Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

My wife is out of town and is going to kill me when she finds out how much I spent getting this stuff today ($130). The pipe adapters were relatively expensive, but I also got a heat gun to melt the PVC as I don't have one and some cutting wheels for my Dremel to cut the pipe. I also got a fluorescent light and aquarium bulb to try to grow duckweed (in the garage to not breed mosquitoes or have the trays overflow with rain as they have done with previous experiments).

Anyway, how should I arrange these pieces? I would really like to switch my system over to a non-powered return (which is possible because everything is so high up), and I would like to make one or two towers out of the big pipe. I would have to raise the grow beds up one more block to get them high enough to return the water to the tank. This won't be easy because they are full of gravel, and I would likely damage the plants in there already, although none of them are that spectacular.

This view is pretty much looking N, so as long as the grow beds/towers are in front of the fish tub they won't be shaded.

hmmm... not too sure, but about the cost - just remind her that they were once off buys, the heat gun for example will be used over and over again (hopefully not by her on you )

Think you missed a crucial 'not' AM

I did???
Where... brain wont respond...

Could utilise towers to keep sun filtered from your fish.

Here's a scribble my shadows won't go where I want should've spun model round. I just went with no shadow.

good for a scribble... you seem to have a very good grasp of the software, better than me
Looks like a good idea... (I keep wanting to use my mouse to move the image as in SketchUp

Thanks Aquadict, that is interesting. I have a problem though that I cannot lower the fish tank - too much work and I know what is underground - Big Rocks! The top of my fish tub is about 2 1/2 block high. I like that the towers drain directly into the tank; I should be able to divert a small flow into them like that no problem. The round tubs are going to be very high though and would probably shade the towers.

If I drain 1/2 the water out of the tank I should be able to rotate the tub 90 degrees (it is an oblong shape), and then I could have things out further into the yard a bit and place the round tubs at either side, and the new rectangular tub in front, it is 2' x 3'.

I also like that the board can give me a way to support the pipes, I had been thinking of placing them in the round tubs and somehow bracing them with bungies or something?

I need to switch to a non-powered return, because the only way I can spin this is that I'm trying to save electricity!

Good thinking, first get it going, THEN add more, bigger, better!!!

This is what I have, which unfortunately requires me to bury the tank. Maybe there aren't as many rocks as I expect?

Guess there is only 1 way to find out

Ugh. Going to take the tower stuff back (new tools and everything, adapters, $12 4" pipe) and get about $60 back. I'm going to lift the existing stuff up one more block to make this passive return. I'm excited about that more than towers anyway. Version 2 next year will plan for them...

Move brocks and things around it's amazing the problem solving it achieves in design.

It's more the price of everything I bought today that bugs me, I will do the conversion to get rid of my sump pump then regroup and try again! The adapters and the tools are what broke the bank this time. Also I'm still not sure about mounting it - no poles available to strap it to.