Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi all,
New here and thought I'd introduce myself.

Only found out about aquaponics because I was selling a pallet-jack on gumtree and the guy who bought told me why he was getting it..his son-in-law had been doing aquaponics for 4 years and when the father-in-law saw how well he's been doing decided to buy a bigger plot of land and upscale!!

So I looked into it myself and must say I'm hooked...the only problem is I don't quite know where to start...im reading the IBC of aquaponics at the moment.

I don't have space issues as I'm renting on a 3 acre block and would like to make this a big as I can eventually (without it getting commercial)..I don't have time issues as my back has meant I had to give up my normal day job as a truck driver, and so my only issue will be the money side of it.

I guess my main questions would be more addressed to those who live in South Aust. or in similar climates as to the type of fish your actually succeeding with, and any ideas on systems which are large but light on the budget.

As an example, the son-in-law mentioned that those swimming pools you can get in target for around $70 are actually very good.

Cheers
Dingo

Kudla... now I had to google that place, learn something new every day. How useful that bit of info is though remains to be seen.
Welcome Dingo.

My 2 bobs worth, stay as simple as possible. Dont get grand ideas that this is piece of cake, it can be bl**y frustrating but also very rewarding and satisfying once its all humming along.
Having had problems when I first started and just about tossing it all in, Id suggest 1 IBC cut so you have fish tank and growbed on top, use goldfish ( cheap and still produce good crap)

IBCs are around Gumtree is your best friend and dont pay over $100. Get food safe.

Hope that helps for starters.

Thx for that Tonzz.

I realized that what I'm really trying to determine is what sort of money will I need to spend for the pumping system etc...i.e. do I need a separate pump for each IBC? Having said this, I still have an Onga pool pump which used to be used at an old place I lived at with an above-ground pool..the pool was pulled down but i got to keep the pump..im wondering if that could be used (irrespective of whether I had one ibc or multiple etc)

Haha, yes as for Kudla, I have been a courier for 20 yrs+ here in Adelaide and had not heard of it until I was looking for a larger place to rent...one of those suburbs no one really knows about and yet its not far from everything...and the fact that its still a rural suburb...absolutely love it

Hi Dingo,

You wouldn't go with the cheap swimming pool IMO. Yes they have been used but you will find the cheap ones tend to decline with time - they are pretty much sold to last one summer..... the pumps are not very efficinet and not much good for AP.
If it was a high quality setup with better quality long term UV stable liner then that might be a reasonable option -> but that = $$.

At that level you could go much better with a decent pond liner and blocks or frame etc, or hole in ground.
All can easily be done temporary - particularly with the pond liner.

If you did go a pool then you could use them temporarily/seasonal (eg. like Colum Black-Byron - he is a SA'er and worth looking up his stuff on this site). He also has videos etc on how to make up your own grow beds that are linked via his thread >> viewtopic.php?f=18&t=19967

Also look here if you are handy with a welder etc. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=27495&hilit=grow+bed+video#p539280
There is a lot you can do with scrap steel and galvanised cyclone fence posts etc.
A lot if this ends up in tips, tip shops and recycling yards.

If I had a limit of cash and was looking at say 4-6 IBC's then that is $400-$500 anyway.
So put that money in to pond liner would work wonders and give you a failry 'portable option' since pond liner can be used for media beds or for DWC setups. People have set up beds at ground level just by cutting aslot and mounding the dirt on the side (eg. BYAP did that for their DWC trial here viewtopic.phpf=1&t=27522&p=539550&hilit=BYAP+DWC+trial#p539550

Pete (Petesake) has done wonders with old bathtubs...viewtopic.php?f=18&t=28231
they make good wicking beds as well as media beds.

Just up to your imagination.


Aside from the cash aspect my advice would be to look at 1500-3000Litres for fish.
If you hunt around gumtree etc you might find a rain water tank or something.
Cut down they work excellent as a fish tank.

Hi Dingo, I'm new on here as well, but for what it's worth I suggest starting with an IBC cut in half. Fish tank sump under the grow bed and a pump in the tank pumping up to the bed. This is cheap and can be expanded easily. Set this up and once it's running you can start to make things like bio and swirl filters. Depending on how much you already know and how much experience you have with plants and fish keeping should determine at what level you start. Keep it simple then expand. Most of all have fun! KE