1. Some builders highly suggest a growing bed depth of 12 inches (30cm) for the full effect of bacterial and worm environment/flood zone and a 2 inch (5cm) dry zone on top.
2. And really, turn off the music, it gets in the way of listening and appreciating your instruction.
3. Use a face shield rather than (or in addition too) glasses. Metal sparks are very hot and can ricochet between face and inside of glasses.
4. What do you think of using a siphon system rather than a steady drain.
What was the rock stuff you was placing on top,i am writing all this down and also are you on Facebook.My org whom i am with could really use this info.
does anyone know if instead of using the ibc totes (food grade) if i can get some other totes instead since i want to save a little more money because its my first time. do i have to get some sort of food grade lining to put inside the totes? thank you
if i dont have a aquaponic water source to start the plants can i put the fish in first for a few days then plant my veggies so i can build up some of that natural fertilizer produced by the fish? my only other question is about areating (did i spell that right?) the fish water. does the flow from the planting bed back to the fish tank automatically do this? thanks for your awesome video!! aloha!
Not at all, we put fish in straight away, we didn't wait any days. Cycling with fish can be done quite simply and efficiently so long as you know what you're doing and follow a few simple guidelines.
Hi, I notice that you left the system running for 12 days before introducing some fish. Is this sufficient for the nitrifying bacteria to colonise the media? I was under the impression it had to run for 1 or 2 months, and longer if bacteria rich water was not introduced.
How long does it normally take to build this tank from the ground up having all the materials at hand? Half a day perhaps? Thanks a lot for this video!
@Westtexasdustdevil you can get IBC's from many places, download our free IBC of aquaponics manual and it tells you about checking what's been in a container.
what is the average gravel displacement from fully grown plants? dose gravel displacement alter the level of the beds to enough for the need to extract gravel? dose the displacement of gravel effect the effective operation of the bell siphon? have you grown carrots or kind of tubers like potato's in a gravel aquaponic system?
@ABGAN100 The gravel doesn't really displace, as all roots grow in the air gaps between the media particles. We don't use siphons in our systems and yes we've grown carrots, beetroot, garlic, radish, etc.
@backyardaquaponics thanks for the information! I'm looking into building my own aquaponic system and was curious about growing carrots, potato's and other tubers.
hi, can upload again with subtitles, iam mexican and i have troubles understanding, and i wanna make 1 like your system or send by email the instructions, please
It would be really nice if you would get rid of the music so your voice could be heard. I am hearing impaired and I could not hear what you were saying because of the music.
@Dave38K My ears will take certain frequencies in the music and it will mask over words and I will be unable to decipher what is being said. It is really frustrating when I am trying to learn something. I realize most people don't have that problem and therefore don't take that into consideration when making videos.
I just bought a property in the white mountains New Hampshire USA. I will be growing in a Green house. How do you keep the water cool for the trout? Are you using a pump and dump system or is it a constant flow of water? I did a test system using a bathtub Goldfish and cement mixing tubs in Connecticut ... filled for 15 minutes each hour ... burned out the pumps in 3 month's. Worked great except for the pumps.
What a great way to use IBC's for aquaculture. I am installing 9 330 gallon tanks in my green house this week and had planned on doing it differently until I saw this video. I have built 5 of them in the last 4 hours and this design saves me $100 per tank form the way i was going to do it. Thank you very much for sharing your idea's.
How does water get through the outside large back to get inside to the drain.. did you drill holes in the outside large pipe so water could drain into the inside pipe. And down through the drain ? Thank you...
@Teddybearcop48 The surround holding the clay back if drilled full of holes, the idea is to keep the media away from the drain so that you can remove roots eaqsily.
I so much enjoyed the video very informative and educative. My main concern is how long can one keep the pump running in 24 hours the reason for this question is power is quite epileptic in Africa where I intend to setup and teach people on how to feed there families cheaply. Thanks for the wonderful video.
@khonzoh I guess it depends on how long your power goes out for at any one time. The main concern is your fish and keeping enough oxygen in the water for them. We use AC/DC air pumps that bubble air into the fish tank, when the power goes out they swap to an internal battery which will last for about 9 hours, once the power is back on, it recharges the internal battery.
@khonzoh I have a Solar Array that is on Net metering. That means I only pay for electricity if I use more than my solar system puts back into the Grid. I keep a bank of Batteries charged with a small trickle charger. If my power goes out I can throw my breaker on the Grid Breaker panel, and use my Inverter connected to the batteries and run necessary items for many hours.
