Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Howdy everyone. I am a wee bit tardy posting this thread about my aquaponic system. Based on the barrelponic system by Travis Hughey in South Carolina, USA. My system was started about May 14, 2007, consisting of one 55 gallon barrel for a fish tank, a half barrel for a flood tank, and two barrel halves for the pea gravel growbeds. Powered by a small fountain pump the water is pumped from the fish tank to the flood tank where upon reaching a set level it flows into a counterweight bottle which triggers a toilet flapper via a cable and pulleys. The water then floods both growbeds and flows back into the fish tank.

I have had a few problems along the way. 1) Flooding -torrential rain flooded fish tank causing loss of fishies- fixed that by installing overflow on fish tank and run excess to honeysuckle, 2) power failure (pump came unplugged)
3) Clogs- most often the problem had to do with clogging of some sort. Once it was from wood chips lodging in the pumps impeller. (cover your system before cutting wifes shade tree down )
another was from algae.

Currently growing some beans, they are over 2 meters and still growing, cucumbers are forming fruit though still showing stress from being transplanted during the extreme heat of day. I also have some basil planted. I removed the tomato suckers that I got to root well in the aquaponic system and put them out in the mud garden. Yes I said mud garden as it still has not dried to the point that it can be worked. I also planted some onions and asters today. Marjoram came up but is not doing very well at all.

Started the system with 2 dozen shiners and when I only had five remaining I added 1 dozen goldfish. Currently there are 9 goldies and 1 shiner. The last few fish deaths were due to stress. No losses since June 1st

Travis is My hero!
Well him and EB!
Welcome DRD

These photos were took just before the system was started up.

As I mentioned earlier I did have a problem from wood chips entering my system when I cut down my wifes shade tree. She kinda peed me off one day when I said I was going to go look at some greenhouses a fella was selling. Yeah, she said "where in tarnation ya think ya gonna put a greenhouse at with all the shade we gots?"

Open up aquaponic toolbox reach in and grab chainsaw

Sun shiny now in the backyard even though I did not get the greenhouse.

Here are some pictures right after the tree came down on June 7th. Tomato suckers being rooted in the left bed. I tried to root a honeysuckle branch that I broke in that bed also but had no luck. In the right bed I have beans, cukes and basil planted from seed. System is almost fully cycled at this point.

Notice the wood chips in the grow beds in these photos? Yes they did wreck havoc

I blamed the tree felling on bubba I ain't no George Washington

Hi DRD,
Tidy set up you have there, Love the use of chainsaw and toes ( don't mix the two together though, could get nasty)

Thanks for the welcome John. Been watching your thread since the beginning of last winter. I am interested in building a greenhouse to grow year round also. Might be another year before I am at that point however.

Still I am having a great time learning from all of you. So thanks
These photos were taken today:

Nice setup, so the beans are up to the roof now?
(oh and i see your toes times 2)

Edit: oops too slow, see you have already uploaded the new pics

Thanx Gnash I will keep the toes and chains apart

Yes Daniel they are about a foot over the gutter

those toes were not blatant but this one was

I am ready to build on some more soon. I would like to find some IBC's around here.

Awesome!

Hey DRD, you've certainly done your homework.... noted the use of chainsaw and toes as have others .... :d

Looks good mate and the beanstalk is well and truely on it's way...... pity you had to sell the cow though .....

Hi DRD, good to see another barrelpoinics system.. How has your pully system been working, no problems? When I set up my barrel system I had a few issues with that side of things working properly, my flush valve wouldn't close properly all the time.. Good to see a system that 's working well..

Oh Janet Wow one of my idols

and joel double triple wow
I covered my flood tank with shade cloth~ I think the algae would really cause a problem with the valve shutting down properly.

I aim to use a totally different approach next time. With several fish tanks serving numerous beds draining to one sump~ the sump pumps to all tanks and individual valves control the amount of flow to each fish tank.

& rupe~ the cow ~ I made into jerkey the best you ever tasted