Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Feeding question
I currently have 13 rainbow trout around 150mm long in 1400l FT and 600l of GB the plants are quite mature so I'm feeding the trout as much as possible and three times a day, the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are all low regardless of how much I feed them and they still go crazy over the food every time.

What is the solution to getting the best growth rate out of them in the shortest time,
feed them more? I have set up an automatic feeder during the day while I'm at work should I just program it to feed them all the time day and night? Not sure what there eating habits are like in the wild .

not sure but with 600l of GB and 13 fish you should be able to feed them as much as they eat quickly.

I find mine are mostly pretty hungry like that, but some days (randomly or sometimes related to the weather) they eat very little, so based on that I probably would not have an auto feeder smashing out food all day and night. That said when they want it I sometimes feed 6 or 8 times in a day.

best way is simply feed them as much as they will eat and excersize them, lots of excersize.

Thanks all, I have been feeding them quite a lot over the last week and a half just tying to push the boundaries to see if and of my levels start to jump up but they haven't, the only think that has changed is algae has started to build up but I'm not sure if it's because of the extra food or the extra exposure to sunlight as I had installed an IBC sump at the same time.
I have now covered up the sump to block the light.

Yavimaya you mentioned lots of exercise? I have flood and drain on the IBC FT and have tried to get like a whirlpool going but since it's flood and drain and a square FT it doesn't seem to work all that well

yea its always going to be hard in an IBC.

had this crazy vision of itechnical taking his fish for a run on the beach at TwoRocks

LOL

Next year you can probably put a few more trout in if you're stocking them again.

It is refreshing reading of a reserved stock density but I agree, ramp it up next season

I should have mentioned that the 1400l was connected but in two separate 700l tanks with the trout in one of them, I was trying to display the amount of fish per litre in my post to coincide with the ammonia level.
I have just today picked up 10 silver perch that I have put into the second tank so hopefully all together will get the nitrates going