# Would You Like Some Fish With Your Hops.



## pdilley (15/8/09)

Fish, Hops, and a nice hot oven :icon_cheers: 

I am wondering if anyone is using aquaponic systems yet to grow hops at home and would like to share their setup and hints and tips.

I've been reading about this and think it would be a go, just so long as I plant some tomatoes for the wife as well.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about these are extremely efficient water systems which is good for Australia and are said to grow plants like mad while the soil planted ones are wilting in the sun --  and a website is here.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## sinkas (15/8/09)

_"tomato's"_


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## Online Brewing Supplies (15/8/09)

sinkas said:


> _"tomato's"_


Yeah thats what I though.
GB


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## Fourstar (15/8/09)

Gryphon Brewing said:


> Yeah thats what I though.
> GB



_"Thought"_

:lol:


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## Bribie G (15/8/09)

I was passing the local fruit stand on the Bribie Road yesterday and was horrified to see blackboards signs every hundred metres on the approach displaying items such as _Melons, Local Bananas, Avocadoes_ etc. 

Whatever happened to the compulsory Fruitos' punctuation of _Melon's, Pine's_ etc. Bloody fruitos are going yuppie.

Then I saw relieved to see _potatos. _

WRT the hops, probably would work but according to the climate. There was a guy growing hops on a verandah half way up a Gold Coast hi rise but I think the high winds smashed them up. :blink:


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## Online Brewing Supplies (15/8/09)

Fourstar said:


> _"Thought"_
> 
> :lol:


A large bottle of Barley wine will make you spel funy.
Gb


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## Fourstar (15/8/09)

BribieG said:


> I was passing the local fruit stand on the Bribie Road yesterday and was horrified to see blackboards signs every hundred metres on the approach displaying items such as _Melons, Local Bananas, Avocadoes_ etc.
> Whatever happened to the compulsory Fruitos' punctuation of _Melon's, Pine's_ etc. Bloody fruitos are going yuppie.
> Then I saw relieved to see _potatos. _



('s) are a pet hate of SWMBO. When we go out for dinner and she tells waiting staff that they need to change their specials boards, menus etc as unless you 'own' something it should never end with 's. e.g. Sam's Special pizza = correct. Pizza with tomato's, three cheese's served with a side of mash potato's = incorrect. I never hear the end of it!




Gryphon Brewing said:


> A large bottle of Barley wine will make you spel funy.
> Gb


excuses excuses


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## raven19 (15/8/09)

Back on topic BP, I dont see why it would not work, if you feed them nutrients, plenty of water (last summer dried out my pots a fair bit...) then the root system should grow plenty. You may still struggle to get a crop of flowers in the first year though...

Cant hurt to try...


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## Bribie G (15/8/09)

How would the rhizome go immersed in liquid however, would it be susceptible to rot of some sort? A rhizome is basically a swollen root such as a sweet potato (regular potato is actually derived from a stem that buries itself underground but similar principle being a starch reserve 'organ') and I hate to think of what sweet potatoes and regular potatoes would look like after a few months immersed in liquid.


Off topic the worst abuse of the apostrophe would have to be its and it's. The only valid use of it's is a contraction of 'it is'. For example It's a bit cold today. The possessive is 'its', for example: The fox bristles its coat because it's a bit cold today. You often see inappropriate use of it's on websites that should know better.


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## raven19 (15/8/09)

Fair point, if the water is stagnant, I reckon there could be issues, moving liquid may alleviate this somewhat?


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## Tony M (15/8/09)

BribieG said:


> How would the rhizome go immersed in liquid however, would it be susceptible to rot of some sort? A rhizome is basically a swollen root such as a sweet potato (regular potato is actually derived from a stem that buries itself underground but similar principle being a starch reserve 'organ') and I hate to think of what sweet potatoes and regular potatoes would look like after a few months immersed in liquid.


I grow a bit of stuff in hydroponics and you can relax in the knowledge that the roots grow in a media such as perlite that is just kept moist by flooding with the nutrient then immediately draining several times a day. I grow in a glasshouse and whilst this gives me good protection from coastal gales, I cant grow anything higher than about seven feet. I would be interested to know if hops can be trained to grow within those boundarys. Any hops I have seen all seem to grow about 20 feet high.


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## pdilley (15/8/09)

From across the pond theres a guy who has put cuttings of hops in the fish tank submerged partially under water and they rooted and grew so he squashed the theory that you need to dry root cuttings. I'm not sure about rhizomes as I've only started reading about it. 

The aquaponics mob is headquartered in Queensland so you see lucious growth from the systems. There is only a tiny trickle of water and effluent going into the substrate.

The substrate is puffed rice balls -- well made from clay and not rice but now you have a good picture in your mind what it is. It helps hold the plant and keep it upright while the plant sends down roots to the moisture. 

What I don't know is if this puffed clay substrate is long life or breaks down and needs to be renewed.

I'm also wary of all the leafy plants in photographs as anything in Queensland can grow well and I'd like to hear from someone that does in in dry climates in the rest of Australia.

You also get red worms that grow and multiply in the substrate. They eat the fish crap and in turn crap out more readily uptake able crap. You also get bacteria that eat fish pee growing in the substrate and it breaks it down into more uptake able nitrates. Plants bloom with no adding hydroponic chemicals and fish boom with cleaner water and less issues of those that are farm raised.

And the statement that it is the most water conserving method of growing plants got my interest. You just add a tiny electric bill for the tiny pump that pumps water to the tol of the plant bed and gracvity drains it through and back down where it pours back into the fish tank.

Aparently the Egyptians did this thousands of years ago and only now "modern man" is rediscovering the technology.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## kirem (16/8/09)

I have an aquaponics system. it is a 500L IBC that gravity drains from the bottom through a half 22gallon blue drum (like a PVPP drum) cut down the middle (the longest way) and mounted in a frame to form a tub.

