This article provides a comprehensive guide on setting up a greenhouse for aquaponics, covering the benefits of using a greenhouse and selecting the ideal system. Aquaponics greenhouses allow organic produce to be grown without the need for chemical pesticides or herbicides, preventing pests and diseases. By harnessing the natural symbiosis between fish and plants, aquaponic gardening is a remarkable and sustainable approach to food production.
When choosing a greenhouse, consider factors such as size, location, and temperature control. Some aquaponics growers choose to enclose their systems to control air and water temperature for healthier fish and plants. In cold climates, the heat-regulated effect of a greenhouse is necessary for better control.
A Growing Dome is an ideal environment for greenhouse aquaponics, providing ideal conditions for both fish and plants. Using a greenhouse allows for better control of temperature, light, and humidity, extends the growing season, and improves pest control. A Growhouse is an enclosed indoor environment with walls rather than glass or polycarbonate sun-friendly windows, so grow lights are required.
Greenhouses are not strictly required for successful aquaponics, but they offer benefits such as insulation, vertical growing, and fish tanks. A greenhouse structure can be beneficial for aquaponics systems, as it allows sunlight inside and captures heat. The goals of designing a greenhouse include fish feeders, pH, EC, water level, temp, and humidity.
📹 Why We DITCHED The Aquaponics System
There are 2 main reasons why we don’t run our aquaponics system any longer. ZEAL – Sign up under SMART SUBSCRIBE and …
Does aquaponics need direct sunlight?
Aquaponics can be grown indoors without natural light, as plants require photosynthesis for survival. However, lack of natural light has become a challenge for hydroponics operations, especially those seeking to extend the growing season into winter. Advances in artificial lighting have made it possible to provide the full spectrum of daylight or the specific range of red frequencies preferred by flowering plants. Researching the specific needs of your crop will help adjust your artificial lighting system for rapid, healthier, and vibrant growth.
When setting up your artificial lighting system, ensure it carries light evenly to all sections of your grow tables, avoiding stunted growth on the periphery. Ensure the lights are close enough to provide enough brightness while guarding against excessive heat produced by the bulbs. Fans can sometimes mitigate this problem, but replacing your lighting system with a lower temperature option may be necessary.
What is aquaponics weakness?
Aquaponics is a sustainable method of growing vegetables and plants, mimicking nature by reusing leftovers from the animal kingdom. However, it has several weaknesses, including high initial start-up costs, requiring deep expertise in the natural world, and difficulty finding a perfect match between fish and plant needs. It also has fewer management options compared to stand-alone aquaculture or hydroponics, and mistakes can cause system collapse.
Daily management is crucial, and energy demand is high. Fish feed needs to be purchased regularly, and aquaponics products alone are not enough to ensure a balanced diet. Effective solid waste removal is essential, as over two-thirds of failures in aquaponics systems occur due to ineffective solid waste removal. Despite these challenges, aquaponics is a sustainable method that requires close control of different parameters to achieve balance, maintain optimal conditions, and ensure the success of the system.
What are three conditions required for an aquaponics system to work?
Aquaponics is a system that involves the careful balance of fish, plants, and beneficial bacteria. This balance is achieved through monitoring water quality parameters, ensuring adequate oxygenation, and selecting the right species for the system. Fish care involves selecting the right species, managing feeding schedules, and preventing diseases. Plant selection and care involve understanding the best plants for the system and their nutrient uptake and light requirements.
Beneficial bacteria play a crucial role in the nitrification process, converting fish waste into nutrients for plants. Maintaining appropriate conditions and avoiding disruptions can help these bacteria thrive.
Operational maintenance is essential for the success of aquaponics systems. Regular testing of water quality, system inspections, and monitoring fish and plant health are crucial. Prompt action can prevent minor problems from escalating. Troubleshooting skills are essential for identifying and resolving problems quickly. This may involve diagnosing water quality issues, adjusting feeding practices, or managing unexpected equipment failures.
In summary, aquaponics requires a delicate balance between fish, plants, and beneficial bacteria. Regular monitoring and maintenance are essential for ensuring optimal conditions for both fish and plants.
Why are my fish dying in my aquaponics?
The concentration of oxygen in the morning atmosphere can be low, which results in decreased oxygen availability during the summer months when water temperatures rise due to increased water temperature.
Do plants grow faster in aquaponics?
Aquaponics systems are beneficial as they do not harbor soil pests, requiring no pesticides. This leads to faster plant growth, as plants have access to nutrients 24 hours a day. For instance, lettuce can grow from two months to one month using an aquaponic system. Hawaii State FCU members may access external websites for third-party services and products, such as financial education webinars. However, these websites are not under their control and may have different security and privacy measures.
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How can aquaponics fail?
Nutrient imbalances in aquaponics systems can be caused by various factors, including inadequate nutrient levels in water, pH levels outside the optimal range, imbalance in the nitrogen cycle, and lack of diversity in fish or plant types. To address these issues, it is essential to monitor pH levels regularly, test water quality and nutrient levels, introduce beneficial bacteria or microbes to break down organic matter, consider adding additional nutrients like worm castings or vermicompost, and implement crop rotation or companion planting to diversify nutrient sources.
Pest infestations are another issue that can negatively impact plant growth and fish health. Understanding the types of pests that can affect the system and implementing integrated pest management techniques can help manage pests and maintain a healthy and thriving system. By addressing these issues, aquaponics systems can continue to thrive and thrive.
What are the risks of aquaponics?
Aquaponics, despite its benefits, presents unique challenges that can impact its performance and productivity. Common issues include water quality fluctuations, fish health problems, and plant nutrient deficiencies. These can be caused by environmental conditions, system design flaws, or improper maintenance practices. Addressing these issues is crucial for maintaining the stability and sustainability of an aquaponics system. Proactive management and timely intervention are essential for long-term success.
This blog will discuss common aquaponics problems and provide practical solutions. By understanding these challenges and implementing effective strategies, aquaponics growers can unlock their systems’ full potential and cultivate healthy ecosystems.
Is aquaponics high maintenance?
Aquaponics is a recirculating system that offers several benefits, including ease of maintenance, productivity, and lower costs of nutrients. It requires only weekly checks on pH and ammonia levels and daily checks on electrical conductivity. Aquaponics allows for two income sources: fish and plants, unlike hydroponics which only relies on hydroponically grown plants. Fish feed is also cheaper than chemical nutrients used in hydroponics systems.
What are 5 disadvantages of aquaponics?
Aquaponics is a combination of aquaculture and hydroponics, aiming to grow plants and fish in the same system. This approach allows nutrients produced by fish waste to be used by plants, which in turn filter the water, making it suitable for the fish. However, aquaponics has several disadvantages, including high upfront costs, higher operational costs than soil culture, high energy requirements, daily maintenance, skill and knowledge from two separate agricultural fields, testing of water quality for fish and plants, multiple ways the entire system can fail, and limited plant selection.
Do you need a grow light for aquaponics?
Aquaponics farms require light sources for plants to grow, either natural (sun) or electric, or a combination of both. During winter months, electric light is used to supplement natural sunlight. The choice of supplemental lighting depends on factors such as optimal technology, spectrum, installation, reliability, and cost. LED technology has gained popularity due to its energy efficiency and lower upfront costs. Other lighting technologies like fluorescent, metal halide, and high-pressure sodium (HPS) have lower initial costs but higher operating costs due to lower energy efficiency.
Additionally, these technologies have higher heat content, which can cause plant yellowing or burning if the light source is too close. Thrive Agritech recently supplied LED lights for BellaVita Farm in Brookeville, Maryland, which produces leafy greens, tomatoes, and microgreens for high-end restaurants.
Do aquaponics need greenhouse?
A greenhouse is a highly beneficial structure for aquaponics systems, as it allows sunlight to enter and capture heat, ensuring optimal plant growth. These structures can be small for small-scale or backyard systems and large for commercial ones. When evaluating potential locations, it is essential to consider factors such as sunlight exposure, which is crucial for photosynthesis, root development, and nutrient absorption. Adequate sunlight exposure ensures healthy plant growth, robust root development, and improved crop quality.
To assess sunlight availability throughout the day, consider factors such as obstructions, shadows, and the angle of sunlight at different times of the day. Tools like sun charts or digital mapping apps can help identify areas with optimal sunlight patterns and identify areas with optimal exposure for the aquaponics system.
📹 492lb of Cucumbers in 4 Weeks?! Aquaponics Greenhouse Tour
In fact, he harvested almost 500lb of cucumbers just a couple of weeks ago from it, and there are thousands of pounds more …
If your maintenance was greater than a soil crop. Your system was never balanced. A balanced system needs no real maintenance aside from feeding fish and adjusting per fish growth. Removing larger fish and adding smaller ones. I’ve made many over the years and the first 6-9 months is all maintenance to properly balanced. Then you put your auto feed for the finish and monitor nute levels. This happens in nature everyday with no upkeep. 👍🏼🇺🇸
I’d like to know more about your system. I operate a 1200 suare foot system and 2,500 square foot system. The only maintenance I have in 7 years is feeding fish and adding water once a week. All my time is carrying for plants. There shouldn’t be major maintenance to the system unless is badly designed. One of my systems is a flood and drain with bell siphon and the othere is fully automated flood and drain. I also have a 800 square foot aeroculture system but it’s a high pressure system with 85psi emitters that requires a booster pump. My filters are self back washing. I waste only 10 gallons of water a week when flushing the filter and that sludge is Mineralized for watering a soil garden. I use 100 pounds of fish food a week. My monthly cost on running the systems is about 400 a month.
Our off grid isn’t true aquaponics, but uses a 250 gallon ibc tote to hold shinner minnows which are VERY cold tolerant and do well in hot climates also. We simply use the water for irrigation of our beds, and have a solar air pump for the minnows. We have to water the garden beds anyway, so we simply use the well once a week to top off the minnows water and use the excess water for the garden. We use NO fertilizer this way and its super simple
The most interesting Aquaponic system I saw was in Taiwan 15 yr ago. The man used indoor greenhouse and outdoor pools around 12″ to 24″ deep of 30′ or more usually long oval shape which he just floated plants on 2″ Styrofoam sheets with holes to put plants in, and fish and shrimp in the water. Covered 90% of the water to help keep evaporation down. Very easy to plant and harvest by just pushing the sheets around. No need for any recirculating system. Ad water and fish food. Some plants indoors he had sitting on stands in the water which he even grew banana’s.
we are doing AP here on the homestead in Arkansas with not as much evaporation as you stated but it seemed like you had dripping water going through the air in over a dozen places, that is where the evap is coming from. I am experimenting on different ways of approaching the nutrient part of the water and using geothermal earth tubes to keep from freezing. we have 2-275 gal ibc buried and 3-275 gal above for fish.
Very helpful and honest briefing about a system that is expensive to build and expensive to use. Over time it is a hobby most cannot afford to have and try to eat from while thinking there is a chance for coming out ahead on the food bill. Of course that won’t happen since the method depends on electric, water supply, and the ability to fix and maintain all the parts. The Egyptians were taking advantage of a natural flooding event that took place at least once each year to grow food, or they had starvation problems. Their only cost was in labor and very long hours during planting and harvesting periods, which is common to farming.
I definitely agree about having a good source for water….This system is best in a sealed building for the most part where the evaporation condenses and falls back to the water system via a concrete floor or something like that…also for those with smaller sources of water…many states such as Idaho where I live…You can buy a permit from the state water board to pull water from any river, creek or lake..Here it is about $40 or so a year…then a trailer with 250-500 gallon tank can be pumped directly from a local river or whatever, maybe ran through a filter system into your water storage or hydroponics system. This does as you say, take time and some gas for a pump but it works.
I lived in South Florida, Broward county. I had a koi and talapia pond. It was 2500+ gallons and 5 feet deep and lined with black Firestone pond liner. Every year when the cool weather came in I’d lose a batch of Tilapia to the cold water. The best fish we had were plain old koi. They could handle both the 80-90 degree weather and the cool weather during the winter season. The Tilapia we’re good at keeping the algae under control. I had this pond set up with an aquaponics grow bed too. I think the best way to do aquaponics is to have it set up as naturally as possible with gravity feed. Also there should be a source of water that can be used to replenish any evaporation, with as little effort as possible. It can work but it will require a lot of investment at the start.
I agree with the “you’re doing it wrong” statements, and for many of the reasons stated. I hate to see the “well I was going to try it, but now I”m not thanks to your article” posts. Such is the danger of the internet. On the coast of Peru they utilize aquaponics specifically because is SAVES water. lol.
I am doing aquaponic and designer of all my commercial system. I am utilizing vertical tower and planar growing subsystem. The best i can say. Aquaponic is highly complex system that require complete, proper and proven bio processing system. Once you get the system correct not in DIY level setup, I can say its one of the most efficient in both inputs and maintenance.
I’m very interested in space habitat design and life support systems. I thought it would be a very cool project to start. Go through and optimize a system that can support a family of 4. Leafy Greens, Vegetables, Fruits, try just about anything. Minimizing maintenance would definitely be core to the design. Could be used for writing a bunch of design optimization papers. Do a complete energy and material balance. Develop my own hardware and software systems for monitoring. I was thinking of putting everything inside an outbuilding and collecting all the water from the roof into a series of tanks. A 1inch rain = 2250 gallons water. Avg 2.5 inches rain a month. Line the south facing wall with solar collectors to collect heat for closed loop hydronic heating the building during cold months. We’ll see.
I wonder if there’s any simple fix to ameliorate evaporation in warm environments. At the end of the day it’s all about efficiency and in your case water is one of the most taxing resources, labour being the only thing more valuable than that. It’s easy to make aquaponics make sense when space is extremely expensive, suddenly things like energy costs and water are not as big a priority. For off-grid homesteads I can see why most people don’t do aquaponics, at least not the typical set-ups.
We don’t run it constantly. Yeah, that’s too much man. Sorry you had bad luck and lots of maintenance. I built mine 10 years ago and all I do is pull the fish crap out to feed the grapes, fruit trees and some of the in ground veggies we grow. Other than that, I had it automated. 🙂 Hope you get another great option.
You Deff made it to Big. We use a 55 gallon Rain barrel. With 10 fish that The water comes off my roof shed roof n Fills the barrel. We drain the barrel Once a week. We also Live in Altantic Canada. So high rain. We use Yellow Perch. In the fall they go in the garden Dead. We don’t have evap problems or temperature problems or rain problem.
1 minute in. Main reason I don’t do aquaponics is it is dependent on things out side my control and a lot can mess it up. Power pumps equipment etc etc I garden for my family to be able to eat Dirt water sun, main thing is water. If I have that my garden won’t fail as easily as a aquaponic/hydroponic system in a grid down situation, curious if you have the same reasoning
Thank you! I have been going back in forth with thinking of building a Aqua system using IBC’s. I watched several YouTube articles and could not get the answers I was looking for. I always imagined a lot of maintenance and time, and resources to keep the fish alive. It seemed like a lot of work and if 1 thing goes wrong the fish can all die.
Instead of aquaponics, would it be fair to just stock a nearby existing pond and allow natural fish growth for food, and maybe occasional partially clear excess water plants for compost heat & pump a bit of muck water from the bottom for the garden? -once knowing the cycles of rain/replenishment, etc.. more of a side-line than main dependency for fish as meat options ?
$5 and my opinion will get you a cup of coffee, but…1. Don’t raise fish for food, raise them for sale (Koi, etc….) better returns on a fish that sells for top dollar, then buy your Tilapia fillets 2. you had alot of open water which allows for evap; reduce open lines, aerate centrally (waterfall) to improve oxygen content while minimizing evaporation, and three. If you plants are in a greenhouse when it’s hot outside (unless you’re keeping the inside temp regulated, you’ll lose more water than its worth…food for thought. Hope it helps!
I have been successfully involved with aquaponics for the past 15 years. There are many different ways to do aquaponics. There are low maintenance ways to do aquaponics. Aquaponics uses 90% less water than traditional agriculture. This guy needed to better educate himself on doing aquaponics correctly for his environment. Aquaponics is the way to go. I love it, enjoy lots of cheap healthy organic food.
Thank you for the info. Perhaps you could scale down your system. Have you consider using solar to heat water, via the heat exchange to keep your water temperrture at higher 70F+ in the winter months? Secondly, if you enclosed all or most open water flow. That will reduce water loss. Also covered your fish tanks to minize water evaporation as well as reducing the algae growth?
So I’m thinking about getting into homesteading when I retire from the military. I was debating about trying Aquaponics so thank you for this article. One question I can’t seem to find a good answer to is that if I wanted to stock a pond with fish for consumption what type of fish would be a good option (in South Carolina) I’ve heard catfish or tilapia may be a good option. My dad’s pond seems to be overstocked with bass as so that would be an easy source to get as well. I would be looking for something that would be easy to maintain, easy to feed if I don’t have access to fish feed, good nutrient value, and something that can grow relatively large so I don’t have to harvest a bunch for a meal. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Did you convert your old system into a greenhouse? We had a nice sized greenhouse that did well for us until a store bought start introduced binding weed into our garden area. Now we fight that every year. Great article. I know every time I looked into doing aquaponics, just building the system seemed exhausting to me, and I assumed I would not keep up with the maintenance required for it, so we never did it. We have a grow tower in our home, which is the only aquaponic system we have and it is pretty simple.
I tried to do aquaponics as well, here in southern Arkansas. My dad and I built a five thousand sq.’ greenhouse and were trying to grow commercially. I worked at it 10-12 hours a day, 7 days a week for 7 years… It can produce, like you said, however, it is completely unsustainable. We were using the DWT method and I’m telling y’all, it is labor, money and heartache intensive! It’s such an inexact science. Don’t get me wrong it’s really cool! But we had moments where I contacted “experts” many states over and nobody had any answers. Greenhouse management itself is complicated, not even considering the system. Anyway, message me if you’re curious about more, but suffice it to say that I would counsel anyone to think long and hard to invest any blood, sweat or tears into it as I’ve done a lot of all three. ( Please discount my picture with the AP system, that happiness was at the beginning)
Really appreciate the update and realistic explanation. Aquaponics was what first introduced me to your website, a very long time ago… 😂 I might be able in the PNW to pull it off with moderate temperatures and lots of rain, but the maintenance would definitely end up being a challenge. Thanks for the informative article!
Aquaponics absolutely uses less water than soil. Evaporation should not be a problem even with high heat. What do you think happens in soil under high heat? Plants transpire more and need more water. There was some design failures here for sure but to each his own. AP is definitely not for everyone and off grid is far more challenging than on grid for sure.
Thanks for the article. Yup as they say looks good on paper. No system works without issues or tweaking, it really depends on conditions. Totally agree trying to be self-sufficient is a lot about looking for high productivity with least amount of maintenance-labor. It’s very challenging to say the least. Stay Safe & Good Luck
adaquate solar panel, a pump, a closed revape water system with oxyplants, some eco friendly tank fish, a live food source for the tank fish, an insect/algae food source for the live food source, a easy A F. all enclosed. solar autofeeders. battery back up optional. camera system to home view. like i had cause i’ like my extra free time. my ( (4 paku) per 275 gallon tank (2 each) ) favorite tank fish vegatarian pirhana aka paku get huge fast. veggie pellets.
I disagree with both arguments. On water, he is using about 35 gallons per day. Most of it is absorbed by the plants, some lost due to perspiration. Only a small percentage was due to evaporation. Best to compare it versus the same size garden, which is undoubtedly use more water and more lost. On maintenance, when it is set up right, time spent should be less than 5 minutes per day feeding the fish and tapping off the water. Less if autofeed and using auto top off. Overall, the yield is better than the garden.
I suppose the main thing about water loss in hydroponics, aeroponics and aquaponics is to do it all in a closed air system and reclaim most of the evaporated water through condensation. Need heat pumps to efficiently cool the water vapor too. Heat pumps are not that big of a deal if you install a system for your house and account for the farming needs from the beginning. Of course a closed air system also needs a way for carbon dioxide to get into the system so plants have a source of atmospheric carbon, and i am not quite sure what is a solution for that part – maybe just having a big heat-exchanging system at the ceiling level to reclaim water as air leaves the system while just pumping the air in from the outside on the other end? Big indoor farms definitely add extra carbon dioxide directly. You will definitely need extra carbon dioxide if you also supplementing sunlight with growth lamps, as it will pretty much eliminate rest period in plants and as a result will increase carbon consumption. Such a greenhouse would need an airlock on the entrance to minimize water loss too.
Zach I never thought of you as a quitter aquaponics needs tweeking to fit your environment and it has to be maintained no more than anything else. You have a pond why aquaponics stock your pond fish then fish them up the pond fish won’t freeze. You have an open system and grow beds in a location where you have high heat and summer drought, go hydroponic using pond water and NFT for low water consumption. You just quit How’s the Torah group doing? Good I hope Blessings
dude… that little system you had is no near close to significant… you’re system’s problem is the the lack of buffering/ biofilter… you need a big biofilter – even consecutive tanks… but before you get back into it, study up on the reactors and bio reactors – the lessons in systems management will give you more confidence
Problem solving skills, aquaponics is really easy and low maintenance if you have it figured out lol. Tilapia isn’t hard to keep warm in a greenhouse. You can use a wood stove to heat your water, biogas, or even the sun if your smart enough. I use a long circular mirror focused on a long steel pipe in the middle as a hot water heater and it keeps my water in my greenhouse 75-80 degrees. That along with my biogas digester, I can heat my greenhouse with biogas and the co2 the burning creates supplements my plants. Stop complaining, do some research, and solve some problems.
Thanks for deleting my comment. Have you done it – or did the famous YouTube-Algorhythm some of his “Magic”? I find it poor behavior to do so, much more, because I have just tried to help people getting better results with Aquaponics. I would have been happy, years ago, if somebody told me a bunch of things before I ran into different problems.
With all due respect Sir. It seams that your water evaporation is primarily due to poor design. From what I have seen in this article it appears that there is a huge amount of water exposed to the elements, especially while it is flowing through your system. The hight the water flowed from your pipes into the growbeds. The flow through the website with the water surface exposed. Given the size of your system this design alone would have significantly contributed to the mass evaporation.
Aquaponics is a lot of math and science, but everything is predictable. The rate of evaporation is something you can figure out in advance. It isn’t something that magically happens, it is a predictable number. I’m not sure why you had everything open if you were in a hot area, of course you are going to have a lot of evaporation… and then as your water levels rise and fall between refills, you are going to have swings in nitrogen levels. This isn’t traditional farming, you really need to do the research and math before you set anything up.
Your aquaponics set up was the reason for your water usage. NOT aquaponics. And even, ‘aquaponics uses a lot of water’ Compared to what?? As Any other conventional method of growing crops uses far far more water. Hydroponics should use about 10% of the water as field grown crops and aquaponics can get to 5% of the water usage. Your setup is just crap and you literally have everything open to the air and you’re wondering why you are getting so much evaporation lol
I am not an aquaponics fan unless you harvest your fish. if you eat or sell the fish it works. otherwise hydroponics is better. BUT the vids or your system it is pretty obvious your system is poorly designed. too many open gutters, top water feeds- that is why your evaporation was so big. if you have a well designed system there are no problems, very little maintenance and you need to feed and harvest. and plants do fine with chlorine. you need to study a little bit before starting a website. lots of dumb info here. I run hydroponics companies, design and installation. again I am not a big fan of aquaponics, but the reason you are not doing aquaponics anymore is too much stupidity
Just to correct a few things… first off your system design is not the best… the water drains from your grow bed into an OPEN (evaporation) gutter in sunlight… next the pvc pipe that brings the water to the grow bed should be 1 inch under the gravel, and not splashing onto the sides of grow bed which causes evaporation… the water level when the grow bed is filled should be a few inches under the gravel, and should not be exposed to sunlight… aquaponics is maintenance free… and WAY less work than soil… only have to check once or twice a week to check water quality etc (ph, amonia )… fish feed on a timer… pump on a timer (flood and drain) with batt backup… with IOT you can pretty much manage everything from your cell phone…
Bad system design. The only time you should be spending with a well designed and balanced system is feeding fish, if you don’t use a timer, and tending/harvesting plants. I will say finding that balance, as well as getting your system design tweaked to work at optimum can take some time, but, there is no way you should be losing or even using that much water.
More on this system: ECOLIFE Conservation, Aquaponics Innovation Center, Escondido, CA Shown and designed by Martin Niwinski ([email protected]) To volunteer to work on this system go to : ecolifeconservation.org/support/volunteer/ For monthly or private tour info: [email protected] facebook.com/ecolifeconservation/ Instagram: @ecolifeconservation
This summer I’m working in an elementary school that is having the 5th graders do experiments with aquaponics! It’s really cool. One kid is comparing growing strawberries in an aquaponic system versus the ground. Another kid is growing spider plants on top of a goldfish tank and comparing that to spider plants in regular water. They’re really excited about it! After this article I feel like I understand it more and can talk to them about it more lol!
Cool system and article. If I were to give any advice for a scaled down system, I would go hybrid if you are absolutely convinced that you need a raft system. Put a media based grow bed immediately downstream from your fish, and add some worms – they will be fine in expanded clay flood/drain . This will save your need for solids filtration at least in a backyard system. As well you could add a solids separator (Cone bottomed tank with ball valve at the drain) and compost the solids knowing that you have dirt needs too. Thanks for these very educational articles – intelligently done.
Oh dear, wish I have that technology to produce and consume. Someday I will have that technology and the produce I will give it away to all my neighbours and if it’s more enough I will give it to those hungry in my community. Thanks Kevin, this is so inspiring and I think I will start researching for such technology. Very amazing! Wow, wow, wow! Love, love, love!
If you impliment electroculture in this greenhouse you may be able to reduce some of the nutrient needs whilst at the same time increasing yeild. Simplistic method is run thin grid of copper wire above the plants and apply very high voltage potential to the grid but only 1-2miliamp. This increases plant growth a huge amount.
The great thing about this system is that if it were to be implemented in a neighborhood, each neighborhood could have locally sourced food with little to no water waste. In a city like Detroit where they have food deserts and extra land parcels that have been abandoned, this could really revitalize a community
scaling down is real easy i started years ago with small units for back yard city farming.Then went bigger which increases problems but can be worked out. My smallest design was 18 by 24 for apt living with solar air stone. This can produce a lot of food constantly. Was only hydro. but do aqua and hydro about 80% to 20% now keep up teaching people
How is he growing the tomatoes and cucumbers? Are they in net pots with some soil that the roots dangle down into a lowered water level. Are the root entirely saturated at all times? If so how does he deal with root rot? It looks as though they are in a Deep Water Culture based on the rafting. Very interested to hear what you know.
Hello Kevin and Martin, I have just made a tiny Pond, but think you will love it, it’s Bioactive, no filters and has a simple fountain pump on Solar… uploaded my article today and your article popped up as recommended, glad it did, hit sub and liked and even added your awesome website to my featured list, plan to watch more of you vids, they are EPIC !!!
Seems to be a great system… except for the fish..!! This could have been a really good setup if the fish had had better living conditions (maybe more like an aquarium or pond set-up??). To me this looks just like the fish-equivalent of a chicken factory farm…. This article doesn’t show much about the fish-part of the system, so I really hope I’m wrong about this and that it just looks bad, but usn’t what it seems. Maybe you could do another article that explains more about this part of this system?? I’ve also seen a lot of other questions on that subject in the comments below.
Yeah, if we could scale this down to household level, in theory each household should be able to produce enough veggies and fish for themselves throughout the year. I would love to see someone adding shrimps to this equation because shrimps molt regularly. Imagine feeding the shrimp shells to fish. Then the only cost you spend is food for shrimps and electricity.
Great article, enjoyed it. When I see these set-ups I rarely hear what the energy consumption is which is a cost. I ask because you have many subscribers around the globe I imagine and each country charges a different amount for electricity. Could you consider giving energy consumption and the cost per unit so that I can compare after a currency conversion. I find these set-ups inspiring but I am put off trying by the unknown overheads.
I have been studying like crazy every system designer to me ‘Martin is Brilliant’ in a category all his own – the only designer talking about using the solids not just tossing out to a garden etc., MY Questions! From tank the flow goes to 2 filters, why 2 filters -more info on types and flow back to fish or plants? the Solid flow goes to 3 tank setup, Please explain more detail on flow and time etc.? (I am begging) please spend in future more time on explanation? Tomatoes and cucumbers are a deep water culture system but in article flows to raft system that look like ebb and flow this confuses me please explain – how done if is DWC type? 4) I am building a 600 to 800 sq ft green house over this winter. I am type that likes to build a system once without plumbing errors. this spring I will set up system to feed family of 4. Please make longer and more detailed articles of a few of Martins systems. PS if you have posted other articles of systems Martin designed can you please post links!
hey man how you doing, I love your article. I have question, I’ve been looking into this stuff and I want to know how much it cost to feed about 100 tilapia from small till they about 1.5lb or 2. I want to know if it’s profitable I want to start business in haiti my main concern is the cost of feeding. if you can give some info that I would appreciate it, thanks.
500 lbs of cucumbers in 4 weeks sounds non profitable at all. It makes perfect sense that this is a nonprofit that donates everything. Good for educational purposes, but not sustainable at this scale quite yet. I love learning about what people do, because not all of us have the iniciative or dedication to grow our own food. Great work guys!
no one ever talks about the fish food. sort of the basis of the entire system. it is mainly fish meal (mixed with vegetable proteins and a binder like wheat), where is it sourced from….unsustainable industrial fisheries? massive polluting fish farming? who knows? why does nobody talk about the pristine source of their super eco friendly system?