Aquaponics

You are ahead of me in this, but a chap at work has done this for a couple of years.

He gets a fresh batch of fingerlings each year and then once plate size can start to thin them out.

Problems that he talked about was fish species selection. The ambient temperature meant that he was disappointed one year. The other concern is the concentration process for salt. The make-up water here is not bad, but starting at 300ppm means it only gets worse.

He has his in an igloo to reduce evaporation and recover some condensation. Summer daytimes reached over 40 degC something like 45 times this summer with a few 45's in there. Open pan evaporation was over 10mm per day for a few weeks, so he was using a lot of make-up water and did abandon for December/January due to water restrictions.

He has a large freezer and preserves much of his vegetables. Scraps are fed to the chooks. He does reset each year so that he can start with a clean system and runs that for a few weeks before introducing the fish.

His irrigation system is "Flood and drain". He is an IT nerd and built the controller himself including a web cam and remote adjustment (He works 4 days a week remote from his home in a nearby town, just 150km each way) so cannot be there in person to tend for it daily.

He describes it as "pure simplicity" when it works and "a bit of a challenge" when he is having a learning experience.

I feel certain that he would say "What are you waiting for?"

Good luck

Thanks. I would look at the closed loop system. I feel it is a better system and more beneficial to plants and fish. I could be wrong.

I think the hassle will be the clients accepting the concept and taking the stock of my hands. Things grow quickly with aquaponics.

I'm looking at this as an experiment trial on a large scale and to retire with, Had enough of life in the "silly lane', bit any info is appreciated greatly.

Thanks

One of my cousins did his thesis on a three step system.

Sharlee style management of sheep. Shedded at around 5 per pen, daily rations, moved to clean pen each day, their pens washed ready for the next pen in the rotation. Around 200 to 250 sheep in one set-up. Superfine superclean wool of very predictable length and quality.

The wash water went to a sunlit wetland system, irrigating rushes in the head tanks, but cropping Asian greens in the later tanks with the run-off water cycled back to shed washing.

In the later tanks he had freshwater crayfish (Maybe you call them craydads, yabbies or marron).

This was for hot Australian conditions since the crayfish can tolerate higher temperatures and higher salt concentrations, but he did mention that you only needed to have a fish that didn't eat the plant roots.

System provided Fiber, carbohydrate and protein from a single system.

While he did run a 10 sheep prototype for his thesis he didn't go commercial.

I would strongly recommend a closed system so that the nutrient loss is minimised. As opposed to NFT Hydroponics process where the balance is such that all (well almost all) nutrient is removed by the plants as the solution passes by and the water running to waste is minimal.

Run to waste systems are less prone to disease issues since they do not breed and concentrate pathogens and then introduce them to head of process.

I have a Aquaponic greenhouse in Vermont, USA started adding fish in October of 2018.

as the other chap mentioned, choose your fish according to your average temp.

I have been using local native species brown bullhead, pumpkinseed sunfish and yellow perch.

In my experience so far things grow very well with any nitrate levels from 5 to 100 ppm and ph is not nearly as important as in hydroponic set ups, I haven’t seen any detriment from 7 to 8.

the system provides all our winter greens , electricity and more .

I have several videos on YouTube, some of the earlier ones and updates have a bit more detail on the salvaged materials I used to build it. Feel free to ask??

Hear is a link that will get you to my channel, have fun ��

https://youtu.be/E-sxMkbESdg

Hi Kurt

Thanks for the info. I should like to take up your offer and I have looked at your You Tube videos. I decided on talapia and possibly trout. Talapia I understand is easier to use and less prone to temperature drops of increases.

Thanks, I shall be in touch.

Happy to share what I can, trout do best at or between 50 and 60f Tilapia would die or be very stunted at that temp., they grow best around 80f,

Heating or cooling water is expensive, especially when you have to constantly oxygenate it . I think you will find the reality is most fish grow considerably slower than the optimal condition growth rates quoted by fish sales people.

Best of luck to you,K

Re. a commercial operation: Not firsthand experience, but a guy I met at a function (friend of a friend of a cousin type...) started this (or possibly hydroponics) with a commercial view. He mentioned that he wishes he did more homework on the marketing side - it proved quite difficult to get the veggies sold, just to get your foot in the door at the supermarkets, corner café, etc. It took longer than planned, so he lost quite a bit of produce initially. So for his next round he said he started looking for a market early on, at initiation already.

The problem he faced was that most prefer to deal with larger producers that can provide a steady supply over longer periods of time. I think he said he had best results with smaller shops, as well as local restaurants with chefs that appreciate healthy, fresh produce. This was in the days before the "local food" movement started - that may provide added appeal. He also staggered his planting so that he could produce over a longer period more consistently.

Hi, this was one item I considered too. Its a mind set change and not easy to achieve, but I think I may have the right country location for this. It is a risk that I need to mitigate for, but one that may be worth trying. Thanks for confirming my own suspicions.

I am not associated with this man but I know him reasonably well and he is most knowledgeable, he turns all kitchen waste into (well food) if you click on his website you will also get a youtube video that I have seen some time ago it probably has been updated by now. This should answer a lot of questions and no doubt Bill will add to that. https://www.compoponics.com/