Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

OK, I’m totally convinced! I totally love the idea of Aquaponics and there are some serious advantages of this system in my particular area. One…our soil here totally sucks. We’re in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, growing zone 4-5, depending on the day. It’s mainly adobe/clay/caliche soil where I live and the only way to grow anything is to bring in tons of top soil or grow in raised garden beds made with custom soil. The area is primarily a semi-arid short grass prairie at 5,000 plus feet above sea level. Summers can easily hover in the high 90’s to low 100’s during the day and down into the 50’s in the evening. The winters bring snow, blizzards and average temperatures in the 30-degree range and often-extreme cold down to 14 degrees or more with the wind-chill. Hey, it’s southern Colorado. Don’t like the weather…just wait 10 minutes. Temps can easily fluctuate from thirty to over fifty degrees over the course of a single day. That’s quite a challenge for the grower.



Here’s the equipment that I have on hand to work with right now.
300 gallon loaf poly tank:

18’ dia. X 48” high 5,455 gallon pool:

8’x10’ greenhouse (under construction):

55 gallon barrels:


Situation: Right now I’m part of the great-unwashed unemployed of this second Great Depression in the U.S. (despite a college degree and teaching credential) I need to find the most economical way to put this system together and make it work the first time. Since I’m currently unemployed this, putting food on the table, will be my full time job. This is going to be part of a system to grow food for the family table, not just a hobby. This has to work! I need to produce vegetables, greens and fish for two adults and a teenager with whatever system I put together.

Assets: The 300-gallon poly tank was a potable water-hauling tank. The swimming pool is a salvaged Craig’s List pool that I’ve cleaned up and patched. It comes with a small swimming pool filter and cover. My initial plan was to actually use this for swimming and as an emergency back up drinking water supply – (after filtering it of course). I have several poly 55 gallon barrels that are currently used for emergency water supply. Two blue 55 gallon barrels I cut the tops off and drilled holes in the bottom to try and make potato grow barrels out of them…that project didn’t work. However I could plug the small holes I drilled in the bottom and use them for fish barrels. I have six other barrels that are fully intact, one white, three blue and two black. All are food grade.

I do plan on building a hoop greenhouse as soon as I can gather all the necessary materials. Initially my plan was to put raised garden beds in the hoop house, but now I’m thinking of a combination aquaponic, square foot garden thing. I’d like to put the garden pool inside a geodesic dome or the hoop greenhouse. Not sure where I’ll go with that. We have over 325 days of sunshine a year here so solar power and solar heating is strong possibility. Also we have a lot of wind. So I was considering both attributes for possible sources of powering the whole system. I would also like to incorporate vermiculture into this system as well as composting common household waste and leftovers. Feed the worms, to feed the fish, to feed the people.

The greenhouse is approximately 8 feet by 10 feet with the eastern, southern and western walls made from 74” tall double-pane sliding glass door panels. I should be able to maintain a good moderate temperature during both the cold winter months and hot summer with plenty of shading.

There’s a hatchery not far from me that is one of the largest suppliers of Tilapia in the U.S. and after talking to the owner they will allow me to purchase small orders of fingerlings (below the normal minimum order) and they carry several different species of Tilapia for me to choose from.

I’ve been reading through this website and any other sources of information that I can find and while I don’t fully understand everything I’m quickly gaining a good working knowledge of how this works. I really like the “Barrel-ponics” idea and think it would likely be the best system for what I have. I’m not sure how I would utilize the swimming pool but it’s 5,455 gallons of water that I’m sure can be used for something as well as the 300 gallon poly tank!

Goal: So here’s what I’m asking of you wizened and experienced folks: what is the best, most economical (cheap) and most efficient way for me to put this all together into a functional system(s) using what I have to start with, to reliably produce food for a family of three. Using Barrel-ponic’s how many fish could be produced in one system: one fish barrel and two half-barrel grow beds? I’ve looked through the various literature but haven’t seen any numbers on this. How many fingerlings would you start with one Barrel-ponic system? How many of these systems would it take to provide for a family of three? Continuously? Year round?

