The No.

1 Aquaponics magazine for the Issue 1

backyard enthusiast. Summer 2007

Backyard
Aquaponics
Bringing Food Production Home

Keeping Jade Perch

Road testing pumps
The Nitrogen Cycle
 Contents — Issue One

What’s On In The Backyard?

10 20 24 31

Welcome .................................................................................. 3
What is Aquaponics ................................................................... 4
Up the Garden Path— We dispel some misconceptions about aquaponics
The Nitrogen Cycle ................................................................. 6
In the Shed— This season’s experiment ................................................ 9
Our Favourite Tanks— Featured aquaponic systems
The Start of an Obsession ........................................................ 10
In the Garage— Road testing equipment
Ebara Best Zero pump............................................................. 18
In the Garden— Good plants for aquaponics .......................................... 20
By the Barbeque— Recipes ............................................................ 22
By the Pool— Fish Species for aquaponics
Jade Perch .......................................................................... 24
On the Deckchairs— Questions and answers
Healthy Fish are Happy fish ...................................................... 27
Over the Back Fence— What’s happening elsewhere in aquaponics .......... 31
The Magazine Rack— Useful publications and websites ........................ 33

The Backyard Aquaponics Magazine is produced by aquaponics enthusiasts, for

aquaponics enthusiasts. We aim to bring you a range of information concerning all as-
pects of growing fish and vegetables in your own backyard.

Contributors: Joel Malcolm David Downing

Jaymie Rains Stuart Haberfield
Paul Ryan Steve Cacchione

The Backyard Aquaponics Magazine is published 4 times a year by Backyard Aquaponics.

Coyright © 2007 Backyard Aquaponics. All rights reserved, no part of this publication may be
reproduced in any manner or form without written permission.
[email protected]

2
 Welcome
Welcome to the very first edition of the Backyard Where systems will be featured in detail, fish
Aquaponics Magazine. 2006 and 2007 have been big species documented, and problems discussed, it
years for aquaponics, especially in Australia. will be all things “aquaponic”. Like the discussion
board, the magazine will rely heavily on input
The Backyard Aquaponics discussion forum was
from many different people.
formed in March 2006, and in the first 18 months,
it’s grown to become the biggest and best aquapon-
We will also be drawing on other sources of aq-
ics forum in the world. With over 1000 members
uaponics information from around the world to
and more joining every day, there’s new information
try and bring a truly international flavor to the
and pictures being posted daily. The excitement
information provided here.
generated by the discussions and photographs
posted on the group is apparent by the number of
If you have an idea for a story, or you’d like to
contributions, over 90,000 posts in such a short
offer some suggestions, please feel free to write
time is astounding. Most states in Australia have
to one of the magazine staff, we’re here to help
been having group get-togethers for members to
create something that’s useful to everyone and
meet and discuss aquaponics first hand with each
we value your input. Thanks again, I hope that
other.
you find this first issue of the Backyard Aq-
The object of the discussion forum was to create a uaponics Magazine interesting and of value.
central learning hub, where people from around the
world can learn from others in a stimulating envi-
ronment. The online discussions have led to many Joel Malcolm
new systems being built by members, with people
sharing their knowledge and helping others with
their design plans and problems. Members have
been setting up systems all over the world in all
types of conditions, from icy Alaska to tropical and
desert areas of the United States and Australia;
it’s a testament to people’s ingenuity the way that
they have dealt with some of their difficult condi-
tions.

I’d like to pass on my thanks to everyone who has

been participating in the group. It’s only through
having a diverse group of people with varied skills
and knowledge that such a melting pot of ideas can
be so highly productive. The forum has exceeded
my wildest expectations and become a friendly
thriving community that is helping to advance aq-
uaponic knowledge, and make it accessible to every-
one.
But, back to the magazine. This magazine will be-
come a further extension of the discussion group,
an information source where ideas, plans and infor-
mation are laid out clearly for everyone to under-
stand.

3
 What is Aquaponics?
By Joel Malcolm

A small healthy growbed with a large fish tank off to the side

Aquaponics is essentially the combination of Aqua- The positive aspects of both aquaculture and hy-
culture and Hydroponics. Both aquaculture and hy- droponics are retained and the negative aspects no
droponics have some down sides, hydroponics re- longer exist. Aquaponics can be as simple or as com-
quires expensive nutrients to feed the plants, and plex as you’d like to make it, the simple system pic-
also requires periodic flushing of the tured above has a large fish tank in the
systems which can lead to waste dis-
“research has shown left of the picture, and a growbed
posal issues. Re-circulating aquaculture that an aquaponic sys- filled with gravel raised above the level
needs to have excess nutrients re- tem uses about 1/10th of the fish tank in the centre of the
moved from the system, normally this of the water used to picture.
means that a percentage of the water
grow vegetables in the
is removed, generally on a daily basis. Water is pumped up from the fish tank
This nutrient rich water then needs to ground. “ into the gravel filled growbed. The wa-
be disposed of and replaced with clean ter trickles down through the gravel,
fresh water. past the roots of the plants before
draining back into the fish tank. The plants extract
While re-circulating aquaculture and hydroponics
the water and nutrients they need to grow, cleaning
are both very efficient methods of producing fish
the water for the fish. There are bacteria that live
and vegetables, when we look at combining the two,
on the surface of the gravel. This bacteria converts
these negative aspects are turned into positives.

4
 ammonia wastes from the fish into nitrates that Many different species of fish can be grown in an
can be used by the plants. This ammonia waste be- aquaponic system, and your species selection will
ing converted into nitrates is often termed “the depend on a number of factors including your local
nitrogen cycle” . This will be dealt with in more de- government regulations. In future issues of the
tail in another article in this issue. Backyard Aquaponics Magazine we will provide de-
tails of many different species of fish suitable for
Growbeds filled with a media such as gravel or ex-
growing in aquaponic systems.
panded clay pebbles is a common method of growing
plants in an aquaponic system, but there are many Quite high stocking densities of fish can be grown
different methods that can be used. In fact any in an aquaponic system, and because of the re-
circulating nature of the systems very little water
is used. Research has shown that an aquaponic sys-
tem uses about 1/10th of the water used to grow
vegetables in the ground.
An aquaponic system can be incredibly productive.
I’ve produced 50kg of fish, and hundreds of kilo-
grams of vegetables within 6 months in an area
about the size of your average carport, 8m x 4m.
This is a system that requires no bending, no weed-
ing, no fertilizers, and only uses about the same
power it takes to run a couple of light globes.

