Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Thank you all so much for the input! I changed out about a third of the water, and then the guys at the store had me add in quarter strength liquid seaweed (not sure what that does).

I'll suspend feeding the fish for now and concentrate on water changes.

150 trout I am amazed they are still alive
I had 150 trout in 3000+ltrs FT... and 2000+ltrs of growbeds (GBs)
Lots thought I was crazy.
Good luck, but get more water body and more growbeds ASAP

What do you mean "thought", like it's past tense?

+1 for my earlier comment to get rid of 100 of them.

hehehe...
Hmm maybe a tad still crazy

Oi, I doubt I can come up with 700 more gallons of water for these things! I'm keeping them in my basement, which never gets above 60(F). Northern IL weather can get very hot in the summer and it would kill trout without chillers. Perhaps I could make room for another 400 gallons with the corresponding grow beds... Karl already thinks I'm nuts and this project is not helping!

They're all alive this morning and the ammonia level is down to 4ppm and the Nitrites holding at .25ppm. No physical irritation showing.

I take it that if I changed to tilapia, I could closer quarter the fish?

No... not without adequate filtration and aeration....

Having said that... Tilapia are a much more forgiving fish in terms of water quality, pH, temperature, ammonia and stocking levels ... than trout...

But even Tilapia have their limits.... and unless you provide adequate water turn over, filtration and aeration.... you'll exceed their limits as well...

If you want a fish that can be close quartered, without aeration and filtration....

Try a can of sardines....

Basic rule of thumb we advise people "goddess" is as follows...

Stocking density of 3kg of fish / 100L ... or 9lb/gallon

And that's with level of filtration (growbed volume)... that matches the volume of your fish tank.... referred to as a 1:1 ratio ...

Higher stocking densities can be acheived... in a mature system... with a 2:1 ratio of filtration volume to tank volume...

by the time the system has matured... so has the operators knowledge.... and intervention is usually either not required, or swiftly and correctly enacted... based on that gained experience...

My apologies... the stocking density should read...

Stocking density of 3kg of fish / 100L ... or 9lb / 26 gallon .....

To extrapolate... for your system, you should have stocked... assuming you intend to grow your fish to 1lb...

9 fish / 26 gallons.... so for your 110 gallon tank... that's 36-40 fish maximum...

And with a minimum of 110 gallons of growbed filtration volume.... twice that as the fish reach maturity...

I'm actually telling new people to go more like 6lb per 25 gallons. Since less is generally better until a system and operator gain experience.

A totally reasonable position to adopt TCL...

Yeah 3kg/100L is becoming the accepted norm.

Cool, I can grow 1650kgs of fish. Will need more gb's and to move the fence.

And a trawler and seine nets....

Best you build a processing plant as well, when you move that fence ....