The tub is full of blue gravel, but I have since sourced the correct clay balls and once the garlic is harvested I will be changing to the clay balls.

the water from the IBC enters the grow tub at the top of one end and drains from the bottom of the other end into a sump with a pond pump that pumps back in over the top through a little plastic sprinkler to aerate the water. I also run an aerator, it is the aerator I bought from craftbrewer that I used to use as a yeast aerator. I adjust the flow from the gravity feed using an irrigation valve 

The IBC is wrapped in teatree fencing type stuff, to provide some sun protection and to assist with the the look of it/missus complaining. I have a little feeding whole cut out the top of the IBC to feed to fish/yabbies. I can't be sure but it did actually rain here once  and the rain soaked through the teatree and into the fish water and it may have been coincidence but I lost my fish, the yabbies survived.

I grow murray cod and yabbies in my fish tank and will be trying hops in the grow bed this year.

I live in Mildura ie almost desert.

apart from garlic I grow herbs in mine - parsley, thyme, sage, rosemary, chives and basil in summer. I don't bother with tomatoes as a few Italian mates spoil me with vegies from their garden.

The IBC should probably be matched to another 2 grow beds of the same type that I currently have and they will grow some hops this spring/summer.

Once setup they work very well and I only need to feed the fish/yabbies (could be automated) and top the water up every 2-3 weeks in the middle of summer.


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## pdilley (16/8/09)

Thank you for that kirem. I wonder why the fish would be lost from rain. Is the bubbler needed as in without it do the fesh act starved for oxygen? Yabbies sound great and a big plus. I have not had them since in the Wimera. The people you are sourcing the clay from, are they local or a national mob? And xan you preorder bacteria to seed a brand new setup?

Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## kirem (16/8/09)

picture tells a thousand words.

The cellar manager at work sourced the clay balls from a hydro joint in Gawler SA

I know people that have purchased form this guy in the Adelaide Hills;

http://www.thefishfarm.com.au/Default.asp?c=162544

View attachment 29778


View attachment 29779


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## PostModern (16/8/09)

Just as this is the place to come to for everything you need to know about beer, these guys know all there is to know about backyard aquaponics.


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## winkle (16/8/09)

Very interesting, I suspect that SHMBO will rue the day you posted this Brewer Pete.
Kirem, it wasn't tannins leaching from the teetree that carked the fish?


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## himzol (16/8/09)

I run a flood and drain system with my aquaponics, pump continously and use auto syphons to drain.

Haven't tried hops though I am about to put in a small rhizome to see how it goes. This will probably have to be in it's own dedicated container as root-balls in these systems tend to go bunta. 

Currently have trout in my system, with Silver perch during the summer.


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## Vlad the Pale Aler (16/8/09)

I am using a crude aquaponics system for hops. It is a 3 tier water feature with goldfish in the bottom tank, the water is pumped up to a top tank and then cascades down through he second tank to the bottom and around it goes.
I had basil, yes it was, in it last year which grew into a tree, so fingers crossed the hops will do the same.
The rhizome, Chinook, is planted in pea gravel and has water pumped across it 4 times a day for 1 hour, and is now showing a few shoots poking through.

I would post a picture but now that AHB requires me to upload it elsewhere etc. etc..... too hard.


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## absinthe (17/8/09)

i have an aquaponics system.. and have never had any luck with anything with a large root stock.. but im interested to try hops as the rate of growth in the aquapnoics is HUGE, almost twice of whats in the ground..


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## pdilley (18/8/09)

I just found a guy at work that is into hydroponics. 

He told me about some crazy stuff. A large fish tank with a box on the side breeding insects, there is an escape tubing that goes over the fish tank and points down just above the water line. Escaping insects fall into the pool and are eaten by the fish. Free fish food! (well almost).

Lots of fog up here, so fog collectors are just canvas stretched out and litres of water come off it, even your roof when it gets foggy. Thats free water that can be harvested to fall into your fish tank and top up the water free of charge! Canvas is used on sun shades which are over most hydroponic setups so you simply need to tap your existing setup to harvest the collected water into the fish pool or into a water reservoir.

Man I'm excited about this, he also has some handbooks and newsletters he loaned me to read.

Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## Tony M (24/8/09)

Tony M said:


> I cant grow anything higher than about seven feet. I would be interested to know if hops can be trained to grow within those boundarys. Any hops I have seen all seem to grow about 20 feet high.


Have just answered my own question. I was going for an early morning ramble along a country lane about ten miles outside Prague this morning, breakfasting off wild plums and apples, when I came across some hops growing wild along your stock standard four strand wire fence. They were doing very well with bunches of flowers everywhere. When rizomes become available again, it looks like vegies are out of the glasshouse and hops are in. Now all I gotta do is dig a big fish pond!


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## ausdb (24/8/09)

Tony M said:


> Have just answered my own question. I was going for an early morning ramble along a country lane about ten miles outside Prague this morning, breakfasting off wild plums and apples,


Hey Tony you don't like making us jealous at all do you? next thing the copious amounts of incredibly cheap czech beer you have been quaffing is going to get a mention too


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## Tony M (25/8/09)

I tell you mate, when I first started coming here 11? years ago, a pint was about 80c and is now about $2.20. A pack of pipe tobacco was around $3.50 and is now $12.00. The country is going to rack and ruin. How do they expect an old pensioner to swan about the world if they keep doing that.


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## Scruffy (25/8/09)

Not mine, but a mates system; the stuff is all solar powered (well, not strictly true). All the water is rainwater... (well there's some truth here...), they grow duck weed for the fish in the run off/hospital/breeding tanks (they're behind his chicken shed)... they also make their own sour dough pizza bases that they cook in their pizza oven... ...Hmmm

Fish tanks:






Grow beds (some of them):


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## tcraig20 (25/8/09)

Fourstar said:


> ('s) are a pet hate of SWMBO. When we go out for dinner and she tells waiting staff that they need to change their specials boards, menus etc as unless you 'own' something it should never end with 's. e.g. Sam's Special pizza = correct. Pizza with tomato's, three cheese's served with a side of mash potato's = incorrect. I never hear the end of it!



