Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Dear Aquaponicers,

I'm starting this year my first AP System.

I Have 3 Trapezium Polyester fish tanks which i would like to fill with trout.

I want to connect them to each other, but as they are trapeziums, i can't connect them at the side, i would like to create an overflow as designed on the picture..

From Tank 1 to Tank 2 , from Tank 2 to Tank 3, in Tank 3 the water will go to the growbeds and the water will return back To Tank 1 from the siphons.

Is this possible or do you advice me something else?

Maybe it will be an option to create 3 different AP systems with each 1 pump ?

Thank you for your advice !

Ps: i've used paint so no 3D

Kind regards

Nobody that can help me ?

Personally I'd go with 3 systems, separate systems allows you a lot of flexibility and all your eggs aren't in the one basket.

+1 on using them as three separate systems. You could do it the other way but if all the tanks are at the same level you'd probably need airlifts or water pumps in the fish tanks.

Thanks for the answer, it will be 3 seperate systems .. Though i need 3 airpumps , 3 water pumps to go to growbeds..

i want 2 tanks to connect with only growbeds ( how much m² do you advice for 2200 liter ) and another tank for only floating rafts ..

I guess i need a swirl filter for the floating rafts but no swirl filter for the grow beds ?

Kidn regards

If you stock fish lightly you won't need any other filtration for the grow beds. If you stock toward the high end then it's probably best to add a swirl filter so the grow beds don't get overwhelmed with solids.

For most raft units you need some solids filtration. Usually a filter for settleable solids (the Swirl filter) and another filter for suspended solids (like a static upflow filter). Suspended solids cling to the roots and smother them if there are lots. If removing the solids removes too many nutrients then you might need to reclaim them using a mineralizer. In a small setup that's lightly stocked you can get away with a lot and might not need anything or maybe just the swirl filter so nothing is set in stone.

@Scotty, thanks for the advice. Never heard from a static upflow filter. Will check on the internet what it is...
And what do you call a high density for 2000 liters tank ?


I have 2000 liters for each tank, digged today the holes for the 2 Tanks, will put them 45 cm in the ground en 45cm above the ground. The reason i've done this is, that we have a little child of 6 months old who will started walking in some months .. Security for the kid is very important ...

Will put 2500 l/H pump in each tank and an 100L/min air pump for the two tanks.

Is this volume of pumps ok for the tanks i have?

Kind regards

I can't say for sure on the pumps. You need to know the head height which is the distance from the top of the water the pump is in, to the highest height the pump is pumping to. Once you have that then most pumps have a chart that tells how much they pump at any given head height. You're shooting to pump the volume of the fish tank once per hour (this is just a guideline that seems to work, it's not etched in stone).

The air pump should be fine.

Here's a thread with some pictures of the two Static Upflow Filters in my system along with a description of the flow through these. Basically the filter works like a 3D sieve where the water flows up through floating media that acts as the sieve.

http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=29738&p=565172&hilit=SUF+scotty435#p565172

From which density you would install a suf filter?
I will keep rainbow trout as fish..

What is the difference between settled solids and suspendable solids ?

I've just installed a second sump using a bridge siphon and works perfectly. Was that your original idea?

I personally would go for min 3500lph pump for your setup and gives you room to add more gb.

Indeed, but with bridghe siphon you don't clear the bottom solids from the tank where there is no pump inside ...

Add a radial filter between the gb and sump or add a drain tap in the sump. But looking at how your sump is partially underground, you might need to add an external pump that you turn on once a week to clean the gunk to waste.

Hello, these will be wto Fish tanks without sump ...
I will not use a sump tank .. Will add in each tank a pump to go to the beds ..
1 fishtank will be using a swirl filter to go to floating rafts
Other fishtank will go directly to the Growbeds

I'm not sure I understand the question about density. The SUF will trap any particle that is not so small that it passes through the filter. Any solids denser than water will eventually sink (settleable solids) and anything less dense (suspended solids) is trapped against the floating plastic layer.

Dear,

with density i mean how much fish you call high density ..