Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi, though I'd share my system with you to date.

I had a 9000L poly tank that stood 1.8m high and 2.6m in diameter. I cut the top off with a circular saw, then came down 600mm and cut a ring off it. Leaving me with a 1200mm high fish tank. The ring was dug into the ground, concreted and then sealed and became my sump


The fish tank was placed beside it, and a shelter built over it (8m x 4m), tinned roof and shade clothe sides and is tacked onto a garden shed which houses my filtering set up.



My pump is in the sump and runs 24/7, it pumps up to the fish tank at approx 7500L/hr and joins into my air lift pump which doubles the flow and creates a lot more swirl for solids to be removed via my 90mm center drain. Before the pump flow exits the 90mm pipe into the tank it gets reduced to 50mm which causes the air to exhaust out through a tee prior to this restriction. When salt is used in the system this acts as a protein skimmer, helping to remove solids


95% of the water then gravity feeds through my filter box, 1m x 1m x .6m with 50 filter brushes. The other 5% goes back to the sump. This filter box also has a stand pipe that returns to the sump and ensures that it doesn't back up and over flow when the filters are blocked. plus is removed and used to lower the level when cleaning is required


From the filter box the flow gravity feeds into my moving bed bio filter then out to the grow bed.
The bio filter is made up of 4 x 175 aeration discs in side a 1.5m trough. It currently has 200L of K1 media in it. If the flow out to the grow beds is restricted I have a overflow system that returns the excess flow back to the sump.


I only have 1 grow bed at the moment but have purchased the materials this week to build another 4 beds. I make mine out of patio tube, (76x38x1.6mm RHS) they have an internal measurement of 3.6m L x 1.2m W and 0.3m H. 5 x 8m lengths are used to make a frame then lined with form ply and then a plastic liner.




As I work away I've tried to make my system stable and robust. I use cloverleaf fish feeders and find them to be excellent. I run 2 air pumps, 1 @ 120L/min (90w) and the other @ 140L/min (100w). They constantly provide air for the fish tank, sump and bio filter. I have a back up 12v DC air compressor that only pumps to the sump and fish tank, the bio filter is restricted by a check valve


I have since added 7 tubs above my sump and use the 5% return water from the fish tank to supply them. To be used for Marron or the like. Currently have a few Gilgies with eggs in there



Currently have Rainbow trout in the fish tank and have Silver Perch fry/fingerlings in the sump along with Gilgies and mussels.

Cheers Muz

Wow, so nice!

Wow, great looking system.

Looks great Muz

I like how you have a series of gilgie/marron tubs.

How are the mussels going? I havnt read too much about farming mussels so be good to have some of your experiences shared.

Nicely done Muzz.... you've certainly put some thought into the design...

Excellent system. Every now and then someone posts a real pearler of a system. This is one of them.

I wish I had the room to go this big . I can see this AP thing requiring me to eventually buy a new house/property.

Very nice system, nothing like having large system for stability. Only question I have is..........are you going to bypass the Bio-Filter once you have your GBs online?

Hi Chainsaw, No I don't intend on bypassing my bio filter once i have 5 growbeds running. As I have 400 Silver Perch fry/fingerlings in my system I'll be keeping it to cope with the extra load of high fish numbers plus it adds heaps of aeration

Will Probably get Rainbow Trout next year but in reduced numbers, probably 40-50 ish. Maybe

Will hopefully be tagging onto my duck pond, currently 3500L but to be expanded to somewhere around the 12000L mark and make it into an ornamental fish pond where I can grow out some large Silver Perch plus throw a dozen large Red Fin in there as well. Hopefully the Reddies may breed in there.

Plus you can't have to much filtration

ahmen...

Wow, that system is huge... Nice work Muzz..

Cheers Eathbound, its a work in progress.... always modify it or fine tuning something

Charlie I chucked a couple of hundred mussels in there as a natural form of filtration and to help with any sediment in my sump. I tried eating a couple last month and they were disgusting. They had been in there for 5 months so well and truly purged but still they tasted of dirty mud....

The mussels in WA require a host as part of the breeding cycle
http://www.musselwatchwa.com/freshwater-mussels.html

Where as the east coast mussels don't
http://www.aquablueseafoods.com.au/other-mussels.shtml

I've been busy the last week welding up 4 new Grow Beds, giving me an extra 5000L.
Now to paint them....







And yes, that is our Christmas Turkey.

Huge yard Muzz, Im assuming they are aviaries out back there. What kind of birds do you have?

Hey Charlie, thats my aviary complex alright, all 300 square meters. Unfortunately there empty all but my daughters Galahs and a pair of Eastern King Parrots. I was keeping seed eaters when I started FIFO 3 years ago. Finches and Parrots.

Prior to that I kept softbills, which only eat livefood. Things like Wrens, Robins, Chats, Honeyeaters, Bowerbirds, Fruit Doves and the list goes on. So it was a huge commitment feeding out twice daily, mealworms, whiteants, moths, crickets. And fresh fruit for the Fruit doves.

I'll dig out some photo's. I'll get back into it down the track.

I forgot about our pet Emu's we had as well