Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

the pic below is a hydro system. We can borrow the design idea to our AP system. This way, all the grow beds do not need strong support.

In some cases, the fish tank may need to be raised higher and thus require strong support.

A sump tank is needed.

this is good PS - personally I won't be going this way but alternate setups tend to stimulate the mind and improvements to the established methods are the results

does this one has any flowback of water back to the fish tank?

its just missing the dope plants Nah, i'm sure that style is used for standard hydro too.

Worth a think about...........Thanks for posting

Set up for this type of system i have seen is to drip water to the pots hand have it come back from the plumbing at the bottom, keeping water level about half way up, sort of a combo DWC system.

No reason why the black sump couldn't be flooded and drained to and fro the blue barrel, hence making all the pots flood and drain.

Yes there is a reason they call that the Dutch Bucket method. Peashoots, a number of members are playing with satelite pots in a similar way to the dutch bucket method. GD is one. For me personally it is something I am looking at doing as an add on to my big gravel beds. Can add and remove the small units as and when needed (e.g when greater nitrate removal required). Good pic.

I like the possibility of using the setup for trees and shrubs.

Gotta expand my system. I've planted out the bath to way past capacity if everything takes off

Its hard to just watch an AP system

I agree Steve. This weekend I'm thinking of adding one of my 2 160litre green plastic drums (you know the ones with the black removable lid) to my system to grow a cucumber, pumpkin, melon or something like that off. Will probably try DWC, using a standpipe to remove the water and keep the level constant. Will need to make sure there is sufficient oxygenation, so a venturi would seem the go. The idea is that the vine can trail off along the ground, or be trainer up a trellis or watever. Should mean high nitrate removal at low expense. By doing these sorts of thing I reckon I will be able to operate high stocking at lower than 2:1 grow-bed to tank ratio.

I have the same plan for letting the vines trail on the ground. Last year a pumpkin i planted in the herb patch (1mx1m) trailed over the concrete and around the corner of the house approx 8M

I'll be trying to set multiple buckets linked with black poly pipe in a flood/drain manner. From playing with a intermitantly working syphon (it fine now ) on my grow bed i have realised that water is like electricity, taking the path of lease resistance. Sometimes by bath wouold not drain, just flood then the flow out would match the flow in. I'm certan that this flow would have "tracked" via a very narrow path to the outlet.

This is the reason that i'm going to try and F/D the buckets. even though they are only lnked by a single poly pipe the act of F/D will enure fresh water gets to all parts of each bucket.

In my deep water barrel system, the water will be pumped over the top of the barrel to the bottom of the barrel through a pipe fitted with a venturi for aeration. The standpip will take the water from the top. This together with the mixing caused by the incoming air will keep the water turning over well I figure. I will have to monitor solid getting into the roots though. To help avoid this I could have the water coming up a syphon tube from the bottom before overflowing into the standpipe (ala MF) to remove solids from the bottom. I had considerred just making the barrel into a big flood and drain with gravel in it), and probably would, but I want the water to be able to gravity feed back to my fish ponds, the tops of which are about 50cm high.

Details details! LOL

I'm going to have the same problems you just mentioned

Eventually my system will have a sump, so the problem will be no longer. But until then I have to do it differently. I will not put a sump in until I can source one that is, or close to, 1000 litres.

surfin' the other day, I happened to come across a 'steve' on a site that may be of a questionable nature, espicially for an Administrator (he apparently was also from melb, you don't have a twin do you?) for a link click [here]






Just kidding...


(maybe I can get those really flash fishes yet [and not have to post 2000 times], and also not have to submit to Reets world domination)

Gotta keep 'em 'onest

Feel free to delete that last post, with the current censorship in Vic with the election I'd understand

oops...stuffed that up