Taking things back offtopic:


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## Mantis (13/3/10)

Bringing this thread up again as a few folks are very interested in this stuff
Would be interesting to try to grow some dwarf tomatoes in an aquaponic system

I will be heading up to Swan Hill to get a 500L aquaculture tank in the upcoming school hols and will start from there. 
Got over 22000L of tank water that I could use for water changes, topups etc
Will probably start with straight aquaculture with filters and water changes but can see getting into aquaponics gradually as a real goer


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## Kai (13/3/10)

BribieG said:


> How would the rhizome go immersed in liquid however, would it be susceptible to rot of some sort? A rhizome is basically a swollen root such as a sweet potato (regular potato is actually derived from a stem that buries itself underground but similar principle being a starch reserve 'organ') and I hate to think of what sweet potatoes and regular potatoes would look like after a few months immersed in liquid.



I've nothing really to add on controlling rot, but I will say in my experience hop rhizomes will start growing in a wet paper bag in the fridge. Hardy little buggers.


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## pdilley (13/3/10)

Good timing as I just finished watching the how to DVD on aquaponics and just handed it over the fence to the neighbour who is extremely interested.

It's amazing. Watching cabbages grow in only 5 weeks and 24 days for lettuce to grow. In fact a lot of plants you only need one of them because they are so prolific. Tomatoes growing up to 12 months continually fruiting, etc.

What I've seen are both gravel systems and puffed clay ball systems and the clay is so much easier to work but also more costly to setup. Ratios are 1:1 and in intensive operations can go up to 1:3 fish tank to grow beds.

Smaller setups are possible but the smallest fish tank recommended is 1000 litres. Smaller tanks heat up more during the day having more temperature swings and the pH can swing more widely in smaller tanks.

Plants go in on day #1 so it's plants from the get go. They live off of seasol in the water which provided a small bit of amonia to let the two bacteria grow and develop. It only takes 6 to 8 weeks to get the bacteria going enough to intoduce the fish. Daily water checks after introduction for a short while to see how well or not the bacteria build up as the fish build up. But soon the system locks into perfect balance and not much testing unless fish die etc.

Plants not only grow very fast but also all year long. Their is not soil rest as there is no soil. The nutrients are there year round and never have to worry about crop rotation. Only worry about mass plantings as you want to stagger things so you always have balance of plants in play and plants in harvest. Easy with lettuce as you pick a few leaves from each bush at a go leaving the plant. Harvesting big plants like the cabbage is easy because you immediately replant in it's place.

I've seen the syphon system and I'm sure I could build them from plumbing parts from the hardware store.

Low wattage pump is run all the time and another with four air stones. Electricity is minimal and it's been calculate that for those northers who can raise barrumundi that fish purchase plus electricity plus water plus fish feed will cost you about $6 for one kilo of fish. Very very inexpensive compared to supermarkup stores like coles or woolies or even the local fish monger.

That said perch are favoured becuase they are also herbavores. Toss in the mountains of lettuce you can't eat and your neighbours are chock full of freebies from your setup and off they go nibbling it clean. Carnivores you need to spend a bit more on your setup with multiple staging tanks so you can sort fish by size every few months as they start eating each other as soon as one grows faster than the rest.

Besides the mains pump, a boat bulge pump on battery backup covers any electric mains outage. It just pumps water out and into tank splashig and oxygenating because you care more for the fish which can start dying off after 45 minutes of no oxygenation.

Fish density is one per 10 litres so 1000 litres is 100 fish. Seems like a lot until you find out they grow different rates and the piggy feeders get sent to the BBQ first letting others shoot up in size to take the piggies places.

I'm a bit too far south for the best eating fish, the sleepy cod and probably too hot in summers for the southern Vic fish like trout so I'd probably have to look at one of the perches like silver perch or Murray cod though the latter is the extra tank setup as they eat each other.

The best fish if all for highest stockig density and hardiest tank fish is tilapia which is just highly illegal in Australia but fine in all the other countries.

I can't imagine what it would do for hops!

Mints a monster out of control so it's a never plant in aquaponics setup plant. Everything else seems fair game!

Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## Mantis (13/3/10)

I am confused as to what sorts of fish I can try to raise in a tank in my shed.
Not knowing what temps the tank will fluctuate between is not helping LOL

I will get the tank and set it up, get it cycled with some goldfish from the pond and see what temps it holds, with daily water changes from the rainwater tanks


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## pdilley (13/3/10)

Silver Perch seem the hardiest. You need a cover to keep fresh water overfilling your beds and tank and washing fish away onto the floor.

Trout needs water under 23C as once there or over they die.

Other fish that have wide temperature ranges can still live at lower temps sometimes down to 5-7C but don't feed much and grow very little.

The big five are Jade Perch, Silver Perch, Murray Cod, Barramundi and the king of taste the Sleepy Cod.

You can keep all the fish in Vic just need to add in fish tank heater to keep the water warm enough during the winter.

I'll have to wait for the DVD back to get the information but I'm sure google will tell you all the temperature ranges.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## litre_o_cola (14/3/10)

Great thread, I am planning to set up twin tanks in a shade house near the patio for this very reason (shade house will be 3.4 x 12m).
I have previously grown fruit and vegies in a flood drain system using pearl/verl mix but after having probs with drains and blockages will be going to expanded clay, yes it is more expensive but it is easier to handle and clean (also you can get it at Bunnings).
I was only going to use koi for ornamental reasons but the silver perch idea has got me rethinking my plan as some fresh fish would go well stuffed with home grown tomatoes and herbs.


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## kirem (14/3/10)

a few pics of my updated system. when I emptied the water I found these little white yabbies in the bottom of the tank

View attachment 36331


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## kirem (14/3/10)

proud mum or dad, I didn't grab this one to sex it from memory this is dad. I found mum dead elsewhere

View attachment 36335


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## kirem (14/3/10)

1000L IBC Fish Tank
View attachment 36336


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## kirem (14/3/10)

Grow Bed and Sump

View attachment 36337


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## kirem (14/3/10)

Sump pump
View attachment 36339


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## bonj (14/3/10)

fun fun fun!

