How To Turn Fish Into Fertilizer

28/07/2009
by Tina Hull

Fish emulsion is a type of organic liquid fertilizer made from fish waste. While fish emulsion can be produced from many different types of fish (including wild caught salmon), a small fish called Menhaden is the most common source of this liquid fertilizer. An oily, bony fish with little edible meat, Menhaden comes from the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

How are liquid organic fertilizers made? The fish is steam-heated and then transferred to a large pressing equipment where the liquids and precious fish oil is rendered. All the solid substances are made into animal feed, while the oil is further refined into fish oil. As for the remaining liquids, it is simmered until it is transformed into a thickened fish emulsion.

A small amount of phosphoric acid is added to the fish emulsion to lower the pH. Lowering the pH makes the liquid fertilizer more acidic, which prevents it from decaying and fermenting into gas. Before phosphoric acid was added in the manufacturing process, containers of fish emulsion were known to burst from fermentation. Because the amount of added phosphoric acid is so small (less than one percent by weight), the product is still considered organic.

Standard composition of organic fish emulsion fertilizers is about 5% Nitrogen, 2% Phosphorous, and 2% Potassium. It also contains micronutrients that are vital for promoting plant growth.

Adventurous gardeners make their own liquid fertilizer from fish. It’s a smelly, messy process, but it could be economical for gardeners with a ready supply of fish waste.

Liquid organic fish emulsions are an exception to other organic fertilizers because they release nutrients to the plant immediately. Hence, liquid fish emulsions are used for transplanting seedlings because it makes them more viable. To use as fertilizer, the liquid fish emulsion is diluted in water and sprayed on plants or used to water the soil.

Fish emulsion is a fairly mild liquid fertilizer, but it can burn if applied too strong, so it’s important to follow mixing directions. It has a definite fishy odor, but the odor goes away in a day or two after application. Some manufacturers add a deodorizer to their products. Fish emulsion must be used when it’s mixed; it can’t be stored after it is diluted. By the way, the undiluted liquid must be stored at room temperature because it degrades if it gets too hot.

Production of liquid fish emulsions fertilizers is environmentally sound from start to finish. Only fish parts that are unused or are considered as waste by fish and feed processing companies are used. Thus, the use of fish emulsions organic fertilizers thus decrease toxins in our food and helps make zero waste possible.

About the Author:
Tina Hull is a recognized authority in organic fertilizer. You can learn more by going to her website aboutliquid organic fertilizer.
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How to Choose Dark Sky Compliant Outdoor Lighting Fixtures for Your Home

04/07/2009
by Cindy Sherman

Using energy saving Dark Sky fixtures to illuminate your home makes perfect sense. The Dark Sky compliant fixtures are designed to send light only where it’s needed and reduce any secondary illumination. These fixtures effectively reduce extraneous glare as well as light pollution while saving energy. These fixtures help keep the night skies darker and help protecting the wildlife from the effects of light pollution and clutter.

If you have seen how important Dark Sky light fixtures are to your home then you are probably ready to start retrofitting your space with these eco-friendly, energy saving light fixtures. We would be happy to help and are available to answer any questions your make have.

The simplest way to get Dark Sky Compliant lighting is to look for the International Dark-Sky Association’s (IDA) stamp of approval on products as you’re perusing the selections available to you. Otherwise, there are several key features built into night-friendly fixtures you can look for. In a nutshell, you’ll want to check for the following distinctive dark sky features:

1. Fixtures that are made with side and top covers that are solid and opaque. This feature insures that the light is not sent sideways or skyward.

2.Some Dark Sky fixtures use a reflector located in the inside top of the casing that reflects light downward.

3. Choosing fixtures with flat lenses instead of rounded lenses will greatly reduce the glare and any light spillage.

If you already have outdoor lighting that you are pleased with and dread the idea of replacing every single exterior light fixture, you really should think about retrofitting with the use of light shield. They are cylindrical enclosures that cover both the top and the sides of the existing lighting in order to cut the up-lighting. You can usually provide a seamless appear to the exterior of your house since they are available in a wide variety of colors and shapes.

Of course, any time you can save energy, you’ll be cutting your power bill, too. Did you know that nationwide, it is estimated that we waste $1.5 billion worth of light every year! This is due to the huge quantities of light that we send upwards where it’s not needed. Take, for example, the city of San Diego. They recently retrofitted their outdoor light fixtures with full cut-off lighting, and although it took them three years to make back the money they spent on the job (a short return on investment, really), they’re now saving $3 million every year in energy costs.

The city of San Diego decided to do something about this waste of light. They hired a fir to retrofit the city’s outdoor light fixtures to full cut-off lighting. While it did take them three years to make the money back on their investment, they are now saving more that $3 million dollars each year for the cost of energy.

While you have nowhere near the energy bill of San Diego, any wasted light is taking money right out of your pocket. If you were to install full cut-off fixtures that were specifically focused, the number of fixtures needed and your energy costs would decrease. It is very likely that you would also be able to use smaller bulbs in the fixtures since they will be focused downward. Each of these factors will contribute to lower energy costs and more cash in your pocket which is good news considering the constantly rising energy cost.

About the Author:
The last thing you ever want to get is bad or outdated information about exterior light fixtures. You’ll never have to worry about that again after you visit this site dark sky lighting.
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This Is The Solution To Moving Your Kitchen Waste To The Compost

26/06/2009
by Ferdinand Emy

When composting, one of the most prevalent problems that most people run into is how to move their kitchen waste from the kitchen to the compost. Even more challenging is the quandary of what to do with the kitchen compost between gathering it and moving it to the compost pile. Although kitchen scraps could surely be taken regularly, it can oftentimes become very burdensome for most people, in particular when cooking many repasts everyday.

To effectively handle kitchen compost, most solutions are there to assist you. To start, you must insure that you have a good compost container for your kitchen. Although any type of container will be okay, it is vital to ensure that it has a firmly fitted lid. This is even more important if you don’t plan to take out your compost on a daily basis. You can either purchase a kitchen compost container that is specially built for that purpose or you can utilise something as simple as a large coffee can.

It may also be aiding to you to line the container with a kitchen compost bag. This makes it quite easy to simply take the kitchen waste out to compost pile without having to worry about cleaning a malodorous compost container. Though kitchen compost bags makes it easier to prevent leaks, but if you opt not to utilize kitchen compost bags, then you will need to clean your compost container regularly so as to reduce smells and also insure that it remains hygienic as well. Adding in some baking soda to the compost will also help to prevent your kitchen compost from smelling as well.

Consider the addition of another kitchen compost container if you discover that your home appears to produce lots of kitchen waste. This will ensure that everything is collected but will relieve you from the burden of having to make your way out to the compost pile every day. When both containers are full or when it becomes more convenient you can then take them both out at the same time.

Finally, ensure that you give some thought to the location of the kitchen compost container in your home. The container should be convenient for collecting compost but not in the way or in a location where it will be distracting in the kitchen.

About the Author:
The Problem Of moving Kitchen Compost to the compost bin is what many people encounter daily, head over and find out how to effectively deal with it.
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