Good luck Matete!

Doubtful, you're up against some pretty stiff competition in the area.

@@Kuingar people will always need food.

@@ianjanusz4109 True, but the high up-front cost and local companies which do this mean that he'd be far better off contacting one and asking for a job there.

thank you

What is the best advice to start an aquaponics system like this? I am looking forward to build mine very soon.

start by getting the required items..We would recommend you start small first to test, then expand later

thank you

thank you

KOI, CARP and Goldfish eat lettuce for breakfast. Mosquitoes and Other, for Dinner.

Thank you.. There are 50mm airtsones per growbed for aeration. You can see here www.myaquaponics.co.za/blog/8mx8m-open-space-converted-into-740-plant-aquaponics-system-for-less-than-r25000-us1700/ Fish tank relies on surface splashing for aeration.. Circulation flow is low at around 300-500 l/hr. Ideally you want the volume in the fishtank to turn once or twice per hour. We would need a water pump to achieve that, but decided to stay with airlift pump only and its working fine.

Thank you. We use an outdoor wood sealant (oil based) from our local hardware store in South Africa. Brand name is Woodoc Deck Sealer

Hi the liner is still going strong.. Should last at least 5 years, but can last up to 10 years.

i think black liner last longer with more carbon in it, cold water also make it last very long time, sure over 10 years.

@Kingsley Mitchell scammer. do not google

THank you.. Price is all relative to what things cost in your country. In our country, if you were to leave the fish tank and filtration box out, then you would save around $600 based on current exchange rate

Correct Prakaz, but would have involved a lot of digging which we did not want to do :)

thank you. There are many videos on youtube explaining how an airlift pump works. Basically it works on 1:1 ratio. If you want to pump up 1 meter you need to push air 1 meter below . We use a LP100 air pump rated at 140l/min and we pump up to 1.3 meter high. Ideally you should not be using an airpump to pump higher than 50cm... We simply used an airlift pump in this system to test the theory.

water level on all 3 grow beds is equalized through a common outflow connection. Water is pumped up using air lift from a hole in the ground that is connected to all 3 grow beds

thanks, at the time the video was taken we had some tilapia fingerlings in the tank and in the growbeds.. It was low stocking densities at the time, so we relied on teh splash from the inlet to create the aeration. We have since added one 50mm round airstone. For the airpump sump, we used a 110mm plastic pipe and glued an end cap to the bottom of it. The pipe goes down into the ground around 1.3m deep (as we are pumping 1.3m high).. With airpump its best on a 1:1 ratio, i.e blow air 1m down to lift im up.

Hi Abdul, keep in mind that this system was designed as a show case only and to prove that one can build an aquaponics system for low cost. The design is not fully optimized. Based on the the 12 square metres of grow beds, we should have a 3000 litre tank (which would not add much to the cost, but we had space constraints). Tank should be stocked with around 20 Kg of fish per 1000 litres (you can push it to 30Kg/1000l with enough aeration). Rate of feeding for the fish for leafy type plants, would then be roughly 40 grams per square metre of grow bed. Total of 480 grams of 30% protein fish feed per day. Since we only installed a tank that was just over 1000 litres, we also supplemented with some nutrients such as calcium and potassium carbonate. Lettuce in our system takes about 4 weeks from seedling to harvest in summer and 6 weeks in winter. We keep nitrate levels at over 100ppm with the help of beneficial bacteria and of course the supplemented nutrients. All fish waste is drained from the filter and put in an off system mineralizer and then fed back into the system as the organic matter gets fixed by the heterotrophic bacteria .

Hi Mark, most of you assumptions and ideas above are correct. You can easily build your own filtration system as per your comments. Airlift works on a one to 1 ratio, so if you want to pump up 1m, then you need to go down 1m with the air feed. We just use a 12mm irrigation pipe from the airpump to the bottom of the airlift pipe. Simple "U" connection into the bottom of the 50mm air pipe. Feel free to email us for more info. Email on our website at www.myaquaponics.co.za

​@@MyAquaponics1 ​Thank you so much for your prompt reply. I am still looking and learning more about aquaponic systems, if you don't mind I will come in the future with more questions hehe. Thank you once again, and please stay safe and healthy.

PVC liner we can have it made to order, contact us via our email address on www.myaquaponics.co.za As for the polystyrene , you can get it from Automa

Thank you, I’m emailing now 👌🏿

Thank you. We run the pump 24/7 as need to get circulation and aeration from it.. Its only a 100 watt pump, so not expensive to run in our country

No difficulties at all, though we would not use an airlift pump for water re-circulation for this size system as its a little under powered. Does its job though, but would prefer higher flow. 25 Kg of fish used with 1000 litre tank. Recommend 2000-3000l tank for this many grow beds, and around 60Kg of fish biomass

@@MyAquaponics1 thank you!

Hi, we used the biggest air pump we had in stock which is the LP100 (100 watt - 140 l/m). We do not use an airstone in the sump to airlift the water to fish tank, we simply use a 12mm pipe directly from the air pump

Hi Abhaya, thanks for your comment. This system is still going strong and continues to generate successful harvest every month, predominantly lettuce and spinach.

Hi Mauricio, depth is 380mm. More info on the system here www.myaquaponics.co.za/blog/8mx8m-open-space-converted-into-740-plant-aquaponics-system-for-less-than-r25000-us1700/

Hi, we've never had issues with that as its inside a greenhouse. We have traps for mice.. I don't think lizards, frogs and snakes would contaminate anything. You could put on raised beds, but DWC is heavy, so you would need very strong structures at a much higher cost. Even then, snakes and lizars could easy climb up.

thanks, never tried that, so will give it a try

snubbel buff just like using a straw in a bottle for air escape

Add a venturi

snubbel buff Need some help building one in Jamaica

Not true.. a 90 is a 90 either way giving the same limitations to flow. However drilling a small hole in the top of the bend will allow all air to escape and get higher flow cause the pipe won’t be trapping air restricting syphon would actually be better unless you submerge the t and add stand pipe to it. In that case you would get the exact same flow from either setup. If you want to increase flow you need to get a full syphon which for some reason aquaponics is scared of. To prevent it from draining the entire tank in event of pump failure you add a hole just under the water line so it will break suction once water drops how ever far you are comfortable with and sump able to hold. You can actually get more flow from a full syphon 3/4” pipe then most are getting from the standard t fitting type setup using 3-4” pipe. If you want to do it right imop for aquaponics Systems 1-1/2” pipe using the t setup submerged 12” under the water to increase hydrostatic pressure on the system and using a 13-14” stand pipe off the top of that tee to reestablish syphon when power returns with a gate valve on the pipe to dial in the flow how you want would be the best setup. Then drill a 1/2”-5/8” hole in the stand pipe 2” below water level to prevent syphoning 12” of water during power failure. You can achieve over 2000gph and close to 3000 flow this way getting much better solids suction out of the tank cause of the full syphon then tune the valve to the flow the rest of your system can handle. You can run pipe much further and have a much cleaner, more efficient and cheaper setup this way cause you’re buying much smaller pipe. Ideally size the pump to 1 or 3/4” return lines and depending on head pressure you can have 1650gph easy in return with the ability to intake much more. This prolongs the life of the pump itself as no restrictions are place on the pump itself. This is how we setup sump systems in regular fish tanks. 1” returns with 1-1/2” intakes using full syphon. We setup the system to only have the sump relieve at best 10g of water in event of failure and at same time we baffle the sump so the pump can only add 10g at best to the tank in event of a clogged intake line. Tune the intake to the return needed for balanced flow and eliminate all additional pump pressure on the systems. With this common setup we turnover water 10x per hour wo breaking a sweat. Higher turnover yields more dissolved oxygen and a cleaner overall system. Then you can increase pipe size and decrease pipe size where desired in the plumbing to reduce flow pressure or increase it wo altering the actual flow and water turnover of the system.. for example you wouldn’t want to blast a flood and drain media bed with high pressure from 1600gph flow rates.. so increase pipe right before the bed to 2-3” and use an elongated spray bar this would yield close to the desired water pressure into that bed wo sacrificing overall flow. Then use the same 1-1/2” pipe in continuous flow syphon from that bed. This whole belll syphon thing makes no sense. Out planted tanks have plants underwater entirely and indefinitely. They grow just fine and very fast. We add co2injectiin simply cause water doses have the same capacity air does. End result there is more then enough o2 in the water with a proper setup so roots don’t need to be out of water. I’ve actually seen several recent tests indicating this as well. Flow and turnover is much more important . In a dwc system intake on the bottom and return on the top. With 3/4”pipe. This ldnkeep from blowing raft all over wo sacrificing flow which deliver nutrient faster at lower more usable levels. Towers would be tricky and need a bleed off return sending most of the flow in a loop back to the sump while only 25% or so went to the tower. I would personally split this off the dwc return line which would lessen flow to both systems at same time wo adding additional plumbing. As for filtration.. the higher the flow the faster you break down trapped solids.. eliminating the need for a mineralization tank. (Erosion in plain terms) last note coming from a fish keeper... one thing that drives me nuts more then everything else.. using clay media that costs a fortune in grow beds is very inefficient. Place the media in your filtration which holds much less media will actually yield the exact same results for minerals and most important benefit of Clay.. iron.. pull 25% out every 6 months and replace it with new media. This will give much better mineralization to the system and make much better use of the surface area for growing bacteria. We do the same thing in fish keeping only we use the clay media as the substrate at the bottom inside the tank. It both absorbs and stores nutrients not needed til the are while also supplying much needed iron. (Clay has high iron content naturally) I also understand some like to try and keep flow limited for supposed better filtration.. this is true physically but practically it’s nonsense.. what is referred to in aquaponics as “retention time” in a filter is referred to by the rest of the water filtration world to include water treatment plants as “dwell time” the problem In small closed loop system is dwell time for filtration doesn’t work. The rules of biology and physics dictate that it takes 1 cubic foot of media at 1gpm flow to achieve a best case one pass filtration of 92-93%. This is cause filtration is limited by half life meaning no matter how many cubic feet or how slow the water moved through the filter you can not physically reach 100% single pass filtration of water. To make up for this you increase flow. The corresponding lines between flow and dwell dictate that it’s more effective to move water through a little media many many times then it is to move it slowly through a lot of media a couple times. In a 24h period you essentially achieve the same end result however you have massive spiking of toxins from the slower flow. When flowing faster and achieving a lesser % of filtration but filtering the same amount over said time you reduce spikes and achieve constant numbers.... in lame terms again your fish don’t all poop at the exact same time everyday.. it’s spread out over the entire day so getting rid of a little bit very fast is more effective then trying to deal with a lot all at once..

thanks.. We used bio balls because we had some extra lying around though we prefer to use Leca (lightweight expandable clay aggregate). Bio balls are however extensively use as a bio media in the Koi ndustry as it has a good SSA (specific surface area). No issues with plastic affecting the water as they are made from food grade material

Thanks, yes placing them together to save space will work. It will make it more difficult to harvest from the middle if required. Either walk in the water or push the floats to the side

LP-100 is rated at 140l/min. Yes it also oxygenates the plants beds

Hi Kyle, the poutlet is connected to a pipe that extends to the bottom of the tank. At the bottom it bends 90 dgrees to another pipe which sits at the bottom of the tank.. Water coming in then follows that bath out the outlet sucking up some solids. With low flow rates and high stocking densities one would have to perhaps use a vaccuum, otherwise increase the flow rate coming into the tank.

This system has now been replaced with our sandponics system, but when it was running we had a max of 20Kg of fish in the 1000l tank

Thank you.. We are based in South Africa so would not be able to help you build it. You can view our blog here to see some photos of what we did myaquaponics.co.za/blog/8mx8m-open-space-converted-into-740-plant-aquaponics-system-for-less-than-r25000-us1700/ We used plastic PVC sheeting (same as what they use on billboards)

Thank, every DWC system requires two types of filtration. Mechanical filtration to separate the solids and Biofiltration to convert toxic ammonia into nitrates for the plants. Bioballs are for biofiltration and the brushes are in the mechanical settlement tank to trap any floating solids

@@MyAquaponics1 thank you for the answer and more power to you and your family God bless brother

those are floating rafts.. In SOuth AFrica we call it polystyrene

Hi, maybe the sequence in the video is not clear.. We have a single airpump that simultaneously pumps air to the air stones in the growbeds, as well as to the bottom of the airlift pipe in the sump that you see on 1:15 If we were to redesign it, we would possibly add a more powerful airpump as the one we are using is just slightly under powered for our system. It does however produce good results, so we are still running it as is.. Hope it answers your questions.

Thank you for your response. If you don't mind, I've got some more info to ask. What kind of airlift pump design are you using? Is it the "bubble" or "slug". I'm asking because I'll be using a pump (100 L/m) similar to yours, but have to lift water 2.3m above ground, in a pipe 1" in dia. Thanks, again, in advance. :)

We are using a bubble air lift pump. Its a 2 inch pipe. Our pump is 140 l/m. With a 1:1 ratio you'e going to have to go 2.3m into the growing to lift 2.3m.. May be more practical for you to use a regular water pump to lift the water to that head height.

MyAquaponics intersting information. Can you share how to built the airlift?. I appreciatte a lot it!

Hi, there are quite a few videos on youtube explaining how a bubble airlift pump works. Please note that you should not use an airlift pump for high flow requirements or if you want to pump higher than 1 meter. To make one, you simply need a pipe from bottom of your sump or tank, to a height where you want to pump to. Then use an airpump to blow air into the bottom of this pipe, The bubble effect will lift the water to the top of the pipe and out to a grow bed or other chaneel you wish to irrigate/fill. Please note the 1:1 ratio (pump air one meter deep to lift water 1 meter high.

The area is in meters. 8m x 8 m total area.. that is 64sqm or 688 square feet

Interesting.. If you have photos of them being used on an actual system, please share on Aquafarmbuddy.com community platform for Aquaculture and Aquaponics enthusiasts

myaquaponics.co.za/lp-100-100w-low-noise-air-pump-compressor/

We have mainly African Cat fish and a few Tilapia rendalli (red breasted). Rule of thumb is 25-30Kg of fish per 1000 liters of water in your tank.

thanks, we keep it at around 30Kg per 1000 litres

At first my thousand thanks. Is 30Kg per 1000 litres DAILY?

This system worked very well but has now been replaced with a sandponics system. In the years that we had it running , we had no issue with solids in the growbeds or tanks as our solid separator filter trapped all the solids (mainly uneaten fish food and fish faeces)

How much acreage do you have to put it on?

Hi Peter, thanks.. Yes it is true, we could have put the fishtank partially in the ground, but then the same would have to apply to the combo filter, as it is all gravity fed from the fish tank back to the DWC grow channels. Probably would have been better for some insulation in winter as well if it were partially underground. We were pressed for time however, so decided to leave it all above ground.

More information here myaquaponics.co.za/blog/8mx8m-open-space-converted-into-740-plant-aquaponics-system-for-less-than-r25000-us1700/

we do not use anything to prop up the plants in the netpots. we simply put the seedling in the netpot with roots in the water and that is it. As the roots grow they anchor the plant in place

Thanks! And where can I ask which one is the best separation between holes? Im going to harvest lettuce and basil

for lettuce and spinach anything between 200mm and 250mm will work fine.. For Basil, plants can get huge, depending on how you trim and harvest, so we would use 400 to 500mm spacing to allow for a large bush of basil

yes, 1m wide and 6m long. Spacing between plants, depends on what you are growing. For lettuce and spinach, spacing between plants can be 150mm to 200mm

Thanks.. We mainly use this for own consumption and to supply the on premises restaurant with lettuce and/or spinach. One can average around 700 leafy type plants per week. We are in South AFrica, so wouldn't make sense to give you a number, as our market and currency is different to yours. So what you need to do is to take 700 lettuce or other high value leafy plant in your coutry and multiply market price per plant by 700 plants monthly.

No, on this system, only DWC.

Yes it can, but we are not fans of vertical systems.. too many variables to consider which can go wrong if not properly monitored

its normal plastic cleaning item

yes you can grow different plants on the same system.. Keep in mind that some plants like strawberries prefer more acidic ph of around 5.5-6

Hi. Thanks for the vídeo. So Nice. I got a question. What's the pH that u got with the fish wastes and do u have to regulate ir with something else?

@@camilorojas9269 Around 7 to 7,5. Ph will go down naturally as the system cycles.. Always important to use a buffer so that pH does not go down to quickly. This is achieved with Calcium and Potassium (carbonate or hydroxide). More info in our ebook myaquaponics.co.za/ebook-pdf-secrets-to-successful-aquaponics-farming-backyard-commercial-systems/

that particular one is an older model and over R12000.. We have other more effective filters on our website, depending on your system design and size.. Here is an option myaquaponics.co.za/combo-pond-box-15w-uv-2-bag-sandfilter-25l-biofilter-0-6kw-pump-12000l-pond/

the air pump supplies all of that in this system, but yes depending on the stocking density of fish in your tank you could add an extra small blower if required in your own setup.

up to 740 leafy type plants (i.e. lettuce, spinach)every 4-6 weeks. Profits are based on your market prices and expenses.. It will be different for every owner, depending on location.

the solid separator filter separates the uneaten fish food and faeces and the bio filter is for conversion of ammonia into nitrates

Its not about the number of fish but the total biomass of the fish. In Aquaponics we recommend no more than 25Kg of fish per 1000 litres

MyAquaponics thanks for that Sir, you are in tropical climate right? What time it took the lettuce to harvest? Thanks

@@fvchannel9949 not tropical here. WInters are cold.. Lettuce take 4-6 weeks from seedling to harvest

Ideally it should have a little more water-flow, but we have been running it for 2 years without any hassles and great harvests

@@MyAquaponics1 thanks for the update

Terence, you can certainly use drums to build your solid separator filter and your bio-filter. You do not have to use bio balls as your bio media. LECA works just as well. There are quite elaborate formuals to work out the bio media required based on the SSA (specific surface area) of the media used . A good rule of thumb however is to make the volume of your filtration 20-30% of that of your fish tank volume. The more bio-filtration you have the better. Also note if you have a media based flood and drain system, that you don't neccessarily need a separate bio filter, as the grow beds then become your bio-filter

i see the piping in the fish tank but i want to know how the pipe set up is within the fish tank itself, the out flow to the solid waste filter seems to have a siphon at the top, am i right? i will fabricate the same set up in my yard just need to be as exact as i can be...sorry for the long questions...thanks again

the outlet pipe actually goes all the way down to the bottom of the tank, then bends 90 degrees to another pipe that sits at the bottom of the tank. The pipe at the bottom of the tank has slits to allow for the passing of most solids, but not the smaller fish.

that's cool...how is the water carried through the outlet pipe from the bottom? is the pressure and movement from the airlift pump causing it the flow straight up and out to the solid waste filter?.....i bought the 100w pump and about 200 bio balls but i believe i will need some more balls to complete the bio filter....i also have a 148L sterilite container i want to use as a bio filter and a 55 gallon drum for the solid waste filter...give me you thoughts...i am most greatful for your guidance through this whole process..

yes, water will flow through the outlet pipe, once that level is reached. Flow rate will be dependant on what is being fed into the tank and of course the diameter of the pipe. As I have mentioned in past comments, the airlift pump is slightly underpowered for this system and we would probably use a more powerful compressor, or maybe even a standard water pump. Yes, you may require more than 200 bio-balls.. If you have LECA, maybe use that as your bio media.. good luck.. best way to test your theory is by trial and error :)

Any aquaponics system requires additional nutrients not available in fish feed or through conversion of ammonia into nitrates. This could include Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium and Iron

@@MyAquaponics1 Does adding these nutrients affect the fishes in any way? Especially Potassium and Iron. (Potassium permanganate is shown to affect fish life) What additional nutrients do you feed your fish and in what quantities per litre of water?

no

Hay quá. Thích nhưng mà hok có đủ điều kiện để làm

in a greenhouse

We supply them here in South Africa

How can i get the bio-balls here in nigeria

No idea whatsoever.. You could always use charcoal chips as bio filter media

Our solid separator filter is basically a gravity settlement type tank with brushes to trap any floating particles. Settled organic matter at the bottom gets released through a valve. Brushes are removed from time to time and sprayed with clean water. There are many types of solid separator filters on KZfaq. One of our favourites is the radial flow filter. You can Google it.

@@MyAquaponics1 thanks for the immediate response. And what about my third question? Is it algae growth or some plant leftover?

@@ashwinsnmv Its duckweed, it grows everywhere and can double every 24 hours. We feed it to the fish as its high in protein.

@@MyAquaponics1Awesome. I'm going to follow your system. As it's easy to understand. In most systems there are many useless or complicated moving parts. Thank you so much. What type of feed do you use in addition to the duckweed. Organic or commercial?