Since kirem steered me towards this on the chat one day, I now have grand plans for an aquaponic system with redclaw... I'm just a little stumped on how to match the pump flow with for a flood and drain system (probably using auto-siphons)... and matching the fish tank to growbed sizes. Anybody have any magic algorithms?


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## kenworthy (14/3/10)

Gryphon Brewing said:


> A large bottle of Barley wine will make you spel funy.
> Gb


one too many tomatos


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## kirem (14/3/10)

Bonj said:


> fun fun fun!
> 
> Since kirem steered me towards this on the chat one day, I now have grand plans for an aquaponic system with redclaw... I'm just a little stumped on how to match the pump flow with for a flood and drain system (probably using auto-siphons)... and matching the fish tank to growbed sizes. Anybody have any magic algorithms?



I have a sump pump that does about 100L/min

so from the bottom of the fish tank I run a pipe that feeds the grow bed by gravity. I have an irrigation valve that I set so the grow bed doesn't over fill but does drain. Inlet is maybe 1.5-2in, outlet is probably 0.5in. I just throttle the inlet to get the flood level I want, trial and error. this changes as I lose water, but is good enough

The grow bed drains into a sump with an auto float sump pump back into the fish tank

So if I lose power the worst that will happen is the the fish tank will gravity drain to the height of the grow bed. from 1000L down to maybe 800L.

so for my system, the trick is to gravity feed the grow the bed and be able to adjust the gravity flow rate and have a fast pump as the sump to return it to the fish tank.

Aquaponics is awesome and very easy really


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## kirem (14/3/10)

just read Pete's posts, he covers just about all the basics very clearly. Great posts

Dissolved oxygen is key, try to splash the water at as many places as possible

the fish ratio of 1:10 is when everything is working spot on, no room for error etc. but I can't eat or give away 100 fish, so I halve it. I normally grow murray cod, and the little ones or slow growers get eaten by larger fish, but I work my fish number based on this.

I normally have three grow beds, one of which is dedicated to herbs and I have grown garlic in that as well

Aquaponics is a lot like brewing, the basics are the basics, but many ways to skin a cat.

I started out with a foam broccoli box as a grow bed sitting over the top of my fish tank. The fish tank is now a grow bed! The foam box had holes punched in the bottom so it just drained freely. Once I got started I worked on ways to make it work better and then just got bigger and better. Looking at what was freely or cheaply available and what I needed to spend money on. I still need to put more aeration in the system, it is the most crucial thing.

In my experience, most species can tolerate higher temps, it is just at higher temps, higher DO is harder/if not impossible. So spend some money on aeration and higher temps (within reason) are less of concern.


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## bonj (14/3/10)

I have read Pete's info, and there's some great stuff there. I am still a little confused about the fish tank to grow bed ratio. the 1:1 and 1:3 ratios don't explain the ratio of capacity... how much grow bed volume for that 1000L tank size?


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## pdilley (14/3/10)

Bonj said:


> fun fun fun!
> 
> Since kirem steered me towards this on the chat one day, I now have grand plans for an aquaponic system with redclaw... I'm just a little stumped on how to match the pump flow with for a flood and drain system (probably using auto-siphons)... and matching the fish tank to growbed sizes. Anybody have any magic algorithms?



Matching is so easy you will kick yourself for how easy it is 


With your sump pump you connect the tank water to the grow bed.

But in between in the plumbing you have a T-connector and the extra connection goes to a valve that regulates water flow. This valve simply dumps water on the other side back into the fish tank. This A. Oxygenates the fish tank (you can never have enough oxygen, once the O2 levels are saturated excess is never absorbed). and B. cuts the pump flow rate into the actual grow bed down.

You take your watch and you time how long it takes for the water to fill the grow bed and reach the top of the exit pipe starting the siphon. If this time is less than 12 minutes your flow rate is too fast so you open the valve on the T-connector more and let more water escape back into the fish tank. You then time it again until you reach about 12 minutes then you have "dialled" your system in.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## pdilley (14/3/10)

Bonj said:


> I have read Pete's info, and there's some great stuff there. I am still a little confused about the fish tank to grow bed ratio. the 1:1 and 1:3 ratios don't explain the ratio of capacity... how much grow bed volume for that 1000L tank size?



Shout out to Kirem, love the yabbies! I was always thinking what about those Tassy ones they fly in to posh restaurants live, just slip a few in your tank and have big buggers on the plate as well as fish.

Ok 1:1 ratio.

You have a 1000 Litre fish tank. You must put on 1000 litres worth of grow beds.

If your grow beds are 250 litre capacity each, you put on 4 of them. If you have 300 litre capacity grow beds you put on 3 of them (close enough to 1:1).

Ok 1:3 Ratio.

You have a 1000 Litre fish tank. You must put on 3000 litres worth of grow beds.

If your grow beds are 250 litre capacity each, you put on 12 of them. If you have 300 litre capacity grow beds you put on 10 of them (spot on this time round).




The golden depth ratio with Aquaponics is 30cm deep beds. Smaller will work but not be as productive as a minimum of 30cm depth.



The other rule is nutrient rich fish water grows algae, and oh boy does it! - So the algae rule is you make sure you fill your grow media in a few cm above the water level where it enters into the exit tube creating the syphon. That way nutrient rich water never gets direct contact with the fish water and your system remains algae clean. This is also the reason why your fish tank is mostly covered from direct sunlight.



When I said cover your grow beds that was just a carport roof, or if going the whole hog putting out a greenhouse frame and poly tarp roof to direct the rainfall off the grow beds where it will overfill the fish tank when the beds flood and drain.



P.S. I am not sure if I'm getting my DVD back from the neighbour 



Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## bonj (14/3/10)

I was thinking of some elaborate bypass system, but you have put it so simply.... I just kicked myself in the head (well, I would have if I was that flexible). Any magic numbers for pump flow ratings? I plan on building a simple system, but with the possibility of expansion. Probably start with the minimum you recommend (1000L).



Brewer Pete said:


> Matching is so easy you will kick yourself for how easy it is
> 
> 
> With your sump pump you connect the tank water to the grow bed.
> ...


