Friendly Aquaponics Family System

[Carol]

A food production system that combines aquaculture (raising fish in tanks) and hydroponics (growing plants out of soil).

Sustainable:

· Miniscule water consumption: uses less than 1% of the water than traditional farming.

· Low Energy: uses 70% less energy than farming in-ground!

· Increased production by a factor of eight to ten over dirt farming.

· Fully scalable: backyard family systems to full commercial systems.

· Easy to learn and operate: anyone can do this!

· Pure, clean, and natural: USDA Certified Organic.



Look at the roots growing under this raft. The roots are the biomass that clean the water that is recycled from the fish tank to the water growing troughs and then back to the fish.


Look at how beautiful and healthy the lettuce looks here. Grows twice as fast and tastes sweet.

Their website is now complete. www.friendlyaquaponics.com

I've just put together the materials list for the family system and will post it once I check it over for any errors.

First generation fish tank.

[Kimmie]

Carol,

This looks like a great system to get set up. I'm looking forward to the details.

1)I'd be interested to know how much space the fish tank/tanks take up.
2) Will climate effect the fish tanks?
3)Will water quality effect fish tanks?
and
4) Does the adorable young fish keeper come with the system?

Thanks for sharing the pictures, and I will be watching for the details.

Much Love, Kimmie

[Carol]

It has taken me time to get all of this info together and list the costs so one can see if this is something worth following through on. We are very excited as we have almost everything to get started and just need to grade the area we will be putting our system. Here is the materials list to build a family aquaponics system. Plans can be purchased from Friendly Aquaponics if one is interested in pursuing this.

Aquatic EcoSystems Parts

From Aquatic EcoSystems (877) 347-4788, or on the Web at www.AquaticEco.com

1 QP13 water pump $50.35

1 SL56 outdoor air pump $325

3 110A 5/8" barb to 3/4" MNPT adaptor $3.33

8’ TV80 vinyl tubing from water pump to 1-1/2" PVC and from air pump to 1" Driscopipe in tank 100ft roll $62.95

8 AS8L airstones (includes 2 spares) $6

1 BTV40 100' roll black vinyl air tubing $30

2 DB10 Packs of (diffuser bumpers come in packs of 10) $4.57

1 #239211 gallon inoculating nitrifying bacteria Catalog $44.68

4 R444/ R443 boxes each of Pentair R444 (nitrite/nitrate) $11.35, and R443 (ammonia) $12.55 test strips, which come 25 to a box. This is enough for a year of tests at one test every four days or so.

1 R446 box Pentair chlorine/chloramine test strips (for testing system water fills and makeup water before adding to system) $8.80

1 BK112 bulkhead fitting $9.55

Optional from Aquatic EcoSystems ($550)
1 YSI DO200 digital dissolved oxygen and temperature meter consisting of
YDO2000 meter and Y2004 cable and probe $550


Water Trough Materials

16 3/4" by 2' used steel form stakes (if your ground is hard), 3' if your ground is soft ($48)

5 sheets treated 1/4" ACX plywood/smooth on liner side ($125)

2 boxes of 100 1-1/4" #8 or #10 FH hot-dip galvanized screws ($11)

16 Each of 1/4" x 2-1/2" hot-dip galvanized carriage bolts, washers, and nuts ($3)

4 2’x4’ 16' long treated construction grade lumber ($48)

6 2’x4’ 18' long treated construction grade lumber ($84)

37’ Lineal feet of P2000 23-mil HDPE liner material from Inland Plastics, Ltd, (800) 387-7765, OR EQUIVALENT. Comes in 750-foot rolls 12' wide – cut into 6 foot widths ($160 for 37 foot family system; $550 for commercial system)

8 4' x 8' x 2" Dow Blue Board Square Edge Styrofoam rafts (Lowes sometimes stocks this; they order 1 "unit" at a time. A unit is 8' tall and contains 48 sheets) (8 rafts @ $55 per raft = $440)

3 gallons Bright white exterior latex semi-gloss enamel for painting rafts with ($95)

Weed mat ground cloth 12 ft wide and ground sod staples 1” by 6” 10 gage between troughs to prevent weeds.

PVC

Tank Materials for 1 8’x4’x4’ foot tank

6 sheets of plywood 3/4" ACX treated plywood (dry) or untreated

6 2’x4’ 16 foot treated construction grade lumber

6 2’x6’ 20 foot treated construction grade lumber

16 yards (50 inches wide, 6 oz) fiberglass

5 Gallons of resin 2-part epoxy resin

1 Gallon hardener

($541.98 for 16 yd fiberglass, 5 gal resin and 1 gal hardner – included shipping which may not be an expense depending upon where you live)

acetone and lacquer thinner

7” or 9” disposable foam roller covers and 2 roller pans

squeegees

brushes

mixing containers

1 5-gallon good quality exterior latex enamel for painting tanks. You may want to get a gallon of a trim color also. If painting your troughs, you will probably need 2 more 5-gallons.

Need a dry place to work and store the fiberglass cloth.


Plumbing parts

Note: Use Schedule 40 sweep 90's if they are available from your plumbing supplier. If not available, use ells instead.

The sweeps will give better air and water flow and will reduce electrical cost for water pumping.

Schedule 40 2" PVC pipe and fittings

3 Sweeps

2 Couplings

6 Bulkhead fitting

1 1-1/2"-2" slip adaptor

Pipe 1- 10' length

Schedule 40 1-1/2" PVC pipe and fittings

6 Sweeps

2 Male Thread adaptors

PVC Pipe 1- 20' length

Schedule 40 1" PVC fittings

Couplings: 1 (if you have a lined steel tank)

4 Ells (if you have the plywood/fiberglass tank)

Schedule 40 3/4" PVC pipe and fittings

4 Ells

2 Adaptors, Female thread/male slip

Pipe 1 - 10' length

Miscellaneous parts

30 feet of 1" Driscopipe for aeration manifold in fish tank, (and 4- 1" PVC elbows if you use the plywood/fiberglass tank, and 1- 1" PVC coupling with the lined steel tank)

4 1-1/2" hose clamps

Stainless steel bolts or screws to fasten pumps down to wood base

3/4" Driscopipe long enough to connect back to your water source from the hose bib at the fish tank.

3/4" male thread bronze hose barb for each end of the Driscopipe with 2 hose clamps each end;

AND fittings necessary to connect a hose bib.

Conduit, wire, distribution panels, junction boxes, and fittings to wire as desired.