Water cress growing on a floating raft.

method of hydroponic
growing can be adapted to
aquaponics. Plants can be
grown in floating foam
rafts that sit on the water
surface.

Vegetables can also be

grown using NFT (Nutrient
Film Technique), or through
various other methods us-
ing a “run to waste” style of
growing. This is done by
removing a percentage of
the fish water each day
and watering vegetables
planted in different media
such as coir peat, vermicu-
lite, perlite etc.
Corn and tomatoes growing in NFT (Nutrient Film Technique) Photo—Jim

5
 Up The Garden Path
The Nitrogen Cycle.
By Steve Cacchione

One of the most important yet least understood Your goal should be to establish the nitrogen cy-
aspects of Aquaponics is the bacteria that we rely cle quickly and with minimal stress on any aquatic
on and its function in the nitrogen cycle. life you may already have.
I know what you're thinking, bacteria (or "GERMS" Without their respective "foods" these bacteria
if you watch a lot of disinfectant commercials) are will not exist in useful numbers.
meant to be bad, aren’t they?
This is why you will see an ammonia "spike" when
The fact is that there is good and bad in every- setting up a new tank. The bacteria will increase
thing, even down to bacteria. Life wouldn't be possi- their numbers (reproduce) in response to an in-
ble without them. creasing ammonia load, so it makes sense that we
would see a “spike” before they respond. Shortly
Fish excrete ammonia. In a lake or ocean it’s all
after you have ammonia the bacteria will start
good because the vast volume of water dilutes this
reproducing and working away for you.
ammonia. When you're keeping fish at home it
needs to be managed as it is very toxic to the fish. The same goes for Nitrobacter sp., they'll only
want to start reproducing and working once Ni-
Decomposing food also creates ammonia. Some of
trosomonas sp. is comfortable and producing lots
the effects of excessive ammonia include:
of nitrite.
• Extensive damage to tissues, especially the
Now for a few facts on them:
gills and kidney
• They must colonize a surface (gravel,
• Impaired growth
sand, synthetic biomedia, etc.) for opti-
• Decreased resistance to disease mum growth.
• Death • They need oxygen in the water to live
Luckily natures got it all sorted! Enter Nitrosomo- and work.
nas sp. This good little bacterium eats ammonia and • Nitrifying bacteria have long reproduc-
converts it to nitrite. tion times.
Now, nitrite is much less poisonous to the fish than • Under optimal conditions, Nitrosomonas
ammonia, but it’s by no means a good thing. It stops sp. may double every 7 hours and Nitro-
the fish from taking up oxygen. Natures got it un- bacter sp. every 13 hours. More realisti-
der control again, with Nitrobacter sp. This good cally, they will double every 15 - 20
bacterium eats nitrite and converts it to nitrate. hours.
Luckily nitrate happens to be the favourite food of • To put that into perspective. In the
plants. Also the fish will tolerate a much higher time that it takes a single Nitrosomonas
level of nitrate than they will ammonia or nitrite. sp. cell to double in population, a single E.
What you've just read is pretty much the nitrogen coli bacterium would have produced a
cycle. When an aquaponics system has sufficient population exceeding 35 trillion cells.
numbers of these bacteria to completely process
• As a general rule a brand new system will
the ammonia and nitrites it is said to have "cycled".
require about 4 weeks to cycle at around
20oC. It will take longer in colder water.

6
 pH
• Nitrifying bacteria cannot survive in dry con-
ditions or at sustained temperatures higher • The optimum pH range for Nitrosomo-
than 49° C . nas sp. is 7.8 - 8.0.
• There are several species of Nitrosomonas sp. • The optimum pH range for Nitrobacter
and Nitrobacter sp. bacteria and many strains sp. is 7.3 - 7.5
among those species. Most of this informa-
• At pH below 7.0, Nitrosomonas sp.
tion can be applied to species of Nitrosomo-
growth will slow and increases in ammo-
nas sp. and Nitrobacter sp. in general, how-
nia may become evident. Nitrosomonas
ever, each strain may have specific tolerances
sp. growth is inhibited at pH 6.5. All
to environmental factors and nutriment pref-
nitrification is inhibited if the pH
erences not shared by other very closely re-
drops to 6.0 or less.
lated strains. Temperature and pH seem to
be common.

Nitrosomonas sp. Now, while one point

you’ve just read indi-
Temperature bacteria eat am-
cates that Nitrosomo-
• The temperature for optimum growth of nitri- monia to grow and nas sp. won’t process
fying bacteria is between 25o - 30° C (77o - reproduce. ammonia at pH 6.0 or
86° F). below, this was deter-
Nitrobacter sp.
mined in a sterile lab
• Growth rate is decreased by 50% at 18° C bacteria eat ni- culture. Similar re-
(64° F).
trite to grow and search has shown that
• Growth rate is decreased by 75% at 8o C - reproduce. species of Nitrosomo-
15.5o C (46o - 50° F). nas sp. in a natural envi-
• No activity will occur at 4° C (39° F). ronment such as soil will
still process ammonia
• Nitrifying bacteria will die at 0° C (32° F). even at pH 4.0! This goes some way to explain
• Nitrifying bacteria will die at 49° C (120° F) why some of us have systems that are YEARS old
with a pH of 6.0, no ammonia and happy fish.
• Nitrobacter sp. is less tolerant of low tem-
Once a system has a compliment of micro flora
peratures than Nitrosomonas sp. In cold wa-
and fauna at work there seems to be an inherent
ter systems, care must be taken to monitor
synergy that allows wider environmental ranges
the accumulation of nitrites.
to be accommodated.

