Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have played with hydroponics off and on the last few years, starting with indoor lettuce, and am now working on an outdoor vegetable NFT system (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and strawberries). My sister in law who lives about 50 miles away has asked me to help her set up an outdoor hydroponic system, her primary interest seems to be strawberries and vegetables, and while I don't have any experience in aquaponics, I am wondering if this might be a good option for her, as she has a large pond in her backyard in south Louisiana where it gets very hot in the summer, and rarely gets below freezing in the winter. Her pond is about 300 ft long and about 50 ft wide, and is populated by a variety of fish, turtles, snakes, etc. I am not sure how deep it is, but my guess is around 5 ft or less, it was once part of an irrigation canal which has been filled in on neighboring properties. The pond is located a couple of hundred feet behind her house, though she does have limited electricity available by the pond, I think a single 15 amp 120V electrical circuit.

Any thoughts?

thanks

A few things to take into consideration.

Stocking density in aquaponics is quite high,I doubt the pond would have that many fish.Read this http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/guide ... -stocking/

If there's enough fish,how much of that water would have to pass through the grow beds to satisfy the plants.

Who knows what else is in the water (bad stuff).Animals defecating,harmful bacteria & pollution.Strawberries & veg are eaten raw (well some veg),it could be dangerous to consume them without cooking it first.

Have you done any water tests on it? like Nitrate?

While using the pond as the only water source, any chemical or Ph adjustment will be an issue. Before making your/her decision, take a look at this .... http://iavs.info/ Both hydro and AP demand a level of commitment. Some systems more so than others. iAVs/sandponic systems have much lower demands on one's time.

Which ever way you go, I think I would put together a system complete with fish tank and use the pond to fill the tank and use to top off the tank..

Thanks for the replies, it gives me a starting point for helping her with her project.

You could irrigate wicking beds with the water, prenutrified that way. I have a tinyquanity of the fish recommended and am still getting good growth with some ediables. Just need to balance fish stocks to plants. Additional water volume doesn't seem to matter that much.