Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hey Guys,

I'm pretty new to AP and this is going to be my first build. I first started learning about it 3 weeks ago or so and started reading up on the ins and outs through this forum and other resources. Like many others I've decided to use the IBC totes to get my first system started.

I picked up 2 totes and am turning the two tops into 12" grow beds and one bottom into a fish tank and the other into my sump trying to keep it fairly simple, but hopefully effective. I made a diagram of what I'm hoping for the system and hopefully you guys can give it a look over and tell me if it looks fine. I'm still trying to figure out pipe sizing and pump sizes to run this system. I know cubic inches of each container but not sure what that relates to in gallons. The system should be a 1.33/1 GB/FT ratio so I could add another grow bed but I'm somewhat limited in space. Speaking of limited space I might also move the grow beds from separate to above the FT and Sump to go from 14' long to about 7' but I kind of like the idea of easy access to fish, piping and plants in case I screw something up.

A lot of what I'm planning on doing is based on Backyard Aquaponics install video on youtube including using reducers with a drilled hole to draw in air to my tank vs a splash airation as this is going to be outside my back door. Don't know if I want to hear water running 24/7. Are there any disadvantages to this solution, does it draw in enough air?

Thanks for looking.

Welcome to the forum. There are plenty of IBC examples to look at on the site here. Some examples use one IBC as the FT and no sump with anywhere from 1 to 3 GBs. Others link multiple IBCs together to expand the size of the FT to run more GBs. Take a look around.

I suspect several others will be jumping in shortly to give advice about CHIFT-PIST or CHOP, vs CHOP2 (which is sorta what you are doing), vs just using a Fish Tank (no sump). The latter would be the simplest and cheapest (only one pump). You could get 3 GBs and a FT out of your two IBCs for the same money that way, but your ratios would change.

I don't know that you need to encircle the GBs with piping. The IBC isn't so big that a single pipe outlet wouldn't get all of the plant roots soaked before draining begins. Up to you. If it were me, I'd save the $10 to $20 on extra fittings and avoid having the maintenance check to be sure the holes aren't clogged up.

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress, fish choices, and veggies.

Ya I guess it is a mixture. I was working off the Sump Tank Two Pumps system on BYAP site http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/information/44-designs.html. But I also wanted to try and keep water level about even without much variation in the FT. I'm also going on the assumption that I'm wanting to move the fish solids to the grow beds? I don't see how that happens in the gravity fed Chops and CHIFT PIST systems.

There are a lot of IBC threads on here which are very helpful. I'm somewhat a visual person and seeing a drawing of how something works I can understand it right away vs reading a description and it not sinking in. I've been spending most of the past few days reading up on systems but it's very hard to try and catch up on multiple years of postings on this forum. Great community btw.

As for plants, I'll be doing leafy greens, tomatoes, herbs, peppers. For fish I'll be looking at tilapia as they seem hardy and so many others have had success with them.

I actually just found this which explains the "how do solids get taken out with other gravity systems" question.



From TCLynx

Yep. That's it. Solids Lift Overflow (SLO). Same kinda thing you would do to vacuum your aquarium. There are a couple of different designs. I'm planning to borrow an idea from another poster here that uses a horizontal tube across half the bottom of the fish tank with slits cut in it. Then I'll have a koralia fan blowing the water around the bottom of the tank to help with moving the solids to the SLO. My pump doesn't generate a lot of motion in the fishtank on it's own.

Are you planning to build it in a greenhouse or outside or? Tilapia like warm water and don't survive well below 60 degrees. They'll grow out well enough from spring to first frost though, so it's not impossible, but you'd need to switch species or do pee-ponics in the winter unless you're indoors.

Sounds like you are on the right track! It's addicting and fun.

thats a nice neat plan you got there I think you shoul do a slo from your ft straight to the st, then pump from st to gb, then just drain straight from gb to ft. That way you don't change the configuration of the system, only use one pump ands the water height in the ft never changes

Thanks Merlin. I like the ideas about the SLO. My system will be outdoors although I could have it in my 2 car garage if I really wanted to and get some grow lights. Bad thing about that is I do a lot of work in there. Sanding, and such. I also intend to repaint an entire car so might not be a great habitat for anything to live in.

Hopefully I can get this system up and running around May which would give me 6, maybe 7 months before first frost. But might just have to make due and add a water heater if necessary.

Converting the FT to have a SLO to sump sounds like a great plan Freoboy. I was thinking about what merlin was saying about making 3 GB and one FT out of the 2 IBC tanks and then just pick up a long short tote for a sump, but when I got home I turned over the tank and the bottom is a solid steel plate with a 5 inch raiser.

For what you propose, would it be best to run a line to each GB and one back to the FT from the pump in the Sump to keep aeration up? I can run from the GBs to the FT but it will be on a flood drain cycle so wouldn't continuously be aerating the water.

Pretty easy change to the plan though. Thanks!

hmm well you could but yout pump would still be on a timer . . . . .you could use bell siphons, so your pump is oncontinuous and the GBs still flood and drain, and have the setup exactly like that above jut be sure to put a valve on the line going into the FT from the ST, and probably on each GB line to so you can contro flow

I think you're possibly over complicating it a little pumping from one to the other etc..

If you are going to have two tanks, two beds, and two pumps, why not keep it simple and actually have two separate discreet systems, you can leave the layout as it is as well..

Just like this system, pump up to bed, let it drain back. Double it...

The only thing I don't like about that type of setup is the low GB/FT ratio for a 12" GB and 18" deep FT it would be a 0.66/1 ratio. Of course I could lower the water level in the FT to get a 1/1 but 12" of water doesn't seem like a lot to grow fish big enough to eat.

I do like the 1 pump solution with bell siphon flood and drain over the 2 pump I originally drew up. Any ideas on gph/lph for a setup like this? Would be about 400 gallons/ 1500 liters all together.

No need to lower the water level. Just stock the amount of fish your growbeds can provide filtration for. The more water the more stable your temperature and pH will be.

Eg. I have a 5000litre fish tank, but only 1500 litres of filtration. I will be stocking my tank with 100 fish although it would comfortably accommodate more.

if its running continously, about 2000LPH, you need to put the volume of your FT thru the BS every hour, atleast

Damn got to get people away from this idea that they have to have a GB/FT ratio of some particular amount... I hear it constantly and it's just not at all valid... But it's being pushed out there by people as being an essential design component..

You are far better off having a large fish tank with a big water volume, no matter what your growbed size..

Listening to too many amateurs on youtube and people just trying to sell their GBs

I did read/hear constantly 2:1 ratio to keep a balanced system so I assumed it to be true.

Yeah, unfortunately some things get said early on and then carry through echoing on forever.... And strangely enough some of the people who insist that a system has to be 1:1 sell systems that are miles different to that..

Scroll down the page here a bit, http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/infor ... lants.html

This system has a fish tank that for memory is about 4000L and the growbed is about 300L i think.. works a treat, and probably about 8 years old now...