Grow Bed Depth?

[Rev.holymeow]

Hello First Off. I am brand new to the Aquaponics field and I must say am very hooked. I was brought to this site through Olivers aquaponic 101 threads and I found them to very very informative and very helpful.
However, I was wondering about the depth of the GB'S.... Oliver said it needs to be a foot high. I have four trays 3x3 that are a little over half that (6.5 in.) I am wondering if I might get that to work still. I plan on using a 275g IBC for my FT, and I was planning on using Pea gravel as the media in the GBs. I also want to have a fifth tray that is 4x4 also about 6.5 in high to be used for "deep water" rafts (Maybe a bit ambitious, but I already have the trays on hand... and this is the begining stages of planning here ^_^) I will submit plans as I have them drawn. I appreaciate all forms of constructive criticsims and positive advice. Hope this finds everyone well!

[davidstcldfl]

HI, welcome to the forum...

The beds can work, keeping a few things in mind.

1-Try to stick to smaller plants, like lettuces and stuff. Their root systems are smaller.
2-The filtration of the 4 beds will be enough for about 135 gallons of fish tank (just working on my 1st cup of coffee- think the math is correct... ) Just keep your fish load low, which is good for 'start up'.
As you design your lay out, think ahead, of an easy way to add more gravel beds in the future.
3-The pea gravel filters more, which means it can get dirty faster too...again think low fish stocking.

Looking forward to some pictures...

[bcotton]

Rev,

Are you using prebuilt grow trays ? maybe something you used for hydroponics before stumbling onto this hobby?

My first system was a hydroponics convert. I had a bunch of botanicare grow trays that were 6"-7" deep. David is correct.. you arent going to be able to grow tall plants like corn but it worked fine for herbs and greens and even peppers.. In all fairness, my peppers may have eventually stunted growth, but they got pretty big and they produced for about 4 months until i chopped them down.

bcotton's backyard system

brian

[Rev.holymeow]

@ Bcotton you hit the nail on the head hydro tray converts. In my neck of the woods there seems to be alot of people with this kind of equipment, just slightly used for just a fraction of the original ticket price ^_^. which is a win for me!
I think that the biggest plant I want to grow in these beds is cucumbers maybe some squash. Thanks for the, advice and the link as well. I will post pictures myself once I get things coming together.. a week or less...