# aquaponic biofiltration



## bookman84

I have worked over the last 10 plus years on an aquaponic filter for aquariums. When I started there was no name for it to my knowledge nor could I find info on the internet anywhere. It combines aquaculture(raising fish, as if we didn't know) with hydroponics. I have 3 aquariums running with this type of filter on then now for 2 years testing the water weekly. Ammonia, nitrites and nitrates are zero. This would be normal if we did regular water changes but the amazing thing is ..... I have not done a water change since they were set up, 2 years ago, I just top them up occasionally. Also my tanks are in the window so they get a lot of light. I have had one incident of algae after I did a massive removal of plants from my filter. 

Basically the system consists of a trough across the back top of the tank filled with clay pellets. water is pumped in one side of the trough and flows out the other side through an overflow. I then planted house plants in the clay pellets. The pellets are porous and present a large surface area for bacteria. my troughs are 1 foot wide by 6 in deep by the length of the tank. This is a larger surface area than any filter on the market. Added to that the fact that the plants use the waste products from the fish make the aquaponic filter the best on the market. 

I have all types of fish in the tanks and they are breeding profusely. The list of plants I have tried is quite long but the best are coleus, peace lily's, tulips, daffodils, spider plants, bamboo, geraniums, amarillus, most herbs and pineapple tops. Some plants like African violet only work if started in the system. Obviously water hating plants like cactus cannot grow well but I have managed with a little tinkering to have a cactus garden grow. 

I am new to this forum but will check occasionally to answer question. I will also post pics of the systems when my camera is working.


----------



## spanosilvio

I would like to know more about this setup, especially how you build it, if you can, send me some info, thanks. 

Sent from my A501 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## garryism

i too would definitely be interested in more details on your system. adding pics to the description would be great! 

actually, i've been researching aquaponics for the last year... but really haven't delved into it.

what fish do you have in your system? tilapia?


----------



## bob123

I am most interested in this system as well, please more info.


----------



## bookman84

Tilapia are generally used in aquaponic systems which are for commercial applications. In this area there is one person setting up a large system with Iilapia zilla and tomatoes. I am working as a consultant with this project. I currently have three tanks set up in my home, one with African cichlids, one with Uruguay cichlids and one with a community setting mostly Swordtails. 
Pictures will be coming soon as my camera is working.


----------



## Egonsgirl

That is awesome!!! would need quite a bit of space for set up. I used to grow plants in hydroponics, also in pots with the clay pellets/nutrified water. They grew well. This would be a great project for those who love both fish and gardening. Thanks for sharing, and looking forward to the pictures and instructions. Welcome to the forum.


----------



## garryism

I'm definitely looking forward to the pics.

I met someone on this forum who had a sweet setup with Blue Tilapia. He was growing a ton of stuff like tomatoes, lettuce, swisschard, herbs, etc.

His tomato plant was almost touching the ceiling!

As for myself, I actually have a bunch of Blues, Hawaiian Golds... and expecting Red Niles shortly.


----------



## Fishfur

Something I have often wished I had the space to try out. I use the tank water from WCs to water plants and the results are quite surprising. Plants respond to the tank water better than they do to other fertilizers. I have one lovely Episcia that used to belong to my Mom. She used Miracle Grow on it. Since I've had it, and used tank water on it, its leaves have tripled in size, and it flowers constantly, and even the flowers are larger than they were before. I can only imagine what it would do for veggies!


----------



## jimmyjam

I grew green onions ontop of my tank for a year... I had the worst breath of my life! =p


----------



## Egonsgirl

Still waiting patiently for any more info and pictures of this terrific system......


----------



## Newobsession

While the Ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings remain at 0, after two years w/o a watercahnge, do you not run the risk of other tds building up that may not be removed by the hydroponics? Or are they absorbed into the clay? Not saying it doesn't work, just curious as that would be my only concern. On another forum there was a thread from a guy who grew pothos hydroponically in his HOB filters to remove nitrates but this appears to radically take it a step farther. Would love to hear/see more.


----------



## bookman84

*Now the pics*

Due to many illnesses and deaths in the family I have been away. I am now amazed at the continuing life in my tanks After 6 months with no food the fish in this tank are still multiplying. Possibly due to the quantity of plants in the tank. There are also pictures of the plants and filter on the tank.

There is a pump at one end of the trough pumping water up into the trough. It runs through the pellets and back into the tank at the other end. The plants on the ceiling are golden pothos and ivy philodendron which are growing right out of the tank, in fact the roots are a hiding place for some fry.

I should also mention the tank is in a large window and has 2 ancistrus in it. This is my sword tank which a friend neglected to feed while I was away. There are more fish now than when I left. The tank does need to be topped up though


----------



## bookman84

*More*

In these photos you can see the wide variety of house plants. In other filters I have grown herbs and vegetables.


