Build your own Aquaponics
System at home
Henk Stander
Aquaculture Division
Department of Animal Sciences
Faculty of AgriSciences
University of Stellenbosch
A
quaponics is the integration of
recirculating aquaculture and
hydroponics in one production system.
The three main common design
concepts used for the plant growing areas
are; Media Based Grow Beds, grow pipes
called Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) and
grow canals called Deep Water Culture (DWC).
The preferred concept, normally utilized
in commercial size systems, is Deep Water
Culture. The reasons for this are that the
water temperature and pH tend to be more
constant in this design and it is not as labour
intensive and easy to manage. These large-
scale commercial operations usually cover 2
hectares or more.
All aquaponics systems share several common
and essential components. These include a
fish tank, a mechanical (radial for instance)
filter, a biofilter, and hydroponic containers.
All systems use energy to circulate water
through pipes and plumbing while aerating
the water. This article provides a brief
explanation of the main components of this
production method and a systematic guide to
construct a small-scale Deep Water Culture
(DWC) system at home. This kind of system
is ideal to grow leafy greens. If you preferred
AgriKultuur |AgriCulture
to grow plants that require more support,
for instance tomatoes and cucumbers, then
convert the DWC grow beds to Media Based
Grow Beds in your system.
Main components:
This “Do It Yourself” Deep Water Culture
aquaponics system consist of the following
main components:
• One fish Tank – 1000L Intermediate Bulk
Container (IBC).
• Three DWC troughs – Constructed
from IBC PVC liners and cages cut in half
(±300L).
• Radial filter – Constructed from 210L PVC
drum, a bucket & funnel
• Biofilter / Sump Tank - Constructed from
210L PVC drum
• Submersible Pump – To suppress noise
as well as to save on energy consumption
in comparison to conventional centrifugal
pumps.
• Aerator – To provide sufficient oxygen
to the fish tank, biofilter as well as the
DWC grow beds. A Venturi is added to the
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