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## bonj (14/3/10)

Pete, you are a total legend! Thanks for clearing the ratios up. I had read it as 1x fish tank to 1 growbed (of unknown volumes)... but now I know you were talking about the volume it is much clearer.


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## pdilley (14/3/10)

Pumps in the video with the full starter kits range from 3000 litres per hour to 4800 litres per hour. 


The guy who made the video sells all his kits so he spent quite a bit of time in the video promoting his gear but he also showed how to do it with bath tubs although their small 300 litre or so size makes them less than ideal for stability he still shows you how to do it. EDIT: Model 3000/4000/5000 was used in his kits on the video.

Have a butchers at his products he put together for an idea of the the ranges and sizes of gear:

http://www.aquaponics.net.au/



Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## pdilley (14/3/10)

Bonj said:


> Pete, you are a total legend! Thanks for clearing the ratios up. I had read it as 1x fish tank to 1 growbed (of unknown volumes)... but now I know you were talking about the volume it is much clearer.



1 fish to 10 litres of water is the amount of fish you stock in the system.

so 100 fish for your 1000 litre tank or 200 fish for a 2000 litre tank, etc.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## bonj (14/3/10)

Brewer Pete said:


> Have a butchers at his products he put together for an idea of the the ranges and sizes of gear:
> 
> http://www.aquaponics.net.au/


I have checked that site out, and they're nice and close to me too... but the kit systems are a little pricey.


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## wakkatoo (14/3/10)

I was only just talking to my wife about the location of my aquaponics system about an hour ago. Jump on here and look what I find!!

Brewer Pete- what dvd have you got? Google has brought up a couple of aussie possibilities.


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## pdilley (14/3/10)

Kits are pricey! He sells D.I.Y. kits so you can get 1000 litre tanks for $500 or so. You can also supply all your own gear sourced from all over. Just using the kit as the guide, the top end has a 2300 litre fish tank and 200 litre fingerling tank. Four 585 litre grow beds and can handle a total of eight 585 litre grow beds. Includes and 8000 lph pump (assume its for the main tank) and a 6000 lph pump (assume its for the fingerling tank which empties splashing and oxygenating the main tank.

These are turnkey systems so we see the end of the spectrum with these and everyone reusing what is available or building there own systems as with Kirems setup. They're all good and cater to different folks.


Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## pdilley (14/3/10)

wakkatoo said:


> I was only just talking to my wife about the location of my aquaponics system about an hour ago. Jump on here and look what I find!!
> 
> Brewer Pete- what dvd have you got? Google has brought up a couple of aussie possibilities.



From here:
http://www.aquaponics.net.au/dvd.htm

Aquaponics Made Easy 
Murray Hallam. 
33.00 plus post

I also have although not from here:
Food Forest
Permaculture
Geoff Lawton.
33.00 plus post

That last video blew me away. Read reviews were people even cried, powerful stuff.. makes me want to give it a go one day.

and this one:
Harvesting Water
Permaculture
Geoff Lawton.
33.00 plus post.

just missing this one:
Permaculture Design
Geoff Lawton.
33.00 plus post



Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## wakkatoo (14/3/10)

Kirem - how do you access the inside of your IBC fish tank? Couldn't quite see how in the pic

edit - my bad, just enlarged the photo and saw the access hatch you cut


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## kirem (21/3/10)

One of the inhabitants.

View attachment 36499


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## litre_o_cola (22/3/10)

kirem said:


> One of the inhabitants.
> 
> View attachment 36499



Looks great!
How long did it take to get to that size?


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## kirem (22/3/10)

litre_o_cola said:


> Looks great!
> How long did it take to get to that size?



maybe 2-3 years. Murray cod stop feeding and growing during winter, if I warmed my tank I could get them to that size in maybe 1.5-2.5 years. That is one of the bigger ones and will probably be on a bbq soon.

The bigger cod and barra like eat the smaller ones


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## Mantis (23/3/10)

Well its started. I have the tank and the canister filter and am waiting on the pump

Tank and 30L filter





Sump outlet




Tank interior with conical bottom to the sump





Will fill the tank tonight after work after I put some mesh over the sump hole to stop fishies going down the pipe


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## Mantis (23/3/10)

kirem said:


> One of the inhabitants.
> 
> View attachment 36499




I am now very tempted to get some cod 

Mantis -- green with envy


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## devo (23/3/10)

I started getting into AP about 2 months ago and just stumbled across this thread. I've currently been building an AP set up to grow yabbies and herb/vegs. Here is a small pilot set up that I'm trialling and a pic of a bigger rig I hope to have up and running soon.


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## kirem (24/3/10)

View attachment 36632

View attachment 36633


the rebuilt system.

the grow bed has an auto siphon/ bell-valve in the middle
submersible pump in the fish tank
T-piece below the water line and a valve on the grow pump line to adjust for correct grow bed fill time
autumn/winter vegies planted

The system is cycling away now and I am very happy with the rebuild.


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## bonj (25/3/10)

Man those clay pebbles look dodgy!


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## Zizzle (25/3/10)

Maltesers!


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## kirem (25/3/10)

Bonj said:


> Man those clay pebbles look dodgy!




they are actually little poos I put in the kiln to make them hard


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## bonj (25/3/10)

kirem said:


> the grow bed has an auto siphon/ bell-valve in the middle
> submersible pump in the fish tank
> T-piece below the water line and a valve on the grow pump line to adjust for correct grow bed fill time
> autumn/winter vegies planted
> ...


Why is the T piece below the water line? I plan to use a similar method to throttle the flow to the grow beds, but my plan is to splash the extra water back into the fish tank to add some aeration, along with a U-bend at the bottom of the drain from the auto-siphon to also create more splashing. What method do you use for aeration?


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## kirem (25/3/10)

Bonj said:


> Why is the T piece below the water line? I plan to use a similar method to throttle the flow to the grow beds, but my plan is to splash the extra water back into the fish tank to add some aeration, along with a U-bend at the bottom of the drain from the auto-siphon to also create more splashing. What method do you use for aeration?



