Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Our little system. True to advice from here the solar 12 volt pump burnt out after only one week! We now have a mains pump. We found the most gorgeous frog in there this morning. We also have a few fish from our pond swimming around to eat the wigglies. I bought expanded clay in the end. I got it from Marcus at 'Hydro Hill' Hydroponics in Jandakot and was only $27 for 45 litre bags. I got 4 bags. I recommend people check out this shop as I was very impressed by price and the excellent customer service : )

That's real schmick Rue, nice and clean, simply and tidy,
Regards

What sort of regulator/controller were you using between the PV panel and the pump?

That looks like a Spotted-thighed Frog (Litoria cyclorhyncha). Nice bush setting you have there

Thanks!
we weren't using a regulator : (

That would explain why it burnt out- too high a voltage. Even a "12V" panel can put out 21V, which is why they need regulating for most pumps, unless specifically designed to handle the higher voltage.

We finally have yabbies! Johnh brought some over to us. Thanks John ! I slowly added some water from the tub into theirs over 24 hours to help them adapt then gently scooped them and their water into the tub. They seem to be coping OK. Its hard to tell with yabbies' because they hide inside their little dens- in our system these are plastic cut off pipe approx. 6" long. We are feeding them chicken pellets for now as were not sure what to feed them that is good for the system and safe for human consumption (via the plants and eventually the yabbies') and we have pellets already. I planted out the grow beds this afternoon. I went for plants I have had few problems with at our place and are unlikely to fall over. I purchased seedlings from the store to make it easy for us to get it started. As advised on the net I washed the soil off the roots in a solution of water and sea sol before planting them into the clay pebbles. I will try and grow from seed in situ once we are more competent at managing the system. The ph has gone from 7 to 8 since adding the yabbies : /. Im hoping the plants will take and the ph will come down. Just praying now the yabbies and the plants will survive. Just about everyone I talk to lose all their stock at least once when they start up: 0 We also have some fish from our pond in the tub. They have been in there for a couple weeks and doing well. They are very resilient. I checked my garden journal and I think these are red cloud fish we bought a while back.

Neat looking system. Well done.

Well there is good and there is bad. The yabbies' seem to be eating eacj other and there are less than we started with. Very distressing. I have been feeding them Marron pellets and they love these and so do the fish. I have upped the food in the hope that this will stop the cannibalism. Following suggestions on the forum I have added some shade cloth and terracotta pieces to make more hide outs and will put some more pipes in too. I was considering isolating one of the yabbies' who has grown really big, and I suspect is eating the others, but after getting some advice have held off and will see if they can sort themselves out with some added hideouts and food.The plants haven't died but they are not growing and I suspect they are not getting enough nutrients despite spraying them every few days with sea sol. I have added more fish from our pond to try and get some crap happening for the plants to filter. I love our little system. The bees love the running water and drink from the taps all day long, the sound of the fill and drain I find relaxing. It might be my imangination but it seems like there are more insects around since adding the little bathtub system to our garden. Just wish I was more competent with keeping the yabbies' alive!