite clay Zeolite, both of which I add daily and I use in my BCB’s as a substitute for cat litter. If so then why is this DOC still persistent in my pond. Not wanting to take any chances yesterday I added 3 bags (@1kg) of activated carbon to my pond and I suppose it’s helping because the ORP increased from average of 230-250 to 270 as last measured last night.

I’m not sure if I understood it correctly but activated carbons works similarly to a part of the BCB’s in which it has absorption and adsorption properties. In other words my BCB’s should be doing this. If not so, is there something about activated carbons that cannot be replicated by BCB’s? Is adding some activated carbon of any use in taking out DOC’s in my pond? Or is the problem just I, pushing my pond too far? Hope to receive another enlightenment from you.

Some links to Activated Carbon and Protein Bubbles.

http://anoxicfiltrationsystem.blogspot.com/2014/05/about-sand-filters-state-of-art-in-pond.html

http://anoxicfiltrationsystem.blogspot.com/2014/02/this-article-is-about-association-of.html

http://anoxicfiltrationsystem.blogspot.com/2014/02/part-2-thermodynamics-substances-bead.html

http://anoxicfiltrationsystem.blogspot.com/2013/08/we-had-seen-ponds-that-had-whitish-foam.html

After reading the link given, I regret to say I am still lost. Right now, based on measured parameters, everything is in check. ORP in fact continues to increase after inserting the activated carbon and the foam is slowly decreasing.

What puzzles me is that even though at present the ORP is getting better, the previous ORP was also in satisfactory levels (430), and never have I in the past had foam when the ORP was above 400. All other parameters were also fine. But despite all these parameters being satisfactory I was still having foam. My AFS was still relatively clean from sedimentation/solid waste.

One thing I've noticed is that this foam occurs when my sand filter is operating well, but whenever it is clogged and need backwashing the foam would be significantly less or none at all. I'm now wondering, despite my cleaning out the sand daily, is it possible for the sand in sand filters to accumulate doc's within their pores (if they have any, I have no idea)? I am overdue of changing the sand according to factory recommendation, but because I clean it everyday I figured my sand doesn't need replacing, in fact I believe the sand in the filter is cleaner than new sand which still needs rinsing of debris, but now I'm having my doubts.

Another "suspect" I have are the mats in my Bakki showers, they tend to accumulate mulm under them and also like you said they are covered in cyanobacteria. 

So here I am still lost, but the activated carbon still seem to be helping. I've browsed around comparing Zeolite vs. activated carbon for purposes of taking out doc's, it seems so far Zeolite is for taking out ammonia while activated carbons are for taking out doc's. Is this correct? Comparing activated carbon with foam fractionator, which would you advise? Again I hope this email doesn't catch you at a bad time. Hope to hearing from you soon.

During my free time, I’ve still been trying to better my understanding about ORP. Yogas

During my free time, I’ve still been trying to better my understanding about ORP. So far I have come to understand that a substance with a negative ORP value is a reducing agent by which has the potential to donate electrons while a positive ORP value is an oxidizing agent by which has the potential to receive electrons. From here I have several questions related to ORP and the AFS:

1.       Laterite, Zeolite and cat litter are all anions, can we say they are reducing agents? Hence ammonium as cations is oxidizing agents?

2.       Through the AFS, ammonium is taken out of the water body and broken down to nitrogen gas. Leaving the water body free from ammonium. Will this process still happen if the water body is acidic (pH<7)?

3.       Will it be correct to say that the AFS is a water purification system thus enabling the water to have a positive ORP?

4.       Better aeration-better dissolved oxygen-higher pH-more ammonia converted to ammonium-captured and degraded by AFS-purer water-better positive ORP. Correct?

I’m still trying to put the pieces together, and to be honest, for me it’s quite a mind numbing process.  I’ve started feeding heavily again, and usually by the afternoon the ORP value will have dropped by 20-30. Water changes helps but not enough so clay is added daily also. This clay seems to help by oxidizing (binding) nitrite, nitrate and phosphates, also by coagulation of floating koi feces enabling the filters to filter it out faster. So by evening the ORP has returned to initial value in the morning. So this is my current understanding between the relationships between ammonia-pH-aeration-AFS-ORP-Koi Clay. Have I got anything wrong/backwards?