The water noise was too much and it is unnerving to hear running/splashing water whilst sitting inside, perhaps if I couldn't hear it I would put the T-piece above the water line.

The air/water interface is naturally near-saturated with DO, by moving the water around, the top layer of water is constantly changing and therefore dragging DO into the whole water mass.

I will have an aerator in the fish tank in the next few days to go for overkill on DO.


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## kirem (25/3/10)

I fine tuned the inner pipe on the bell valve tonight. Now I have full flood drain.

I also better sealed up the bell lid and where the inner tube leaves the grow bed. I have discovered that it is very important that anywhere that even the slightest amount of air can get in, is sealed up, otherwise when the vaccum forms it will suck in air. I could hear mine whistling.

I added some seasol for the new plants.

So it should be firing in the next few weeks.


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## wakkatoo (25/3/10)

Scruffy said:


> Not mine, but a mates system



How often you travel to SA to see scott?  

Just found his system on another forum. The post count of some of those guys is huge. One bloke has 14,924 posts since Nov '06 :blink:


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## Mantis (1/4/10)

Just put two bags of the clay balls in my growbed and they didnt go anywhere near filling it. It will take $120 worth of them to fill one grow bed of 150L sheez
Next grow bed will be filled with blue metal


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## komodo (1/4/10)

Question for the guys with "bigger" aquaponics systems - How much power are you using for water pumps and air pumps?
Are you using any other filters? UV etc?

I'm keen on giving this a go - but I dont think Kel will be impressed if our electricity jumps up like it has with brewing (fridges)


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## pdilley (1/4/10)

Most setups of decent sizes have added electrical bills of $45 to $65 per year. With the savings
in buying fish and veg at the supermarkups you can justify it.

Just noticed Murray released an more advanced DVD here after I just got the first one. If anyone gets it Ill give you a loan of the first one for a loan of the 2nd on 

Cheers,
BP


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## Mantis (2/4/10)

Things are starting to come together in the greenhouse

Clay balls soaking




Bell Syphon hopefully ready to go




Just made tank lid out of Modwood




Tank lid open




Waiting on the submersible pump and the clay balls to sink then I will start it cycling. Dont expect to have fish in it for at least 3 weeks


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## jbirbeck (7/4/10)

That looks awesome.

I'm just in the process of setting mine up. Well a pilot system anyway. 90l fish tank made from a 90l plastic storage container, a pump that will feed up to a 35 litre grow bed full of aquatic plant potting mix (read gravel). The tank has 5 or 6 yabbies I got from my PIL dam (fun catching them). Really simple set up, pump will be on a timer to 'fill' the grow bed which has a mash tun style false bottom that slowly drains out by gravity back into the yabbie tank that sits below the grow bed, then go again. The frame is one of the boltless shelving units from Bunnings. I may even pop some cuttings from my hops in later this week as some of my hops are still going mad and flowering  

I think I'll get another 35 litre grow bed for the pilot system if it works well on the first one. The expensive part is filling it with a grow medium.

one of the smaller hops will go in next year to see what sort of growth I get as my older hops have far too big a root ball to go into the pilot system If it works I may be able to convicee the other half of a significant system which will include some room for hops  

Its taken me a while to get going on this afetr seeing this thread originally, but on the road now


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## devo (7/4/10)

My new 215L rig now is up and running loaded with yabbies and a few silver perch fingerlings.




As you can tell from the pics below my ammonia and pH levels spiked since adding so many yabbies so I've been doing 1/3 water changes and backing off on the food to help keep things in check while the system cycles fully and the plants kick in.


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## beerbrewer76543 (8/4/10)

Sweet work there Mantis!

Would you be so kind as to sketch / post a link of how you build one of those bell syphons? I have a friend with a block of land who I may be able to convince to grow some fish with a side benefit of me growing hops in the setup...

Cheers :icon_cheers:


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## jbirbeck (8/4/10)

L_Bomb said:


> Sweet work there Mantis!
> 
> Would you be so kind as to sketch / post a link of how you build one of those bell syphons? I have a friend with a block of land who I may be able to convince to grow some fish with a side benefit of me growing hops in the setup...
> 
> Cheers :icon_cheers:



+1 for a link/instructions on how to build a bell siphon. wouldn't mind incorporating one.


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## komodo (8/4/10)

Quick sketch :






Basically you make a pipe upstand that comes out of the base of your grow bed (the white bit). At the top its advisable to "flare" this out. You can do this using a head gun and a mould or you can buy apropriate plumbing fittings to do so. drill a small hole at the base of this incase an issue arrises to allow the grow bed to drain (i would do this after you get your system running though as it needs to drain significantly slower than your pump pumps for this to work.)

Over the top of this you place a larger diameter pipe (the green) which is notched aroudn the bottom and has a cap ontop to create an air tight seal. This notching makes this part stand and allows for the water to get through.

This is essentially your bell syphon. Water comes in the grow bed and gets into the green area and rises to the top of the white upstand once it gets in there it generates a vacuum this sucking all the water out of the grow bed.

Now the red bit with holes around the base is just a larger pipe again over the whole thing - this is just a filter to stop any of your grow media getting caught in the bell syphon and causing issues. 

Hope that helps


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## devo (8/4/10)

Here are some pics/diagrams of how I constructed a bell siphon.


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## komodo (8/4/10)

http://www.aquaponicshq.com/forums/showthr...p=6696#post6696 
Hopefully this link works


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## komodo (8/4/10)




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## jbirbeck (8/4/10)

great stuff, cheer Komodo and Devo. That will e the next little project so I can take the timer off my pump.


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## Mantis (8/4/10)

Got one grow bed of about 150L up and running. 

Setup so far. Will need to modify lid for plumbing yet so I can close it 





And here is the bell syphon in full action. The bed is flooding and emptying every 12 min approx




I will add some goldfish from the pond to the tank tommorow and start the cycling process


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## Ras77 (8/4/10)

Nice work mate i will get there one day 


Fish and beer couldn't get better could it?


