SNAG from Toowoomba - getting started.

[GaryD]

Hi SNAG,

Aussieponic is also a member of this forum and, yes, he does have a nice set up under development.

Welcome to this forum.....we look forward to your participation.

Gary

[Murray]

Hi SNAG, welcome,
Got any ideas where and how you might get started. The reed bed is a good idea, but as you have indicated, grow the veggies. They will do the job on the water for the fish.
Murray

[zact01]

welcome SensitiveNewAquaGardener there is a lot of very informed and gernuos ppl here. i hope your experience with fish will aid us all.

thanks

zac

[SensitiveNewAquaGardener]

Murray, been thinking about using an existing greenhouse on the side of the house for growbeds but I will probably remove the timber laths on the roof and replace with clear alsynite or similar. It gets darn cold here in Toowoomba, so I will need to enclose the area for better heat in winter. Also I am worried about the amount of light. This is on the sw side of house and may have limited direct winter sun. See pics.

[Murray]

Hi Snag,
Yes it does got cold in "woomba" My daughter, son-in-law and 3 grandkids live there in good-ol-woomba.
The area you have will be good I feel. It will be big enough to make a meaningful system. It would be better if it faced north, but you have to work with what you have and I don't think it will be too bad anyway.
It is a good plan of yours to cover it in with some sort of clear material, the roof and the walls. I think it will be very efficient at converting the heat in winter and retaining it.
This kind of material is inexpensive and can be used on the walls as a roll up , roll down curtain as well as the roof. If you removed most of those slats and went over with this material you would create a very good hot-house for winter. The brick wall will prove to be an excellent heat-sink.
Gary has used this material on his mini greenhouse and achieved excellent results during this last winter. It would cost a lot less than those sheet materials.
The important thing is to get started.
Good luck with your project. Aquaponics is a load of fun and very rewarding.
Murray

[SensitiveNewAquaGardener]

Good ole'woomby has got a lot of rain over the last 24-48 hours...43mls at our place. Forecast of more tonight. Tanks are full (we have 10000L in total so far and more storage on the way!). Toowoomba and the Downs have been hit very hard by this drought. We moved here in 1979 and if you stood still for more than 10 minutes then the Kikuyu would have you.
OK, greenhouse structure seems easily sorted. I am thinking about say 3-4 growbeds (I really like yours, Murray, so neat, so clean, so....right) totaling 1500 - 2000L. That should fit ok in greenhouse with a say 1000 - 1500L fishtank at the end. There is a large rainwater tank nearby for top-ups and etc. Power is available in the small shed at the end. Attached to the greenhouse is a small (2 x 3M) private courtyard off our bedroom that is fenced in. At my wife's suggestion, and she is all for the project, btw, I was pondering installing some decorative waterlilly ponds (pun intended) with possibly redclaw in them. This would be a much later addition when experience, money, etc... Could be also used as a duckweed pond. Yes, full sun would cause algae bloom, but if the surface is heavily covered in waterlillies/Duckweed that should be kept under control. The pic should clarify the physical relationship of shed, greenhouse and courtyard.

[Dominic]

Hi Snag
My fiance and I have just bougt a few acres 14km north of crows nest any advice for a newbie in the toowoomba area? I will be looking at your progress very closely as you will be my closest alley for Aquaponics once I am out there. Murry and Gary have already invited me to check out their systems and i would love to be able to sit down with a drink and discuss aquaponics with you too. I haven't got any concrete plans yet as I am still very new to this but the whole idea just makes me sooooo excited.

[SensitiveNewAquaGardener]

Hi Dominic, Welcome to an interesting and I suspect very addictive way of growing FOOD, glorious FOOD!!! Let me know when yopu get settled. North of Crow's Nest, hmmm, that's yowie country alright. I like to go fishing in my tinny at Cressbrook Dam when there is water in it, so maybe we can get togther then and catch bass, yellowbelly and some yabbies for our tanks! What line of work are you in ? I am still in the decisions stage of my system/s at the present, deciding size, location and style. But very shortly I will make a start...Murray is right, the important thing is to begin.
Cheers!

[Dominic]

Hi Snag
Yes that would be great, I have been a avid fisherman ever since I could walk so I would love to get out on cressbrook and catch fish and yabbies with you. Its only a short drive from the lake to my block.

I live on the gold Coast at the mo but have been feeling the compulsion to live self sufficient for a few years now. I was born in Cornwall right next to the "EDEN PROJECT" If you don't know what that is you must check it out.

www.edenproject.com

I work for a extremely large TimeShare Holiday Co. and my contract runs out mid way through 2008 and then I am up and moving. Planning on building my own home and have a pretty large system as I wont be going back to work because my Fience will earn enough for both of us and I plan on being the one who brings up our kids. Check out my thread on shipping container to see which way I am thinking of going