Best regards,

Yogas

Hi Yogas,

Your redox (ORP) should have a higher value in the morning and as the day continues go down slowly during the day until at night it should be at its lowest reading in mV. During the night and when metabolism is low and photosynthesis has stopped, the water is cleaned up by biological and chemical reactions by your filtration system and the resultant redox potential then becomes higher in value by these processes.

 During the day, as metabolism increases with pollutants insults, the ORP will go down slowly, especially after a/every feeding session. The only way to counter-act this tendency of ORP lowering is with a protein skimmer that removes nitrogenous organic compounds with the use of ozone. Then with a good redox measuring device the redox potential will stay more stable throughout the day and night as the measuring device controls the redox potential and the use of ozone.

It can also be said, that a Biocenosis Clarification Baskets made up the way I explain in my blog is the only way that plants will continue to take in at night ammonia/ammonium and process Nitrates as N2 as a foodsource when other methods of planting aquatic plants will not, giving the ponds mass a higher ORP in the morning than other methods of filtration.

NO3 ammonia or ammonium nitrate NH4+ is not complicated for plants to use when photosynthesis is shut down so plants still use it as a foodsource at night but not Nitrates because Nitrates must be reduced to ammonium once again in a two-step reduction process and that’s chemical work for the plants. Because the BCB’s chemical makeup, the intake of anions and some cations amounts in an ion displacement in the pond are equal through diffusion and magnetic pull. This also holds true for plants because if a plant did not take cations and anions in equal amounts it would have a fatal pH swing inside the cells. Most plants keep a constant pH of 7.0, no matter what their surrounding pH is in the waters mass.

Because the BCB’s are taking in theses positively charged (cation) and negatively charges (anions) ions these them become a foodsource for the bacteria as well as plants. The more a filtration system removes these ions from the waters mass the higher the redox (ORP) and the lower the TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) will become. Ions can become a never-ending insult because chemical and physical processes create them.

The BCB’s themselves are not pH dependent and the ammonium ion, which is mildly acidic is what is formed from ammonia when the ammonia is dissolved in water, it is then converted into the ammonium ion. Though lots of hobbyists would like to believe that a lower pH (acidic) would lessen the toxic nature of this ion that is not really 100% true. Though the degree of the ion is depended on the pH of the solution it’s in, the lower pH makes the ammonium ion and a higher pH makes the ammonia ion both are toxic and long term exposure is not recommended. 

In fact plants will readily take in ammonia (NH3) over the ammonium (NH4+) because, though it is more toxic, it has no electrical charge and is easily taken in by the plants, most aquatic plants follow this rule and there are only a few exceptions to this rule were some plants favor Nitrates over ammonia. In other methods of planting the plants root hairs will not be exposed to the ammonia/ammonium ion like in the BCB’s and the plants at night will just shut down until next day. So plants and the BCB’s will also raise redox potential at night as well as day because of the ammonia/ammonium ion is still being attracted inside each one 24/7.

Because of what has been said above this is the reason why the name of the baskets are called Biocenosis Clarification Baskets and not just Biocenosis Baskets like most people call them. The AFS is a clarifier filter that is built with a diffusion of mechanical buffers for continuously removal of macro and micro solids being deposited by sedimentation and ion removal.

Most if not all filtration systems are hydrophobic in nature because of the media and/or substrate they use but an AFS is hydrophilic in character and has a tendency to mix with its surrounding water. In other words, it has a tendency to be wetted inside and out by water and dissolve in it and become one. Plus it is an ion-exchange molecular attachment filter along with polar molecule attachment filter also. These characteristics of the BCB’s make it the world’s most unique filter for the hobbyist available. Each thing that I have mentioned hear is another reason the AFS clarifies water and polishes it to the point of unbelievable clarity at times.

Since the AFS is acting like a molecular processing filter of that of chemical filtration, various molecules attach to the interface substrate by absorption, adsorption, and ion-exchange. As far as I know there is no other way cheaply to do all this for the hobbyist except through an AFS using the BCB’s as explained. 

As we know molecules must brush extremely close to a surface as they move through the media but this is also what clogs other filters, too. The interface between the media, water and the pollutants that are in the water are always in jeopardy if the media clogs. Redox will suffer and TDS will rise and Nitrate accumulations are its end results along with maybe even becoming an ammonia producer.  I would not call a filter that clogs a water purification system if it jeopardizes ORP in the process.  AFS do not clog so they fall under the umbrella of purification systems or clarifying systems because of their versatility with water management.

