Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Gday all,
i live in Perth and have been growing hyroponic vegies for a few years now . i really enjoy it . and then my girlfriend got me an aquaponics course to do for christmas last year . any way i really enjoy the concept so im going to give it a go. after many months i think i have finally finished my design that i want to try . i dont have that much space as it is a courtyard .
i am still looking for a pump (there are so many ) i want one that can pump dirty water a meter high . it doesnt have to be a strong one as the tanks only 500 L . if anybody could recomend one that would be a great help .
hmmmmm what else im getting some SP to start off and prob just grow leafey's for the first little while
oh yeah i made a nice little clip art for you all to give me your feedback on my idea

Cheers

Nice.

No recommendation on pump, but what is your desired stocking density for the sp. I.e how many and how big. My worry is that u can keep quite a few fish in 500lts so you will need to make sure that bio filter is big enough if you put a lot in there. Since you have non filter film trays for your growing area.

good point on the the bio filters size ... hmmm i already have a 10 liter pot that i am going to use to start off . so i will have to test the Ammonium levels when i get started me thinks . well i going to start off small . im buying 4 medium SP off someone on this site as they are switching to trout . i also might chuck in a couple of comets in there aswell (more for ascetics )

...and don't forget to throw some seeds and worms into your biofilter!

well i have changed the tank to a 210 l . i now have 8 sp and 2 comets swimming around . I havent got around to setting up the trays and bio filter . i will have to do that tomorrow or next weekend . ill just messure the ammonium till then .
Ph is 7.4

Get your filter on ASAP eagleye.. I've seen many people make the mistake of getting fish into a fish tank early without filtration, then loosing them.

will do earthbound ,ive put in a very tempory sulution 1 bag of bio noodles half sitting in the water with one of my oxygen blowers pushing bubbles underneath it.hopefully that bag of bio noodles can also be the kick start that my bio flter will need.
so on sunday the SP eat one of the comets....
i thought that SP reduce eating when its cold ?
can someone look at these maths for feeding the SP for me :the percentage of wieght the SP can eat .08 X 150 mm (size ) = 12 grams of sinking pellets per day per fish x 8 fish = 96 grams of feed i should be feeding the SP per day. is that right ?

the tank temp is 15 degrees min over night(heater ordered, waiting for heater to arrive )
the ph has crept up to 7.8 ph , but i still dont have my plants in so im not worried about dropping the ph till the weekend .
and ammonium is still basically zero

after re reading my maths it should be .08 x THE WIEGHT , not length x 8 fish

anybody know how much a 120 , 150 mm silver perch weighs?

Real world examples... and graph... for Silver Perch....

viewtopic.php?f=25&t=3407&p=126020

sweet cheers guys

Don't worry about 7.8 ph, your plants will be okay for a while at this ph and it will go down slowly. The only time I THINK that a ph in this range caused bad nutrient lock out for me was when I was massively over planted, and all my tomatoes zucchinis and beans started fruiting at one time.

Unless of course you are feeding WITHOUT your bio filter! Then you are playing games with ammonia toxicity. Low ammonia readings will be toxic at this ph i think....corrections???

i have a temporary bio filter on at the moment , half submerged with bubbles pushing at the bottom forcing the water over the ceramic noodles .
i am still at under .01 parts per liter for my ammonium
ive also put a lid on the tank which is keeping the cold out a bit better. min 15.7 degees max 18.9
ph is still 7.8
and because i can i read the ec reading 1.8 < i am accually worried about that because if that continues to creep it will also lock out nuturients for my plants.... which i dont have yet... because i am waiting for my pump to be deliveried (Laguna PowerJet Max Flo 3500(yeah i know its big for what i need it for but i am thinking i am going to upgrade to an ibc when i move next year)

after looking at these results i am going to take a precautionary 50 % water change tomorrow on anzac day. i will also put some carbon in to take out some of the elements till my pump comes.


drluke : "The only time I THINK that a ph in this range caused bad nutrient lock out for me was when I was massively over planted, and all my tomatoes zucchinis and beans started fruiting at one time."

i think you would have high Pottassium to cause everything to flower .unless at 7.8 ph it locks out all the nitrates and only leaves you with Pottassium ... i know with my hydroponics i had a high ec which accually locked out the calcium going to my plants ....

cheers guys keep the tips comming i dont want these fisheys to die ! ..... yet .....yumyumyumyum