Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

New guy here, but trying to read as much on aquaponics as I can for about a year now. Finally broke ground on building my system. I am building in feet in the ground to help with keeping a stable temperature. The bottom of the fish tank is going to be 8 feet under ground and the tank is going to be 4 feet deep. First for some plans I drew up.

Please any advice is appreciated.

This is a side view. The black is the ground. I am building int on a slight hill. The dimensions are 14 feet wide, buy either 30 or 40 feet long. Probably going to go with 40 feet.



This is a view from above.



And this I am not sure if I am going to do it or not. Might add the additional grow beds or not.

I started last week, and this is where I am at right now.

My 12 year old son and our great dane.



Looking to the south in my front yard.

Um wow, no sense starting small if you have that much space to play with. Welcome to the forum and nice to see what you are doing.

Thanks, we figure if we where going to do it make it big enough to sell some of the crops at the farmers market. We can also use the excess to feed the chickens and my wife's monkeys.

I guess it wouldn't be bush meat if you are raising the monkeys domesticaly!

Looking good for a start...

will you have a green house over it...? as you have a great start on a earth sheltered type green house that you could grow in all winter long..... if you pile up some of the dirt you removed from the hole, against the north and west side walls of a green house for protection........

What kind of fish are you planning on...?

Catfish are good all year around with out a green house, Tilapia will work if you have a greenhouse to keep the water temps up during the winter........

LOL, the wife would kill me. They are her pets. I think she would leave me before giving them up.

Thanks.

I am going to use wire panels(like this http://www.bing.com/search?q=hog+panels ... =0&shash=1) for the top. That way climbing things such as cucumbers can use them to climb. In the winter I will throw a greenhouse plastic cover over the entire structure. The low side is on the south side, so it will be blocked by the hill from the north winds. And yes I am going to pile some dirt up to keep the rain water from running into it down the hill.

I am planning on channel catfish for this. I have them in my pond already, so I know they will be fine all year with the water temps.

Well I reached my depth and I am done digging. Now to get some 2X4 lumber to make the form for the bottom of the fish tank. After I pour that concrete, then I will form up the rest of the structure and pour it. We are expecting rain for the next few days, so not sure how much I am going to get done. I will probably have a hole full of water.

Looking good,

the only thing i would do, is make the fish tank bigger than you have listed, and stock it to the amount of grow beds you have on line.........

I have a 5000gal fish tank that is working great, and it is 50" deep at the water line, and is a great depth and size for lots of large catfish to have plenty of room to grow.......

viewtopic.php?f=18&t=11149

Thanks, it is going to hold about 1700 gallons of water filled ot 3.5 feet, and 1900 gallons filled to 4 feet, and I can't fit 1700 gallons of grow beds inside the system. Even witht he 55 gallon drums on the outside I still don't have twice as much grow beds. What is your ration of grow bed to fish tank.

if i remember correctly 5000gal = aprox 29 yards

I have 4.9 yards of gravel over lava rock in the inside GB's , i also have 8 1/2 blue barrel trickle down biofilters with pea size expanded shale over the FT, and a 3 barrel biofilter with Matla media, and 3 Matla biofilter wall's in the sump tank, so it's not all Grow bed for my biofilter needs

plus, i stock lightly compared to the FT water volume, so that i am not pushing the limits and need more biofilter media to keep up with the stocking rate, yet.....

Oh okay, I think 1700 gallons will be plenty for my needs it should hole 190 fish with the stock rates I have been looking at.

Looking at that soil/clay I am thinking the entire hole is going to turn into a pond if you get some heavy rain.

I was thinking the same thing and have made arrangements to get the water out. Pumps, and even the bucket on the tractor. But we have had a 1.5 of rain since I started digging and no water in it. No water can drain into it, only the actual rain drops are going in it, and the are going somewhere.