Regular Member kogia Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Hello everyone I have a vertical garden Aquaponics set up in my dining room. It is currently fed nutrients by a 5 gallon tank of guppies who cannot produce enough waste to feed my plants. I am planning on switching out the guppy tank for a goldfish set-up. While looking on the internet for information about keeping goldfish I found this fantastic forum. I've read a lot of posts/articles on the forum and since I still have some questions I figured I'd better join. When I started my set up I was considering goldfish instead of guppies. I went with guppies because I could stick them in a small tank ( less $$) and because I wanted to keep cory catfish as well and those don't mix safely with goldfish. However the cory catfish don't mix well with my aquaponics set up either. I think the high flow levels required by aquaponics bother them. Either way the sole surviving catfish will join some other of his kin in my mom's community tank. My primary reason for needing to switch up from guppies is that the guppies in my tank can raise about 3-4 adult plants and I have planting space for 12 so what I really need is a bigger fish to produce them some more nutrients. I am currently waffling between a tank and an indoor pond. I'm planning on rescuing two feeder fish from the local pet store. I prefer my fish more streamlined and don't see the appeal of fancy goldfish. Tank pros and cons - this is a 29 gallon tank - this system has a sump tank which will bring up the water total + there is a free tank available + goldfish are generally more visible since the tank will be higher up on a stand + don't have to worry about the dog in the tank + don't have to rework the plumbing set up in my dining room + less plastic - I'm trying to reduce plastic in my life - fish might outgrow it --> meaning I'd have to upgrade anyway - need to purchase a stand Pond pros and cons - this is assuming I get a 40 gallon stock tank + fish should have plenty of room + I like the idea of an indoor pond + I can get rid of the sump tank and have a simplified more efficient system - need to redo the plumbing - need to make a stand - need to make some sort of attractive cover to keep the dog out - reduced visibility of the fish - takes up a lot more space I'm curious what people's general thoughts are. I'll post specific questions in the appropriate forums. Also does anyone on the forum have experience with aquaponics? I haven't found more than casual mentions of it. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member kogia Posted May 28, 2015 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 PICTURES !!!! - or links to them I figure the last post was long enough so these are in a new post. The vertical garden set up and sump tank. A close up on the sprouting plants (kale) The tank side of the set up My cory catfish. He looks cranky because of the lighting. None of the guppies would pose for me. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member shakaho Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Yes, I have a functioning aquaponics system outdoors,(and another one in process). It has a 50 gallon stock tank for the fish and a 2'x3' grow bed with strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, kale, chard and several herbs. The system needs maturing since some of the plants show signs of nutrient deficiencies, but those should be corrected with time. I have considered building an indoor system just for fun, but providing light enough to grow food crops indoors is a major and expensive project, and the light outdoors is better and free. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Ree Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Hi Kogia, I don't have any experience with aquaponics, but your setup sounds interesting. Sharon has plenty of practical advice esp with ponds and plants, and many of the other members/subscribers/mods might be able to help too. They are an amazing group of people on Kokos, and a wealth of knowledge and experience. I don't know where I or my fish would be without the Kokos support team! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member GoldenSpoiledRotten Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Welcome! Sharon (Shakaho) is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to this. She'd be able to walk you through the setup you'll want. I only popped in to welcome you and add one bit of advice: Bigger is better when it comes to goldfish housing. So think big! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin koko Posted May 28, 2015 Admin Share Posted May 28, 2015 that is a cool set up...got me thinking now 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Daniel Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Welcome to the site! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member DawnMichele Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Hi Kogia!!!! Welcome to Koko's!!!! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Reds12 Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Welcome! I kind of fell into using goldfish to grow plants...it was more adding plants to my set up to have some more natural filtration going on, so I don't really have advice on the how-to's, just word that my goldfish gave me some lovely tomatoes and herbs Your drip system is really cool though - I might have to borrow it for the wall behind my pond outside 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member goldfishgirl82 Posted May 28, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member kogia Posted May 28, 2015 Author Regular Member Share Posted May 28, 2015 Yes, I have a functioning aquaponics system outdoors,(and another one in process). It has a 50 gallon stock tank for the fish and a 2'x3' grow bed with strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, kale, chard and several herbs. The system needs maturing since some of the plants show signs of nutrient deficiencies, but those should be corrected with time. I have considered building an indoor system just for fun, but providing light enough to grow food crops indoors is a major and expensive project, and the light outdoors is better and free. I tried cherry tomatoes. They grew like crazy (6-8 ft vines up to the ceiling and circling around the top of the hanging set-up) and flowered a bunch once I added some phosphorus to the system. They only produced 2 tomatoes though... I don't know if that was nutrient deficiency or if it was a lack of pollinators (though the seeds said they were self pollinating). I grow kale and some herbs. Kale likes the system and I like kale so I figured why bother with a good thing. My set-up is in a south facing window so the plants are powered by natural light. Soon the whole system will be solar powered 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Mr.B Posted May 29, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 29, 2015 Welcome to the forum. I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with. My vote is for the indoor pond! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Fish Of Gold Posted May 30, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted May 30, 2015 Hello Welcome to Koko's That set up looks awesome! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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