Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Please upload 3 pictures of your small system with a brief description and a link to your system thread

This is mine, Water pumps from bath tub to top pipe filled with gravel and now drains to lower pipe with no gravel. Works quite well until you need to get roots out

http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum ... .php?t=650

My current system (MKIII) - Consists of 5 x 55 L fish tanks, 3 x 55L growbeds.
Water gravity fed to growbeds, down to sump and then back up to fish tanks. Growing Tilapia, Convict Cichlids, Goldfish and Bream.

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... php?t=1230

-Two gravel filled flood and drain beds
-Constant level duckweed/sprouter channel(misting nozzles for irrigation and oxygenation....not aquaponic water, but pressurized RO)
-Flood reservoir
-~100gal fish tank
-Raising tilapia
Tanks are plywood/2x4 framed with EPDM pond liner.
Grow beds are flooded by means of a flout:
Flout Thread here

Water is pumped up to reservoir faster than desired flooding interval, while excess drains constantly to the duckweed channel, then back to the fish tank.

System thread ...(I will update to current time soon)

Ell's basic system consists of:
one fish tank made from left-over timber and black plastic as a liner - size 200l
pump used is 2,000lph running 24/7
2 * 100l grow beds fitted with bell auto siphons using 40mm piping

This is a flood and drain system whereby the drain cycle is very quick compared to the flood
Ell's basic system

My first Eany Meany System

Consists:
2 x 55 Litre Growbeds
1 x 120 Litre Fish Tub + additional 55 Litre tub joined via hose
1 x 15 Watt Pond Pump
Scoria/Gravel mix fills the Growbeds
12 x Goldfish
Sits on a Galvanised Shelf
1 x Plastic Greenhouse for Winter

Operation:
The small pump distributes water via a plastic pipe riser into plastic spray bars that sits onto top of the media. A standpipe determines the water level and the pump is on a 15 min (pump on/pump off) cycle via a timer.
The system is drained via gravity by hose back into the tank at the bottom.

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... y&start=45

Julien's System #2

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... 2389#62389

My proof of concept has taught me that I will not be satisfied easily

I am really learning a lot from all the fine folk here on the Backyard Aquaponic website. Thanks for being

my system consists of a 55 gallon barrel for a fish tank, a half barrel for a flood tank and split halved barrel for growbeds. 9 medium size but growing goldfish and one small shiner are powering the bacteria.

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... sc&start=0

eco's System

My system consists of 2 150L tubs and a 300L approx. bathtub, I am running a Waterwerks 1000L/hr on continuous flood and drain using bell siphons.

eco's System

75 gal fish tank with koi and goldfish, 4" pvc i think constant flow ntf/dwc, with random ornimental plants

My system is based on an existing fish pond of apporx 5000 litres and containing around 40 mature goldfish. The grow bed is an old laundry trough set to flood and drain every 15 mins each daylight hour. Drain rate is adjustable and uses gravity. A small fountain on the pump helps with aeration and is a good visual sign that the pump is working. Hopefully as the Adelaide summer warms up, the growth rates will improve. Results so far are encouraging but I welcome any comments to improve the system. I am seriously considering purchasing G/B's and a large fish tank for a much larger setup.

my system is a 2.5ft x1.5ft fish tank with 10 goldfish
i used a bit of chipboard to hold the 90mm rainwater pipe in, it doesnt get splashed by water so its doing the job at the moment. in hindsight i should of used plyboard or something a bit tougher.
small gravel with fishtank rocks on top for grow medium
a small pump on a timer that runs for 15 minutes every hour
a bit of aquarium silicon to hold it all together.. no leaks
4 strawberries are doing great.

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... php?t=2260

hookshit, I like your equipment.

Pee Ponics
http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=2534&start=0&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&hilit=pee+ponics

The system itself is just a barrel ponic system with the top bed converted to a flood and drain (by means of bell siphon) media filled bed.

Barrel-ponics info for those who don't know.
http://backyardaquaponics.com/pics/barrel-ponics.pdf

Three barrels needed. One as fish tank (well no fish in pee ponics but there still is a tank there.) One barrel cut in half long ways as grow beds and one barrel as top tank and flush tank.

Fish tank is less than 50 gallons as the barrel is only a 55 gallon barrel. Grow bed volume is about 50 gallons plus the top tank of perhaps 10 gallons.

This system was my learning set up and I decided I would experiment with not only fishless cycling with human urine but I would see how well the system worked long term using aged urine (aged to kill off pathogens and allow urea to convert to ammonia.)

I started off dosing the system every day or every other day with urine but have since set it up with a drip dosing bottle.

When asked about the nutrients for this system (since there are no fish in it) by some one that might think it gross, I usually just tell them it is hydroponics.





Dark color in bottle is due to adding potassium and iron supplement into the bottle with the urine.

My other small system is indoors with two aquarium and five 5 gallon buckets for grow beds dumping into a storage bin sump with pump.
http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=3628

CHIFT PIST (constant height in fish tank, pump in sump tank)

The big tank (they would probably call it 50 gallons even though it would be far less than that even filled to overflowing) has a hole drilled in the bottom so I was able to put a venturi drain in that one. It also has a no holes overflow as does the little 10 gallon aquarium. I do need to keep an eye on the small aquarium since a no holes overflow can get an air bubble and stop working properly.

My plan is to breed tilapia in this system and grow the fry out large enough to go into the main system.

The grow beds are 5 gallon buckets connected together by 1.5 inch PVC. I used uniseals for plumbing through the buckets and fish tank (like top hat grommets.)
http://www.aquaticeco.com/subcategories/829/Uniseals/uniseal/0

There is a 3/4" loop siphon to drain the 5 gallon buckets.

The pump is a cheap little fountain pump from Harbor Freight Tools that I picked up 3 of for less than $20 I think. Some where around 20 watts.

I do have an air stone in each aquarium and the water pump is running on a timer, 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off. That puts the grow beds flooding and draining twice an hour.