As an addendum to the already mentioned above parameters I also have ten 4’x4’ outdoor raised bed traditional square foot planters with plans to expand that number to thirty as I gather more materials and make more soil from them. I have a dozen semi-dwarf fruit trees planted (apple, pear, peach, cherry, apricot) that should start producing within the next year or two. I’ve also planted grape, raspberry, boysenberry, gooseberry, current and elderberries which should start to produce next year. So as you can see, I’m serious about providing safe, economical and self-sufficient food for my family. In the larger hoop greenhouse I was planning to add containerized miniature citrus trees and anything thing else that we normally couldn’t grow here…figs come to mind and Kiwi fruit as well.

I know this is a tall order and a lot to ask, but I would really appreciate your help and advice on this. Normally I would piddle and play around and experiment with all the ideas I’ve seen and read about, but right now I need this to work the first time out. I also plan to document as much as possible each and every step of this endeavor and chart the production of both plant and fish produced to answer many of the questions I have right now and I’m sure others starting out do as well.

THANKS!!

Hey how ya doing. I'm sorry to hear the economical downturn has affect you as well. Were feeling up here in Canada as i just received my layoff papers as of yesterday for the second winter in a row. Barrelaponics would be a good cheep way to get the basics down but will not provide near enough grow space to feed 3 ppl as well as stocking density cant be too heavy with only two half barrels of filtering. If you plan on doing a sustainable food source your going to have to go bigger. If you check my thread out you can see how we built our hoop house large enough for what we need for a very reasonable price if ya have any questions feel free to ask. Your biggest expense would be the pumps needed/test kit as you have already scrounged tanks and gowbeds. once you have those aquaponics is pretty cheep to keep alive and going. If you wanted to go massive you could use the pool as fish tank placed near buy greenhouse with a cover piped to inside, the 300gal poly tank as a sump. use all the half barrels as grow beds.. as for the barrel you cut the top off you could use that as a Bio filter or swirl filter and the other one you cut the top off you could use as a super deep growbed if you cut it down a bit more and grow something large that need alot of root space. If you want to use your greenhouse more efficiently you should look into building your own vertical grow towers out of 4" PVC as you can grow alot of food in a tight space if you go vertical. TCLynx has a tread about her vertical zip towers thats very neat. I'm sure other posters may a few few ideas to chime in with hope things get more positive for you and your family in the future.. GL with you foray in to AP and i hope to see some posts of massive growth and big fish!

I would use the white tank for the fish tank and all the barrels cut in half for growbeds on stands made from timber or steel.

Welcome Oakspring!

A lot of folks on here can provide you with good ideas. Initial thoughts from me are: diversify beyond AP meaning use dirt and lots of wicking beds too (the barrel as wicking bed works for potatoes, I grew potatoes for the first time this year in a laundry tub wicking bed), look into similar large setups like Netabs system on here or OBO. Barrelponics will be too small to feed three people IMO. Go big volume as cheap as possible, the pool is a great start. Personally I'm moving toward mediumless hydroponic stuff once the water has been filtered by media, because gravel is freaking heavy and support for it is an expense. Drive all costs out of the system that you can - if anything involves a credit card then don't do that thing. I'm not convinced tilapia is a good choice for a system in the mountains. If you live in an area where the temperature never gets below 70 then sure they'd be the perfect fish. Especially if you are expecting to continue to eat in the Winter. I like the idea of many more square foot gardens. Have you read the permaculture info? Also, look to the Dervaes family's stuff (in Pasadena CA) as they are actually feeding a family of four from their yard, unlike many of us who have only dipped our toes in the water. It is a tall order that's for sure. Also consider hunting and fishing if you aren't already - that is free food after all. Good luck!!

That's what I was thinking Brian. Four half barrel grow-beds and two dump tanks to feed each pair, with the 300 gallon rectangular tank for the fish. I might even be able to squeeze six grow beds in the greenhouse I'm building, if I bump the back wall out a bit.

