Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

HNY All!

I have a system design challenge.....

I've built a lean-to greenhouse in the UL against my house, as the garden isn't the biggest and this let me get the most sunshine for plants, and get some good results (weather isn't the best here!).

There isn't any room in the lean-to for the IBC, so that needs to go outside... and herein lies the problem. If I pump water between the greenhouse & IBC, there's going to be a temperature differential. The cool water from the intended trout would in the IBC, would, I'm sure, kill the roots from any plants trying to grow (tomatoes/lettuce, beetroot etc).

Admittedly, this is all theoretical as I've not got as far as testing anything yet, but worried that I'll come unstuck with a 'split-climate' system.

If anyone has experiences from this I'd really appreciate to hear them.

Paul

You could insulate the tank and cover it (still need air for the fish of course). Many plants wouldn't have any problems with the fish water being cold. Kale, lettuce, lemon grass and quite a few more. Warm water crops would have troubles when it got to cool for them but they'd do well in the summer (basil beans and tomatoes for example). You might have more problems with the water getting too hot for the trout. You might also find that your plants won't grow much in winter without supplemental lighting.

thanks for the tips Scotty....

couple of pictures of where I'm at .... not the biggest, but its where I'm at.
I have some LED lights and looking to incorporate them into a Raspberry Pi control system, albeit nothing fancy to start with.

I have a 12v heating element I'm going to try and connect to the blue barrel (soon to be black) and use that as a heat source. If I can get it to work, I'll heat the barrel off solar during the day and then use a car battery at night to keep it going... big aspirations, but I need to start with baby steps.

I for one would really like to read about your proposed RPi controller. What would you like to do with it?

Hi Bob,

I inherited most of the kit I have from someone trying hydroponics. I'm planning to use Pi to turn on the water pump for the propagator say every 30 mins for 15 mins or so, and if the water temp drops below a set level turn on the mat heater. If the light drops, via a light level, I'll turn on the LED's.
I'm not planning any clever event driven control here, just a time based cycle. I need to do a little PoC to make sure I have it correct....

For the IBC system I plan to use an event driven approach with Arduino. Nothing fancy to start, just to automate & check levels, temp, light etc.

I've found a lot of 'skunk work' coding & projects out there that look great, but nothing COTS wise suitable. I'm more concerned with getting the system right and introduce automation & checks as I go, so better to code as I grow for me.

If I don't electrocute myself when wiring the relays into mains, I'll post the outcome.

Paul

anyone tried this product???

https://www.seneye.com/

Paul