Newbie from Southern Middle Tennessee

[kennybob]

Hello to all from warm (sorta) Tennessee.

I am a warm weather gardener, recently retired from government service, and have been looking for a little project to take up some of my greenhouse space. I have been meaning to get to the aquaponics for a couple of years and am just now getting around to it.

I am in the process of getting a system going. My practice system is roughly 100 liters of growbed with an old 40 gallon aquarium. Right now I am trying to get the bell siphon working consistently (what a pain!). I expect to either net a few bluegill out of my stock pond or just buy a few gold fish to get the system started. I hope to have a few pictures soon.

One question though. What kind of height should the gravel be above the water level?

kennybob

[davidstcldfl]

Hi kennybob...welcome...
Bells can be a pain at times. I have 6, seems like 1 of them always has an issue...
The gravel should be aprox 1 inch above the water level....just enough so the sunshine doesn't get to the water.

Hope to see a few pictures in your (new) post at "Backyard Systems''. I'm sure you'll get lots of hints, tips and advice there.

Don't feel too bad...it's only 'kind of' warm here too...

[JCO]

Welcome to the show....pull up an easy chair, relax and stay awhile. New voices are always a welcome addition to our family..! Whatever questions you have on you mind, this is the place to get the answers so pick a topic of your interest and start your own thread and Enjoy.

[jackalope]

Hello to all from warm (sorta) Tennessee.

I am a warm weather gardener, recently retired from government service, and have been looking for a little project to take up some of my greenhouse space. I have been meaning to get to the aquaponics for a couple of years and am just now getting around to it.

I am in the process of getting a system going. My practice system is roughly 100 liters of growbed with an old 40 gallon aquarium. Right now I am trying to get the bell siphon working consistently (what a pain!). I expect to either net a few bluegill out of my stock pond or just buy a few gold fish to get the system started. I hope to have a few pictures soon.


kennybob

Welcome to the forum! I wouldn't make it much over 1" as david pointed out!

On another note: I use feeder Guppies to start all my systems when I start one up ..... they make good tasty snacks for the larger fish when the system has cycled and you introduce the large fish into the FT I keep a separate tank for the feeders so I can feed them to the larger fish after the initial "cyclers" have been eaten!

[Big Al]

hi kennybob, welcome to the forum. happy retirement, good luck with your
system. best wishes Big Al