What you need for an Aquaponic System?

When designing your system, there are a lot of options. But the basics are a fish tank, waterpump and some PVC tubes. When you system is finished you of course also need space, fish, seeds, water and power.

Most import thing to know when starting an aquaponic system is, to know that there is no one-size-fits-all system. If you want to eat a 1000 fish a day of course means a much bigger system then one that only has 1 fish in it. Of course the same goes for the growth of the vegetables, more means bigger, more expensive and more fish that have to be grown next to it.

A nice part of this hobby, is that there is a lot of tinkering, playing, trail and error.  It is very flexible since the science for this isn't done yet. There is no ideal solutions that is the best. If you want to know what you need for such a system it's important to overlook all aspects of the system. What is possible, what you want to do with it or are able to afford.

For instance if you live in a small apartment with no garden, it is still possible to make a small system for a price less then $50.

If you already have a greenhouse in your garden, just add a fish tank. You then can stop buying compost and nutrients, since the  fish will provide that for you.

If you  already have a fish tank, just create a growbed for your vegetables and pump the water through it. It will probably also mean you don't have to filter your water and clean the tank that often.

If you are planning to this a hobby the best part of it is doing it as big as possible with the smallest amount of money. Since I live on Curacao which has a almost constant temperature of 30ºC, I don't need to invest in a greenhouse, extra heating or grow lights. On the other hand, the price of water and power is very high on this island, so my system needs to focus on water and energy conservation.

When you really want to stretch your dollar, you can also look what things you have left in your garage, can pickup at a friends place or is thrown away by companies near you.

Possible fish tanks that can be used for aquaponics
An overview of possible fish tanks that can be used in your aquaponic system

Growbeds for your Aquaponic system
An overview of things you can use as a growbed for your aquaponic hobby