Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hello Everyone,

New to the forum, been reading here most days for a few months now. I am looking at starting off with an IBC setup.

I can get hold of some tanks that are BLACK.
I just want to know if there may be any pros or cons with a black tank.

They held vegetable oil in their previous use.

I figure I can throw the fish and the veg straight into the pan!

Also what are the learned folks of BYAP's opinion of perlite as a medium. Perhaps with a small base layer of scoria.

Thanks in advance.

Hi Aqua-awesomeness and welcome to the forum. Black IBCs will keep out the light and shouldn't have any worries about the vegetable oil as long as you clean it out thoroughly. We love photos and look forward to seeing your system.

Will be glad to post photo's of my aquaponic adventure!

While I am here, has anyone raised barra in victoria? Would love to grow some of my own.
Or is it possible to raise yellow belly (golden perch). I am thinking the growth rates would be to slow.

Hi AA and welcome



Perlite can be a problem as it is too light and small - it flushes out of the sytem and cloggs pipes and pumps and no doubt issues with the fish eventually. I saw someone try and use perlite as a base and then hydroton as a top layer but it still floated out throough the media and eventually FT.


Yellow belly are good but yes as are all of the perch family quite slow growing as they become dormant during the cooler months. But this doesnt mean your system crashes during that time its just that nutient levels lower as feed rates lower.

Hope this helps

Yes that does help. I found the section on growing mediums after I had posted. I will go with scoria and hydroton.

Concerning the yellowbelly does anyone have much experience on raising them. Interested to know how long it will take before I could eat the tasty lil' buggers! 1 year or more?

And does anyone breed freshwater shrimp as feed?

if you buy advanced fingerlings, you can grow them out quicker..

Black IBCs? How awesome, I'm jealous. Then you could chrome plate the cages and put some neon lights under them...now I'm just getting stupid. But, seriously black tanks would look cool.