Aquaponics

Discussion in 'Farming and Gardening' started by Zyphir, May 15, 2017.

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  1. Zyphir

    Zyphir Member
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    With more people wanting to live off grid or grow their own food. Why haven't more people turned to aquaponics?
    Aquaponics is the practice of using the waste of farmed fish to supply the nutrients to plants grown hydroponically. In turn the plants purify the water for the fish. So being that soil is not being used you have less weeding and soil borne insects to deal with. Overall it seems to save time, water and space. What are yall ideas about it?
     
    Keith H. likes this.
  2. Keith H.

    Keith H. Moderator Staff Member
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    I have read about aquaponics, but it was a long time ago now. I seem to recall that the initial set up was expensive, also it needs constant checking. It requires electricity to power the cycling pumps, & this also means that if these pumps malfunction, then the system will no longer work.

    I don't mind weeding, & as we box & mulch our gardens we have little weeding to do. We do not have to keep a constant watch on our garden, & if it gets unruly, then it still seems to produce just the same. Expanding the garden is easy, no cost, just labour. We are contemplating plowing a larger section of ground for growing more corn. I don't think this would be possible using aquaponics. Root crops such as potatoes & Jerusalem Artichokes are probably better grown in the earth. For us I don't see aquaponics as being a viable enterprise. Other people in different situations may find aquaponics worth while if they can afford the initial outlay of cash.
    Keith.
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  3. Zyphir

    Zyphir Member
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    I seen that you can build your own aquaponics system for $150. A plastic tote from walmart is $30 then the grow medium is about another $30 depending on where you shop. A aquarium pump is $10 to $15 with most costing less than a dollar a day to run. And with today's technology a lot of things can be made automated and can be run off of solar power. But you are right you can not take a trip any where and feel safe that when you come back things will be in order like a traditional garden.
     
  4. Zyphir

    Zyphir Member
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    Beautiful garden by the way!! I would love to see your chooks also!
     
  5. Zyphir

    Zyphir Member
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    don't cost much these days.
     
  6. CivilDefense

    CivilDefense Expert Member
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    I don't, at the present, employ aquaponics on our property. We have a close family friend that did so for a while, but then gave it up. The reasons he gave was that it was more costly than he thought and way more labor intensive than he imagined. Are those results typical? I don't know, but I trust his judgement.
     
  7. Zyphir

    Zyphir Member
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    I hear depending on the setup shouldn't have to spend more than 15 minutes daily maintenance and if take extra steps like building a worm composter you could feed the fish worms and use the worm tea to help balance the ph of the watet without having to buy chemicals.
     
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