Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

There is nothing more convenient than herbs from the kitchen!
Why walk outside when they are growing in the kitchen?

This system is hoped to provide herbs and greens and also give me the chance to experiment with indoor growing and to have a chance to observe the behviours of the fish i keep

System specs: Cost approx. A$200
Fish Tank - glass (75cm x 37cm x 30 cm - LHW) - $75
Pump - Aquapro AP550 - 7W - at head height of 40cm pumps approx. 200-250L/Hr - $20
Grow Light - LED 3W - colour: Red/Blue - $5 + lamp $10
Grow Media - expanded clay - $50
Grow Bed - 65L plastic tub with - $20
Heater - 100W - thermostat 20-34C - $35
Air - AquaOne Infinity AP 250 - 3.1W with single outlet 200L/Hr - $15
2 x Timers HPM with 15min increments (pump + light) - $20
Cycle - 15/45 timed



My latest outdoor system is evolving here:
http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=16915

The system was started 16/6/13 with expanded clay and water from an existing system with the water salted to 1ppt and active bacteria so I assume it won't need to cycle.

I threw in seeds at the start and they have started to come along and the original transplant are showing a small amount of growth (see photo)

FISH - I haven't been able to catch any of my Jade Perch from the outdoor system so I have put in our two Black Moors - which are much easy to catch
I have turned off the air and heater for these two. When I buy a larger net and catch a Jade to join them I will look at turning the heat and air back on.


The major threat to the system at this point is our 13 month old boy who loves to climb up and put objects in the tank and pull the cords.
I have had to re-arrange things to try and keep him out.

Future:
* I plan to add some aquatic plants for aesthetics and perhaps for the black moors to lay eggs.
* add a jade perch or two
* add grow lights - the single globe doesn't seem to provide adequate coverage of the bed as the seedlings are bending into the centre towards the light.
* improve the system aesthetics - especially the grow bed sitting on styrofoam.

I added some aquatic plants; 2 red claw; and some volcanic rock for them to hide under.
It's starting to look like a 'normal' fishtank

Google search for red claw produced this document with all the info one would want to know.
Basically they look like they are hardy little critters and I need to keep water temp above 10C which will be fine as it is currently 15C. Optimal growth 26-29C.
Dissolved Oxygen - down to 1ppm
Salinity - below 12ppt
Max size in about 12 months Males 100 g, and females 70 g.
High density stocking 7-9/m2

http://www.nt.gov.au/d/Content/File/p/Fishnote/FN32.pdf

I added some chelated iron as the system i stole the water and gravel from had an iron deficiency.

Also added a stand that i made from a wooden pallet for the new grow light.
225 LED globes - Red / Blue / Orange / white - 13W.
I've built the stand with a bit if height to allow for plant growth.

I was looking for scraps to feed the red claw and stupidly threw in some old cheese. They seemed to like it but it made the water very cloudy overnight. I removed it and it has taken a couple of days with some extra pumping to get clarity back on par (which is not perfectly clear).

Temperature is sitting on 15C.
I haven't tested any other parameters.

The red claw have taken one of the volcanic rocks each as there homes. I wonder how long until they pick a fight with each other (or the black moors)

The black moors seem to be having a bit of a mating dance, I haven't seen any eggs released and would know what I'm looking for. From what I've read I would guess that they would eat the eggs anyway (or the red claw would).

I am now using the original smaller grow lamp to give the aquatic plants some light.

Quick update:
Over the past month the system has been chugging along. Temp dropped as low as 11C but back up to 14.4C without heating.
Slow growth of plants - probable combination of light intensity and low nutrient availability.
Can identify pak choy, parsley, coriander.
Transplanted plants are not doing as well as from seed

I was given 5 African Cichlids - all about 1cm long. So I have turned the heater on to keep the water at around 25C.

Eaten parsley, pak Choy & coriander. With a small grow bed I think the best use of the space will be just for herbs. Basil & coriander.

How are the moors and the red claw getting along, we put moors in with our red claw and the red claw thought that was a great idea. Now they are no moor, the moors that is.

Our moors out lived the red claws.
I was given some baby African cichlids and they now terrorist one of the moors (they eat it's fins) so I have had to remove it.
The other one stands up for itself.

that's a nice LED light setup you put in there. what kind is it and how much was it?

They were cheap ones of eBay.
I am not convinced that they offer enough light intensity for optimal growth. I ended up with 2 of them.

how many watts

13 W