7
 I would definitely recommend that people strive for As mentioned there are many strains of nitrify-
the above environmental tolerance ranges on initial ing bacteria, each having their own water pa-
system set up and the early life of their systems. rameter preferences, so when cycling a new sys-
tem its best to keep your water chemistry as
Many people with aquaponics systems try to main-
stable as possible in relation to factors such as
tain their pH at around 7.0 to 7.2 because this
salt concentration. The number of fish used to
range satisfies the plants, fish and bacteria. The
cycle your system should be much less than your
nitrogen cycle itself has a tendency to reduce pH,
system is intended to hold. If too many fish are
however it is pretty easy to keep pH at around 7.4
used the ammonia and nitrite will reach very high
through the addition of calcium carbonate. Calcium
levels, which are likely to kill or cause permanent
carbonate increases pH, but will stop dissolving at
damage to your fish and will require you to under-
pH around 7.4, meaning pH will stay pretty stable
take more frequent and larger water changes.
until all of the available calcium carbonate is de-
Also, be sure not to overfeed the fish as this will
pleted.
also result in the production of more ammonia.
Readily available forms of calcium carbonate in- Many people choose to use cheap goldfish for the
clude: cycling process, due to the minimal cost and their
• shell grit (available at many produce high tolerance to poor water conditions. The best
stores) advice you can take when cycling your system is
to be patient and let nature take its course. Do
• sea shells frequent tests (at least daily) during this period
• calcium carbonate powder (available at and perform water changes as required.
many produce stores)
Don't forget, fish will still excrete ammonia even
• limestone when not eating, just not as much!
• egg shells

Water testing lets you know if bacteria populations have been established.

8
 In The Shed
VB’s Backyard Lab Paul Ryan

In this edition of the Backyard Aquaponics Magazine readers are introduced to

VB’s Backyard Lab, a regular feature In The Shed.
The central tool in VB’s Backyard Lab is a set of five independent micro Aq-
uaponics systems. These will be used to complete various experiments. Each
system comprises the following identical elements:
a 50 litre glass aquarium
a 600 litre per hour (at zero head) pond pump
a 20 litre grow-bed

The remaining elements of the system are variable and will depend upon the ex-
periment undertaken. These include:
growing media (eg. gravel, expanded clay balls etc)
nitrogen source (eg. finfish, crustaceans etc)
irrigation method (eg. flood and drain, continuous flow etc)
plants

In each edition, the details of at least one experiment will be discussed, with a
focus on the relevance of results to the running of full scale Aquaponics sys-
tems.
The first experiment has been planned and will soon commence. This will fea-
ture in the next edition.
Readers are invited to contribute ideas for experiments that they would like to
see in future editions of the Backyard Aquaponics Magazine by e-mailing VB at
[email protected], using the subject line ‘Experiment Idea’.

9
 Our Favourite Tanks

The Start of an Obsession

By Joel Malcolm

This may not sound like much, but a system with say 6 x 10,000 litre fish
tanks can be using 6,000 litres of water a day. This still may not sound
like much, but that’s 2,190,000 litres a year.

Incredible plant growth in an aquaponic system.

Dwindling native fish stocks, unsustainable farming In a standard recirculating aquaculture system
practices and severe water shortages are bringing (RAS) generally 5-10% of the water is changed
about a change in many primary production areas. out of the system every day and replaced with
As we all try and come to grips with these issues, fresh water. This discharged water is nutrient
many people are beginning to think outside the rich, and unless it’s managed carefully then it can
square when it comes to food production. One more cause some major problems in waterways, espe-
recent method of food production that’s catching cially waterways already suffering from depleted
on in many areas around the world is aquaponics, the flows and other nutrient-rich run off.
combination of aquaculture and hydroponics. For vegetable production, hydroponics is the
Conventional intensive recirculating aquaculture can most water efficient method of production avail-
be very efficient at producing large quantities of able today, however, once again there’s effluent
fish, though this method of aquaculture also re- that needs to be treated and/or disposed of. As
quires large amounts of water to be changed out of the plants in a hydroponic system grow they use
the system on a regular basis. water in tissue production and in transpiration,
10
the nutrient solution builds up dissolved salts over So, the fish give off ammonia which can be
time that will become toxic to the plants. Hydro- nasty at high levels, the bacteria converts
ponic systems need to have the old solution flushed the ammonia into nitrites and then nitrates,
from the system, and new water and solution added then the plants consume the nitrates from
on a regular basis. the water. The water is then returned to the
fish tank cleaned of excess nutrients and
A commercial hydroponic grower that I visited re-
freshly oxygenated.
cently in Western Australia was using scheme water
for his systems, and he was consuming $12,000 It may sound a little complex to begin with,
worth of water a year. This was only a small scale but in reality it’s a very simple natural proc-
producer who did all of the work himself with one ess that happens all around us in nature. The
part time employee. bacteria are naturally found everywhere, in
streams, lakes, ponds, dams, and aquariums;
So how can these problems be addressed? Here
they are found in the air, and will populate
are two reasonably efficient methods of food pro-
anywhere there is water and biological activ-
duction, but they still have some rather significant
ity, like organic matter breaking down in wa-
downfalls. The answer, Aquaponics.
ter giving off ammonia.
Aquaponics combines aquaculture and hydroponics,
Aquaponics today can take on many forms.
helping to cancel out the negative aspects of each.
Some commercial operations within Australia
In fact it not only cancels out the
negative aspect of each method, In fact it not only cancels don’t recirculate their water, it’s
used in their fish culture once,
but the symbiotic relationships out the negative aspect of then pumped though a hydroponic
formed in an aquaponic system
each method, but the sym- system, before going out to waste.
create very complex ecosystems
that actually increase the level of
biotic relationships formed Personally I prefer recirculating
production when compared with in an aquaponic system cre- systems, because of their miserly
the individual methods. Before ate very complex ecosys- water usage, and that’s the
method I’m talking about here to-
we get into too much detail I tems that actually increase day.
guess that I should explain the
the level of production
basics of aquaponics. Systems can also be designed to
when compared with the use a variety of different methods
There are three essential compo- individual methods. in the hydroponic component, for
nents to an aquaponic system,
removal of nutrient. NFT
fish, bacteria and plants. As part of a fish’s normal
(nutrient film technique), floating raft and
breathing, they give off ammonia through their
gravel beds are all commonly used in aq-
gills, also any fish wastes or uneaten food that
uaponic systems. Personally I prefer systems
breaks down in a fish tank gives off ammonia as
incorporating gravel beds for plant culture
part of the process. This ammonia will quickly build
because the gravel beds act as a solids filter,
up in the water and fish are very susceptible to
a biofilter for bacteria growth, and a medium
high levels of ammonia in their water. This is where
for the plants to grow roots into. Gravel
the bacteria comes into the equation. There are two
beds provide the simplest system possible
main types of bacteria that carry out the essential
when it comes to designing, building and oper-
work, Nitrosomonas sp. and Nitrobacter sp. Nitro-
ating an aquaponics system. NFT and floating
somonas sp. bacteria digests the ammonia and con-
raft systems are very productive but require
verts it into nitrites. The fish are less susceptible
separate biofilters and solids removal that
to high levels of nitrites in the water, however most
must be built into the design, so this tends to
plants can’t absorb nitrites. The Nitrobacter sp.
make a system a little more complex, and re-
bacteria then converts the nitrites into nitrates.
quiring further maintenance.
The fish are happy with quite high levels of nitrates
in their water, plus the nitrates can be consumed by
plants, and used for growth.