I'm not sure if I should plan on insulating the rectangular fish tank. If I do I could use Styrofoam boards when I frame everything up. It would then be like a big Igloo cooler. That should help to stabilize tanks temperature, but I'm not sure if it would be better with or without insulation. The system will be inside a greenhouse and will be gaining heat during the day in the winter, but blocked from direct sunlight in the summer, thus it should help to moderate the over all average temps in the greenhouse. I could also paint the outside of the poly tank black to help absorb more heat. Keeping the tank warm enough in the winter for Tilapia is going to be a challenge I think.

Not sure how many fish I can grow in 300 gallons, or how to utilize the swimming pool just yet. My plan is to raise Tilapia in the greenhouse system. I suppose I could try growing Trout in the pool during the winter...and Tilapia during the summer...thoughts?? But I'd like to avoid purchasing commercial feed if possible, which I'd have to do with the trout.

I'll also have an 18" by 10' raised soil growing bed in the front of the greenhouse and I was seriously thinking about putting a bench the same size above it. That would give me four to six aquaponic growing beds in the back half of the greenhouse and two long narrow traditional soil beds in the front, plus a central bench area that is 33" x 90", but I think I'll have to shorten it to give me a little more room inside to move around.

Mordyr thanks for the advice. I really like your PVC greenhouse but I'm not sure it would stand up to the wind here along the Front Range of the Rockies. We can get hit with gusts from 40 up to over 60mph during big storms, plus the UV at 5,000+ feet is really harsh on plastic. I'm considering something like a metal conduit hoops for a Hoop Greenhouse. Just can't afford it right now.

I'm also wondering about adding Crawdads or Freshwater Shrimp to the mix once I get the initial system figured out. Has anyone incorporated either of these into their system?

Thanks Dave I'll look into the Dervaes thread. Yes I'm very familiar with the whole Permaculture idea and am trying to meld that into our overall plan here. I wish we were up in the mountains, but actually we just in the foothills about twenty miles away. I think I can keep the greenhouse warm enough to keep Tilapia going during the winter. We get lots of sunny days here and the greenhouse I'm building is specifically designed to maximize that winter sun.

And don't worry about credit cards....we cut those up a while back. It's cash and carry for us, which is why Craig's List is our friend!

Welcome to the forum Oakspring. Sounds like you've got a pretty good sized square foot garden going already. AP should make a good addition and the water will help moderate the temperature swings in your greenhouse growing area.

To be honest I'm not wild about the idea of Tilapia in your climate. I think you may wind up with a hefty heating bill.

I second Brian's suggestion. At this point you don't need to use the big swimming pool and since it won't fit in the small greenhouse tilapia would be out of the question until you add the hoop house.

You could do as Mordyr suggested


If you did this, Tilapia would not be a viable option except in Summer (because of heating costs). Trout or Yellow Perch would be options for this system. I would shoot for two separate systems with the swimming pool being your outdoor system and only being run part of the year. When you get the hoop house over it then it becomes an all year system. Even with the big tank the growbed filtering capacity will limit the number of fish you can grow out.

I recommend Continuous Flood. Fewer components to buy, simple, reliable and if you use the pump in a small sump, you can't pump the fish dry by accident.

Sounds like this system will be for Winter produce and maybe starting plants for the outdoor garden.

Hope this is clear and you get some ideas out of this.

First go round draft on the design phase with four growing beds and one 300 gallon fish tank.



This is basically a slightly expanded Barrel-ponics system. I really like the simplicity of that system. Each growing bed is approximately 25 gallons of pea gravel fill, and would take about 10 gallons (40% area) of water per dump. So forty total gallons per cycle. I think with a 55 gallon barrel for the sump and the two dump tanks that should minimize the water drop fluctuation of the fish tank.

Each dump tank would be slightly less than half a poly water barrel and carry at least 20-25 gallons. The central accumulator tank between the dump tanks would be for duckweed and perhaps a floating raft for lettuce.