Your statement that Laterite, Zeolite and cat litter are all anions, so we say they are reducing agents is true to a point that they will attract ions for the reduction of that ion. Hence ammonium is a cations or oxidizing agent because electrons are lost to another species.

And now without further ado, a word from pond owner Shelly that uses the AFS in Oregon’s beautiful Willamette Valley with photos.

Modifications or additional filtration to your pond: Will it become redundant? In most cases the simple answer is; yes! Adding more of what you already have is redundancy squared. As hobbyist realize they need more filtration to an already existing filtration system or rebuilding their ponds and making them larger always presents the same problems of making the same mistakes but with additional cost.

I’ll give you and example of what I mean. Lets say you have this wonderful Nexus, Bead filter or Sand filter and you’re happy with what you have but now you need more because your Koi and/or needs have changed. In most cases you will not buy another Nexus because of the expense of $3000-5000.oo more for a filtration system is a little too much. Therefore, you will try to build a supplement filter or be convinced in someway that filter X is a better choice for your needs and will cost you a fraction of what a Nexus does. Lets remember I’m not picking on Nexus filters just using them as an example only.

In this scenario, which plays itself out all the time with pond owners, the options are either more techno equipment; cost being still high, or a build it yourself filtration system. The high tech equipment will give you some advantage over the homemade filter but then again cost will influence that to a greater existent, too. So the homemade filter is the lesser of two evils and better WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor) because cost will be lessen. You will also have the enjoyment of saying; “I built it myself!”

Now here’s the problem; have you really gained anything other than more of what you already have? The high tech equipment may or may not give you cleaner water with higher ORP and Lower TDS but that home made filter will not. Some will try and make Bogs or Veggie filters but if not done just right you will not gain what you think you should. Using filter mats for colonization of more bacteria will only cause more work in the long run because of clogging. Adding rocks and stone to your pond is going backwards in time to days of yore in ponding and you what to progress not regress with technology.

Anoxic Filters today are the most progressive filtration system out there. With plants they can eradicate germs that cause illnesses to our Koi, clean water, help prevent cyanobacteria that plague so many ponds, raise ORP, lower TDS, and stay open to biological and chemical mediators that other system can’t do because they don’t clog up those valuable pathways in the filters substrate.  They are easy to build that a child can do it and though not an easy system to understand its science, will not let your valuable Koi down in colder geographical location by bacteria loss in the winter months.

Understanding its science is why so many hobbyists think the AFS will not work or is really just another Bog or Veggie filter, however, it is not! It is a well thought out filtration system used for decades to purify water cheaply and efficiently enough to keep aquatic life alive for many years to come. It does not take a very highly skill level person to make up the Biocenosis Clarification Baskets. Don’t let this name intimidate you, it just a scientific way of saying how the baskets work.

As I have said before not every filtration system is perfect for everyone but I have seen even the most expensive filters money could buy, not do the job they were intended to.

QUOTE from Vince from a Koi forum post # 465 dated September 4^th, 2014:

“My anoxic filter is 4-foot deep and the (BCB’s) baskets stacked up on the inside using 40-mm pipe work to give a gap for water to flow under each one. And no plants at all, Yes, it did take longer to get going but it is working fine now and I’m very happy with my readings that have come down from Nitrates over 180-ppm to just 20-ppm now. As for as the other readings go there still fine also but it was only to get the Nitrates down I fitted the Anoxic filter anyway.”

[ED: That’s a whopping 160-ppm lower now using an AFS over a conventional system.]

*****************************************************

And now without further ado, a word from pond owner Shelly that uses the AFS in Oregon’s beautiful Willamette Valley with photos.

Shelly's pond in panoramic view.

QUOTE:

“I just had to chime in on your 8/27 "No Chemicals" post from Brian Woodcock. 

As you know, Dr. Novak, I am a very new and inexperienced pond owner. We built our own 4' deep, 3800-gallon pond, and filled it just 10 months ago. 

I USE ANOXIC FILTRATION. 

I HAVE NEVER NEEDED OR USED ANY CHEMICALS.

Our Anoxic Filtration chamber is modeled after Brian Woodcock's -- except ours is hidden under our deck next to the pond. It is gravity fed from an aerated bottom drain. We made our own pre-filter between the bottom drain and the AF chamber. The AF chamber contains 18 unplanted 11" Biocenosis Baskets, and there are 6 more planted Biocenosis Baskets in a small 14" deep 'bog' (see photo) that adjoins the pond. 