11
Seedlings just starting to grow.

The same plants only 13 days later.

12
 This is 25 days of growth after the first picture, a couple of cucumbers have already been har-
vested and there are many more on the way

I like to follow the KISS (keep it

simple stupid) principle whenever
possible, and this has led to the de-
sign of my present aquaponic sys-
tems. The large flood and drain
system built using corrugated iron
tanks and growbeds, produces well
over 100kg of vegetables, and 50kg
of fish in a six month period. Pro-
duction here in Perth slows down a
little over winter, but in warmer
climates or enclosed in a green-
house, this production can be re-
peated again over the cooler
months. It’s incredibly simple. Wa-
ter is pumped from the fish tank
into the gravel grow beds filled with
growing plants. When the growbeds
are full, the pump switches off.

Black Bream from the system above.

13
 This system can produce 50kg of fish in 6 months.

The water then slowly drains from the growbeds This large flood and drain system has been run-
into a sump tank from where it’s then pumped back ning for almost 3 years now. I’ve found it to be
into the fish tank. The system can be simplified very stable and robust requiring little to no main-
even further if the fish tank is buried in the ground tenance. All that has to be done is feed the fish,
allowing the growbeds to drain straight back into top up the water every few days, plant seedlings,
the fish tank. and harvest the fish and vegetables. The only
other things added to this system are chelated
This system fits into an area about the size of a
iron, about 2 spoons every 6-8 weeks, or when-
carport 4m x 8m, and that’s without even trying.
ever signs of iron deficiency are showing in the
The round tank and growbeds make it awkward to
plants. I also add seashells to my drain tank to
fit into a rectangular area. If you wanted to use
help buffer the pH.
rectangular grow beds the system would fit into a
much smaller area. All of the components used to Aquaponic systems tend to go acidic over time
build this system are standard off the shelf items because of the biological activity in the system,
bought from a hardware store and plumbing store, so you can either add garden lime, or seashells. I
except the fish tank and the growbeds which are prefer to add seashells because they are self
easily manufactured by a rainwater tank supplier. regulating. When the pH is low the acidic water
Similar size tanks and growbeds could be sourced dissolves the seashells raising the pH back to-
from plastics manufacturers. Plastic tanks would wards neutral. When the water is neutral the
last longer and they are stronger and more durable shells won’t dissolve. It’s a fantastic way to
than the steel, but at the time I was building this regulate pH while also adding micronutrients and
system steel was by far the cheapest method, and elements that have been trapped inside the sea-
it has a certain rustic appeal that I liked. shells during their formation in the ocean.
14
In the past I had added regular applications of sea- These unknown growth factors in plants, and dis-
weed extract to the system, but I have found this ease resistance in fish in an aquaponic system,
to not be as necessary lately as most other nutri- are only fairly newly discovered things in scien-
ents required by the plants come from the fish tific circles, and as yet the answers still haven’t
feed, so long as you are using a quality feed. Sea- been found as to exactly why it’s happening.
weed extract can be added if signs of deficiencies More research is going to be carried out into aq-
become evident. uaponics and the ‘unknown factors’ in the coming
years.
Dr. Nick Savidov is a Canadian researcher that has
been researching inorganic hydroponics for 20
years. After hearing about aquaponics he decided
To give you an idea of plant growth rates in an
to put it to the test against normal inorganic hydro-
aquaponic system, on pages 12 & 13 I’ve included
ponics. In the first 6 months of production the
some before and after photographs. This system
inorganic hydroponic growth was found to exceed
has a 4000 litre fish tank with about 10-12 Kg of
aquaponic growth, this is because an aquaponic sys-
fish, and only a very small growbed. Water is
tem takes time to mature and build up the complex
pumped from the fish tank up through an irriga-
ecosystem of bacteria and micro flora and fauna in
tion pipe on top of the gravel growbed. The irri-
the system.
gation pipe has holes drilled in the underside.
Further trials found that after 12 months the aq- The water flows through the gravel
uaponic system growth rates began
Further trials found that and out of a hole in the bottom of
to outstrip the growth of the inor- the growbed, straight back into the
ganic hydroponics by almost double
after 12 months the aq-
fish tank. The ultimate in simplicity
with many plant species. After 2 uaponic system growth really.
years the aquaponic system was rates began to outstrip the
The only downfall of aquaponics is
found to have matured even more, growth of the inorganic hy- that it still relies on power to pump
and had reached it’s optimum pro-
droponics by almost double the water, and commercial feed pel-
duction level, with some plant spe-
cies outgrowing the inorganic
with many plant species lets for the fish. Power consumption
in an aquaponic system is reasonable,
plants, at over double the growth
with my large flood and drain system
rate. Unsure as to why this was happening, and be-
consuming less than 150W continuously. Smaller
cause he had been a skeptic of aquaponics with a
systems consume even less power and it’s quite
firm grounding of 20 years in inorganic hydroponics,
feasible to run a system on solar power.
he decided to really put things to the test. He ex-
amined the aquaponic water for all of the macro and On the feed side of things, this is an area that
micro nutrients, and then reproduced an inorganic more effort is being put into recently. Fish feed
hydroponic solution that had the exact same levels can be supplemented in a number of ways. Black
of macro and micro nutrients as the aquaponics. soldier fly larvae have been found to be very easy
Yet still aquaponic plant growth far exceeded inor- to raise on food scraps, and they are self har-
ganic hydroponic growth. vesting when a little thought is put into designing
their culture container. Worms can be fed on
Not only has the aquaponic plant growth been found
the vegetable scraps from the growbed, and al-
to exceed inorganic plant growth, fish in an aq-
though they are a little more difficult to harvest
uaponic system suffer less from diseases than
they’re a very nutritious feed for fish. Even bug
those in a sterile aquaculture system. Many recir-
zappers placed over fish tanks can provide a
culating aquaculture systems sterilize the water to
fairly small, constant source of self harvesting
remove pathogens from the system. In an aquaponic
insects during the evening. In recent studies, lu-
system you can’t sterilize the water because you
pins have been found to contain an almost com-
need the microbial activity to perform its job in the
plete diet for many species of fish, and many
complex ecosystem.
people are experimenting with different recipes
For many conventional producers this may seem like for home made pellet feed.
a recipe for disaster, however, studies have been
finding that the fish become more resistant to dis-
ease in an aquaponic system.
15
One such simple recipe developed by an American Burying the fish tank allows for the use of only one
aquaponics pioneer contains 1 part whole wheat, 1 pump, with all water returning to it under gravity.
part sprouted wheat, whole eggs (including shell) Water is pumped out of the fish tank and then off
and sea salt for minerals. Munched up through a in two directions, one flow goes to the gravel grow-
mincer and extruded onto trays before being dried, beds on the right hand side, the other flow goes to
he feeds his fish on an exclusive diet of these pel- the top half barrels on the left.The left hand side
lets and other green feed. consists of two tiers of second hand barrels cut in
half. These barrels are for growing yabbies to eat,
Many native fish in Australia are suitable for grow-
as well as growing duckweed and Azolla sp.
ing in an aquaponics system.