Would it be possible to grow crawdads or freshwater shrimp in the sump bucket?

For cold weather operation I'm looking into a closed loop solar water heating system. I've had "bread box" solar preheater system on a house before and with the amount of sunshine we have here in Southern Colorado I should be able to keep the operating temps within the range for Tilapia ranges. Believe me...on a sunny day I'll have to watch over heating during the day - and shut it off during the evening to prevent venting too much heat.

By the way...THANKS for all the responses. I really appreciate your ideas.

i realise that you already have to barrels but one of the things that i have always thought is that the more small containers you have the more fittings you need to buy which is why i would suggest making bigger grow beds if you can

i would also do away with the dump tanks and pump straight to the beds

it totaly sucks having to do things on the cheap but if its your food supply your going to have to go quite large i would imagine

Good luck to you and we are all here to help if we can
Cheers
pete

Where's my club?!

Don't need the dump tanks if you go Continuous Flood. Fish Tank fluctuation is a non issue with CF (other than needing to top up occasionally). The only thing you need to factor in is the water in the pipe. Basically when you start a CF system you just fill the FT, fill the Growbeds and start the pump. The FT will drop a little due to the emply pipes and depending on how your pipes are layed out you can then top it up or partially top it up. The only worry is pumping the FT dry if something goes wrong, or if the power goes out, having the FT overflow from the extra water in the pipes (if your FT isn't up to the task).

Of course if you want to go the other route don't let me talk you out of it. The Barrel-ponics systems are pretty interesting.

Delgrade is right about the fittings. Lots of fittings usually translates into more flexibility but more cost as well.

Hi Oakspring,

From some of the details in a couple of your posts, I'm pretty sure we live in the same general vicinity. We have an operational system with two fish tanks and 15 growbeds. Perhaps you would like to see it to get an idea of how to proceed with yours. I've made you a friend here and tried to send you a private message but was denied the option. Why don't you try contacting me and we can exchange contact info.

Regards

I know that I need to go BIGGER to be fully sustainable for the family with only aquaponics. The problem is that I have to work with what I have on hand and the funding that is available right now...which is to say...not much. The major advantage of AP that I see is the ability to provide protein by essentially creating my own feed, i.e. phytoplankton, algae and duckweed. I've considered all the various conventional livestock alternatives and they are all dependent (in my area) on commercial feed. I have an acre and a half of land to work with and it takes in excess of 25 acres per head of cattle to open graze in our area, and with the recent drought I'm sure it would be at least double that. This area is classified as High altitude - low grass prairie...or as my wife more accurately refers to it as: "FRIGGEN DESERT!" I also have a vegetarian in the family and fish is one of the few protein sources that I can produce without exceptional added costs.

I can grow vegetables outside in raised beds with drip irrigation during the regular season, but I feel the need to expand our current capabilities (and options) throughout the year, especially during the winter. Eventually....with time, materials and money I will build a larger hoop type greenhouse to extend the growing season to a full four seasons. The 8' x10 greenhouse I now have nearly complete was built entirely with recycled materials!! In other words...I've pulled a lot of nails, and straightened them as well.

I also realize that seasonal temps here in Colorado present a bit of a challenge, but I'm sure that this hiccup can be thought through and over come. The fact that the largest supplier of Tilapia in the U.S. is located just thirty miles away (and closer to the mountains) means that it can be done. I just have to figure out an economical and low tech way for me to do it.

That said, here's my recent redesign on the first system drawing:


I'm not sure where the solar water heater's mixing valve/heat exchanger would best be located in the system. I'm thinking that either at site "A" or site "B". At site "A" the warmest water would first run into the Floating Raft Tanks, then Flood tanks, through the Growing Beds and into the Fish Tank. At site "B" part of the heated water would spray into the Fish Tank while the rest went through the full loop. The Aerating spray should be able to keep the tank both oxygenated and warmer than placing the warmed water later in the line....I think.

