Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi,

I am a student at Lund University and I haven't really seen the point of keeping fish as pets, until i for some time ago stumbled across aquaponics. Suddenly I could have some use for the fish, which made the entire thing much more appealing!

However, I live in a 40 m2 apartment with my girlfriend, so i don't have the luxury of space. Hence, I was thinking about implementing a small grow bed in the kitchen window for herbs etc. and a fish tank of no more than 100 liters, preferably smaller. I would prefer to use a second hand aquarium to keep costs low while maintaining a somewhat good look of the contraption. The room temperature of my apartment is around 22-24°C.

Here comes my questions:
1) What fish/crayfish/other species are suitable? (I do not plan on eating them at this point)
2) How many fishes do I need?
3) Is there any special requirements on flow rate?/Any recommendations on the pump?
4) Do you have any other good advice for a beginner?

Best regards,
Paul

Welcome Pallee,

Probably one of the neatest ways to set up a small indoor system with an aquarium is just to have the growbed directly over the tank. This doesn't work if the growbed is to heavy because you need access to the fish. If you look at the video on the bottom of this page you'll see some being built using tongue and groove bead board (at least that's what I think it is) to surround and support a store bought plastic container which will become the growbed. The build starts at 11:35 http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=9276&hilit=Hungary&start=540

I'm not sure if they rest this directly on the aquarium or not.

Here is another mini system with instructions - http://www.grobergreen.com/build-a-mini-aquaponic-system/

These are just to give you ideas.

My guess is even with the smallest aquarium pump you find that you'll turn over the system at least once per hour which seems to work well for most systems. You do need to make certain the pump can deliver at least one volume change per hour at whatever height above the water surface (water surface to highest level pumped is called the head height) it pumps to. Usually there is a manufacturers chart giving you that information.

It doesn't take many fish for a small system. The type of fish used depends on the conditions in the aquarium. If you plan on heating the tank then tropical fish will work. Pick something that won't get to large for the aquarium especially if you aren't planning to eat the fish later. Just about any fish will work but make certain it's legal in your area. To get good plant growth you'll need a good quality fish food (most flake foods won't work well).

Keep us posted

Hi Paul,

Neat idea! Ive been trying to get my friends in apartments to do the exact same thing. Looking forward to seeing your setup so I can convince them.

Ive been to Lund many times, I work for a big Swedish company (Alfa Laval).

Hi Scotty and Paul (nice name btw ), and thanks for the informative links and encouragement!

I have been looking for other people that are running desktop sized AP-farms for inspiration. The tongue and groove idea looks quite neat, maybe should i opt for a system with a sump tank to keep ugly and noisy equipment out of the way.

As for the fish, I think about going to the local zoo/pet store, ask around what kind of fish they recommend for easy keeping since I am no expert...

By the way, does any one knows if it would be wise to use transparent acrylics, "plexiglass", for the pipe work. It is much cheaper and nicer looking to bend your own tubing than buying ugly plumbing parts for $6 each. My foremost concern is algae growth in hard-to-clean areas...

Best regards,
Paul

The clear tubing does grow algae if it's getting much light. It's ok to use but cleaning is an issue. You could always paint the ugly stuff with latex paint (just don't paint where you're going to glue it (and I'd probably avoid painting what's going to be in the tank).

Hi Pallee, great to see some young ones looking into AP, its the way of the future. I have alsway liked the idea of an indoor system but due to living on average it just isn't feasible for me at this point in time. If i were to have a go at it my idea would be to build an aesthetically appealing frame with the tank installed simulating a built in TV (sort of), you can actually buy these, then mount the GB on top. You could make this a centre piece for a room. Could also add some grow lights, there are some great LED options on Ebay. As for pump you could go a small volume fountain pump or i have seen people using Air lifting set ups where you use an air pump to move the water and it also aerates the system.