A system constructed predominantly from recycled materials.

Carnivorous fish such as Barramundi or Murray on the surface of the water to feed to the silver
Cod are great, but they can only be fed a diet of perch growing in the fish tank.
pellets, worms, bugs etc. Omnivorous fish can be
Underneath both sides of the system are half
fed a mixed diet, and the main species cultivated
barrels for worm culture. All of the vegetable
in Australia are Silver Perch and Jade Perch.
scraps produced in the system are fed to the
At the moment I’m working on designing systems worms, then the worms are fed to the fish. The
that can close the loop and do away with pellet- whole system runs on one 70W pond pump that
ized feeds. The system pictured above is con- I’m hoping to convert over to a solar supply when
structed predominantly from recycled materials. I can find some panels at the right price. This
The fish tank is buried in the far corner and con- system is self contained in an area of 15m2 and
sists of a 1000L second hand IBC. I’m expecting that when it gets up to full

16
 production it’s going to produce a fair amount of system in an aquarium to a medium sized back-
food from a very small area, and soon it will be run- yard system, right up to large commercial sys-
ning with no external inputs. Aquaponics is set to be tems that produce tons of fish and vegetables
a growing system that we will hear a lot more of in every month.
the future. With serious water shortages effecting
In Australia we are already showing signs of be-
most of Australia, and nutrient run off and pollution
coming a major developer and innovator in aq-
becoming major issues, we can’t afford not to look
uaponics, even though it’s still a relatively new
at alternative growing methods like aquaponics. Af-
field in Australia. As more people are hearing
ter all, what other growing methods are non pollut-
about aquaponics, it’s not only being adopted by
ing, have zero waste, zero runoff, and require only
commercial growers, but it’s becoming a very
top up water because of evaporation and transpira-
popular production method for smaller backyard
tion. Aquaponics can be scaled from a tiny desktop
producers as well.

A large 6 growbed modern system.

17
 In The Garage
Road Testing Pumps
In future editions we will road test all different types of aquaponic equipment
to determine their suitability and reliability for aquaponics systems. In this
edition we will look at the Ebara Optima pump, formerly known as “Best Zero”.

Ebara are an Italian pump company that make

a wide range of pumps and the ‘optima’ is the
smallest pump that they produce in their
range.

I’ve been using the “Optima” (formerly Best

Zero) for many years now in many different
systems and I’ve found them to be a solid re-
liable pump. They are capable of pumping soft
solids up to 10mm which means they can pump
the solids out of the fish tank into the grow-
beds with ease. The pump is not rated for
continuous pumping and with a flow rate of
8000L/h at 1.5m head, you probably wouldn't
want to run it continuously anyway.This pump
is only suitable for larger aquaponic systems.

The pumps I have used have been reliable,

one I ran continuously for over 2 years even
though they are not rated for continuous use.
Another pump that was in my drain tank blew
a seal in the top of the pump after about 12
months. This was a known issue with the old
“best zero” model and the pump was replaced
without question. This issue with the seal has
been fixed in the new Optima model according
to their Australian representative, and I have
not had any issues with the new Optima
model.
In wrapping up, they are a swolid little pump
that will move a lot of water and solids,
though are not ra1ted for continuous opera-
tion.

18
19
 In The Garden
Plants that grow well in aquaponics
In future editions we will examine different plants grown in aquaponic systems.
Jaymie Rains

Aquaponics allows you to grow many of your house- Tomatoes are prime examples. In the last year,
hold’s favourite vegetables in a controlled organic one tomato bush in Joel Malcolm’s system pro-
environment. In the many Backyard Aquaponic duced more than 34Kg of fruit! And yes, that
systems, not many vegetables have been found to was from one enormous bush!
be unsuitable.
Capsicums, egg plants, strawberries, peas and
Depending on your own geographical location and beans all thrive in the marvellous environment. A
the size of your aquaponic system, weekly grocery wide variety of herbs also enjoy aquaponic life:
shopping can be significantly reduced. This is a parsley, basil, thyme, mints, lemon balm, chives,
very good thing during these times of food safety rosemary and watercresses.
uncertainty and rising costs.
In future issues we will be looking at different
Systems in cooler areas will easily supply you with plant species in more depth, comparing their
all the leafy vegetables you could eat: broccoli, growth rates and production levels in aquaponic
cauliflower, cabbages, celery, lovely lettuces and systems.
silverbeet. But it is not just leafy veggies that
can grow in aquaponics systems. Many fruiting
plants grow very well too.

