Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I want to set up a smallish AP system in my yard as a hobby and for personal consumption. I plan to move in 2-3 years. I am trying to find out how much yield I could get out of my system in that time. I do not need to turn a "profit" in that time, but I would like any financial loss to be manageable and significantly offset by the food.

Veggies I am most interested in are: tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, spinach, peppers, beans, & peas. I am open to trying new things, those are just the ones I currently eat the most.

My area gets some interesting weather. I live in Huntsville, Alabama. It is the first entry in this list (you have to click the bar at the bottom of the Temperature section): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Alabama#Temperature. Extremes get down to -6 C in the winter and up to 40 C in the summer. The average monthly temperate lows get down to 0 C and the monthly average highs get up to 32 C. The air is very humid, and has seasonal high winds.

I am concerned about trying to keep the system active year round with that sort of fluctuation. My landlord has OK'd my setting up an AP system but said I can not sink anything into the ground (though I could probably get away with just 30 cm or so).

Will I be able to keep fish in my system year round? Or will I have to harvest them all before winter (and leave the grow beds to fallow till spring)? Will a greenhouse permit me to keep the system active year round? Will a covering be necessary to keep the plants from wilting in the heat? What sort of yearly yield could I expect from a 1, 2, or 3 IBC system? I was planning on CHIFT PIST with autosiphon, and possibly with a timer as well.

Thank you everybody! This forum has already been very helpful to me.

A greenhouse would indeed allow you to grow year round. Then again, if you stick to the proper seasonal plantings you probably can without. Then it is just a matter of growing the proper fish for said temps. With the greenhouse you would not have to worry about that. Make sure you have sufficient ventilation in summer as it will get hot, and covering is a good idea.

I'm not too far north of you and have kept bluegill for about a year, through winter and summer. I had a cheap greenhouse over it in winter and early spring. Greens and radishes did really well in it over the winter. Tomatoes are going nuts right now, with cucumbers, tomatillos, and strawberries filling out the space.

Thank you both! I was looking at a design for a $150 greenhouse. I may have the plastic already, which could half the cost. I imagine it might get incredibly hot during the summer. How do I combat this? Just leave the doors open?

http://doorgarden.com/10/50-dollar-hoop ... reen-house

Unless someone tells me of a better design, I think I will start building the greenhouse in a couple weeks.

I was originally thinking about investing in a larger system than I now think I need. My original information was based off of the "1000 litres is a good start" rule of thumb. Yet I see a variety of successful small systems in this thread:

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... =18&t=1617

I understand that larger systems are more stable. What is a good minimum size for a beginner?

The bins they sell at Lowe's are a lot cheaper than an IBC. The prices I found are $20 for a 170 litre container, and $8 for a 68 litre container (32 cm deep). I figure two of the large containers for sump & FT, and three of the small containers for GB would be a good starter system (still planning on autosiphon & CHIFT PIST with possible timer). Does that sound reasonable or should I plan on adding more GB?

I just read a bit about the Bluegill. I understand they are slow (though not uniformly) growing, resilient, tasty, and adapt well to life in a fish tank. They look like an ideal fish for me (I don't care too much about eating the fish themselves). Thanks for the heads up!

Thank you everybody for your insight!

1000 liters is a good start.

I couldn't resist. Joking aside I purposely started big because I knew that it would be easier. My indoor system will obviously be smaller, but I am also more confident about it.

These guys in Alabama are always posting on Nashville Craigslist. Don't know how far you are from them: http://nashville.craigslist.org/grq/4024496718.html

There might be some other local recyclers. Drums are almost always the most economical way to go, unless you can get really cheap IBCs.