There are links you can find on how to make your own solar panels for less than $100 each, or use a wind turbine.
Thisa is the very best video I have seen on Aquaponics, I was scared to try it , but after seeing your video you make it look so easy. I have one question, what do the fish eat?
You have had the tank running for 2 months. Is everything working okay ? I added this to my favorites but it's not listed there I hope it will show up in the future. Good Job!
1- if I do not have an established system from which to seed water (I am guessing for established levels of nitrates, etc)- should I go fish first for a few days to a week- then plant seedlings so there's adequate nutrients? 2- I understand your stand pipe keeping water below a certain leve- and have some with a bell syphon to empty- does water sit in this at all times or even completely empty for oxygenation? 3- tap water here has lots of chemicals, like a fish tank, should I use a neutralizer?
@swaling We add everything all at once, fish and plants, then keep your feeding to a minimum. We have the growbed constantly flooded in this system. Hmmm, we never use neutralizers of any sort here, perhaps if you have a separate tank where you can leave your water in the sun for a few days with aeration.
I found a couple problems when doing this system. 1, the ibc tote that I have, the valve on the bottom sticks down further than the tote so I had to set it up on several 2x12s. 2nd the system is generally too deep for tilapia fish and im going to have to ad another tank to grow duckweed.
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. May I ask what IBC stands for, and where can I find these? Don't some of these contain chemicals originally? If so..should I avoid buying one that contained chemicals?
@ladygrace1023 Intermediate Bulk Container, they are used in many industries including the food industry, if you download our manual for free (see the top of page here), we explain about choosing the right one, and cleaning processes etc. Many have no problem at all because they have contained simple food products of acids, but you do have to be a little wary of where you get them from.
This is a great video! Thanks for making it. Im gonna make one! I now wanna know what fish will breed easy and be good eating:) Again thanks for the cool video and the great idea.
@OrganicTexas He is chilled.. Kelpie cross, the shop mascot, who's probably feeling sorry for himself right now because he is having his "bits" removed.
Nice system and detailed instructions. You don't need a pump that powerful. A 1000 Liter per hour or about 275 gallons per hour pump will actually work just fine. Also, the pipes to spread the water on the top when it comes in is not needed one bit. You can just have the hose come straight into the grow bed to fill it. Remember, water finds its own level. Otherwise, great video. Thanks for sharing!
@surferizzy The pump was that size because we may be expanding the system in the future, and the water being spread around the outside of the bed as we have done, is to spread the solids around the bed. I know there are many people who run it into one spot in the bed, but for the few $ it costs for some elbows and a bit of pipe, we much prefer to spread it around the bed. Also for keeping the sun from getting onto any water going in the bed which can cause algae growth on the surface.
@survivalweb@californiaprepping Just working on the final bits at the moment, we had to put up the video on youtube to link it within the manual. We expect it will be up and avialable in the next 2-3 days.
looks as if you had some paparazzi there... taking flash pics. around the 18 minute mark...
kgmetcalfe 1 hour ago
1. Some builders highly suggest a growing bed depth of 12 inches (30cm) for the full effect of bacterial and worm environment/flood zone and a 2 inch (5cm) dry zone on top.
2. And really, turn off the music, it gets in the way of listening and appreciating your instruction.
3. Use a face shield rather than (or in addition too) glasses. Metal sparks are very hot and can ricochet between face and inside of glasses.
4. What do you think of using a siphon system rather than a steady drain.
bosatsu76 1 day ago
you lady were so pretty strong
johnpaul2007 1 day ago
Very cool. Thank you for posting. Could you tell me what the 2 or 3 blades - attachments you used in your cutter? Thank you.
darthom 2 days ago
That was expanded clay, you can use almost any rock media though like river pebbles.
backyardaquaponics 6 days ago
What was the rock stuff you was placing on top,i am writing all this down and also are you on Facebook.My org whom i am with could really use this info.
STLEO1 1 week ago
This is what we all need to be doing right now bc these stores will be closing and we need better foods
STLEO1 1 week ago
does anyone know if instead of using the ibc totes (food grade) if i can get some other totes instead since i want to save a little more money because its my first time. do i have to get some sort of food grade lining to put inside the totes? thank you
mainframe206 1 week ago
@mainframe206 you can use barrels or make make wood ones and put pond liner in it. use google dude it will answer any questions you have.
Alexxx281 6 days ago
The use of IBC's is a neat idea, but unfortunately they seem hard to find in the eastern US.