Stuart with a nice selection of aq-

uaponic vegetables.

Most plants grow well in aquaponics

20
A healthy crop of silverbeet, broccoli, celery and tomato plants growing well

Habanero chills.. Three different tomato varieties grown in an aq-

uaponic system.

21
 By the Barbeque
Paul Ryan

Although some of us may have fantasised about

harvesting and eating fish grown in the backyard,
before coming across Aquaponics common sense
suggested this was impractical if not impossible
to accomplish. It is normal to have some residual
doubts about Aquaponics until you have harvested
your first fish and/or plants. It just seems too
good to be true. Early on, this feeling can be
heightened if you experience issues with fish
health, which is one reason why a two-part series
focussing on fish health is included in this and
the next edition of the Backyard Aquaponics
Magazine.
To celebrate the fantastically yummy outputs of
Aquaponics, in each edition of the magazine, this
section will include fabulous recipes using Aq-
uaponics system produce, as well as handy cooking
hints and tips. Although fish and crustaceans will
inevitably feature heavily, vegetarian readers will
not be forgotten.

Readers are invited to submit their favourite Aq- Jade Perch for dinner. Photo P. Ryan
uaponics produce recipes for publication, along
with a picture of the final product, if possible. E-
mail your submissions to
[email protected] with the sub-
ject line ‘Recipe Submission’.

To tempt and tantalise tastebuds and preview

what readers can expect from their own Aq-
uaponics systems, a selection of pictures have
been compiled for this edition, featuring fish
harvested from Backyard Aquaponics Forum
member systems.

Barramundi Rosti with aquaponic tomatoes and

rice. Photo S. Haberfield
22
 Jade Perch ready for the pan. Photo S. Cacchione

Some Backyard aquaponic produce with

some eggs. Photo J. Rains Silver Perch, each approximately 400g. Photo J. Malcolm

Silver Perch on the barbeque. Photo

J. Malcolm
Barramundi for lunch. Photo S. Haberfield
23
 By the Pool

Jade Perch?
By Jaymie Rains

Six month old Jade Perch. Photo J. Rains

Jade Perch (Scortum barcoo), Barcoo Grunter or The fins are usually darker in colour than the body.
Striped Perch is one of the favourite species of The fish shown in this article have some of the
fish used in Australian backyard aquaponics sys- characteristic “birth-marks”, the jade colouring
tems. They are a fast growing, hardy fish that along the dorsal area and the general “football”
tastes great, with extraordinarily high omega-3 lev- shape of the body.
els making it one of the healthiest fish available
Jade Perch is a freshwater finfish native to the low
(CSIRO
gradient rivers and creeks of the Lake Eyre catch-
http://www.marine.csiro.au/media/02releases/13ma
ment. These waters are generally highly turbid and
y02.html). What more could you want?
have a wide temperature and conductivity or salin-
Jade Perch is a heavily built fish with a small head, ity range. In their natural habitat, Jade Perch
generally uniformly brownish-black with darker spawn during the summer floods when water tem-
“birthmarks”.
24
In captivity the sexually mature broodstock are leafy vegetables and beans; all readily available
induced to spawn with a hormone injection. This is from many Backyard Aquaponic systems. Most
not usually an option for backyarders. hatcheries will train fingerlings to accept artificial
diets, usually as pellets, with the pellet size varying
They have been found to grow well in recirculating
with the size of the fish. The food conversion ra-
systems and ponds. They hate the cold, and love
tios (FCR) vary depending upon the level of manage-
the heat. Therefore, for out-door tank or pond
ment with 1.2:1 for fingerlings to 1.6:1 for growout
production, they are probably only suitable for
being achievable. This means for every 1.2 kilo-
tropical or sub-tropical climates. Seemingly, they
grams of food the fish consume, they will gain one
have a much higher metabolic rate, therefore to
kilogram. Care should be taken when feeding, as
avoid water quality problems should be stocked at a
Jade Perch are voracious feeders and overfeeding
much lower rate than Silver perch.
can occur, leading to ammonia spikes in the system.
They feed eagerly on anything you might throw in to
Table-sized fish of 350 to 800gms can be grown in
tanks: worms, caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles,
8 to 15 months in outdoor ponds and tanks.
bugs, snails, algae, duckweed,

Hungry Jade Perch and Silver Perch. Photo J. Rains

25
The advantages of growing Jade Perch in your Jade Perch environmental preferences (from
Backyard Aquaponics system: http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/fishweb/14076.html)

• Jade Perch has the highest Omega-3 oil Temperature (optimum) 22oC – 28oC (71oF – 82oF)
content compared with over 200 seafoods
Temperature (tolerate) 13oC – 32oC (55oF – 90oF)
tested by CSIRO. Scientific research has
proven that Omega-3 can help strengthen Aeration and water exchanges need to be increased
and protect cells in the body, especially with higher temperatures. Growth is negligible below
cells in your heart, brain and joints. 20oC (68oF). Feeding should cease below 16oC (60oF)

• Jade Perch has up to 100 times more Salt at 5ppt is acceptable for long term exposure and
Omega-3 oil than chicken, beef or lamb. for treatment of ectoparasite and fungal diseases
(e.g. Ichthyophthirius multifilis)
• Jade Perch contain lower levels of choles-
terol. Dissolved Oxygen 4mg/L or greater.

• Jade Perch has clean white flesh and a deli-

cate flavour with a melt-in-your mouth tex-
ture.

