Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I am in the process of ordering trout for the upcoming school system and want to know what peoples experiences have been with keeping Trout and Koi in the same tank together.

As soon as the tank is filled I intend to put in some Koi to get the system cycling and bacteria levels up in readiness for the trout. Longer term we intend to keep the Koi as school pets within the tank to add some additional colour and interest for the kids and ensure we always have fish in the tank to keep it cycling in between seasons.

Questions I have are:
Will Koi and Trout coexist without issues?
How many Koi (small to start with) would people advise keeping in a 5000 litre tank with 100 trout?
After a season with the trout, will the koi be big enough to fend for themselves with Barramundi fingerlings over the summer? Has anyone stocked Koi and Barrmundi together?

Cheers,
Mike

I expect either trout or barra would be very happy to be in the same tank as small koi. I expect koi would be less happy and more eaten.

Koi would be same size as trout fingerlings or larger to start with, if they grow at a similar rate to the trout then hopefully the trout will let them be.

I hope that by the end of the first trout season the Koi will be big enough to not be affected by small barra (I expect barra to be more of a problem than trout). If this is not the case then they might have to be moved to the sump until the following trout season?

Silver Perch and koi do well, but until the Koi start proving they grow big and fat, they get hassled a bit by the perch. Once the perch see them as food sucking blimps, impervious to anything, they leave them alone.
Can't tell you about barra or trout yet though, in a month or so trout and koi will be in the same aquarium, so I'll let you know the results.

I have mega over sized gold fish cross koi things that quiet happily swim around and clean up after the barra. Since they have been living on the barra feed they have got really big. But they all live OK together so far....If that is any help

( I was going to use an old photo but these guys have got to become monsters,so will put in an earlier pic of the goldies and one for the present )

Thanks Jessy, they look great, just what I will be aiming for, a few big colourful fish among the "boring" ones. How may of the big goldie/koi have you got in with how many barra?

rainbows and barra are boring???
My wife agrees with you though, hence my koi in with the perch

Problem is they're not that great for eating.

10 year old girls like pretty things, 10 year old boys want big things, colourful fat old lazy koi - best of both worlds.

boring

You have twin 10 year olds Burnsy? Wow, that'd be a challenge

Primary School Teacher setting up a 5000l system at school.

We have gilgies in the classroom system that Sleepe donated to us, the kids love them - considered not boring beacuse the look like monsters and have big nippers

I'd definately get Koi that are larger than the trout fingerlings. In the cooler water the trout growth will be much greater than that of the Koi. Make sure your Koi/goldfish are disease free as Trout are susceptible to a number of diseases that Koi carry ie Goldfish Ulcer disease. See useful link.
www.fish.wa.gov.au/docs/pub/FHinfo/fhinfo05.php