----------



## solarz

what kind of livestock do you have in that tank?


----------



## bookman84

Swordtails, Rams Flying Fox, Ancistrus. In another tank with the same type of filter I have African Cichlids


----------



## solarz

bookman84 said:


> Swordtails, Rams Flying Fox, Ancistrus. In another tank with the same type of filter I have African Cichlids


dunno about the swordtails and ram, but the flying fox and bn plecos probably do fine on the algae in the tank. Maybe the other fish feed on BN pleco eggs?

Did you leave the aquarium completely alone for 6 months? I'm surprised it hasn't dried up!


----------



## bookman84

I believe the swords ate from the plants growing in the tank as the plants have not grown much and the rams kept the sword population in check as they are the only ones of which I had more than when I left. My friend did add water 3 times in the 6 months he said, about 4 inches worth each time but I had told him the tanks needed no maintenance so he assumed it meant no food also. Just goes to show the importance of full instructions. Now I will feed sparingly, once every 3 days.


----------



## Fishfur

The plants are pretty impressive. Did you build the trough you are using or did you repurpose something like a window box ? I wish I had just a bit more room behind my tanks, but a trough as wide as yours just won't fit. A narrower one likely would though. And I love houseplants, be nice to be able to combine the two hobbies.
Any chance of a close up picture showing how the overflow portion of your trough works ?


----------



## pyrrolin

I can see how it would work great for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, but in the long term do some other things start to build up? is GH KH good still, TDS, PH stable, phosphates?


----------



## bookman84

Here are the shots of the overflow. I have made troughs out of left over glass for a 4 foot tank, and acrylic for longer tanks with braces under the trough. It goes on top of the tank not behind it. The pH has remained consistent at 7, dH id med to low due to the large amount of driftwood in this tank. In my African cichlid tank the hardness is higher due to the coral rock in the tank. Phosphates have been almost zero. In the beginning I tested weekly for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, iron, phosphate, pH and dH and found that I needed to add nitrogen(in ammonia, nitrate, nitrite) in order to get better growth from the plants. in fact occasionally I needed to add some elements like K2SO4 (potassium sulfate) KNO3 (potassium nitrate) MgSO4-7H2O (fully hydrated magnesium sulfate, aka epsom salts and Chelated Trace Elements (7% Fe, 1.3% B, 2% Mn, 0.06% Mo, 0.4% Zn, 0.1% Cu, EDTA, DTPA) or PMDD. (Poor Man's Dupla Drops). while these are not necessary for house plants sometimes varying amounts are required for optimal vegetable growth (such as with tomatoes). Now I test every few months as the parameters change very infrequently.


----------



## bookman84

Since the tank is in a window, it does not need a light over top however I do have a small fluorescent light that goes in front of the trough. I recommend that the filter be half the width of the tank and the full length, unless you do not need to get into the tank for any reason, then the filter can be wider. It should be at least 6 inches deep for proper root growth. One reason this is very effective is the extremely large volume of filter media. The more the better, larger surface area for bacteria and more room for plants. A 6 foot tank by 18 wide can have 2.5 cubic feet of filter media. Compare this with the canister or hang on filter giving at the most .25 cubic feet of filter. The only filter that comes close is a trickle filter but when the plants are added it outperforms the trickle filter 2 to 1.


----------



## macKRAZY

Kudos to the op and anyone else doing aquaponics!! All fish keepers should be doing this as its fun and you learn so much!

I did this last year (1st time) and I grew peppers and kale! It wasnt much but i couldnt believe iy worked! Unfortunately I had to break the system down as I moved my fish room around but because it is spring, I am setting it back up! I actually went to homedepot today to pick up some seeds!
Its pretty cool to watch the progress and fun too! So fun that I got my gf and sister into it and want to take part and help!

I will definitely post pics!


----------



## Fishfur

Thanks for posting the pic of the overflow and the explanation of how it's set on the tank top. Now I understand it much better. I was, at one time, thinking of making a shelf, above my tank, to place a small sump tank on. It had to be over the tank, because there is no space to put it below. It would have allowed me to stock a bit heavier.
But this would achieve much the same goals, PLUS allow me to grow some of my houseplants over the tank, which is currently unused space in the window, and that would appeal to me much more. The window used to have stepped plant shelves in it and had several dozen plants in it before they got kicked out to make way for tanks. So this would let me have some of them back.

Just have to get a suitable trough shaped box and get it set up.. which should not be too difficult. And while I may not be able to get an acrylic or glass box to start with, I think I can likely repurpose some kind of planter to begin with.. I use standard plastic plumbing fittings and silicone to make standard plastic hanging baskets without drainage holes into self watering baskets for plants, and I don't see any reason why I could not use the fittings to do something similar to a planter box.


----------

