Getting started

[Hautions11]

Hi everybody! I'll start with the fact that I do not know much, but have been interested in hydroponics but have never ventured there. Read a lot about Tilapia and all of the sudden I have 20-30 of them. My basic plan is an indoor aquarium, since Tilapia are tropical, and an outdoor 1200 gallon pond to grow fish out over the summer. I have not added any gravel grow beds at all, but i thought i would start inside in my three season porch, using aquarium water and scale the process up with the outdoor pond next Spring. Everybody loves pictures, so here are a few of my building blocks to a future system.

Porch and aquariums. This is a 75 gallon tank shown.

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e165/Hautions11/75galtank.jpg

The stars of the show are some Blue Tilapia. I found a great source but only had 1 day notice of delivery. I threw the fish in a 125 gallon Koi pond next to our patio. I have 25-30 2-4" fish.

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e165/Hautions11/BuesandReds.jpg


Here is my 1200 gallon pond. I recently added a 1250 gph pump and a 3000 gallon pressurized filter. There are a few gold fish in it and 3 tilapia I managed to catch. ( They are really fast and know what nets are)

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e165/Hautions11/SamllPond.jpg

I am trying to learn as I go here and would like to document the process. In the porch by the way I have 400 watt Metal Halide and sodium vapor lights in a failed attempt last year to grow tomatoes and peppers during the winter. It ended up as bugs defeated my efforts not light or nutrients. This winter some aquaponics would make things interesting.

[Northernguy]

It looks a sounds interesting.
Your tank will need a better stand before you fill it.The foot print of that tank will need support all the way around.Your tank will weigh approx! 750lbs full!
Here is a link with some info for you!
http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/tilapia/history.php

[Jaster]

Beat me to it NG. lol There are a few nice and cheap DIY stands that look great. (if you care about the looks...lol)

Sounds very interesting though! Keep us posted! thumbs2:

[Hautions11]

That is the only reason the tank is not full yet! The stand the guy had would not fit in my car. The van is in the shop and I can not fill it until I get the stand. It is driving me crazy. Thanks for the input guys.

[Kaz]

So what happens to the tilapia in the winter?

[Hautions11]

In the winter they have to come inside or create some habitat in the pond. I am going to try a plywood insulated bax in the pond to see if I can save 20-50 fish over the winter. I have a 100 gallon stock tank to put some in in the basement, but i want to try the heated box in the pond to tied some over. It should be an interesting experiment.

[Northernguy]

What are your winters like?
If they are anything like mine you will need a good heater and some way to keep an open vent hole to release gases.
How would stop the pump from freezing.

[Hautions11]

I am sure ours are nothing like yours. My regular Koi pond stays open with a simple pond stock heater that comes on at 35-45. In the 3' area of the pond I will place a 2X2X2 insulated box with some heaters in it. No Pump, no filter, just some warm water in the 50-60 degree range. Slots at the bottom for fish to go in and some small holes in the top to circulate water.

[Hautions11]

Here is the star of the show in my 20 gallon.

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e165/Hautions11/Staroftheshow.jpg

[Hautions11]

A real live stand and water in my tank Yea!




http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e165/Hautions11/IMG_5545-1.jpg

[plantedlab]

Very exciting! The possabilaties are endless from where your at now.

[LisaM12]

Looks great! Here's a little tip.
The structure of the grow bed itself can be made out of a toxic-free heavy duty pond liner, a rigid plastic like a pre-made pond form or another material such as polyethylene. The bottom of the grow bed must be completely supported; there should be no flexibility to allow any movement in the grow bed. Many aquaponics companies offer "special" containers but you can use other containers if you choose as long as the material is potable. The sides of the bed should have at least a 6 or 7 inch height.