Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Is the basis of aquaponics pretty much as follows? Is there anything really important that I'm missing?
[*]Get the materials (Pump, fish tank, plant trays, etc)
[*]Purify the water (Chlorify it to kill off any uninvited organisms)
[*]Run it for a few days or so
[*]Add the fish appropriate to your climate and needs
[*]Do the same with the plants
[*]Feed the fish the appropriate food according to their dietary needs
[*]Check the water quality (Such as the pH, nitrate/nitrite, dissolved oxygen, and ammonia levels, etc)
[*] Repeat the checking and feeding until your plants grow and are ready for harvesting

[0] RESEARCH & DESIGN IT and run it past someone who can provide advice.
Check numbers for pump size / water turnover etc
Confirm you water supply pH, quality etc.

Try to KEEP IT SIMPLE and don't try and build SYSTEM-2 as your first system ( see item [12] ).

[1] Get the materials (Pump, fish tank, plant trays, etc)
plus go to Bunnings/Home Depot/Lowes etc continually for the rest of your life [best to get shares or membership].

[2] Build it and test it - buy more parts as needed.

[3] Fill it up with tap water and run it for a week

[4] Can add plants within couple days once you know there are no leaks etc and all works.**
(else you will end up digging them up moving media etc)

** you will need a plant food regime to help plants establish and grow until fish contribute.

OPTION A:
[5A] CAN ADD A HARDY STARTER FISH like goldfish after a week.
OPTION B:
[5B] CYCLE your system without any fish - takes 6+ weeks

[6] Regularly check the water quality (Such as the pH, nitrate/nitrite, dissolved oxygen, and ammonia levels, etc)
Keep an eye on ammonia, nitrites and nitrates - these indicate when cycling is occurring.

[7] after about 3 months you can probably start looking at alternate fish species.
Go too soon with too many and a lot will die.

[8] Feed the fish a high quality food appropriate to their dietary needs

[9] Add trace elements/phosphate/Seasol etc for the plants

[10] keep a top up supply of water available and top up as required.
(this water must rest 24 hours at least, and may be treated if high/low pH etc)

[11] Repeat 6, 8, 9 and 10 regularly (1-2 times a week) and apply as needed

[12] After first season, work out everything you did wrong and then re-design the whole thing for Season 2.
It is compulsory that System-2 be three to ten times as complicated and ideally taking over every
spare bit of your yard/garden and 70% of whatever pocket money your wife/partner allows you to have
(other 30% is for beer to appreciate your AP with).


[*] Purify the water (Chlorify it to kill off any uninvited organisms)
NOT REQUIRED WHEN SETTING UP UNLESS WATER REALLY NEEDS TREATMENT

running the system empty for a week should sort out most issues unless you water is particularly bad.

@dif_perth what plant food supplement can be used with fish while waiting for the process to cycle?

thanks for the list. Reference 12, can I start sooner than next season?

Ty dlf_perth

(1) Seasol and its equivalents - basically seaweed extract that has some potassium and other things but is low in nitrogen and phosphorpous.

** I think the US one is maxicrop - http://www.lowes.com/pd_136286-17899-MX ... Id=4747949
(get used to reading the specifications, see here it says 0 Nitrogen, 0 Phosphorous, 1 Potassium)

(2) while nitrates are low any organic / quasi-organi plant food is OK - so basically something like Powerfeed
(http://www.seasol.com.au/products/62/PowerFeed)

basically at early stages a bit of urea based nitrogen does not matter since it gives the nitrifying bacteria
something to get going on. ** Urea goes to ammonia when being broken down.
You will also want potassium and iron etc etc.

Usually these are sold as 'liquid plant food' by miracle-gro etc.

you need to read product specs/labels - look generally for lower nitrogen & phosphorous.
during cycling look for 'nitrogen as urea' - but as fish establish you wont want additional ammonia.


(3) if/as deficiencies arise you may need trace element supplements
Potash, Epsom Salts, Chelated Iron etc.
sometimes you can use a soluble foliar application.

(4) if system is outdoors, you can look at other things such as blood&bone plus potash, manure teabags etc.

all these are variously discussed on the forum around here.

** everything needs to be done in moderation and with care - in most cases you are *supplementing*. It is important to keep an eye on system levels of nitrogen (ammonia & nitrates). Also be careful that anything you use is fish friendly. My own preference is to water directly on to the plants/grow bed using a watering can.

ha ha. Hard to say for you US guys that have real winters and have 4 seasons.
(it takes about 6 months to get a system humming, so you have to go at least that long to learn everything you are doing wrong so you can address it in System-2 and have a good starter source of nitrifying bacteria).


in Australia a growing season is usually 6 months.
So we have one season of 'winter' (cool temps - so fish and veg to match) and the other of summer
(warm-hot temps and dryness/evaporation stress - so different fish and veg to match).

unless you live in Queensland........

With a greenhouse, It's more like 9 months of growing and 3 of resting/recovery. Spring and fall are dedicated to cool weather crops.