Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have just recently started to look at aquaponics. I want to add a water feature to my home garden to help bring in some more natural diversity.
Using aquaponic systems seems to be a more "holistic" way of doing it, and it may lead me to do a bigger project.

I want to do a small start, and after reading, I wonder if this type of setup will work:

-Two holes dug into the earth (maybe 200 Gallons each) and lined with a safe water-proof liner.
-PVC pipe laid just under ground connecting the two holes with a submersible pump's hose running through. Pull water from the fish hole into the plant hole, and then run back through over rocks to the fish hole.
-Do the normal pH, water prep and such to start the system.

Is this really too simple? It looks to cover all aspects that I can tell....maybe not enough oxygen in the water though?

If it would work, the price would be excellent for me.

Welcome aboard Mark. You can do aquaponics on a shoe string budget.
It sounds like you would be pumping into the growbed from the bottom and draining from the top? Show a picture if you can of your idea.

Welcome MC!
Two birds with the one stone.
Well 4 actually because you get greens, fish, aesthetics and creative expression.
C1

Hi Mark, from this side of the planet.

You have the idea. No need to run the pipe underground since you will not be using side or bottom drains. Just drop a small submersible pump in each hole after it's lined, plumb the fish pump to the plant hole over top, let the water drain back over rocks to the fish hole. The water journey through plant hole and back over rocks will aereate sufficiently if stocking density is not excessive (30 full grown fish for 200g). In the winter, throw a hot frame over the two holes and keep it growing.

Keep us posted

I think it should work. Im doing something fairly simmilar with my "grow bed" and "pond" just lined holes in the ground (on a slope)

Wonderful respones guys! What a group! Ill sketch out my plans and post for you guys just to make sure all is well.
Daniel, what liner are you using?
Creative1, you nailed it! I'm "growing" into permaculture for the garden, and was just really needing a small water source to attract certain critters. Instead, aquaponice can give me fish, more veggies, sustainability of good water, more creativity, more education for me and the kids, and "then" still give me the water! Not bad.

i can tell you, finding a cheap food safe liner was a headache. (lots of googling was involved)

I managed to find some virgin LDPE (low density polyethelene i think it was) which is leech proof, and commonly used to contain liquids that are not allowed to be contaminated (water stores, acid, etc) (well thats what the websites said anyways)

Hey MC, yep theres no shortage of help/advice/inspiration etc on this forum.

Dan, I have an irregular shaped area that I have been considering using, can you please post the link to the pond liner site?

Oops, reading my post it sounds like i bought it online.i can try and find the sites, but it was just the information on it. (don't get me wrong, im happy to find those sites if you want to read them)

I got the actual liner at "B" or "M 10" (cant remember which one, i know where it is though...)

it was the thinnest black builders film you can buy. The thicker stuff is recycled (you can tell by the texture, its not uniform) whereas the thinner stuff can't be made out of recycled as the any possible impurities could comprimise it or something. However don't take my word for it, i will try and find those sites (i don't want any implications if i got it wrong)

Ok guys, here is my drawing. I hope it comes out OK.
This looks like it can work, and the only construction costs would be the PVC, pond liner, sand (or whatever for plants), and pumps.

After looking at it, it may make more sense to have the fish pump to the left of the pond, even though that might be a long tube to pump to the veggies.

What do you think?

-MC

That's look very nice, MC. Check out the auto syphon posts as you maybe able to get rid of the pump at your planted area and just gravity feed back to them fishies. You may want to double up and lay two pipes when you built it sort of a spare incase Murphy hits, but not all things can be forseen. I like it

Ah, nice idea, but what about the other way around?
If i could put some kinda syphon in the fish part, and pump water over the rocks to the fish, I can still have a nice waterfall.
Two pipes would be easy to lay at the onset.

MC, I think that could work but more work and monitoring would be involved. ie, what would start and stop the syphon (fish pond water level), if the pond gets to low you would starve your grow bed and its pump. Are you planning on continous flow?, and are you dead set on buring your pipe in ground? As MF stated there are other ways as well.
I have a feeling its going to be a great set up though.

Ask Murray about pond liner. He had it, then removed it, I asked for some it was gone. More requests... He's a smart man he might just find some again...

OK, now I'm just having fun.
I decided to make a visio diagram that i can evolve through your inputs and suggestions.

No, Im not sold on any exact build, like burying lines.
This is what Im after:
1. A water source to add to a garden.
2. Clean and sustainable (for the most part)
3. CHEAP
4. Looks NATURAL, and has a nice water sound.
5. Learn the concept of Aquaponics.

This is what Ive gotten now.
- Im thinking of sand instead on a liner (cheaper too).
- Don't really know of a good way to prime the pvc siphon without a second pump.