Me vs Aquaponics (ver 2.0)

[Dr-Shade]

So its been over a year since i created my original thread on this subject… And alot has changed since then, so i figured id forget the necro and start anew…

For those of you wanting to catch up on the previous conversation, you can find it here

Me vs Aquaponics

So since have this shiny new catagory, i figured id share something im attempting with the class... This is or will be ( or has been depending on when you read this) me sharing my adventure into the world of Aquaponics... For those who don't know what Aquaponics is, a quick read here will give you the basic idea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquaponics Essentially, it is a hybrid between Fish farming ( edible or decorative ) and growing plants Hydroponically... The advantages of Aquaponics over normal hydroponics, are that you can not only grow plants but also either an edible fish crop, or as in my case just keep decorative fish, and even better, there is no real need fertilize the water as the fish are handling that for you as well... And most aquaponics systems are also widely regarded as more efficient then normal hydroponics in both space and energy consumption, due to the ability to essentially grow Two separate "crops" in the same physical space... As an example, i was speaking to a gentleman from Australia last week, who in the last 5 years, has averaged 250kgs of assorted fresh vegetables and around 50kg of edible fish crops every year... in a space the size of an average carport and at the cost running a few pond pumps and feeding the fish... As with anything done DIY you can make it as ugly or as pretty as you like... and as large or small as your heart desires... time for some pictures i think... [image] [image] [image] [image] For myself personally, im aiming for something big enough to give me a decent output of seasonal veges and a constant supply of fresh herbs, (No, not that kind of herb... but you could if you wanted too...) while keeping it a reasonably temporary set-up in order to keep my landlord happy.... Unfortunately ill be limited to a decorative fish stock, due to local laws, as the only eating fish i could legally keep require vast amounts of almost ice cold water flow, and more space than is practic…

Like i said, alot has changed since i decided to do this, Me and the missus bought some land and built a house, my son is now 2 and a half, and due to finally buying said land and house, the available budget, while not bottomless, has alot more potential for supporting my sometimes nutty projects.

This thread in particular will start with a smaller system, intended to test a few things out, and ultimately end up supporting a reasonable sized herb garden, while also being somewhat decorative… i may also use the pond for growing out/propagating some aquarium plants as well.

I may also use this thread for my larger “Greenhouse” aquaponics setup, when i get around to doing that… probably at some point after completing this smaller project, dont want to have too many projects on the go at the same time… ill end up never finishing them…

So since Picking this back up again over the weekend, I have got the Bathtub pond ( yes, this is the same tub from the last thread… i kept it all this time lol) in position, filled and a pump/fountain installed and running… Time for some pics i think…

So looking pretty ugly at the moment if im honest, but the pond is in a position that only gets full sun from midday through 4-5pm in summer ( good for the fish not cooking ) is reasonable close to the entrance of the house for easy access from the kitchen, and right in the area that after being filled ( up to level with the top of the houses concrete foundation) and paved to be used as an entertainment/BBQ area…

So highly practical placement for a supercharged Herb garden…

The pump is 1000lph ( 264gal ) and ideal for aerating the pond and driving a few small grow beds (and maybe a small - medium NFT setup for berries )given the fountain “stalk” also has a small T section with variable flow control designed to drive waterfall features etc… and only runs at 22w, so shouldn’t hammer the electric bill to much either…

Still need to work out how im going to work the growbeds… I may, given the smaller scale of this setup, end up just doing some jigging up of pvc pipes ,with holes cut out for the plants to grow through, and stuffing them with media… but im not 100% on that just yet… and am open to suggestions…

Also looking for suggestions on what to grow in this particular system…

More to come soon… will hopefully be looking to get some sort of growbed set up and plumbed in, sometime in the next few weeks… As well as getting some of the mess in the general area tidied up…

[Mora]

You could probably do a floating herb garden in the bath, will help reduce evaporation & keep the water cooler too. It’s been a while since I did it, but from memory, lettuce, basil & spring onions loved floating about on little foam trays with their roots underwater the whole time.

Mint would probably be ok too.

Also, fish are stupid. They don’t know that there is no water outside the bath, so make sure you have something in place to stop them from jumping out.

You could extend the lip of the bath by running some 4" PVC pipe all the way around it, filling it with expanded clay or whichever media you are using & cutting holes in the top to grow stuff in. Just make sure it can be easily pulled apart, as the root systems can get quite large & block your flow.

[Dr-Shade]

Thats basically what i was planning to do at the moment…

Was thinking of running the PVC pipe around the back three edges, and perhaps a second layer slightly above and behind the first ( so two “tiers” )…

I do like the idea of the floating beds aswell… and would reduce the “need” for traditional floating pond plants to provide shade for the fish…

Similar to this, but multi-layered, and wrapped around the Back three edges of the Tub

[Mora]

Yep, that’s exactly what I was thinking. For the floating beds, I used packing foam from TV/Fridge/Washing Machine.

I grow in soil currently due to renting & not wanting to move a big hydro setup around again. But I do have some Basil floating in a pond to give you an idea of what I’m talking about.

[Dr-Shade]

Got a second bag of Pisco Fittings, and some tube from work again today…

I know the tube and fittings i have are technically supposed to be for plumbing compressed air systems, but i figure if it can handle compressed air at 100kpa then it should be fine for water that isnt really pressurized …

Now all that remains before i can actually run the system as what it is, is to get some PVC piping & Joiners, figure out what im doing for media and actually put it all together…

[Dr-Shade]

Quick update…

Now that the wedding is over with, Ive finally got the go ahead from the missus to get the remainder of the parts for the Herb Pond…

So hopefully at some point this week ill have time to stop in at my local Plumbing Suppliers and pick some decent sized PVC pipe, Bends and a Couple of End Caps… And maybe some Media while im there as well… Then i can spend next weekend Putting it all together and taking Pics for whoever ( probably very few ) who are actually following this…

Then maybe Fish the weekend after ( two weeks from now )…

As for grow Media, ive found this
https://hyalitehydroponics.com/growing-media/clay-balls-10-20mm-50l-bag.html

So unless any better and/or much cheaper options pop up ( not likely due to my locality ) it looks like ill be going with clay balls… But it looks like thats pretty standard as far as aquaponics goes anyway lol