NO MAGIC: In addition to the circulation created by the aeration and 2 TPR’s, we keep a steady flow of water through the bog. Our pond also has a Skimmer and an Emperor HO ( High Output) UV. My weekly maintenance consists of netting and/or trimming any dead leaves off my aquatic plants, changing my filter media (round, commercial floor-buffer pads). I recently purchased a Pond-Vac as well, knowing LOTS of leaves are about to fall. That's it! No magic.

MY POND WATER IS SO CLEAR that, sometimes when the light is just right, my Water Hyacinth and Cabbage seem to be floating in the air. It is difficult to get a picture of the bottom because my camera wants to focus on the reflection instead, but I have managed to capture a couple. I'll let these photos speak for themselves. SEE THE BOTTOM??

I should also add that I allowed my granddaughter to select 3 small butterfly Koi from the pet store, and release them with our 14 gold fish. I have never had Koi, but their GROWTH RATE IS ALMOST SCARY! I only feed them all in the morning.

Again, thank you for making it possible for us to have such a nice, AFFORDABLE pond. I expect many others to eventually join our ranks!

Shelly

In Oregon's beautiful Willamette Valley

[ED: Once again I can’t thank those enough that let me know how they are doing and letting those on my blog know too.]

Isn’t science wonderful?

Here is a bit of interesting news that I thought would interest everyone. A lot of hobbyist/s believe that the AFS is not a filtration system meant for Koi ponds and is not sophisticated enough for raising them using such a simple system. They would like others to believe that it is only a water garden filtration system and that if you really wish to raise quality Koi then you have to use a very expensive filtration system to achieve such.

The statement above is from those that have no working knowledge of the AFS and how it really works in cleaning water and making it acceptable for our Koi. The photos are from the pages of the MPKS newsletter and show some of the winners of the 22^nd annual Koi show and competition.  Zack Velev and Bob & Rhonda Mucerino’s are members of the MPKS and use the AFS. I have written about them in my blog before and Zack’s pond is on the cover of my iBook too.

Zack Velev won 6 of the Koi awards at the show and the Mucerino’s won 3 of the awards given. Now both of these koi members use the AFS for raising show quality Koi in their backyards. So I guess those that think the AFS is only meant for water gardeners just doesn’t hold water any longer does it!

It just goes to show you that you don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to keep show quality Koi any longer. The days of only the most techno hobbyist keeping show quality Koi are gone and with science everyone now can do the same not just a few.  As one door closes another one opens and the AFS is that door that gives hobbyist a choice in Koi keeping that 30-years ago did not exist.

You don’t have to be terrified that because you're not using a 30,000.oo USD filtration system that you can’t keep very high quality or expensive Koi any longer. The AFS gives everyone the opportunity to play with the big guys without the cost. Isn’t science wonderful?

No chemicals added. L

No chemicals added.

Here is a little write-up from Brian Woodcock in the UK. 

Last years AFS when new.

The page photo shows the number of views his Anoxic Filter Build has taken in on a UK Koi forum (user name: brian1962), in just over a year of posting; a whopping 32,889 views.

  It is a shame so many here in the good old US of A are so dissident about anything they don’t understand or refuse to understand. I know that the AFS is not for everyone and it may not be the filtration system that does everything for everybody, but then again what filter does. Let face facts, if there were a perfect filter out there then everyone would be using it without question, but there isn’t!

The menagerie of filtration systems is a plethora of confusion to the novice pond owner that it’s laterally mind-boggling when you think about it.  Each one has their crosshair on you to get their product into your hands. Beautiful color ads and hobbyist barkers that already use their goods selling you the idea of everlasting nirvana. However, in the long run the money never stops and the problems never really guest go away for very long, do they? Then the next volley of goods to be sold to you is thrown at you, like baseballs in a batting cage.

In fact, this year I saw this happen to hobbyists that where convinced that they would be better off with an expensive bead filter that they had to house it in a new shed, with a UV filter that looked like it was on steroids, like something from the movie Forbidden Planet.  Yet their pond was still green and Koi were still small and sparingly feed in fear of making their pond even greener. The guy that sold them all the equipment could care less if they succeeded or not, because he’s made his money.

 Then they were told that the pump they had was no good and they would have to buy a better one, by some other hobbyist visiting.  But the one thing I notice was that they were actually proud of all the equipment they had now and were more than happy to show it off.

Yes, that exactly what I want in my backyard is a shed full pond filters and equipment and still have a turbid pond.

