Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I live in Hendersonville NC and it gets pretty cold in the winter. I am still setting up my aquaponics system. Here is what my set-up will be.
20 x 30 feet hoop house, 1000 gallon fish tank for catfish, 2 x 20 feet media bed, 4 x 20 feet and 2 x 20 feet deep water culture beds and a 3 x 18 x 2 feet deep sump tank.
I bought 6 - 1000 watt bucket heaters and a spa thermostat along with 10 gauge wire and 30 amp breaker. I plan on hooking 5 of the heaters up to the thermostat and am going to try to keep the water at 75 degrees F.
Has any of you guys heard of using bucket heaters? And what are your thoughts.I am also trying to to find out were to by the rafts and what kind to get. I read an article somewhere were someone cut holes big enough to put rockwool in the holes instead of the baskets and just put seeds in the rockwool. Have you guys heard of that.
Thanks in advance!!!

Hi neighbor, heating the water with those heaters is certainly doable but even in a hoop house you are going to pay a fortune heating that water around here. Are the bucket heaters 240v or 120v?

Also make sure they are stainless steel because other metals can poison your fish and/or you.

Rockwool should work fine that way, but you probably don't want it touching the water so it isn't soaking wet 24/7 I imagine, but I'm not an expert.

The heaters are 120 volt. I will post some pictures soon. I have a creek that I can gravity feed the water so I can fill the tanks and beds up with. I am also planning on using the black hose and having water running through it so the sun can heat it. What part of Western NC are you from.

5 of those heaters is 5000 watts @ 120v, so that would be a 41.66 amps. 10 guage wire is only rated for 30 amps so it can only run 3 heaters safely (25 amps). So you could do 2 runs of 10 guage wire with 30 amp breakers on each and power all 5 that way (with room to add the 6th in later if needed on the 2nd run.)

I'm inbetween Brevard and Hendersonville, so pretty close to you.

P.S. if you end up with any extra dura-skrim I've got dibs, I plan on adding another bed next year

I wouldn't put them in the tank with the fish. Bucket heaters get super hot, super quick and will burn the fish if they rub against them.

Thanks for the advice, I guess I will buy another breaker. Since I have to make 2 runs of wire and not have to worry about the heaters burning my fish (the type of bucket heaters I bought has a guard around it so it is not supposed to get too hot, but I might as well not take any chances), I think I'm going to put the heaters in the sump tank, it's about 25 feet closer to the breaker panel.
Since you live so close, maybe we can get together and look at each others set-up and you can tell me how smart I am or either tell me I'm an idiot

Sure, anytime. I'm not an expert but I know the basics

Call 606_3403 names dave

Wow, 5000W of heaters is going to cost a lot to run.....

Any chance of growing a cold water fish species instead?