help BC set up a system

[bcreefmaker]

i was looking into setting up a small indoor aquaponic garden. i have been looking into them for quite some time now but have felt like its time to take the leap. my first question is, i was planning on trying out all 3 growing system on 1 or 2 tanks at once, and was just wondering if that will have any ill effect? i was first planning on just doing an ebb and flow. but i would like to see the difference in growth between ebb and flow, continuous flow, and aeroponic. the only one i dont really know anything about is the continuous flow, to my understanding that means just a small amount of liquid always running at the bottom of a tench filled with growth media to always provide water or is the trench always filled? do you have the watering systems for any of them on 24/7? or do the watering turn off during the night? also whats a good aquaponic fish that's cheap and like water them around 72-75 and can eat meat fish food? or will goldfish do fine?

[bcreefmaker]

here is a picture of what i would like my ebb and flow system to look like, any suggestions?

[Outbackozzie]

Cant help with the US fish,

Continuous flow is a trickle of water running through the media.

My system had a mixture of constantly flooded, flood and drain, and continuous flow - flood and drain is far and away the best, by miles.

Watering can be done in any ratio you like, when my system was full of trout I ran the pumps nearly all the time, now they are gone I am back to 4 x 1 hour cycles per 24 hours. Just got to keep the water clean - the plants dont care as long as they get a drink 1 or 2 times a day.

[nick]

the flood and drain is my preference for both the water and the plants. The continuous flow means that you have a dripper next to each plant and it gets a continual flow of water. THis means you either have to have a lot of grid or a lot of little drippers which in my experience means a lot of little blockages every now and then.

the aeroponics is great system and is where i started but again with out really clean ( sediment free) water they again block up and you need to clean them, but other than that I had pretty good success with aeroponics.

anyway, best of luck and remember to post plenty of pictures, they are muchly appreciated. NIck

[Jason Palenske]

BC you may want to have a look at what Ravnis and myself are doing as far as indoors is concerned. Working indoors has its own challenges because of space, especially with it heading into winter for us. Right now I use a constant flow with goldfish. Flood and drain is hard to do because of grow bed size limitations indoors. What I've done is here (http://www.aquaponicshq.com/forums/showthread.php?t=564)and there are several others. If your creative you can set something up inside for around a hundred bucks or so. Hope this helps and good luck.

[bcreefmaker]

Thanks for the help everyone, so far i have a 3 bucket CF/DWC areoponic system so far with the fish and everything. I'm looking to set up a larger flood and drain set up once i got things working how i like them. i had another question about nutrients tho before i wanted to really get started. i know most hydro solutions are sold for their N-P-K ratings. and i think the fish will make the N and the P, but do you have to add potassium? or is that also something naturally made in their environment?

[Jonty]

Most of us use Seasol as it contains all the trace elements and low in Nitrogen. Here is a link http://www.seasol.com.au/images/assets/PDFs/Seasol_Retail_1_7_2007.pdf
Regards
Jonty

[Outbackozzie]

+1 for seasol, just turn the water a light brown, once a month or whenever you notice an iron or potassium deficiency.