 Now a word from Brian:

As for water quality ...Ammonia has been zero all year, had a little stubborn nitrite (0.20) for a few weeks, which annoyed me, and I never found the cause probably over feeding. Nitrate has been 30-ppm as I’m trickling 6-700 gallon of 20-ppm source water a week and still have my bead filter, which will be producing nitrates.

As for feeding, my fish get 400g over 6 feeding apart for some low nitrites early on in the year. Nothing seems to have phased my AFS filter, (31 fish some to 75 cm = 29" US) all in all a good year with good growth this year as with last year my fish have been parasite and problem free so no chemicals added.

Thanks for looking Brian

 

This is August last year

And this is today!

The Anoxic Filtration Story As told by: Manky Sanke in the UK.

The Anoxic Filtration Story

As told by: Manky Sanke

NOTE:

 This is a reprint from a UK Koi forum, from a member called Manky.

Kevin Novak, a limnologist (a researcher in freshwater science), designed and developed the idea amidst a lot of ill informed criticism over about twenty years (1). The criticism that it was nothing but a bog filter came from those who, when asked a direct question, admitted they had never read Kevin's CD book and therefore didn't understand how it worked but were opposed to it anyway.

In 2009 Koi magazine asked me to write an article on nitrate reduction. I was aware of anoxic filtration but hadn't read much about how it worked so I contacted Kevin and asked if I could buy a copy of his CD. At that time Kevin was posting copies FOC (free of charge) to anyone anywhere in the world so he refused my offer of payment and sent me a copy FOC. He wouldn't even accept reimbursement of the Trans-Atlantic postage

I spent a few weeks reading and understanding all about the dimorphic metabolism of facultative anaerobic chemo-litho-autotrophic bacteria (love that expression) and was able to include, in my article, the first brief description of the system (that I'm aware of) in a UK magazine. It's now on my website here:

Reducing Nitrate

In appreciation of how Kevin had helped and because I was impressed by the beautiful simplicity of the idea (even if the science is mind numbing) I offered to put Kevin's book on my website. That allowed him to just email a link to my site rather than having to pay for the CDs, copy the book onto them and then posts them to anywhere. My site gets a lot of visitors and so Kevin's idea came too much wider attention.

Then the Editor at Koi Carp saw the book and the article and she asked me to write a comprehensive two-part article, specifically on anoxic filtration. I used that platform to write the simplest description possible about how it worked while challenging the mistaken criticism that it was a nasty anaerobic bog filter.

Anoxic Filtration Part 1

Anoxic Filtration Part 2

That then attracted a lot of interest and questions to me, nearly all of which I could answer because my career had made it possible for me understand the science behind the system. In the early days I had to forward a few questions to Kevin but he copied me in to the replies which filled in any holes in my understanding. I also followed everything that he put into forums. I soon took on, on his behalf, answering forum posts that my original magazine articles had provoked plus the growing interest in the system. Since then more hobbyists are trying it and consequently there's a lot of chatter about it on forum threads such as this one.

That brings the story up to date (nearly).

Since being asked to become an instructor for Koi Organization International, they also asked me to write a short eBook about anoxic filtration for them. As soon as that's finished, it will be on their website and I'll also put it on mine. (Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know I keep promising that it'll be finished soon but I'm very busy with a sudden influx of new students who must take priority over finishing the book but I promise, it's nearly complete). When it is complete, it'll go on my site here.

Anoxic Filtration.

PS. I've just re-read this and, in case it comes across that I think I've single handedly provoked all the interest in Kevin's system, I don't want to claim all the credit.

I was the first person in the UK to write magazine articles about and I certainly was the first person to put Kevin's CD on a website. I also spent a lot of time in those days answering questions about it on forums but Kevin and a few others in the US have been promoting it and it became quite popular in Australia. Kevin has put a massive amount on the Internet and now on his blog. He also has a free download of his CD on iTunes.

I'm probably guilty of starting the ball rolling in the UK and putting the book on my website helped raise the anoxic profile and get it onto Google but, since then, posts appear about it on a great many forums and there have been more and more hobbyists who have tried it and added their experiences onto forums threads such as this.

__________________

Manky

Click me

[Ed: (1) The Anoxic Filtration System was introduced to the public the same time as the Nexus filter was introduced to the U.S.A. hobbyists in about 1989. I wouldn’t say a filter that has been used by the public far 25–years now would be classified as in its infancy stage any longer as some would like others to believe.]