Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

ok i want to use a 50gallon drum as a tank and maybe 2-3 would be great but i just want to start small would this work and it would in a food safty kind like the blues ones????? i will post up pics for you guys to see but i just want to know if it work before i buy anythingi am not good with fish so any help on this would be great and i also have a hard time finding fish in san antonio, Texas so any help with that would be awsome i cant seem to find anything i am lookiing for on that .....i also think about 12 fish for 5ogallon would be fine. what do you think???? also the tank will be under my patio does it need full sun or under that would be fine i know that veggies need it but do the fish.... also it is very hot here so i will need fish that can handle that also what kind of food is the best to get here in the USA ???? i know i am a noob but i need help mostly with fish i have done hydro before i love it so i thought this would fun to do and i want to get started real soon on this what about a sump ?? do i need this ???? ok later redeys

Hi Redeyes,
Welcome!
- Lots of folks use the 50gal drums.
- See if you can get tilapia. They're tough to kill and would like your warm weather. If you can't source them locally, there's a guy selling some on eBay. We're waiting to hear from another member who just ordered from him.
- The fishload you use really depends more on the filtration you can provide, and probably less on the gallons in your tank. If you aim for twice the volume of growbeds as you have for fishtank, that's good. If you are experienced, 1 lb fish : 2 gal fistank : 4 gal growbeds is good. If you are not experienced at fishkeeping, lower the amount of fish.
- The tank itself would be better shaded. The growbeds could use lots of sun.
-A sump would provide buffer/safety to avoid completely emptying your fishtank while flooding your growbeds. I don't have a sump; others do. Take a look at some of the other members' systems for inspiration. When you think you have a good design, post pics and we will be happy to critique.

very cool , yeah so you think ebb and flow would be cool and my grow bed should be 4 of gal. should it be on timers ??? what about a bio filter what kind of food for tilapia ???? the more filtration the more the fish??? if that is the case then i would get a big *** one ...... what other stuff would i need to just get up and going

Welcome to the fun redeyes.

The growbeds themselves act as bio-filters, replacing the need for seperate filters employed in aquarium systems....

If/when you need more filtration... add more growbeds....

Janet has given you the "preferred" ratios.... and I think that 12 fish would probably be the maximum to stock with until you've got the system well balance and your experience to match....

Oh, and don't forget.... Talapia breed like rabbits.... be prepared...

hey red eyes, here is a pdf for how to do some barrelponics. Basically you don't need any timers, all you need is a sump tank, that is above the grow beds, and once the water reaches a certain level, then it flushes like a toilet into your grow beds, (I know it's not a pretty picture, but you are basically flushing fish crap!) Here is the link:

http://backyardaquaponics.com/pics/barrel-ponics.pdf

P.S.
Where in Texas are you? My mom is in Austin and she has a friend that does work with container gardens for the local condo associations. She also does landscaping, and my mom is a botanist, who is in charge of beautifying the town lake trail gardens, and they are interested in AP too. If, and when you got something going, I'm sure they would be interested to see it.

Tilapia like their veggies, so a low-protein aquaculture-grade floating pellet would be fine. Also spinach, bean leaves, or whatever nice leafy greens you can find in the garden.

Again, look at some of the members' systems for inspiration. Mine is particularly brilliant, of course.

ok this what i have came up with ... http://www.texashydroponics.com/shop/Am ... -1050.html this is the tray that i want 3x6 white tray..... and 2 55gallong drum for the the fish and hook them up together and use a pump to fill my tray and have it drain back to the drum... like a ebb and flow .... i also the reason i want it on a timer is B/C i can always remember to water myself ..... it is so hot here i think i would want to water alot or aleast more often ... i am still not haveing any luck finding fish here in san antonio T.X. or close to me .... so if anybody can help me with that i would be very happy !!!!!! and i am not going to start working on nothing till i find fish!!!! also how often do you guys chanage the water for the fish?????? and how long does it take to get the fish to 1#... i thought i read somewhere that 10 weeks???? is this right ???? i think this would "extrem aquaponics" ok guys and girls thanks for all your help and more help is needed so please tell me what you think of this.. later Red

Those trays look a bit shallow, although I don't see where it tells how deep they are. My bet is that they are closer to 6" deep, and you want something more like 12" deep. Careful about that. Many hyrdroponics trays are shallower than we like to get good biofiltration volume.

Other than emergencies (like miscalculations during initial cycling), we don't change the water. We only top off to replace the water than evaporates or is used by the plants.

You can mail-order fish from Miami Aquaculture or the guy on eBay. I can't help you for a local source. Check the thread 'Tilapia for Us (USA)' for a few more sources.

Time to reach one pound depends on the type fish you get, what size you start at, and how much you can feed them. Under optimal conditions, tilapia can hit one pound in 9 months, or initial eating-size in about 7 months.

I have a tray like that, that I use, and I filled it up with sylica, Dyna-Rock stuff from the local hydroponics store. I use NFT, (nutrient film technique,) and there is a constant flow under the rocks of about 1 1/2 mm of water depth, the grow rocks soak it up like sponges, so they are always moist, and there is about 6'' of rocks. The trough is only 8" deep, and it's perfect for growing herbs, and stuff like that. Probably want a little more depth for bigger plants. I was surprised how fast the roots grew. The best part is that the grow bed is a super duper bio-filter for the fish. You know, you can always start out with some cheap goldfish from petsmart until you can get your system going. Once the boifilter has been going for a while, it will get stronger, and stronger, and will support pickier fish. Gold fish are super hardy; the Chinese used to raise them in barrels, for food, and I don't think there is any other fish you can do that with.

redeyes, are you trying to do NFT or Flood and drain?

-df

thanks guys and girls for the replys .... yes flood and drain is what i want to do.... that is what i am doing indoors and i find it real easy to do ... i think i have found some fish for now.... so i am on the look for a tank something shorter would be more ideal for me i think it would be better than the 55 gollon drum.... so any kind of help there would be great now ????? i am not worried about growing plants.. i just want my tank to be bad *** .... i am just not sure about taking care of the fish i have had bad luck with fish!!!!! so i want that to be right first if you know what i mean.... oh and i here you about a deeper tray for the plants ... i am working on that also .... i am trying to put alot of thought into to this ..... later Red

ok guys i found this tank here what do you think about this tank will it work ok ????? http://www.plastic-mart.com/class.php?cat=45



also i was thinking of the 200gallon if you where wondering .....

Weird, I was just looking at that site.

These guys seem to have better prices: http://www.stockyardsupply.com/page11/index2.html

I'm going to offend Janet here personally I would be going for the Brine Tanks from Plastic Mart, simply because of their depth. I prefer a deeper tank to give the fish more space to roam.


sorry Janet

Not offended at all. I hadn't seen the brine tanks when I went with Rubbermaid. I might well have used them. The one thing I'll point out is that you need to be sure to factor shipping into the price if you are not able to get something local.