Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Here's the thought process:

1. Need to catch rainwater, can't afford a tank.
2. Have space for a, say, 3m x 3m x 1m deep pond (9000 litres)
3. Have 3 goslings (soon to be geese) and intend to get 2-3 ducks
4. Have an interest in aquaponics.

Combining points 1 thru 4:
1. Install rainwater-fed pond of said dimensions
2. Allow ducks and geese to swim (and defecate) in pond
3. Install pump in bottom of pond and growbed (growbed can be contained in the mound created by the excavation for the pond).
4. Go with conventional flood & drain, and see if (a) the plants enjoy the waterfowl-generated nutrients, and (b) the water remains clear enough to introduce fish
5. See if the fish get eaten by the waterfowl ???

Any thoughts, people?

Ducks will eat your fish. Rearing poultry in cages above fish ponds is the traditional way in most asian countries. Been done that way since Adam. Top idea, low tech, effective.

duck poo does not clear from the water easily, it takes a bloody long time to clear.
There is also some issue (not sure where) of the safety of duck poo with regard to food.
Plants lurve duck poo and will grow prolifically. You would also have to fence any growbeds from the birds or they will eat everything in sight.

Could you put reo mesh halfway down the pond so the fish can escape the ducks by swimming to the bottom? Or alternatively just use catfish?

Hrmmm...

May not be such a brilliant idea after all.

Hang on, don't they grow rice along with ducks in Asia?

Yes, they do grow rice with ducks in Asia, but the ducklings are introduced to the rice paddies at just the right time so the rice is too tough for the ducklings to eat. The ducks eat weeds/bugs/loaches from the paddie. I have a whole book on it "The Power of Duck", I think is the title.

Sweet, i thought all waterfowl had short digestive tracks hence most of what they excrete is actually straight proteins, etc. So id imagine fish would love it.

But wouldnt there be alot of undisolved solids mucking up the water?

quote: "You don't have a insect problem, you have a duck deficiency"

This is what Jaymie was saying - it doesn't clear from the water very quickly. I almost wonder if that's a problem with the green crap dissolving in the water and flowing straight through the growbed medium.

I'm not interested in caging my birds, it's free range or nothing here.

Okay, how about this. 2 ponds. One enclosed for the fish (kept away from the ducks). This has its water pumped onto the growbed, from the growbed it flows into the duck pond, and from there it overflows back into the fish pond.

Hi
I am trying a similar system using only ducks with no fish, and a seperate GB. I have set up the infrastructure and am working on the levels. Will post more soon.