Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hello,

Just thought I'd share my small system. It's made from a 450 gallon garbage can. The filters are made from a tote and an old cooler. I have a 1200 gpm pump with a float switch, which turns on about every 2.5 minutes, then rests for almost the same amount of time. I can adjust this for more or less water flow by turning the elbow in the tank up or down.

The tank input has a venturi that works alot better than I thought it would. 2 large columns of bubbles are produced when the pump runs.

The bio-filter is in the sump and appears to be doing its job. I'm having a problem with high nitrates and am currently trying to resolve that issue by increasing the water flow through the filter, and adding some aquatic plants. I may put a solid waste collector on one of the outlets as well. I'm still tweeking the system and hope to have red claw crays in it soon.

It's more a aquaculture system than an ap system. I just wanted to share. I welcome any suggestions for upgrades.

More water through a filter might help convert ammonia and nitrite better but high nitrates can only be taken care of by having plants use up the nitrates or doing water changes. You generally need quite a LOT of plants compared to fish tank.