From dining at Michelin star restaurants to the clam bakes we host in our backyards, aquaculture farming plays a more significant role in the food industry than we could ever imagine. But because the aquaculture industry can have a significant impact on the environment, those working in the industry must ensure their operation is clean, stable, and environmentally friendly.
A key element to doing so is implementing a filter system and, more specifically, a filter media that combats some of the more environmentally concerning roadblocks. For this reason, many aquaculture operations rely on the versatility of woven wire mesh.
So, what role does woven wire mesh when farming aquatic organisms?
W.S. Tyler has been a prominent entity in the world of filtration for over 150 years. We take pride in manufacturing woven wire mesh filter cloth solutions that work to build your confidence in the products you offer.
With that, the following article was written to help you better understand how woven wire mesh can fit into your aquaculture farming operation. You will learn:
- The key concerns of aquaculture farming
- What woven wire mesh is
- How woven wire mesh benefits aquaculture farming
- The limitations associated with woven wire mesh
- How much woven wire mesh costs
What Are the Primary Concerns Associated With Aquaculture?
To truly understand how the woven wire mesh can benefit your operation, let’s establish some of the concerns the wire mesh can address.
Possibly the most prominent issue that all aquaculture setups must be mindful of is the waste of the aquatic organisms. Not only can this lead to illness among your livestock, but there are regulations that set a tolerance on the amount of waste discharged from your operation.
Failure to accommodate these waste management tolerances can lead to substantial fines and other ramifications.
Another critical issue that must be monitored is antibiotic use in aquaculture farms. As the antibiotics used are not consumed or even metabolized in their entirety, residual antibiotic matter can cause buildup within your system.
This can be slowly released into the environment, causing a heightened resistance amongst your livestock. You also risk heightened buildup in your livestock, which can be harmful for human consumption.
Additionally, if it is discharged from your system into the surrounding area, having a negative impact on the wildlife outside your process.
The last key concern to be proactive about is fish lice, especially during summer and fall months. This form of lice can burrow into the scales and gills of your aquatic livestock causing inflammation, irregular eating habits, reduced weight, and bodily damage.
What Is Woven Wire Mesh?
Woven wire mesh is defined as individual metallic wires that become interlocked during a centuries-old weaving process, forming wire cloth sheets that are then rolled. From the wire diameter, opening size, and weave pattern, all the way down to the dimensions of the roll, wire mesh can be engineered to accommodate your needs.
Now, at its core, wire mesh is fabricated in two different ways.
When working with larger wire diameters or an aspect ratio that is either too small or too large, the wires must be pre-crimped before weaving. On the other hand, when working with finer mesh specifications, the wires are crimped during the weaving process and thus do not need to be pre-crimped.
How Does Woven Wire Mesh Benefit Aquaculture Farming?
As stated above, waste management, residual antibiotic matter, and fish lice are the primary concern of the aquaculture industry. Fortunately, the benefits of woven wire mesh can be used to combat these concerns.
Both waste management and residual antibiotic concerns stem down to one thing: water treatment. Wire mesh provides a means of separating solids, and other unwanted contaminates from water.
Many turn to woven wire mesh for its customization. This includes its ability to be formed and fabricated to fit most filter/screening housing, despite its rigid stainless steel profile.
When it comes to fish lice, let’s first look at the size of the organism. On average, fish lice are .3cm (3mm) to .7cm (7mm) long x .2cm (2mm) to .4 cm (4mm) wide.
This translates to 3000 to 7000 microns x 2000 to 4000 microns.
While this may seem nearly impossible to filter, woven wire mesh weave patterns can reach specifications as fine as 5 microns. Three-dimensional weaves, such as W.S. Tyler’s RPD HIFLO-S, can reach these fine specifications while also delivering better flow rate, combating blinding, and controlled pressure drop.
What Limitations Are Associated With Woven Wire Mesh?
In more aquaculture applications than none, woven wire mesh is formed to fit a specific system. While the possibilities of fabricated wire mesh components are virtually limitless, there is one limitation of note.
The forming process used to fabricate aquaculture wire mesh components often involves deep drawing the mesh. But doing so requires wire mesh suppliers to follow a strict ratio that deters the draw length from exceeding the diameter of the component.
So, for example, if you have a cone filter that has a diameter of one foot, it cannot have a draw length of two feet.
How Much Does Woven Wire Mesh Cost?
The cost you can expect to pay for wire mesh will depend on your exact needs. A good place to start is deciding whether you will need wire mesh in rolls, cut-to-size pieces, or fabricated components.
For rolls and cut-to-size pieces, cost is determined by the value-added services, ultrasonic cleaning, welding, pleating, and any special compliance. For custom fabricated components, cost is determined by layer configuration, part size, part shape, mesh specification, order quantity, and the amount of fabrication needed.
Regardless if you are interested in rolls, cut-to-size pieces, or fabricated components, it should be noted that standard square mesh specifications will cost less than filter cloth weaves. This is because the weaving process used to fabricate filter cloth weave types is more labor-intensive.
Explore the Various Woven Wire Mesh Alloys To Achieve Desirable Results
As it is heavily regulated, aquaculture farming organizations must ensure their filter systems can combat waste management, antibiotic management, and fish lice management concerns. Many turn to woven wire mesh as it can be customized to accommodate most aquaculture farming operations, allowing them to keep these concerns at bay.
But to truly be confident that woven wire mesh is right for your operation, you must ensure it will be able to withstand the conditions it will be subjected to. One key element to determining this is understanding if woven wire mesh can be woven using an alloy that will provide you the best value.
With over 150 years of experience helping customers navigate the wire mesh industry, W.S. Tyler has the know-how within our four walls to help you design a wire mesh solution that will help your operation comply with the many standards and regulations surrounding aquaculture farming.
To begin learning about what alloys can be used to weave woven wire mesh, refer to the following article: