More innovations are described in the evolving shrimp farming industry for the benefit of the farming community

1. 8 May/June 2017 AQUA Culture Asia Pacific Magazine
Shrimp Culture
More innovations in shrimp farming
Three innovations are described, including an
ingenious automatic dead algal removal tool
developed at a farm in East Java and a check
valve to keep the outlet channel dry.
By Poh Yong Thong
Commercial shrimp farming has a relatively short history, having
originated some 35 years ago in the early 1980’s, in Taiwan. In
comparison, poultry farming, started more than 150 years ago! The
husbandry in shrimp farming is thus still in its infancy stage and
it is not a wonder that it is still very still plagued with husbandry
and disease problems. Many techniques and innovations are
continuously being perfected to make shrimp farming efficient
and productive
In an article in 2014, I reported on some innovative ideas
developed by farmers in Southeast Asia. These were auto-on
paddlewheel switches, paddlewheel arrangement in long ponds
to create two sludge areas, water sampling bottles, partial
harvesting from the bund area, a central sludge removal system
and water mover airlift. Another innovation reported was the
dispensing of chemicals/probiotics directly to the sludge area,
via a 30- or 50-L tank (containing a mixture of probiotics and
water), with a 2.5 cm pipe or hose controlled by a valve. (Aqua
Culture Asia Pacific, January/February 2014, pp13-16).
In general, innovations described earlier and in this article are
the results of many trials by innovative farmers and technicians.
They are the real heroes in shrimp farming; thinking out of the
box, they make shrimp farming easier and more productive.
I am very grateful that they are willing to share and explain
these innovations for the benefit of the wider shrimp farming
community.
Automatic dead algae removal
device
The water quality in a pond is constantly changing, sometimes
resulting in massive algae die-off. These dead algae float to the
surface and may sink and accumulate in certain dead zones in the
pond bottom, resulting in the formation of sludge and hydrogen
sulphide. The dead algae, if not removed will decompose, emit
a foul smell and is highly toxic. Conventionally, removal of dead
algae employing manual labourer is time consuming and tedious.
A farm in East Java has devised an ingenious automatic dead
algae removal tool.
The floating dead algae
are guided by the ingenious
arrangement of a floating
bamboo pole positioned
above a drain pipe placed
about 0.5 cm below the
water surface. In order
to prevent shrimp from
climbing up the drain pipe
and escaping, a 40 cm x
40 cm (16” x 16”) PVC sheet
diverts the shrimp away.
Drain pipe with the PVC sheet to divert
shrimp away from the drain pipe.
Floating dead algae are guided into the drain
pipe by a floating bamboo pole
Floating dead algae

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3. 10 May/June 2017 AQUA Culture Asia Pacific Magazine
Shrimp Culture
Homemade check valve
Many farms are located in very low lying areas and the outlet
canal is constantly filled with water both from the pond effluents
and from the incoming tide. For economic and security reasons,
the outlet water is discharged to the outside by drain pipes. The
discharge is slow and back fills quickly during high tides. These
farms have to resort to pumping to remove water in the outlet
canal during harvests and incur high operating costs. In addition,
the constantly water logged outlet canal harbours wild crustaceans
as well as bacteria and present a high biosecurity risk.
In Gold Coin’s R&D farm in Perak, Malaysia, the farm manager
devised an automatic check valve that discharges outlet water
during low tide but closes automatically when the tide rises and
the water flow is reversed. In this way, tide water is prevented
from entering back into the outlet canals. With this device, the
outlet can be kept relatively dry, thus saving on pumping costs.
More importantly, it helps to dry out the outlet canal and greatly
reduces biosecurity risks.
Different parts of drain pipe
High salinity mitigation through
adding fresh water to feed
During the dry season, pond
water salinity can increase
to 45 ppt or higher, resulting
in slower shrimp growth.
A farm in West Java has
found a way to overcome
this problem. The farmer
adds clean freshwater to
the feed before feeding to
shrimp. Water at 10% of the
weight of the feed is added
uniformly using a watering
can and is thoroughly
mixed with the feed. The
feed is left to stand for
30 min to allow the feed
to completely absorb the
water. The feed pellet will
still remain hard and can
be handled as usual. The
farmer has thus found a
novel way to make the feed
“less salty” by allowing the
feed to first absorb some
freshwater.
Series of automatic check valve to discharge outlet water during low tide but closes
automatically when the tide rises.
Schematic drawing to show various parts of homemade back flow valve
Homemade PVC collar
Farmer adding freshwater to feed
Poh Yong Thong is Assistant Director Technical
Services in Gold Coin Aquaculture. He is based
in Malaysia. Email: yongthong.poh@gcaqua.
com or poyoto2002@yahoo.com
40 cm x 40 cm flat PVC plate (from PVC pipe)
with a hole of about 10 cm in centre
10 cm PVC pipe, slit and welded back so that
it is slightly less than 10 cm and can be
inserted Bghtly into an outer 10 cm pipe
Placed horizontally half cm below the water
surface so that floaBng dead algae can be
drawn away into the outlet canal
10 cm PVC pipe drains floaBng dead algae
automaBcally into the outlet canal
2 half inch (1.3 cm) PVC pipes glued
into place by fibre glass glue
Metal weight glued into place by
fibre grass glue
Sponge layer to prevent water leakage
Schematic drawing demonstrating how the dead algae removal tool works