Cheers
Ras


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## wakkatoo (8/4/10)

Mantis said:


> I will add some goldfish from the pond to the tank tommorow and start the cycling process



What? No trout?


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## himzol (9/4/10)

Hi Guys,

Just a bit of an update on trying hops in Aquaponics. I put in a small rhizome last August and have harvested 25grams (dry) of wurttenbuger (sp) hops from this plant. It could have been more but I have really neglected my garden this season (got a reno going on)

from the system came 50 trout @ approx 500grams each. these were either eaten fresh, frozen or bartered for stuff we dont grow.

managed to get some really nice collieflower and cabbage out of the system as well as an abundance of leaks, tomatoes and zucchini. for some reason my cucumbers didn't do anything nor the pumkins. Fish poo basil in your pasta sauce, nothing better :lol: .

For those of you who have bees, the aquaponics system is a great way of providing water for the bees while they pollinate your crop.


Himzo.


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## Mantis (9/4/10)

wakkatoo said:


> What? No trout?


 
Not yet. Will cycle the system with goldfish that are pretty tough then remove them and add some trout


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## Mantis (9/4/10)

himzo said:


> Hi Guys,
> 
> Just a bit of an update on trying hops in Aquaponics. I put in a small rhizome last August and have harvested 25grams (dry) of wurttenbuger (sp) hops from this plant. It could have been more but I have really neglected my garden this season (got a reno going on)
> 
> ...



How was the rhizome when you pulled it out. Did it invade the pipes etc


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## himzol (10/4/10)

Mantis said:


> How was the rhizome when you pulled it out. Did it invade the pipes etc



Haven't pulled it out yet, it's still got plenty of green leaves on it so I'm letting it gather as much energy for next year before pulling it out and storing it in the fridge.

As for invasion of pipes, I've had some from the tomatoe plants and celery in the past. If you have your outer pipe on the autosyphon large enough (I use 100mm) so that you can get your hand in their or run a knife around the edge so that it clears out the roots. If the roots are allowed to keep growing they create a wicking effect and stop the syphon from cutting out. One other trick is to just turn the outer pipe every few days (without lifting) this stops the roots from finding their way in through the drain holes (I either forget or am too lazy to do this).

Himzo.


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## cozmocracker (10/4/10)

Hi guys great thread, good to see more and more people experimenting and using aquaponics. i started researching and testing small set ups about 5 - 6 years ago, great fun and really inspiring stuff. Due to renting all my grand plans have fallen well short of what i would like to do but reading this thread has sparked my interest again!

One thing i would like to point out, i have noticed in some of the pictures some people are using what looks like the cheap black tubs from bunnings, if these are the ones im thinking of they're not food grade, but made of recycled plastic and produced in China (no i do not want to start another china bashing thread), there is a similar concern for the green 500 litre water storage units from bunnings. You should be using food grade materials, its good enough for your beer so it should be good enough for the food you put in your mouth. just some food for thought, yes pun intended! Bath tubs make good grow beds but be aware that some do leech lead, its in small amounts and wouldn,t effect an adult but for the kiddies it might be something you might want to consider (there are strips you can purchase to test for the presence of lead). IBCs are good also but if you buy second hand make sure you know what has been in it.

It doesn't get any better than walking out the back door to catch a fish that you reared, and to make a salad from your own garden that you grew, while drinking something you have created.

Cheers to you all, i look forward to watching this thread and seeing peoples systems grow!

as for the concern for rhizomes, there isnt one, the root will be exposed to more air than in soil, you dont have to have the system continually running, with the use of timers the rhizome would only be exposed to water from 10 to 15 minutes an hour, you adjust the system to what you are growing. i couldnt find the site but in the states theres a large hop farm using hydroponics with great success.


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## Mantis (10/4/10)

Got 10 goldfish in the tank now so will be checking ammonia levels daily the doing water changes. 
Three growbeds running with plants in and seeds sown
Keep ya posted


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## himzol (11/4/10)

cozmocracker said:


> Hi guys great thread, good to see more and more people experimenting and using aquaponics. i started researching and testing small set ups about 5 - 6 years ago, great fun and really inspiring stuff. Due to renting all my grand plans have fallen well short of what i would like to do but reading this thread has sparked my interest again!
> 
> One thing i would like to point out, i have noticed in some of the pictures some people are using what looks like the cheap black tubs from bunnings, if these are the ones im thinking of they're not food grade, but made of recycled plastic and produced in China (no i do not want to start another china bashing thread), there is a similar concern for the green 500 litre water storage units from bunnings. You should be using food grade materials, its good enough for your beer so it should be good enough for the food you put in your mouth. just some food for thought, yes pun intended! Bath tubs make good grow beds but be aware that some do leech lead, its in small amounts and wouldn,t effect an adult but for the kiddies it might be something you might want to consider (there are strips you can purchase to test for the presence of lead). IBCs are good also but if you buy second hand make sure you know what has been in it.
> 
> ...



Hi Coz,

good advice on food grade. 

I do use the black plastic "crates" from Bunnings as well as the 500 litre containers, this is my choice and do not wish to influence others. 

The 500 litre containers are manufactured in Italy and an effort was made on contacting the manufacturer and finding out whether they were suitable. The response was a typical "Marketing" response. 
The black plastic crates are made in china, I have tested my system for lead and levels are next to nothing, my biggest problem has been zinc...mainly because the rain water I collect is gathered from an aging zincalume roof. 

the above are MY findings, and may not be the same for others, so if in doubt choose certified food grade.


Himzo.


