Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

The water is a lot clearer today, changed out another 10 gallons of water just the same. I also picked a couple of caterpillars off of my plants and fed to the fish. Looks like they have their appetite back but that was all they got. Man it's hard to believe how much a small caterpillar can eat in a day! Man its different not using pesticides! I will test the water quality tomorrow.
TC, do you have a link or a phone # for Morning Star Fisherman? I read the Florida state Record for blue Tilapia was a whopping 10 lbs! I read the Nile Tilapia grow faster though, just not as big. I think that the minimum orders will keep me from getting a varity. Thanks.

BB I also got my Tilapia from Morningstar. Unfortunately, they aren't able to ship...

Good news: The people at Til-Tech contacted me today and discussed my permit. They said they never heard of that type of permit and was interested in seeing it. I would have to provide it to them before they will sell me any, anyway. They normally sell big lots to large farms domestically and abroad but would be glad to “work with me on the amount I would want”. I may be speculating but I thought I heard cash register sounds in his curiosity! I guess it isn’t something the LDWF wants everybody to know about. In fact the agent told me that the legislature was going to work on closing up some of the loopholes in exotic pets that was allowing me to get the live permit for tilapia.
I also may be getting a free 75 gallon aquarium from someone at work. I’m kind of anxious to get the permit and a few fish just in case the law changes, I may be grandfathered in.

My neighbors cats spilled over my BSF composter and many worms ended up on the ground only to get carried away by red ants, I am really supprised at how many BSF worms have multiplied in there! They are almost out of stuff to eat! I dumped it all in a bucket and put some synthetic pillow stuffing to keep the tiny worms from getting thru the drain holes I drilled. Also the diamatacious earth barrier works good keeping the ants out of the bucket. I don't like cats but would never do anything to harm them, but I don't like people who cannot keep their own animals fed or kept at home even more! I'm ready to get me a live catch trap and bring them to the local shelter! 3 litters of kittens were born in my boat a couple sets in my shed and one even under my firewood pile! Only about one kitten per litter survives to have more kittens, to dig in my garbage, eat the baby birds out their nests, or get wapped up in my car's fanbelt in the winter. The rest get killed on the road! Did I mention I don't like cats!

Cats hate dogs!!!

I agree! right now though the cats are bigger than our wimpy little snowball of a terrier. But my backyard is fenced in. My next trip to the shelter may be another dog pickup as well as a cat drop off!

feed'm both two DA fishies:)

Heading back down to New Orleans this morning to my bi weekly duties at rebuilding my houses down their, I should be able to pick up an old bath tub or at least purchase some more blue barrels for my prospective crawfish system. I though I saw a link in here somewhere for a large tubing bender for making the supports for a whoop greenhouse. If anybody comes across it I would sure appreciate it.

If you have a really cheap source of tubing, I say go for it but have you thought about the cattle panel structure?
http://www.aquaponics.tclynx.com/BigSystem.shtml

That Shade structure didn't cost all that much and won't be too hard to cover in cheap greenhouse film come winter. It consists of some posts, some wood along the tops of the posts to make a channel for the panel sections. And cattle panels cut to 12' lengths (cattle panels are 16 foot long) this is covering a 10' wide footprint aprox.

Or here is a long narrow cattle panel cover over my monster bed with sump pump on the ground.

This tunnel uses the full 16' length of cattle panel and is tall enough for us little hobbits to walk through comfortably with a think layer of mulch under foot (I'm under 5'2" and the cook is 5'5".) It is a little tricky to reach through the wire to do any big planting on the outside of the grow bed but the wires are great for training plants. Come winter, most of the vining plants won't be there and we can throw plastic over it to help keep water temps up for the tilapia. I think that 28' tunnel over the monster bed cost under $200 including the lumber and stakes to brace the bottom of the tunnel.

Last I checked the 16' by 4' cattle panels (the ones with the wire further apart) were still under $20 at our local tractor supply.

Just some ideas.

looking good - keep it coming!

Thanks TC, I may have to pay you for intellectual rights if I copy all your good ideas! My crawfish system would have to be hidden from the all the wading birds that are very common around here. Shade cloth and screen in the summer should help with the insect problems attacking my plants. I get a few caterpillar worms but I am also getting grasshopper or locust eating them at night, or at least when I’m not around.

wouldn't have to pay me as I of course borrowed the idea from somewhere else and just adapted them to my purpose.

Pretty easy for attaching shade cloth to. Keep in mind that if you screen the bugs out, you will have to do the pollination of the flowers yourself.

BRB

Think this is the link you were looking for http://www.lostcreek.net/

Thanks Sleepe, that was it. I can get the tubing at a fair price and some of it free from the chain link fences that are getting demo'ed in NO. as many people are putting up wooden privacy fences for security. I'm not sure if I'm going with the hoops or the cattle panels. They both look fairly easy. When the Summer Squalls blow or the NorthWest winds in the Winter blow I'm not sure which would would be best suited. I have time to scrounge and plan. Thanks.

Would go the hoops if you can get the pipe, simpler construction and a bit stronger.
Have a shadehouse out the back made of concrete reinforcing mesh. Had to weld the ends on and a small piece in the middle cause it used to flex quite a lot. That was until a ficus and everything else decided to go mad and support the structure, still trying to work out how to get it out, want it as a FT.