There is a possibility that with the double-pane glassed greenhouse that I may not need the axillary heat at all. I will first build and monitor the system to see just how much of a boost that is needed and that will determine the type of solar heater I build.

I'm planning on insulating the fish tank so that should help with keeping it moderated through out the year. I should only need the axillary heat primarily during the cold winter months and just enough to elevate it above the level that the greenhouse can't.

i saw a couple things that looked interesting.. forage?
http://www.cropking.com/forage.shtml
microgreens;
http://www.cropking.com/microgreens

just glanced at this stuff, but it looks like it would be pretty easy to integrate into ap

Sounds like your plan will work based on the number of Tilapia growers I'm seeing in Colorado. The big producers may have access to a hot spring but there are several producers in Colorado so who knows, you may not need the heat exchanger. Ask the people where you plan on getting your fish or check with the Ag Extension office for your county, I bet they give you the information you need. Some Tilapia have adapted to cold more than others so it might help if you could find one of these strains.

No reason you can't expand the system as parts become available. The 300 gallon Fish Tank will handle way more growbeds than it sounds like you'll start with.

Rocky Mountain whites are supposedly adapted a little more to cold, I had those. But they still die at 50 degrees.

Update: Friday 21 October.

Still working on completing the 8'x10' greenhouse. I've been very surprised by how well it holds in the heat, even at night it's stayed above freezing. During the day I have to open it up to keep the temps below 90 degrees. I've got just about all the non-glass walls insulated with 1" foam board and yesterday put on the solid roof (2"x6" salvaged redwood planks! Totally hail proof!!). That already keeps it noticeably warmer at night. I still plan to insulate the underside of the roof with 1" foam boards which should also help keep in the heat at night.

I've been toying around with the 300 gallon poly tank in different configurations within the confines of the 8'x10' greenhouse. Jockeying around inside to see where I can get the biggest bang for the buck.

Question: If I partially bury the poly tank will that help to stabilize the water temps inside with the fish? The tank is approximately 29" tall, if I buried it between 15" to 20" would that make a difference? I was considering insulating the sides with foam board and leave the upper section and top to be exposed to sunlight to help with solar heat gain.

Question: After reading more it looks like that a 300 gallon fish tank would support (at capacity) approximately 40 Tilapia to maturity - if - using the 2:1 GB to FT ratio, that would require 600 gallons of grow beds? Using 55 gallon poly drums that would be 20 to 22 half drums, could that be correct? Sure seems like a lot of GB's?

Alternative: if I stand the poly tank on one end that would give me a tank 42"wide x 29"deep x 34" tall and hold approximately 185.8 gallons of water. Using the 1 fish/6 gallons that would allow me to produce up to 30 tilapia every 5-6 months and supporting roughly 12 half barrel grow beds? Is that right?

Consideration: I have room in the current greenhouse to place at least four half barrels of grow beds above the 300 gallon poly tank. Using the formula (1 tilapia per 5 gal of FT with 10 gal of grow bed) the limiting factor would seem to be the number of grow beds. Four half barrel grow beds would allow for roughly 110 gallons +/- of filtration and would support 11 tilapia? According to this I have plenty of fish tank to play with but need to seriously expand the growing beds to support more fish? Am I anywhere near the target or just getting confused?

The goal of this endeavor is to supply fresh tilapia for the dinner table at least twice a week for a family of three. The info I've read so far suggests that at maximum I "could" raise about 120 tilapia a year (60/6months) conservatively, but it also suggests that I'd need to have a considerably larger number of grow beds at the same time. Right now I only have the 8'x10' green house to work with. Am I even in the ballpark on this?

I do not want to "push the limit" of the system, but rather stay within acceptable safe operational parameters. I'm looking for reliability, simplicity and most of all sustainability. If I can only produce "X" amount of fish and veggies with what I have that's fine, I can always expand later. I just can't afford MAJOR failure or under or over estimation of capabilities right now.

Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions?