Good morning my friends. Got a question for you. Well, 2 questions actually. In your opinion is backyard aquaponics affordable and/or cost effective?
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Good morning my friends. Got a question for you. Well, 2 questions actually. In your opinion is backyard aquaponics affordable and/or cost effective?
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Dr. Brooks, I have a slightly off subject question - could the principles of aquaponics and hydroponics be used to reclaim old factory and empty big box retail builders for large scale production? I apologize if this is too off subject and I can start a new thread if you prefer.
After watching Goegg Lawtons' "reclaiming a rustbelt" I thought immediately of big box stores and unused brick industrial buildings as possible farms maybe with a farmer stand on site.
http://www.geofflawton.com/fe/64751-lessons-from-the-rustbelt
Greetings Catherine. It is a bit off subject but still a great question. The link below is to such an operation is Chicago. Personally I have major questions regarding their cost effectiveness because they rely on artificial light are require a great deal of heat in a cold climate. But I am willing to take a "watch and see" attitude. I pray they are successful because if so, they could indeed help "reclaim the rustbelt." Here is the link:
http://www.plantchicago.com/non-profit/farms/plantaquaponics/
John Kohler from Growingyourgreens.com just did a youtube video of a visit to a reclaimed industrial builing (an old brewery) in Minnapolis that is doing a aquaponics setup.
urban organics visit
They are using artificial lighting and something I have never heard of. They are filtering out the fish waste products and then using a intermediate step to have the beneficial bacteria process the nutrients in a separate tank before introducing the hydroponic solution to the plants.
Dr. Brooks, I did look at the Plant Chicago model and others, which is why I decided to pose the question. Agreed on the artificial lighting, just thinking in terms of existing usage and a kind of upcycling/reuse :-)
How much is fish a pound (and tilapia is a premium fish)?
How much is it worth to grow vegetables (actually ANY plant) at a much faster rate to harvest than conventional gardening? And plants for your livestock?
Potentially you can grow a few more food crops in the summer than typical due to the root cooling nature of the passing water (though a shade covered greenhouse enclosure that raises the humidity levels inside in June helps with that too).
Avoid certain pests and pathogens, though may encounter new ones in aquaponics.
There is some need to monitor temperature, nitrogen and oxygen (though no where near as much as hydroponics). Some need to balance the fish to plant ratio and the health of the biofilter.
Countered by the space of the setup versus a garden (though aquaponics lends itself to vertical staking very well). The need to run a pump and the electricity. The need for water and evaporative losses: aquaponics versus garden bed (though I have seen estimates that 60% of water applied to soil is never available to the roots). May need winter heating of tilapia tanks. Need to feed the fish. Need aeration of water but this can usually be accomplished without spargiers/bubblers for free with good design. Going to have equipment maintenance (pump, electrical (likely will need backup power), pipes, culverts versus irrigation and compost).
Frankly a bit more equipment setup with aquaponics but you get to eat fish from the process and the vegetables are harvested much faster. I suspect water usage is much lower. And with an enclosed system and floating plant life--like the aforementioned "garden pool" those evaporative losses are reduced further and humidity is raised. Not to mention the water can form a place for beneficial insects to drink and hang out in the area created to protect fingerlings. Plus the nice feeling one gets hearing running water fall. Electrical consumption for the pump (and some LED lights for night time inspection) can be handled exclusively with solar panel and a battery backup/storage.
Good morning, Dr. George! This is a great question because every person considering aquaponics should seriously consider this. Here's my take on it:
Affordability is a personal matter based on one's income and other expenses. What's affordable for one person may not be affordable for another.
As for cost effectiveness, the initial investment is certainly the highest cost, but for each year the system operates, the cost/year becomes lower. The cost to build a system is quite dependent on the design and materials. A system can be built for a few hundred dollars or a few thousand dollars. In all honesty, our system didn't cost any more to build than our Square Foot garden, which required costly vermiculite and an irrigation system. Our AP system did require more labor to build, though.
Once established, the greatest costs are labor and feed for the fish. In the first year, our AP garden required more labor than our soil garden, but that is reversed now that it is established. Maintenance can vary depending on such things as whether you buy seed or seedlings, what you feed the fish, the design and materials of the system, what temperature at which you keep your winter water, etc. Our AP system is costing more to operate than our soil garden because we haven't moved the electrical to solar yet, and we're still buying fish food. Our soil garden receives it's nutrients from compost and manure which are produced here, so there's no cost. That said, our soil garden doesn't provide us with yummy fish. :)
Over a 5-year span, I think the cost effectiveness relative to a soil garden is probably a tradeoff when all costs, including labor, are considered. Relative to grocery store food, any garden costs more at first, but is of much greater value. Relative to farmer's market quality food, I believe AP is less expensive over time. But time is the key - AP (or any kind of garden) is not a short term investment. What do you think, Dr. George? You're so good at logging your work and results (I'm horrible at it!). Have you found it to be cost effective?