TheManFromAlaska 1 week ago
if i dont have a aquaponic water source to start the plants can i put the fish in first for a few days then plant my veggies so i can build up some of that natural fertilizer produced by the fish? my only other question is about areating (did i spell that right?) the fish water. does the flow from the planting bed back to the fish tank automatically do this? thanks for your awesome video!! aloha!
drewcoats 2 weeks ago
Not at all, we put fish in straight away, we didn't wait any days. Cycling with fish can be done quite simply and efficiently so long as you know what you're doing and follow a few simple guidelines.
backyardaquaponics 3 weeks ago
Hi, I notice that you left the system running for 12 days before introducing some fish. Is this sufficient for the nitrifying bacteria to colonise the media? I was under the impression it had to run for 1 or 2 months, and longer if bacteria rich water was not introduced.
misericordia01 3 weeks ago
VERY GOOD VIDEO...CAN’T WAIT TO SET ONE UP FOR MY BACK YARD!
IOITALL2HIM 4 weeks ago
Wow cool stuff!
dlvmark 4 weeks ago
Having bare-end ibc support rods on concrete is ok but what if it is on dirt. Won't they sink into the earth under the weight?
txdurk 1 month ago
@txdurk Yes, you could easily put timber or steel under the ends if it's on dirt.
backyardaquaponics 3 weeks ago
Looks to be my cheapest set up cost vs. rubbermaid stock tanks.
txdurk 1 month ago
Use a sawz-all it will cut faster and safer
archeryman5000 1 month ago
How long does it normally take to build this tank from the ground up having all the materials at hand? Half a day perhaps? Thanks a lot for this video!
FractalBolt 1 month ago
@FractalBolt Yep, about half a day to build that system.
backyardaquaponics 1 month ago
Couple of questions.
1. Where did you get your container
2. What had been in it?
Thanks
Rick
Westtexasdustdevil 1 month ago
@Westtexasdustdevil you can get IBC's from many places, download our free IBC of aquaponics manual and it tells you about checking what's been in a container.
backyardaquaponics 1 month ago
will the water pump suck newly born fingerlings?
MyDanyael 1 week ago
@Westtexasdustdevil
MyDanyael 1 week ago
what is the average gravel displacement from fully grown plants? dose gravel displacement alter the level of the beds to enough for the need to extract gravel? dose the displacement of gravel effect the effective operation of the bell siphon? have you grown carrots or kind of tubers like potato's in a gravel aquaponic system?
ABGAN100 1 month ago
@ABGAN100 The gravel doesn't really displace, as all roots grow in the air gaps between the media particles. We don't use siphons in our systems and yes we've grown carrots, beetroot, garlic, radish, etc.
backyardaquaponics 1 month ago
@backyardaquaponics thanks for the information! I'm looking into building my own aquaponic system and was curious about growing carrots, potato's and other tubers.
ABGAN100 1 month ago
Outstanding Video. Good work!
bsdoweidt 1 month ago
It looks like you could easily add to many fish to grow media with this design. What is the recommended number of fish?
DrReaper 1 month ago
@DrReaper People can add too many fish with any design, we recommend 10-12 fish in a system like this, allowing them to grow up to 1/2 kg.
backyardaquaponics 1 month ago
Your link to the "IBC for aquaponics" manual doesn't seem to work.
Is there another way to acquire this?
jupiterboy51 1 month ago
@jupiterboy51 It should work fine, I just downloaded it from that link, try again and let me know if it still doesn't work.
backyardaquaponics 1 month ago
@backyardaquaponics Still not working... : P
jupiterboy51 1 month ago
Comment removed
DIYHydro 2 months ago
Comment removed
DIYHydro 2 months ago
Glad you're putting up vids on your efforts. It appears you Aussies are ahead of the curve over us Yanks on this aquaponics stuff.
darthom 2 months ago
hi, can upload again with subtitles, iam mexican and i have troubles understanding, and i wanna make 1 like your system or send by email the instructions, please
joxue3 2 months ago
I only wish I could hear what the details were without the music drowning it out :(
Royisme 2 months ago
VERY GOOD YOUR VIDEO , NICE CONGRATULATION . MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012
alan71149 2 months ago
Well done! Keep it up!
littleJohn799 3 months ago
i wish i have a girl like that lol :)
ddirtz666 3 months ago
It would be really nice if you would get rid of the music so your voice could be heard. I am hearing impaired and I could not hear what you were saying because of the music.
dontlikenumbers 3 months ago 11
@dontlikenumbers Sorry mate.. A bit late to change this video, but I'll keep it in mind with the future videos we do. Thanks for the feedback.
backyardaquaponics 3 months ago
Or add captions & keeps the music
warrendarable 1 month ago
@dontlikenumbers I can hear perfectly well (for a 54 yo), but I still find most music tracks unnecessary. Some are downright annoying.
