Ok, so I figure I would make an official thread documenting my first aquaponic system. I still have LOTS of questions, but I may ask them in separate posts so that this thread stays on topic of documenting the progress.
As of right now, I have three 45 gallon tubs for the grow beds, and one 110 gallon tank for the fish. All were purchased at Tractor Supply Company. I highly recommend their Tuff Stuff brand, because it's been the most affordable I could find (compared to Rubbermaid which is twice the cost).
I then went to Home Depot and purchased 32 basalite concrete blocks: 8x8x16. Those are supporting two boards measuring 2x8x10.
Finally, I have a lot of the PVC purchased. I assembled the PVC manifold which will pump water from the tank to all three grow beds. Here is a photo of what the project looks like so far:
NEXT TO DO: Drill the holes in the grow beds to make bell siphons.