Location
So extreme weather conditions are a total NO-NO. The water temperature and the air temperature have to be controlled. If the water temperature is bousing all over the place, just like us, the fish will be stress. We know that stress leads to sickness and death.
The water temperature should not swing more than 3 degrees in one direction, in a 24 hour time period. Water temperature is a variable that depends on the species of fish and plants that you grow.
Tilapia like temperature between 70-85 degrees. Most tilapia tanks (depending on sub-species of fish) are set at 72-78 degrees F. A good compromise between fish temperature requirement and plant requirements.
Oxygenizing the water
The target level in the Aquaponic system is 80 percent saturation, that turns out to be 6-7 milligrams per liter of water. Levels below 3 milligrams, you won't have happy fish. Less than one milligram per liter is toxic.
You have two ways to monitor DO, the cheaper way is with a test kit to measure the dissolved oxygen level. It takes a while and isn't too precise, it does give you a ball-park number. Then you have the DO meters, they are fast and precise but, you have to pay for it.
Choosing Your fish
Aquaponic systems work with almost every type of fish. But, our government has something to say about it. Not every state can grow every fish, check local laws.
People that have little to no experience with aquaponic, I say "Just go for it". Tilapia has been farmed for hundreds of years. And they are forgiving for the beginner.
The fish that you choose to raise, has great significance, in the sustainability of your aquaponic system. The life cycle of the fish will provide all the necessary nutrients for your plants. This aquaponic system will provide you with fresh organic vegetables and fresh fish.
Careful consideration of the climate, that you live in has to be made, when selecting the species of fish, to use in our sustainable aquaponic system. They have fish that like colder temperature, and fish species that have to have warm water.
You have to decide what type of system, do you want.
The media-filled bed uses the fewest components and has no additional filtration, this makes it simple to operate. Production is much lower than the raft and NFT. The tank or container is filled with gravel, perlite or another media. The bed is periodically flooded with fish water. Which runs through the bed and back to the fish. All of the waste is broken down in the plant bed.
The raft system the plants are grown on floating polystyrene boards. Usually separate from the fish tank. Water from the fish tank continuously flows, through the filtration components, plant tank, and back to the fish tanks.
Beneficial bacteria live throughout the system. The extra water provides a buffer, which reduces stress and water quality problems, for the fish. This is one of the greatest benefits.
NFT (nutrients film technique) system the plants grow in a long narrow channel. A thin film of water continuously flows, from the fish tank, through the filtration units, delivering water, nutrients, and oxygen to the roots of our plants. Then back to the fish. In this system you need 2 biofilters, without extra water surface, the beneficial bacteria don't live. Without the bacteria and with the living water's organic nature, the smaller plumbing gets clogged. It isn't used as much as the other two.
Are we going to eat the fish? How often do we want to harvest? What species of fish can get locally?
Here are a few types of fish to chose from.
Tilapia
72 - 86°F
22.22 - 30°C
harvest 6 – 9 Months
Popular, edible, warm-water aquaponics fish
Easy to breed and fast growing
Trout
56 - 68°F
13.33 - 20°C
harvest 12 – 16 Months
Edible cold-water fish
Requires pristine water, high dissolved oxygen levels, and close pH monitoring
Goldfish
68 - 75°F
20 - 23.88°C
Ornamental, not typically eaten
Small, hardy aquaponics fish
Produces lots of waste despite its size
Koi
65 - 75°F
18.33 - 23.88°C
Ornamental, not typically eaten
Ornamental, hardy, and attractive aquaponics fish
Omnivorous, parasite-resistant, and lives a long time
Crustacean
prawn
82 - 88°F
27.77 - 31.11°C
Harvest prawns: 6 – 12 Months
lobster
71 - 76°F
21.66 - 24.44°C
Harvest lobster: 24 Months
oysters
75 - 79°F
23.88 - 26.11°C
Harvest oysters: 24 Months
Edible
Feed on organic plant matter
Help to keep your tank clean
Hight of the Aquaponic System
To make it the easiest for me, I would have the complete aquaponic system, at my waist level. That way all of my monitoring, harvesting and daily care routine would not require me to bend my back. With bending over, down to a minimal, the end of the day is much more pleasurable without an aching back.
Adding Nutrients
Nothing works all the time, every time. There will be times that your fish won't supply the plants with all of their nutrient needs. Meaning you will have to supplement these with additives. Most of the time it will be iron or calcium. and maybe potassium.
I went online to see what others were blogging about. In the process, I ran across a good site. They say that all they add is iron chelate and calcium carbonate. Of course, they have to add fish food and adjust the ph. If you want access to a lot of free information on making aquaponic easy. Then you need to go check out Susanne Friend and Tim Mann's website, Friendly Aquaponic You won't be disappointed.
Aquaponic is an easy way to provide organic vegetables and fish, for your family. You just got to get up and do it. There is a whole lot of information out there. So good luck and God Bless
What is Aquaponics? How it Works & Why an Aquaponic Setup Can Fail
Published on May 15, 2014
John from growing your greens visits the Aquaponic Place in Waimanalo, Hawaii to share with you what exactly is Aquaponics, and how it works.
You will discover the key element to a successful aquaponics system, and it's more than just the fish and the plants. You will also learn some of the different vegetables, fruits, and herbs that can be grown under aquaponics. You will discover a unique way for starting seed under aquaponics as well as watering baby plants automatically. You will learn what a bell siphon and how it operates without any power...
After watching this episode you will have a really good understanding of how an aquaponics system works and why you may want to use it at home to grow some of your own food including vegetables and fish. Learn more about the Aquaponics Place at The Aquaponics Place
Thanks for stopping by and reading my post"Things to Consider for an Aquaponic System". As you can see fish are not hard to grow, and with filtering the water with plants you save a lot and have healthy food on the table.
Keep Smiling
reuben
My Recently Published Post
Resources
Aquaponics Water
MAINTAINING TEMPERATURE IN YOUR SYSTEM
Why we should choose carefully our aquapnonics fish?
The Best 11 Aquaponics Fish Species for Your System
What We Add To Our Systems
Photo Credit:
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Image URL -- AUTHOR -- Kate Field -- lICENSE -- Version 4.0 License
AquaParts SS3 Aquaponics Plumbing Kit
Apera Instruments Optical Dissolved Oxygen Meter Kit
Milwaukee LED Economy Portable Dissolved Oxygen Meter
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