Aquaponics---What's your take?

[hennible]

http://aquaponics.com/page/build-a-mini-aquaponic-system

 

[2boys1homestead]

We are seriously going to start running an AP system come spring. Right now I'm still getting all the odds and ends (pump, water tank, grow beds and media) gathered up or built so that right after our last freeze I can get started. We're planning on using native hybrid bluegill perch since they grow as fast as tilapia and taste better IMHO. The build out goal is an in-ground tank near to 500gallons, a submerged pump to feed two 12'x4'x1' grow beds and have an off shoot line for the garden sink to wash veggies. The sink will drain back into the fish tank also. As far as green housing it since we live in Texas I think I can make individual covers for each bed and have them stay warm through the winter. The warmer beds should also help keep the fish tank warmer. For us going AP is really the only viable system where we live. Our property is 99.9% sand with a layer of top soil that is less than 1/4" deep so planting a traditional garden just won't work. That and we have a bunch of deer out there that will just decimate anything planted that they can reach. With the raised grow beds I can fence right along side of them and keep the darn deer out (I hope).

RichnSteph

That sounds great! I want to try AP for the fish factor, but also for winter gardening. It's a project that's a ways off, but I would like to have a greenhouse that produces food year around and that's where AP would come in.
Good luck and I would love to see pictures once you get it up and going!

 

[chooks4life]

Good info Hennible, thanks for that.

 

[LordStark]

I'm planning on setting up a system. My Ag teacher has referred me to a few people who are interested in aquaponics and I'm hoping they'll be able to help me out. Season 2 episode 5 of doomsday preppers is on these two neighbours who are in a competition to see who can have the best system. I found them to be one of the more interesting people featured in the show. It's on netflix if that helps.

 

[RichnSteph]

Update.

I'm heading out this weekend to pick up two of these from a neighbor.



They are 7' long x 6' wide and just under 2' deep. With 6 inches of lave rock in the bottom for a growing media the seedlings will have several inches to grow before they are subjected to the winds around here. Even the lettuce and other shorter plants will be protected for most of the time they are growing. I've found two pumps and the connections and have them in the shed. Locally is a source of the 330 gallon plastic IBC totes so one of those is going in the ground as the fish tank. I'm hoping to piece meal this thing together over the next few months so that come spring I can fill, get the system bugs worked out (bell siphon, timing, etc..), add fish and plants and begin the process. I've got a crazy idea for covering the tubs over next winter to make little mini green houses but will wait to post that when the time comes.

Winter is a great time to gather parts for a project like this. Come spring this stuff will be really hard to find and expensive to buy if you do locate it.

RichnSteph

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Update.

I'm heading out this weekend to pick up two of these from a neighbor.



They are 7' long x 6' wide and just under 2' deep. With 6 inches of lave rock in the bottom for a growing media the seedlings will have several inches to grow before they are subjected to the winds around here. Even the lettuce and other shorter plants will be protected for most of the time they are growing. I've found two pumps and the connections and have them in the shed. Locally is a source of the 330 gallon plastic IBC totes so one of those is going in the ground as the fish tank. I'm hoping to piece meal this thing together over the next few months so that come spring I can fill, get the system bugs worked out (bell siphon, timing, etc..), add fish and plants and begin the process. I've got a crazy idea for covering the tubs over next winter to make little mini green houses but will wait to post that when the time comes.

Winter is a great time to gather parts for a project like this. Come spring this stuff will be really hard to find and expensive to buy if you do locate it.

RichnSteph

They look great for a grow bed! How much are they? I'd recommend using lava rock on the bottom portion of the grow bed and small (~1/4") river rock for the top layer. The smooth river rock is much more forgiving on the hands than the lava rock when digging and planting.

 

[RichnSteph]

They look great for a grow bed! How much are they? I'd recommend using lava rock on the bottom portion of the grow bed and small (~1/4") river rock for the top layer. The smooth river rock is much more forgiving on the hands than the lava rock when digging and planting.

The kicker is that they are $100 each. I know it's a bit much but it's still less than I had budgeted for the beds I was going to build. So you're saying about 4" of lava rock and then 2" of the smooth river stones? Do you plant the seed in the river stone or the lava rock? I'd love to use the little clay balls that some use but that stuff is expensive on a large scale.

RichnSteph

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Quote: Oh, I think that is a pretty good price. Yes, plant in the river rock. The lava is just brutal on the hands and it makes you not want to mess around in there, which you need to do. The greater surface area and low weight of the lava make it worth having as the bottom layer though. Is the wind such a problem there that you really need the break that the high sides would provide? A bit more gravel depth would be helpful. Yeah, the hydroton is prohibitively expensive. I only use it in net pots in hanging NFT tubes, where weight is an issue. I wonder if you can get expanded shale at a good price where you live? I really like that stuff too, it's less expensive than hydroton, but hard to come by out here in AZ. It's regular shale that has been super heated to a point where it puffs up. It's smooth and is super light weight. I seem to recall that they make it in TX.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

I was wondering if anyone here had dabbled in Aquaponics? I think it would be a fun think to get into and I really love Tilapia. If you have any favorite books, websites, or youtube channels about it, please share them! I want to do more research on the subject!

Thanks!

You should check out Growing Power in Milwaukee. They're at about your latitude and they do amazing gardening/aquaponics year-round.

 

[2boys1homestead]

Thanks, I'll check them out!