← Fish H30-05 · Module 5 of 7 · Pages: 19 · Worksheets: 5

Aquaponics: fish and vegetables together

A small system on an IBC tank: the nitrogen cycle, how much fish and how much grow bed, cycling without fish, pH and ammonia, fish and plants for a cool climate and electrical safety near water

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Aquaponics: fish and vegetables together

In short

  • For beginners at most 10–15 kg of fish per 1,000 L of water (22–33 lb per 264 US gal). FAO gives 20 kg as the upper limit.
  • 1 m² of grow bed for leafy vegetables takes roughly 40–50 g of fish feed a day; for tomatoes and cucumbers 50–80 g.
  • A new system is cycled without fish for 4–6 weeks, until ammonia and nitrite fall almost to zero.
  • pH 6–7 is the compromise for fish, bacteria and plants. Ammonia below 1 mg/L, nitrite below 0.5 mg/L.
  • Battery backup air is a must: without the pump and air, fish die within hours.
  • Electricity near water only through a 30 mA RCD or GFCI, fitted by an electrician. Tanks have lids because of children.

What's inside

Chapters

  1. How it works: the nitrogen cycle
  2. Three types of system
  3. How much fish, how much grow bed
  4. Building on an IBC tank
  5. Cycling without fish
  6. Water: pH, ammonia, nitrite, oxygen
  7. Fish and plants for a cool climate
  8. Season and winter
  9. Safety
  10. Maintenance
  11. Common mistakes
  12. Printable checklist

Worksheets

  • System calculator
  • Start-up: date calculator
  • Water and fish log
  • System sketch
  • Aquaponics calendar

Fields and checkboxes can be filled in with Adobe Acrobat Reader (desktop and mobile), and the calculator adds up by itself. Filling in may not work in some browsers. A print version comes with the screen PDF.

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