Hi from Brisbane

[KenR60]

Hi All, I'm Very New to this system, have just completed an 8,000 litre Pond up one side of our home and have over the past 3 months added a range of 70 Goldfish ( which now are breeding ). Wanted the Goldfish for the Colour so we could sit out on the Deck and watch all the fish swim around us. Plus the Wife was against eating something we'd raised ( as if she could name every one of them!!!! ) Hope to increase this number to a few hundred over the next 12 months.

So I have the water, have the Fish, now I need to grow something!!! I'm wanting to begin small and learn as I go so looking at something I can expand as I learn. The area I have is Narrow ( along the Neighbours fence line ) so its about 1 metre deep by 12 metres long but I can go up as high as 1.6 Metres. I'm handy so intend to make the system myself. To start with, just looking at growing Lettuce, then with more understanding I can move into other plants.

So many Questions ....

1) Trying to deceide on using 90mm PVC or possibly one of the other shapes sold?
2) Not sure if I use a continuous flow system or a Flood and Drain?
3) Thinking of having a raised concept where the first row is about 600mm off the ground, then 1000mm then 1400mm
4) Each would be about 900mm long so that I break the available area up into 12 groups ( rather than a single 12mtr run )

Any advice will be well taken and appreciated

Thanks

Ken

[djs-sa]

hi ken very nice pond awesome stuff, 90mm pvc is ok i'm building a small system out of it now keep ur eyes open for my thread in new systems djs-sa

take care and enjoy the fun to be had

[Hamish]

Wow - now THAT is an awesome looking pond! The house looks like its built on an island! Well done - will look great once the decking is added - I assume that is what the framing is for? How did you make the pond? Is it a trench lined with pond liner?

I have used 90mm PVC pipe to grow things in - works very well. Doesnt really add any biological filtration though - but then on a pond your size perhaps you dont need to worry so much about that.

I think Daveoponic has a nice multi level PVC pipe system - are you out there Dave???

If you would like to visit some tme you are welcome. I am at Hope Island near sanctuary Cove Gold Coast - northern end of the gold coast so only 45min from Brisbane on a good run.

[nick]

my recommendation is always for flood and drain. I have tried continual flow and aeroponics and flood and drain is much better. Especially if you now consider the auto siphons that murray and gary are using, they make it a lot easier to arrange things. I would consider gettting a few of the 250 litre tubs that murray builds. They are fibre glass and very nice. Would do really well for lettuce if that is your focus. any way just my two cents, Nick

p.s also in brisbane, so once I have it reestablished after the move you are welcome for a visit, it will be much easier to understand than the last one

[KenR60]

Hello Hamish, djs-sa and Nick,
Thanks for the advise and thoughts. Yes Decking is hopefully going down in the next few weeks. This has been a weekend Project and I began it a few months ago, dug every hole by hand, mixed all concrete in a bucket, everything was done on a Budget ( Wifes Budget not mine!! ) If you want to see the before and after photos I have added these to my online album

http://www.kenrussell.info/ourphotos...d%20and%20Deck

Will look up the 'auto siphons' you mentioned Nick

Keep Smiling

Ken

[djs-sa]

nice web site there ken, that pond is mad all by hand!!!
i'm sure the fish will love you

[Hamish]

Very nice setup. Will be interesting to see what temperature the water gets to in summer - being black bottomed and larg surface area it might need some shade?

[KenR60]

Very nice setup. Will be interesting to see what temperature the water gets to in summer - being black bottomed and larg surface area it might need some shade?

Thanks Hamish, The Sides and Bottom are actually nicely covered with algae so its not as stark Black as I orginally thought it would be. I'm also adding plenty of Floating plants and once we finish doing the Decking we may look at adding a few of the White Sails overhead which will also help.