So What is Aquaponics Anyway?

Good question. It’s a combination of Hydroponics and Aquaculture. Basically, the system combines a fish tank and a grow bed to produce a natural, easy to maintain source of food. Think about it – you can grow your fish and vegetables in a very small area with minimal effort. The plus is that you know exactly where your food is coming from.

Here’s a quick overview of how the Aquaponics system works and why ours is a little better than your average system.

1. You have fish living in fish tanks or pens. The fish eat the food you provide them and produce waste which raises the amount of ammonia in the water.
2. Beneficial bacteria convert the ammonia into nutrients like nitrates.
3. The water is pumped to the grow beds where the plants absorb the nutrients and clean the water for the fish.

So that’s it. Pretty simple huh? So what are the benefits to all this if that’s all there is to it?

Well, here’s the thing. You don’t use any fertilizers on the plants, and the plants tend to grow many times bigger than your average garden plant. Because all the water in the system is recirculated, it tends to use about 10% the amount of water that soil based systems use. What, no soil? How does that work?

We use what we call grow medium which is just a fancy word for what the roots are growing into. In this case we chose pea gravel, which is economical and easy to find. The grow medium is what allows us to saturate the roots with nutrients while using the least amount of water necessary.  It also provides the structure for the plants to take hold and grow as they would in soil.

While gravity will get your water back down to the fish tank after the plants extract the nutrients, you will need to get the water back up to the grow bed. This is typically done through the use of a pump running on electrical power. Timers are also employed to regulate flood/drain cycles in the growbeds.  Some ebb/flow systems can even run without timers.  This system is sort of a hybrid where I tried to balance the water flow so that you can run it in either mode with greater flexibility in what you can grow in the beds.

Depending on the type of fish you stock, when they are ready you can harvest them as well. You have a complete meal at hand and know exactly where everything came from. We have designed this system to pretty much run on its own. It is automated to the point that all you have to do is top off the fish feed and let nature handle the rest!

Have you seen the prices for organic vegetables at your local supermarket recently?  Instead of emptying your wallet each time you fill your grocery basket, consider this fun and economical alternative.  You will have fresh food growing right in your home with minimal effort and at a much lower cost.

You also get the air cleansing benefits of green plants in your home, not to mention the fragrant smells of your favorite herbs filling your kitchen or living room.  The sound of a gentle waterfall in the background and the vibrant colors and activity of the fish create a true cornucopia for your senses.  It’s hard to find a simple system that provides all of these benefits in such a small amount of space.

System Specifications:

* Fish Tank – 24.5″ x 16.3″ x 13.25” deep, holds about 16.5 gallons of water and can support around 6 pounds of fish easily depending on type of fish
* Grow Beds – (2) 16.75″ x 12″ x 7” deep, holds about 1 cubic foot of grow medium
* Grow Light Fixture Bar – Allows you to hang timed grow lights to maximize your plant growth even in low sunlight conditions
* Water Pump System – Water pump system moving 70 GPH (flow rate adjustable)
* Aerator – Air pump and aeration stone including tubing and backflow valve
* Nutrient Distribution Plumbing – Tubing system allows you to spread the nutrients evenly over your grow bed and controls flood and drain cycles through balance tubes and j siphons.
* Fish Feeder – timed automatic fish feeder that lets you adjust when and how much your fish eat (included in the Full Auto kits)
* Heater – thermostatically controlled fish tank heater to keep your fish at the optimal production temperature
* Pump Timer – plug in outlet timer to give you greater control of the flood drain cycles in your grow beds

Downloads:

• Indoor Aquaponics System Cut List (pipe cutting guide)
• Indoor Aquaponics System Shopping List
• Indoor Aquaponics System Assembly Guide

Some Pictures: