Alright, I'm finally getting to build my aquaponics system! I've been looking forward to it for a while and though it'll probably be a little rough at first figuring out all the nuances a system like this has, I'm excited nonetheless. Below is a photo of roughly what the system will look like so you have an idea. The plumbing and pumps and such are not installed yet, and I'll take step-by-step photos so y'all can see how I do it.
As you can see, Lauren is pretending to be a fish to demonstrate which tub is going to serve as our fish tank. The total storage space of this container (just a patio storage box we're gonna line with pond liner) is 80 gallons, but after putting in the plumbing it'll probably end up holding more like 65 or 70 gallons of water for the fish. If you want to raise edible fish, the minimum recommended amount is 50 gallons. From there it'll pump over to the blue container on the ground behind it, which will act as our sump tank where the water is pumped up to the grow beds. That way the fish don't have to deal with fluctuating water levels. We're thinking to put crawdads in the sump for a little additional food production.
The water will be pumped from the blue sump tank up into the grow beds, which are represented by the clear containers on the top of the shelves. We will use different containers in the actual system because the ones we have aren't big enough. But from there the water will siphon back down into the fish tank, and the dirty fish water will spill over into the sump to repeat the process.
Like I said, this is just a rough picture of what it will look like so y'all get the gist of how it'll work. I intend to have the plumbing and everything hooked up by the end of the week so we can begin cycling the water and balancing the pH levels, so that way in another week or two we can finally put some fish into it and plant some seeds in the grow beds. We'll see how it turns out.
There's not really a good name for an aquaponics system besides "aquaponics system". So, for future reference, I will just be referring to an individual system as an aquapon. It's just easier that way. You've been warned.
Austin
The water will be pumped from the blue sump tank up into the grow beds, which are represented by the clear containers on the top of the shelves. We will use different containers in the actual system because the ones we have aren't big enough. But from there the water will siphon back down into the fish tank, and the dirty fish water will spill over into the sump to repeat the process.
Like I said, this is just a rough picture of what it will look like so y'all get the gist of how it'll work. I intend to have the plumbing and everything hooked up by the end of the week so we can begin cycling the water and balancing the pH levels, so that way in another week or two we can finally put some fish into it and plant some seeds in the grow beds. We'll see how it turns out.
There's not really a good name for an aquaponics system besides "aquaponics system". So, for future reference, I will just be referring to an individual system as an aquapon. It's just easier that way. You've been warned.
Austin
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