Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi everyone, i've been lurking on the forum for a while now and believe that i now have enough info to start my own system. Here is my first design. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Water is pumped from the tank to the top grow bed, from there the water flows through the susbsequent beds back into the tank.
Currently the tank is 250 litres (upgraded soon) and I shall have three to four growbeds of 50 litres each.

Pics to follow shortly.

Welcome to the forum fuds.....

Nice sketchup drawing. You will find that the nutrients in the water will reduce as it gets further down eg as the plants draw the nutrients out, down the cascade, the plants at the last one would have very little. You can solve that by having lower nutrient demanding plants (leafy veges) at the top and the higher demanding plants (fruiting) lower down. Or vise versa.

But filtration and aeration wise it would be very effective.

Thinking the ratio of gb/tank, depending on your loading (SD), to get to 2:1 is the objective the setup looks good!

With TC as well!
C1

Ti'm, i respectfully disagree.

Even the UVI systems with LONG runs were unable to detect nitrate drops along their length

looks great, just provide enough head room for your plants.

it seems to be good, because, the lower ones would get less nutrients, so the plants at the 2 bottom Grow Beds would need to be shorter, less nutrient wanting plants. that sketch up got me intrusting in the simplistic of it, great

-df

Sorry but I've got to go with Steve on this one.... every trial that's every been done to test nutrient availability has pointedly determined that nutrient levels are only miniscuely different between the beginning of a recirculating system and the return point.... no matter how long the distance.

The limiting factor could be more related to flow rate.... ie if your flow rate is so slow that effectively all the plants suck up all the nutrient water then the difference at the return end will be noticable....

But in a normal system, I think the constant recirculating flow rate replenishes the system so that it's basiccally immeasurable.......

Heavy feeding systems can dramatically lower nitrate levels, but not exhaust them totally.... not without you noticing that you needed to up your feed or stocking rates etc.

Even then I suspect that the system would merely compensate and balance the need to the availability... and slow plant growth and/or exhibit symptoms of deficiencies

Flow and feed rates can be varied IMHO to balance everything out.

The problem I see is would enough GB media get wet on each cycle...water will be flowing out of top GB as it enters...how are you going to hold the water in the top one 1st to the flood point before it releases it to the 2nd...etc down the line

Welcome Fuds

Cant you just put an autosiphon in each GB?

Maybe it is worth looking up ideas for ideal flow rates for hydroponic NFT sytems for various sized pipes.

Too fast the plants don't like it , too slow they don't like it.

Stacked growbeds with massive surface area ... I see no real probs!

I think the major prob with long NFT's is the matter of low levels of Dissolved Oxygen in long runs stunting plants. I think that the pergola "flood and drain" ... and the ideas forwarded on that thread regards laying in air diffuser pipe for long runs may help!

Lookee here for discussion ... (We are workin' on it!)


http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum ... ht=pergola


I think if the cascade can meet the DO reguirement , this may work!

Obviously a severe case of please try it out and tell us what happens! (Suck it and see!)

Concept is excellent! Kudos to you!

(I bet 2 bucks it will work!)

I have an air stone in the tank where the pump is .Theres a strawberry farm near healsville it has 20 meter nift running down a hill maybbe the speed picks up do

Thanks for the positive input.
I am going to try using autosiphons in each bed. That way each bed shall effectively become its own flood and drain system. (that theory is correct?)

cheers.

Isn't that because they were DWC channels? I think Tim is right if this is flood and drain type of watering, but DWC it might not matter....

measuring nutes at all stages of my system no noticable difference, with flood and drain. I suspect if you have enuogh nutes to grow plants, the system design will be fine and you won't notice any diffrence between top and bottom growbeds.
the only thing with the autosyphons, and I love the idea, will be getting your pipe sizes to match the inflow at each level. A challenge for ya!
welcome fuds, another south aussie!

Simple solution run the water in from the bottom and exit at the top.

you can always remove the challenge and use loop auto sypons