@@ashwinsnmv great.. we feed them lots of organics such as lettuce, celery, etc, but also 30% protein commercial floating pellets

24/7

we call it polystyrene in our country

if you're based in South Africa, you can contact us on www.myaquaponics.co.za

depending on type of lettuce, yes.

you could yes, but care needs to be taken that excessive root growth does not block flow of water

when the video was taken we had around 50 juvenile tilapia

@@MyAquaponics1 thank you

EC is not a factor in aquaponics. You need to measure nitrate levels.. pH also not really an issue once the system has stabilized. Generally between 6.5 and 7.5.. During the nitrification cycle, an aquaponics system will always tend to go acidic (low pH), hence the need to add a buffer from time to time such as potassium and calcium carbonate or hydroxide. Our ebook, explains a lot of that henrikiko.gumroad.com/l/aquaponics

Most of it goes to the restaurant on site who caters for events such as weddings. We've also sold to nearby restaurants and hotels and to passing trade.

we are based in South Africa and offer training in Johannesburg. Next course around August 2024. Alternatively you can buy our ebook here henrikiko.gumroad.com/l/aquaponics

no need to control. The flow rate of the pump is what controls. Ideally you wantto turn the total volume of water in the fish tank, once per hour .

@@MyAquaponics1 ok I thought the outlet was lower than the inlet in the dwc beds and would empty the tank unless you matched the out flow. Thank you

We have since changed out this system for Sandponics.... Our stocking is generally 20-25 Kg of fish per 1000 litres.. That is a 1000 litre tank, but we stocked it with only 15-20Kg of fish

Hi Ronelo, that filter is sold in South Afica.. Its become very expensive and you can easily make your own using two plastic 210L drums.. First one to settle the solids and second one filled with biomedia to make a biofilter.. Many videos on KZfaq showing how to make mechanical and biofilters using plastic drums

We use an airpump to lift the water, referred to as an airlift pump. This does away with the need to have a water pump, thus reducing the overall power required to run the system. Airlift pumps work on 1:1 ratio. If you want to lift water to 1 meter, you need to pump air 1 meter deep. So it is limited to smaller systems such as this.

will try airlift pump. Many Thanks. GB

so you are using a sump, under grow bed?

no, the sump is the DWC grow beds. There is no need for an extra sump in this system.

I ask because the airlift pipe seems to be going underground. But it is most likely due to ground level... my guess ?? :)

about 900 l in total.. we aim for 20Kg of fish per 1000 litres

@@MyAquaponics1 thank you. Is it 900l fish tank or total system volume?

@@poudelbibek6244 fish tank only . We also keep a couple of fish in each plant channel for eating mosquitoes, etc.

yes we are.. You may contact us via www.myaquaponics.co.za

Yes, the filter with bioballs was the most expensive part of the whole system. Here in South Africa it costs R7500 (US$560)

Cool, that makes sense. There's so much conflicting information about what biological media is the most cost-effective... pretty hard to decide what to do.

We used bioballs in this system simply because we had extra lying around. LECA works even better as a bio media from our experience. All about the SSA (specific surface area) of the media being used and cost thereof. SSA for Leca is between 240-260 and for bioballs between 500-700, which means that Bio Balls have the better SSA (more surface area for same volume), though still more expensive than Leca overall (in our country)

Yeah, I considered LECA, but that's pretty expensive too. It looks like fluidized sand has the best SSA (and is literally dirt-cheap), but doesn't scale very well to larger projects, presumably because you need good pumps, or you risk them going anaerobic.

correct, can lead to blockages resulting in anaerobic dead spots

where there's tilapia fish, there will be no mosquitoes. For the DWC grow beds, you can always add one or two fish per growbed if need be.

In our country it’s called polystyrene. 40 mm in thickness and high density

@@MyAquaponics1 Thank you very much, brother.

We don't have a specific video for an airlift pump, butthere are many on youtube. What you must keep in mind is the 1:1 ratio. So if you want to airlift water up to 1 m, you have to pump air 1m down. You basically pump air to the bottom of the airlift water pipe.

all depends on the cost of materials and labour in your country.. To see more on this project, go here myaquaponics.co.za/blog/8mx8m-open-space-converted-into-740-plant-aquaponics-system-for-less-than-r25000-us1700/

yes we are

any printer that does outdoor advertising should have rejects