Dave38K 1 month ago
@Dave38K My ears will take certain frequencies in the music and it will mask over words and I will be unable to decipher what is being said. It is really frustrating when I am trying to learn something. I realize most people don't have that problem and therefore don't take that into consideration when making videos.
dontlikenumbers 1 month ago 2
I just bought a property in the white mountains New Hampshire USA. I will be growing in a Green house. How do you keep the water cool for the trout? Are you using a pump and dump system or is it a constant flow of water? I did a test system using a bathtub Goldfish and cement mixing tubs in Connecticut ... filled for 15 minutes each hour ... burned out the pumps in 3 month's. Worked great except for the pumps.
sueBADcops 3 months ago
@sueBADcops Poor pump quality, we have ones that have run for many years without problems. This one we have running full time and it's working well.
backyardaquaponics 3 months ago
What a great way to use IBC's for aquaculture. I am installing 9 330 gallon tanks in my green house this week and had planned on doing it differently until I saw this video. I have built 5 of them in the last 4 hours and this design saves me $100 per tank form the way i was going to do it. Thank you very much for sharing your idea's.
watercatwn6535nd 3 months ago
@watercatwn6535nd Brilliant... Great to hear that it's been useful and saved you money..
backyardaquaponics 3 months ago
can you place more grow beds for use with the one tank?
ray5220 4 months ago
@ray5220 Sure can... And more plant beds means you can grow more fish..
backyardaquaponics 3 months ago
How does water get through the outside large back to get inside to the drain.. did you drill holes in the outside large pipe so water could drain into the inside pipe. And down through the drain ? Thank you...
Teddybearcop48 4 months ago
@Teddybearcop48 The surround holding the clay back if drilled full of holes, the idea is to keep the media away from the drain so that you can remove roots eaqsily.
backyardaquaponics 3 months ago
I appreciated this information immensely
kookieve 4 months ago
I so much enjoyed the video very informative and educative. My main concern is how long can one keep the pump running in 24 hours the reason for this question is power is quite epileptic in Africa where I intend to setup and teach people on how to feed there families cheaply. Thanks for the wonderful video.
khonzoh 4 months ago
@khonzoh I guess it depends on how long your power goes out for at any one time. The main concern is your fish and keeping enough oxygen in the water for them. We use AC/DC air pumps that bubble air into the fish tank, when the power goes out they swap to an internal battery which will last for about 9 hours, once the power is back on, it recharges the internal battery.
backyardaquaponics 4 months ago
@khonzoh I have a Solar Array that is on Net metering. That means I only pay for electricity if I use more than my solar system puts back into the Grid. I keep a bank of Batteries charged with a small trickle charger. If my power goes out I can throw my breaker on the Grid Breaker panel, and use my Inverter connected to the batteries and run necessary items for many hours.
There are links you can find on how to make your own solar panels for less than $100 each, or use a wind turbine.
joeshittheragman42 3 months ago
fantastic thank you so much!!!
yoan1111 4 months ago
Is this a Ideal Ratio also How many perch would you keep to be suitable for one grow bed
cheekonv 5 months ago
@cheekonv In this system we put in 10 trout.
backyardaquaponics 5 months ago
Thisa is the very best video I have seen on Aquaponics, I was scared to try it , but after seeing your video you make it look so easy. I have one question, what do the fish eat?
robertsmi9 5 months ago
@robertsmi9 I feed my fish pellets and frozen maggots and other bugs
iLEGENDARYx 5 months ago
@robertsmi9 We feed the fish a commercial aquaculture pellet.
backyardaquaponics 5 months ago
You have had the tank running for 2 months. Is everything working okay ? I added this to my favorites but it's not listed there I hope it will show up in the future. Good Job!
