Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi! I'm an architecture student and i would like to plan a project (as part of my studies) of a residential skyscraper in which every residential unit has two different greenhouses (instead of balconies) 0f 9 square meters each, in which an Acquaponics system should be located. The idea is to create an urban farm community in which every resident is actually an acquaponics farmer. I need to find good sources which can tell me what is the approximate yield of an acquaponics system that is large enough to stay inside a 9 square meters greenhouse, and some profitability studies. Basically, i need to find out if it is possible to maintain such a community with the residents able to pay off their rent and live from the profits they make with the Acquaponic system produce (fish and vegetables). If anyone can help me in anyway i'd be more then grateful. Thx.

Aquaponics isn't magic, 9sqm is a very small area and generally when people have asked about what growbed space will feed what amount of people we have recommended 2sqm of bed is enough to supplement 1 persons vegetables, not feed completely all vegetable requirements, just supplement.

You have 9sqm, don't forget you need to allow access around beds for management, planting harvesting etc, so realistically you'll you'll only have perhaps 7sqm or less, but lets say you grow stuff vertically so you still have about 9sqm. That will supplement 3-4 peoples food, perhaps feed the majority of vegetables 2 people need.

It's nowhere near enough space for anyone to make any money from..

Actually that is a good idea ,

I think what you're asking is if you can have an Aquaponic farm located somewhere in the building which then pumps the Nutrient rich water into the residential zones which will have 9 sqm greenhouse for them to grow in ?

9 sqm is not enough to combine Aquaponic unit but it's plenty of grow space if you are just providing the water to run them
how ever the cost to pump it would be quite high unless your farm is near the same floor level or else the PSI needed is just too darn high = larger pump = more wasted energy

but I can definitely see it some NFT system on the walls that then drains into a Grow bed that then empties back into the farm somehow ... you would have to possibly have each Aqua farm on the level below of each unit so it just pump up 1 floor level then gravity does the rest


as for profits a nice slow growing beast is "ginseng" can fetch a few hundred $ / kg

the simplest is lettuce it's an easy $1+ a head per month
micro greens have great yields also

it really depends on where you live every county have their own shortages

I know I make $5k / Greenhouse 6x3m Annually on average depending what is being grown
some are daily some are weekly some are annually harvests

I can see politics getting in the way...
who decides what to grow
what if some people don't want to help out
etc
etc

I like MasterCATZ suggestion of one central (hidden?) fish farm and many different plant modules. what I would add is that you don't look for everyone to grow but for a small percentage of persons to grow larger plants and search greenhouse/hydroponic numbers. Also different ares of the building may be more suited to different crops.

Nice idea btw.

It's a great idea on paper creating an urban farming community in a residential skyscraper but it would have a lot of problems, farming communities are usually a group of people who share the same passion for gardening, people living in a skyscraper won't all have that same passion or the green thumb of others and as Gorotsuki69 said:

I can see politics getting in the way...
who decides what to grow
what if some people don't want to help out.

Not all sides of the building's balconies would receive full sun the other sides of the building would need lighting, if the fish tanks were communal the logistics and management of the fish and water would need someone totally committed to oversee the water quality, fish health and feeding. Who knows what people in different apartments would be adding to their growbeds or what pesticides they would be using???

How do you share the cost involved of running a communal system??? Who would be responsible for the cleaning and maintenance of a communal system running to different apartments???

If they were all separate systems people wouldn't all have the same commitment and passion to maintain their systems or have the continual turnover in crops to pay their rent, a loss of fish through disease or any other reason would wipe out the rent money for quite while.

IMO as a garden to help feed each apartment YES, paying the rent NO, and as EB said it will only will SUPPLEMENT 3-4 peoples food.

Verticals. Go up! check out https://shop.brightagrotech.com/zipgrow ... -in-milan/

Hi
I have limited experience of apartments in Italy. My family do however own an apartment in southern Spain.
We use it for holidays. As such the balcony is a welcome addition and change from the UK climate. However most of my Spanish ( resident) neighbors have chosen to glass in their balconies. Extra living space.
The roof ( top floor) is another obvious location but in Spain this area sells at a premium. Penthouse space.
One or two positive suggestion I can how offer is some form of rainwater collection.
Where possible the majority of people with AP would choose to use rainwater.
This could also be used in a new build for grey water flushing of toilets etc.
Many apartment blocks in Spain have open air shafts. Often over a small balcony used to dry washing etc. An NFT type tube on the wall of each apartment fed from a central water supply would allow each resident to grow a small amount of lettuce/herbs etc

I'd look at Hydro over Aquaponics.

Too many ways to kill fish, and then it's a big set back to everybody when something happens. Get some sort of auto-top up, and change the nutrient mix every so often, and it'll grow (there are a couple of other things though). No feeding of fish (or over or under feeding), monitoring water levels, etc.

I am pretty sure you can find the people to fill an aquaponic skyscraper if it was built and systems were atractive enough. I am thinking a system like this would have to have one plant propregation center, that way you could control all the crops planted. Then you would have to have pretty good sterilization if your going to recirculate to a main fish tank/area Can you give us a general idea of the size design of the building? I am guessing a donut shape (internal balconeys) maybe 10 storeys tall?

You woud need a lot of hippys to pull it off though.