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  1. #11
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    I've got paw paw trees in cf gb's with 20mm of water running over the media and they are growing better than others in f&d. And paw paws are not ment to like wet feet. As pointed out above. Lots of different way to do AP.

  2. #12
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    i'm enjoying the articles as well, and i appreciate the effort.

  3. #13
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    Quote Originally Posted by Oliver

    Once the fish reached the three pounds per gallon of fish tank water, I again noticed a sensitivity in the balance. More DO was added and it again settled back down. At this point there is not much, short of adding pure oxygen to the water, that I can do to keep the system stable if I increase the poundage of fish; for the DO is currently between 6 and 7 ppm. So, I have concluded, as have others, that the three pound per gallon of water, given the volume of grow beds I currently have in the system, is a maximum. This is where I came up with the number of 3.3 pounds of fish per gallon of grow bed capacity. The reason for the 3.3 pounds is because we only have five grow beds (due to space limitations) when ideally we should have six, so I have calculated the ratio to show our actual grow bed to fish density ratio. If I increase the number of grow beds (which will require a redesign of the system) then it should be possible to up the number of fish. But this will compromise the idea behind this series of posts, which is to tell how to build a simple Aquaponics system that will produce food without pushing the limits of Aquaponics design. I want people who are new to Aquaponics and are building and operating their first system to be successful.

    Oliver
    Oliver, did you really mean to say 3 pounds of fish per gallon? Or is that an inversion and did you really mean one pound of fish per 3 gallons? Earlier on you said 1 pound per 3 gallons of fish tank which I suppose might be ok with very forgiving fish like tilapia but when some one quoted this little section to me well my eyes kinda bugged out. Please tell me that the numbers just got a bit inverted here and you really meant 1 pound of fish per 3 gallons of water.
    TCLynx

  4. #14
    Aquaponics 101 Oliver's Avatar
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    Oliver, did you really mean to say 3 pounds of fish per gallon? Or is that an inversion and did you really mean one pound of fish per 3 gallons? Earlier on you said 1 pound per 3 gallons of fish tank which I suppose might be ok with very forgiving fish like tilapia but when some one quoted this little section to me well my eyes kinda bugged out. Please tell me that the numbers just got a bit inverted here and you really meant 1 pound of fish per 3 gallons of water.
    Oops. Thanks for catching that. I will edit it right away. It was my lexdisia messing with me, once again.

    Oliver
    To measure is to know

  5. #15
    Aquaponics 101 Oliver's Avatar
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    Thanks to all who gave me a +, for I do appreciate it.
    To measure is to know

  6. #16
    Moderator badflash's Avatar
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    My number is 5 gallons per pound of fish, and even that is pushing it. You need to have some margin for power outages, pump failures, etc. I keep small air pumps on a computer UPS. These go a long time as they only draw about 10 watts each and can hold you until the power comes back or you get home and get your generator going.
    The best fertilizer is the farmer's shadow

  7. #17
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    I personally also go for the lower density stocking. I'm recommending more like 1 fish per ten gallons of fish tank with 20 gallons of grow bed media filtering for it. Then again, I grow fish big and either use a sump on a CHIFT PIST system or an Aquaponics indexing (sequencing) valve but that is all more complexity than most beginners want.
    TCLynx

  8. #18
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    fish density is a tricky deal, a few small goldfish will produce tremendous amounts of nitrates. i've cut back from 20 small goldies to 10 per 100gal res with a 4x4 tray loaded with plants. i do feed the fish to insure their proper growth. with that ratio i could cut the power to them for days. my point being

  9. #19
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    Right, 1 lb per 3 gallons is MAX.
    With media bed aquaponics you DO NOT NEED to stock that much. If fish are not your primary goal, it doesn't take much fish to support the veggies if you are leaving the solids in the system.

    I know of systems where a whole greenhouse (well not a big one) is supported by only a hand full of goldfish and has great veggie growth.
    TCLynx

  10. #20
    Moderator urbanfarmer's Avatar
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    Re: Aquaponics 101 Part Two: System Design

    Oliver, looking good. I have one question. You mentioned 3.3 gallons of grow bed per pound of fish. I have no problem with guestimates and the like especially when someone has as much as experience as you, but 3.3? That's rather accurate for a guess. Can I ask how you arrived at this calculation? I realize your guide is supposed to be very practical information (hence the omission); so, I really only want to know to satisfy my selfish curiosity!

    Quote Originally Posted by TCLynx
    I know of systems where a whole greenhouse (well not a big one) is supported by only a hand full of goldfish and has great veggie growth.
    I know a lot of people might not agree with that, but you are absolutely right. In fact, newer research into aquaponics has shown that this is exactly the case... assuming there is near constant flow.

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