Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Most people think that coconut husk stays too wet for use in aquaponic systems.

We have found that it only stays too wet for flood and drain.

We have 14in deep grow beds and they work fine for most crops.
The grow bed input is at the same level as the drain but opposite ends of the gb and about 2in from the base of gb, the water flow is very low just above trickle. You can even turn it off for up to 3 weeks without a noticeable difference in the plant growth.
Why use coconut husk?
1: We have it and in a plenty, it’s almost free
2: Any more than a few bags of another man made medium and you would have to order it from overseas.
3: Two off the shelf forty pound bags of expanded clay balls cost the same amount as one tone of coconut husk delivered to your door so we had to make coconut husk work for us. We grow tomatoes and other fruiting crops but had trouble with carrots the only root crop we tried so far here are some picks of what we have achieved so far.
4: God made it. Its natural and that is what we are striving towards, as natural a system as possible.
Feel free to ask me any questions or share any information regarding this beautiful product we know as coconut husk.

Nice!
I also have a number of experiments running with coir, for the reasons you mention.
Trying to find something to mix it with to stop it staying so wet.

Nice to hear from you Damian... so these are more like a "wicking bed"....

Hi Ruperto how's it been? what you up too?

these beds as like wicking beds but you drain the runn off for reuse kinda. here is a quick diagram to explain what i mean better.

How did you figure out the right flow... flood height... so that the beds didn't stay too wet... trial & error??

In the pics, the flow is coming up over the top.
I assume you've changed things since they were taken?

Looks like some beds in the back are going down to the bottom through pipes.

I tried cocoa mulch (chocolate processing byproduct) on top of charcoal but unfortunately that got slimy, maybe because there were not enough plants in it to keep it healthy. The idea was to have something like gravel in the water is but something cheaper and lighter on top.

Makes sense to me CG, AP coconut wicking beds. Good job!

A wicking aquaponic system. How long does the coir stay useable CG?

It’s been a real trial and error for us over the time we have been trying to get coco husk to work. but it is working now and we are pleased with the results.
After 5 years it turns black and looks like peat, you can mix in fresh husk as the level gets lower because it tends to compact itself overtime.
The older stuff is still useable but wicks water way faster than the new stuff and it doesn’t drain as easily the oldest I have in use is about 8 years old it started as 2in blocks now it’s like peat moss. It the last of a big set I had about a tone the rest I mixed in plant pots and soil gardens as an amendment I can tell you the wonders this old stuff does for soil gardens it can sell for lots of money.

Wow that's a lot longer than I thought it would work. Glad your efforts have paid off CG.

Thats great use of resources CG - affordable grow media i think is vital for AP to be embraced around the world, and if the by-product of coconut husk becomes a nutrient rich soil improver to help the rest of the garden you are onto a good thing!

Congratualations for your successful system.

Is the one on the right side the water outlet?
Can't see it well in drawing.

Is this linked to fish tank?

Sejin

Thanks for sharing the info Damian...

I like the strings on the growbeds, is that because they are a bit floppy?

Aquaponics can be described basically as a riverside ecosystem held in a man made container. Some of the first recorded Ap systems were very low tech using organic media. The Aztecs used the muck from the bottom of rivers in their systems effectively.

The ap world has over looked organic medias. Like soil because the flow rate required for its use is so low that, To grow enough fish for consumption effectively a system would have to have many grow beds to achieve the required water flow nutrient uptake for the aquaculture side. Aquaponics has its roots in both hydroponics and aquaculture two forms of farming witch have no use for soil, they are both sterile environments but aquaponics uses bacteria to form a link between the two.

Bacteria is what makes Ap so different from its two mother disciplines and why soil use in Ap is possible when its not possible with the sterile environment of hydroponics and aquaculture. Soil will settle out of the water column eventually and once no strong water currents are present stay there to be used as a grow bed media

Is this incorporated into a fish tank or a stand alone system