A healthy year old Jade Perch. Photo P. Ryan

26
 On The Deck Chairs
Healthy Fish are Happy Fish.
By Paul Ryan
All sorts of people are attracted to Aquaponics. When introducing newly purchased fish to your
Some have previous experience in keeping fish, tank, it is important that you acclimatise them to
mainly ornamental aquarium fish, but most have lit- the existing tank temperature. One common
tle or no experience in this area. Although it is not method of doing this is to float the bag, within
difficult to manage the fish-keeping side of Aq- which they are contained, in the fish tank for at
uaponics, a lack of knowledge of fundamental princi- least 30 minutes before release. For more de-
pals and practices is likely to result in major fish tailed information on acclimatising your new fish,
losses and a delay in reaping the fantastic rewards see I Got a Bag of Fish. Now What?
provided by a well functioning Aquaponics System.
(http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/viewtopic
The purpose of this two-part article is to help cur- .php?t=1740 ).
rent and prospective Aquaponics system owners es-
Do not discount the importance of temperature
tablish a balanced healthy environment for their
as a long term factor in running a successful Aq-
fish friends, by outlining key fish keeping principals
uaponics system. When setting up your system
and practices. The information provided will also
and choosing the type of fish that you will grow,
help in diagnosing problems that might be experi-
it is essential that you consider the extremes of
enced along the way. Aspects important to fish
winter and summer and have suitable means of
health that are covered by this series are:
maintaining water temperature within the desired
• Temperature range during these periods. Using large amounts
of non-renewable energy to heat or cool your wa-
• pH
ter will incur both financial and environment
• Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate costs. Strategies to address this issue can in-
• Dissolved Oxygen clude:

• Water Contamination • Insulating and covering tanks to stabi-

lise temperature, retaining heat in win-
• Disease ter and coolness in summer;
• Housing the plants in a suitable struc-
Temperature ture to provide some shade in summer
and heat retention in winter; and, most
Each species of fish has a temperature range within importantly
which they can live healthy lives and a more narrow
range within which they will thrive. The ranges vary • Growing fish that are suited to your cli-
from species to species, so it is important to know mate.
what they are for the ones you are growing. During winter, at night some people also choose
Sudden changes in water temperature can also have to turn off the pumps that supply water to grow-
an adverse affect on fish health. When doing sys- beds in order to minimise heat loss. This is a
tem top-ups or other water additions, it is impor- valid practice but it is important that this is not
tant to make sure that the temperature of the wa- done unless:
ter being added to the system is very similar to • Aeration of fish tanks continues through-
that of the existing water or that the water is out the night by means of an air pump or
added very gradually to allow the fish to adjust to some other method;
the change in temperature.

27
 • Grow-beds are able to drain of water, • The pH scale is logarithmic. As pH
thereby ensuring that plant roots have moves away from 7, each step down/up
oxygen available to them while the pumps is 10 times stronger than the last. To
are not running; put this simply, pH 6 is 10 times and
pH 5 100 times more acidic than pH 7.
• If the grow-beds are the only means of
This explains why pH swings of just a
bio-filtration, that during the night ammo-
couple of units can seriously affect
nia and nitrite are not at levels that can
fish health;
adversely affect the health of the fish.
Fish will continue to respire and produce • Carbon dioxide is acidic when dissolved
ammonia throughout the night; and in water. Fish produce carbon dioxide
day and night. Although algae and
• There are means to ensure that the pumps
other plants in the fish tank will pro-
are switched on again in the morning, for
duce oxygen while photosynthesising
example a reliable automatic timer switch.
during the day, at night they produce
carbon dioxide. This is one reason why
Water temperature also has an effect on the dis- pH tends to be lower in the morning
solved oxygen content. This is discussed further than at night in a system that is not
later. It is important to also realise that tempera- adequately buffered;
ture will affect the efficiency of bacteria in the • During nitrification, ammonia and oxy-
nitrogen cycle – see the Nitrogen Cycle article ear- gen are converted to nitrite, hydrogen
lier in this issue for more information on this. and water. Because hydrogen is acidic,
nitrification pushes pH down; and
• Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) can be used
pH to buffer the system against pH
Like temperature, suitable pH range varies with swings. CaCO3 increases pH, but will
different fish species. A pH level that is outside of stop dissolving at pH around 7.4, mean-
the preferred range will have a negative affect on ing pH will stay pretty stable until all
fish health. Damage to the fish’s slime coat will of the available calcium carbonate is
make them more prone to disease. Respiratory is- depleted. Readily available forms of
sues may also result due to the pH affecting gill calcium carbonate include:
function. • shell grit (available at
As well as keeping your tank within the healthy many produce stores)
range, it is important to avoid major fluctuations • sea shells
within this range over short periods. Fluctuations
will stress your fish and could result in death or • calcium carbonate pow-
increased susceptibility to disease. Although the der (available at many
suitable range will vary between species, most produce stores)
freshwater fish can be permanently kept at pH • limestone
within the range 5.5 to 7.5 and many have a wider
• egg shells.
range.
Some important things to know about pH:

• On the pH scale 0 to 14, 7 is neutral

(neither acid nor alkaline). Values below
7 are acid and above are alkaline;