Teddybearcop48 5 months ago
1- if I do not have an established system from which to seed water (I am guessing for established levels of nitrates, etc)- should I go fish first for a few days to a week- then plant seedlings so there's adequate nutrients? 2- I understand your stand pipe keeping water below a certain leve- and have some with a bell syphon to empty- does water sit in this at all times or even completely empty for oxygenation? 3- tap water here has lots of chemicals, like a fish tank, should I use a neutralizer?
swaling 5 months ago
@swaling We add everything all at once, fish and plants, then keep your feeding to a minimum. We have the growbed constantly flooded in this system. Hmmm, we never use neutralizers of any sort here, perhaps if you have a separate tank where you can leave your water in the sun for a few days with aeration.
backyardaquaponics 5 months ago
excellent guide! many thanks!
greenberet88x 6 months ago
I found a couple problems when doing this system. 1, the ibc tote that I have, the valve on the bottom sticks down further than the tote so I had to set it up on several 2x12s. 2nd the system is generally too deep for tilapia fish and im going to have to ad another tank to grow duckweed.
PostPetroleumPrepper 6 months ago
That was a great video.
jkejr 6 months ago
LOL! The camera fell!
Cameraman: Shit.
KBMemon 6 months ago
Hi Faye!
*Excited waving*
Abdul
KBMemon 6 months ago
about how many fish will this size IBC tote hold? grown to full size
blackboy424 6 months ago
I like your dog :D
xRA1D32x 7 months ago
Excellent. Thanks for sharing..
akara1979 7 months ago
What is an IBC, please?
SilverRedIndigo 7 months ago
@SilverRedIndigo Intermediate Bulk Container - the big white cube container we used in the video.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
@backyardaquaponics
Thank you. Yes, I found it in an acronyms dictionary.
I assume that you got a clean, unused one. They usually contain all sorts of nasty stuff, from what I understand.
SilverRedIndigo 7 months ago
@SilverRedIndigo Ours contained clean engine oil originally. They weren't too hard to clean and we stocked the system with trout about a week ago.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. May I ask what IBC stands for, and where can I find these? Don't some of these contain chemicals originally? If so..should I avoid buying one that contained chemicals?
ladygrace1023 7 months ago
@ladygrace1023 Intermediate Bulk Container, they are used in many industries including the food industry, if you download our manual for free (see the top of page here), we explain about choosing the right one, and cleaning processes etc. Many have no problem at all because they have contained simple food products of acids, but you do have to be a little wary of where you get them from.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
This is a great video! Thanks for making it. Im gonna make one! I now wanna know what fish will breed easy and be good eating:) Again thanks for the cool video and the great idea.
AAchurch 7 months ago
Looking forward to the manual today!
Tenche 7 months ago
@Tenche Will be out tomorrow, on the 20th Tenche.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
@backyardaquaponics ,
Where will we be able to find the manual please?
fotosepp 7 months ago
@fotosepp check the first line of the video description for download details.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
Who is your four legged assistant in the back? He / she looks pretty chillaxed.
OrganicTexas 7 months ago
@OrganicTexas He is chilled.. Kelpie cross, the shop mascot, who's probably feeling sorry for himself right now because he is having his "bits" removed.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
Nice system and detailed instructions. You don't need a pump that powerful. A 1000 Liter per hour or about 275 gallons per hour pump will actually work just fine. Also, the pipes to spread the water on the top when it comes in is not needed one bit. You can just have the hose come straight into the grow bed to fill it. Remember, water finds its own level. Otherwise, great video. Thanks for sharing!
surferizzy 7 months ago
@surferizzy The pump was that size because we may be expanding the system in the future, and the water being spread around the outside of the bed as we have done, is to spread the solids around the bed. I know there are many people who run it into one spot in the bed, but for the few $ it costs for some elbows and a bit of pipe, we much prefer to spread it around the bed. Also for keeping the sun from getting onto any water going in the bed which can cause algae growth on the surface.
backyardaquaponics 7 months ago
love the system... great idea. Question, is the water running at all times or are you running the 15/45 method?? Thanks.
cErx2oO4 8 months ago
@cErx2oO4 we are going to run this full time, constantly flooded and follow it's progress.
backyardaquaponics 8 months ago
Thanks nice lady, this is great!
-BullwinkleII
120ThingsIn20Years 8 months ago
Comment removed
kirbycraig 8 months ago
Couldn't find the manual on your web site
survivalweb 8 months ago
@survivalweb @californiaprepping Just working on the final bits at the moment, we had to put up the video on youtube to link it within the manual. We expect it will be up and avialable in the next 2-3 days.
backyardaquaponics 8 months ago
Great video. Thanks for all of the great info.
californiaprepping 8 months ago
This was extremely clear and helpful. Thank you so much for posting.
WoundedEgo 8 months ago