Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Lookin the goods Simo, you need to throw a heap of seed around in those beds and increase you plant load. I was told if you can see the media you don't have enough plants! Beetroot go nice and fast as you have demonstrated and so do radishes. English spinach is another good filler and great for summer salads.

Does the tank behind shelter from the easterlies? Toss a heap of corn into one bed, get them going nice and thick and them string them together if the wind is a problem.

Hey Burnsy

Yep the system is sheltered from the east and west wind, I would plant more vegies but my Nitrate readings are always zero and I think more plants would reduce the growth rate in the few I have now. I plan to add more plants as the fish grow or if I get more.

Did you speak to Carey Nagle about SP fingerlings yet? If so does he have any and what size?

Never got a chance to chase up the silvers, might have to wait till school holidays when I get another GB online.

Many mature systems run on a zero nitrate level all the time and there has been some discussion on this before regarding the fact that because nitrates are always there, all be it in low levels, the plants are happy. Throw in more seed, you can always pull extra plants out, or dose with seasol but it is hard to grow hem in a hurry if you need them.

Carey still has silver, but please give hime a couple more weeks to recover, unless you getting thousands of fish. Poor fella seems to have had a bit of a bad run lately. He wouldnt tell me how he got a multiple broken leg

Milestone today, first aquaponics harvest and meal which had a small aquaponics componant.







I thought the Beetroot might be a bit woody but it was as good as any I have had before.

Is that home grown lamb too

By the way passed a guy heading in your direction the other day just off neaves rd with a ute full of plastic tubs on the back, full of water(some not so full ) just wondered if it was you getting some more fish

Not me getting the fish but I hear talk of a guy who has a large system on chittering valley road, apparently he has been doing it for many years, originally in Wanaroo them moved to Bully, yet to meet him.

There is also a guy about 500m form my house who has just moved in (haven't met him either) and the neighbors tell me he has a couple of 10,000L tanks out the back and he told them he plans to set them up to breed fingerings for grow out sale as he used to do this at his old place quite successfully. Sounds promising, hopefully soon I won't have to go far for my fingerlings.

That sounds great... save on fuel for us apers in chittering and surounding

Picked up 100 x 20mm SP from golden ponds for $39 to add some more nutrient to the water but they are too small to make much difference so Carey will try to get me some bigger fingerlings by the end of the week.

My Bro-in-law gave me 8 Catfish (the ornamental fish tank kind) to add to the system as bottom feeders, he says they will breed well under the right conditions

38 C outside temp today, fish tank 25 C, fish very healthy and active

pH 7.4
All others zero

Water temp got to 27 C today and the difference in the activity of the fish is amazing, they are going crazy and absolutely smashing the food.

Sun was damaging the veg so I erected this shade cloth frame and added old fencing wire as a trellis at the same time





I am under orders to replace the old crappy shade cloth with something more aesthetically pleasing but it will do for now.

Some plants were stalling and starting to die I think from lack of nutrient, they have all started to bounce back since I added another 100 fingerlings. An example is this rockmelon, new growth on the left, old growth minus leaves on the right.



Water temps got as high as 27 C after two 40 C days in a row but a few mild days brought it back down to 22 C

pH 7.6
Amm 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5

The extra fish are doing their job.

Plants

Rainbow chard, broccoli, cauliflower and beetroot doing well, others are comming along but not as fast.

Seems we might have a better power supply were we are than other pats of the country and I can't recall having a power black out any longer than an hour since I have lived here.

Night before last got home to the power being out and not knowing how long it had been out for, neighbors told us only 1/2 hour so no panic. Would have borrowed the neighbors gennie but the power came back on an hour later.

The battery backup air pump bought from BYAP worked just fine. As others have reported they produce significantly less air when on battery power and as my FT is 1m deep I did have to pull the airstone up off the bottom of the tank to about 500mm deep to reduce pressure and increase air flow. Happy fish.

This little warning does make me think I should get around to getting a proper backup system going.

Compare this growth to the pictures above, 3 weeks time difference