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## Mantis (11/4/10)

Well its finished and with beds planted and 10 goldfish in the tank , cycling can begin. 
I also added a bit of the pond sludge to the growbeds to hopefully get some good organisms into the mix quickly


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## devo (12/4/10)

cozmocracker said:


> Hi guys great thread, good to see more and more people experimenting and using aquaponics. i started researching and testing small set ups about 5 - 6 years ago, great fun and really inspiring stuff. Due to renting all my grand plans have fallen well short of what i would like to do but reading this thread has sparked my interest again!
> 
> One thing i would like to point out, i have noticed in some of the pictures some people are using what looks like the cheap black tubs from bunnings, if these are the ones im thinking of they're not food grade, but made of recycled plastic and produced in China (no i do not want to start another china bashing thread), there is a similar concern for the green 500 litre water storage units from bunnings. You should be using food grade materials, its good enough for your beer so it should be good enough for the food you put in your mouth. just some food for thought, yes pun intended! Bath tubs make good grow beds but be aware that some do leech lead, its in small amounts and wouldn,t effect an adult but for the kiddies it might be something you might want to consider (there are strips you can purchase to test for the presence of lead). IBCs are good also but if you buy second hand make sure you know what has been in it.
> 
> ...



I was under the impression that the concerns with non food grade plastics only really came into play if these plastics were exposed to high temps that would occur with brewing. If this is indeed the case then how could this pose a health issue with AP set ups that do not involve hot or boiling liquids?


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## himzol (13/4/10)

devo said:


> I was under the impression that the concerns with non food grade plastics only really came into play if these plastics were exposed to high temps that would occur with brewing. If this is indeed the case then how could this pose a health issue with AP set ups that do not involve hot or boiling liquids?



Hi Devo,

the concern is that the leaching will happen due to the time the water + growing media is in contact with the plastic rather than leaching from heating as would be the case in a hot liquids when brewing.


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## cozmocracker (13/4/10)

plus exposure to sunlight, alot of people dont worry, but if your going to the trouble of producing your own fresh organic food then better safe than sorry, yes it means the cost will go up for the set up but what cost do you put on peace of mind! if you look at the previously mentioned AP websites all the grow beds and fish tanks are food grade.


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## Batz (13/4/10)

I believe you can't go past old bath tubs for an aquaponic set up. For the fish tank a 1000l bulky bin will cost around $150.00

You can run six bath tubs from that. 

Batz


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## himzol (14/4/10)

Batz said:


> I believe you can't go past old bath tubs for an aquaponic set up. For the fish tank a 1000l bulky bin will cost around $150.00
> 
> You can run six bath tubs from that.
> 
> Batz



yep.. lots of good systems around the country using those same pieces of equipment..some of the most productive too.

As mentioned earlier, as long as you know what was in the IBC before hand and it wasn't anything nasty for people or fish then your OK. Also the IBCs arent UV fixed so they either need to be painted or burried to stop them breaking up over time.

H.


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## JonnyAnchovy (14/4/10)

Thought of you aquaponics nuts when I was watching Costa on SBS - there is a small section in this episode: http://player.sbs.com.au/programs#/program...-Odyssey-Ep-12/


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## Mantis (14/4/10)

Yeah, I have Murrays DVD and have bought some stuff from him and have joined his aquaponics forum. 

Costa is a dag eh. I wish I had half his energy 

edit: spellen


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## Mantis (14/4/10)

Ammonia and nitrite levels were up a bit when I got home tonight. A 20% water change got them back to negligable
Did a water change in my big tropical tank and put the water out of that tank into the AP setup, hoping it will add some good bacteria to help cycling


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## himzol (15/4/10)

Mantis said:


> Ammonia and nitrite levels were up a bit when I got home tonight. A 20% water change got them back to negligable
> Did a water change in my big tropical tank and put the water out of that tank into the AP setup, hoping it will add some good bacteria to help cycling



It's going to take just a bit longer to cycle up this time of year due to the overnight temps, the aquarium water wouldn't hurt, but some of the "gunk" out of the filter from your aquarium straight into the grow beds would be better. That's where the bacteria are living in your indoor system.

H.


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## Mantis (15/4/10)

himzo said:


> It's going to take just a bit longer to cycle up this time of year due to the overnight temps, the aquarium water wouldn't hurt, but some of the "gunk" out of the filter from your aquarium straight into the grow beds would be better. That's where the bacteria are living in your indoor system.
> 
> H.



Yes, good point. I will do that


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## pdilley (3/5/10)

ADDING RESOURCES:

Micro System: http://www.friendlyaquaponics.com/do-it-my...s/micro-system/

Family System: http://www.friendlyaquaponics.com/do-it-my...ff-grid-system/

For those researching Aquaponics, this is a Do-It-Yourself Manual I came across from Hawaii.

Apparently the Hawaiians had an issue with Aquaponics claims. They state that fish is not the primary goal of the system because the more fish they grow for sale the more money they lose on the fish part of their operations/costs. 98% of the volume of the system is for output of vegetables and food plants.

They also are a bit upset at the price of Aquaponics kits and designers who talk about how much fish you can grow in their designs so they have a DIY build your own Aquaponics kits for a fraction of the cost of kits by building with foam blocks, non-construction and construction-grade lumber, etc. a kit for about $861US or about $992AU. Of course withe price differences of materials in hardware stores here it might cost more. Family sized kits are up to $2100US or about $2268AUD in materials costs. Note that this is the Raft system of Aquaponics.

I can not say much more about the system except they are interested in selling plans, book, and running guide for $59US for the Micro, $295US for the Family and $995US for a commercial 32 grow bed design and running manual but if you are interested in Aquaponics and not interested in the price of kits here in Australia for Aquaponics this may be something of interest to you.

Do you own research but it looked interesting to me so I'm sharing with the rest of you 

Adding the Materials list PDF and Table of Contents to their guide.

TOC: View attachment Friendly_Aquaponics_Micro_System_TOC.pdf

Materials List: View attachment Friendly_Aquaponics_Micro_System_Materials.pdf

Cheers,
Brewer Pete


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## glen (4/5/10)

Just picked up some of these today. I hope to use them for growbeds. Brissy folks may be interested.


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## Mantis (5/5/10)

If they were really friendly Pete, they would have their plans free to download. 

If people are really interested in aquaponics there are some good local forums

http://www.aquaponics.net.au/forum/index.php

http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/forum/index.php 

There is an abundance of information in these two and loads of different member systems explained


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## Mantis (12/5/10)

System is full cycled now and plants are growing well. Will get some trout for it in the next couple of weeks to replace the goldfish




Syphons all working at once



Growth in one of the beds


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