28
Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate As a general rule the level of un-ionised ammonia
should be kept below 0.02 parts per million (ppm).
Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate are all forms of nitro-
Table 1 shows an approximation of the maximum
gen that exist within any Aquaponics system. As is
TAN that is safe for fish at various ph and tem-
detailed in the article ‘The Nitrogen Cycle’, also
perature levels. Regardless of this, when using
featured in this edition (page 4), beneficial bacteria
commonly available test kits, an ammonia reading
within an Aquaponics system convert ammonia to
of 0ppm total ammonia should be the aim for a
nitrite and nitrite to nitrate. Nitrate is then util-
balanced Aquaponics system. This is achieved
ised by plants grown in the system.
due to the efficient processing of ammonia by
Short-term exposure to even a small concentration the beneficial bacteria housed within the system.
of ammonia or nitrite can result in death or perma-
Nitrite
nent damage to fish. Although less toxic, at higher
concentrations nitrate will also still harm fish over At rates as low as 0.5ppm, nitrite can be harmful
the long term. to your fish. Nitrite affects the ability of the
fish’s gills to efficiently transfer oxygen to
Ammonia bloodstream. This issue becomes more signifi-
Within an Aquaponics system, a cant at lower oxygen saturation levels,
large quantity of ammonia is pro- “Short-term exposure to for example when the temperature of
duced. There are two primary even a small concentration the water is high.
sources of ammonia. Firstly, fish of ammonia or nitrite can It has been shown that the addition of
excrete ammonia, the bulk of
result in death or perma- chloride will reduce the absorption of
which enters the water from
nent damage to fish.” nitrite across a fish’s gills and there-
their gills. Secondly, ammonia is
fore assist in reducing the toxicity of
produced through biological con-
nitrite. Salt (sodium chloride) added
version of dissolved organic mat-
ter such as uneaten fish food “Water temperature also at a rate of 17ppm (17 grams per 1000
litres) for each ppm of nitrite will re-
particles, fish poo and dead plant has an effect on the dis- duce the effect of nitrite. Some peo-
matter within the grow-beds (eg. solved oxygen content.“ ple keep 1 gram per litre of salt in
old roots).
their systems on a permanent basis
It is important to realise that ammonia exists in for therapeutic purposes, as a stress reliever and
two forms, ionised and un-ionised. As temperature aid to disease recovery. Of course this level is
and pH increase, so does the % of total ammonia more than enough to also complete the function
that exists in the un-ionised form. It is un-ionised of nitrite toxicity reduction.
ammonia that is most toxic to fish because of its
As salt will not entirely eliminate the harmful
ability to be absorbed by the fish across their gills.
effects of nitrite and at higher concentrations
Ionised ammonia is only harmful in high concentra-
can also affect the health of some plants, the
tions and is not likely to be an issue in an Aquapon-
preferred method for guarding against nitrite
ics system.
poisoning is to ensure that cycling is properly
Most common test kits do not test for each form of completed and nitrite spikes are avoided by main-
ammonia, but rather give a measurement that taining a balanced system. For example, avoid
represents the total ammonia nitrogen (TAN), the temptation to make sudden significant in-
which consists of both ionised and un-ionised ammo- creases in the rate of feeding. Also, ensure that
nia. Provided that TAN, pH and temperature are preventative measures, such as water changes,
known, the amount of un-ionised ammonia can be are employed to address the short term inability
easily calculated using tables that are readily avail- of beneficial bacteria to process the increased
able on the Internet. production of nitrite (and ammonia) caused by
any significant increase in fish population density.

29
Nitrate As it is the plants in an Aquaponics system that
remove the nitrate, to ensure nitrate does not
Various fish species have differing tolerances to
become an issue it is important that an appropri-
nitrate. Even populations within the same species
ate level of planting is maintained. What is ap-
will often have different tolerances, depending
propriate will depend on a number of factors in-
upon the conditions within which their ancestors
cluding amount of fish (weight), feeding rate and
have lived.
type of plants.
Generally speaking, the most common species of
eating type fish grown in Aquaponics have a rela-
tively high tolerance to nitrate, with levels of 80 to The rest of this great article will be in next sea-
160ppm having been proven by BYAP forum mem- son’s issue of the Backyard Aquaponics Magazine.
bers to present no short term issues.
For ornamental aquarium fish, it is normally recom-
mended that nitrate levels be maintained below
20ppm in the long term. The reason for this is that
elevated levels of nitrate can have a negative ef-
fect on the internal organs of fish. When growing
fish for harvest, this is less of an issue as fish will
normally be harvested well before any of the nega-
tive effects of exposure to moderate levels of ni-
trate present themselves.

Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN) - (ppm)

Temp pH
(°C)
6.0 6.4 6.8 7.0 7.2 7.4 7.6 7.8 8.0 8.2 8.4

4 200 67 29 18 11 7.1 4.4 2.8 1.8 1.1 0.68

8 100 50 20 13 8.0 5.1 3.2 2.0 1.3 0.83 0.5

12 100 40 14 9.5 5.9 3.7 2.4 1.5 0.95 0.61 0.36

16 67 29 11 6.9 4.4 2.7 1.8 1.1 0.71 0.45 0.27

20 50 20 8.0 5.1 3.2 2.1 1.3 0.83 0.53 0.34 0.21

24 40 15 6.1 3.9 2.4 1.5 0.98 0.63 0.4 0.26 0.16

28 29 12 47 2.9 1.8 1.2 0.75 0.48 0.31 0.2 0.12

32 22 8.7 3.5 2.2 1.4 0.89 0.57 0.37 0.24 0.16 0.1

Table 1 – Safe Level of Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN)

30
 Over the Back Fence
What’s happening in the world of Aquaponics

There have been a few gatherings of Backyard Aquaponics folk over the last
year. Here are some photos of a few of them.
In future issues we would like to show more of these get togethers. That is a
big hint for you to get out there and meet other Aquaponicists!

Western Australia had a meet at Joel Malcolm’s marvellous backyard to

see THE Backyard Aquaponics System.
November 2006. Photo J. Malcolm

As aquaponics grows we hope there will be more of these fun and informative
gatherings, sharing the enthusiasm and knowledge of aquaponics with more peo-
ple.

31
 In January 2007, some of the Victorian enthusiasts gathered at
Food&Fish’s house.
January 2007. Photo M. Matthews

Over the Easter weekend, keen Backyard Aquaponicists journeyed from many
and varied places around Queensland, converging at Aquamad’s home in Cairns.
April 2007, Photo J. Rains

32
 The Magazine Rack
Need further information about aquaponics? Would you like to look at building your own
system, or would you rather have a system installed for you?

The Backyard Aquaponics shop is now open!

The first of it’s kind in the world. A retail shop and display centre in Western Australia
specializing in aquaponics products, information and systems, open to the public during
standard retail hours. Come down and have a look. We have a complete range of books,
DVD’s, CD’s, tanks, pumps, growbeds, pipe work and fittings, as well as many different
systems.

Throughout 2008 we will be running a series of short courses on aquaponics in conjunc-

tion with Faye Arcaro from Aquaponica. Register your interest now by contacting Faye
or myself.

If you’re interested in any further information about aquaponics, or any products men-
tioned above, please contact us now or drop by the shop for a look around.

Regards
Joel Malcolm
[email protected]
(08) 9414 9334

33
 Spent just a little bit too much
time on the aquaponics?...
POSY POWER
www.posypower.com.au
Phone:0011
Phone: 61 0419 951 741
Email: [email protected]

34
35