Comment

Comment by Kenyon James Hopkins on June 1, 2012 at 9:39am

 

Bob, the answer depends on several things:
What is your goal in food production? A natural/organic fish and veggie production would require you to only use all natural/organic commercial fish food or natural/organic fish food you make/grow yourself including mealworms, soldier fly larvae (or other various insects), duckweed, chopped veggies... If organic/natural isn't your goal then commercial fish food is easy and relatively inexpensive and you can supplement with just about anything the fish will eat.

I personally have chosen the organic/natural route and breed meal worms, grow duckweed, and chop/blend unused veggies and freeze them into ice cubes. My 200 tilapia seem to be growing and eating nicely. And the plants in the grow towers are doing well also. My fingerlings can't eat a whole mealworm yet, so they get put in the blender with the veggies and turned into frozen fish food cubes that melt when you place them in the water releasing small bits of yummy nutritious food into the water that quickly get gobbled up.

Comment by Bob Vento on June 1, 2012 at 5:18am

So what should I be feeding my small fingerlings to grow them out?

Can I mix in some other items that they will eat also i.e. fresh grass clippings, duckweed, etc.

Comment by Bob Vento on May 30, 2012 at 4:48am

Keeping it fun seems to be a common thread in a majority of these discussions. Since I am just going to be introducing fish into my cycled up system this weekend, I am a little nervous and hope they will assimilate to my system easily, eat well and grow to a mature breeding age.

Thanks for all of the feedback and suggestions ya'll. I appreciate any and all experienced comments.

Regards,
Bob

Comment by Dave & Yvonne Story on May 29, 2012 at 8:59pm

I have learned a great deal for discussions with Sheri.

Truth is a lot of people on here have great stories/experiences to share.BUT, just because it works for one person, it might not work for another person.. Jump in and keep it simple.BUT always have fun.

Comment by Sheri Schmeckpeper on May 29, 2012 at 7:27pm

Just FYI, Bob, Dave is the gentleman who has raised his fish so large and so quickly, so I always defer to his wisdom on the subject.

Comment by Dave & Yvonne Story on May 29, 2012 at 4:00pm

Bob,

I am not an expert, just experienced.

Keep it simple. Start with 20-40 tilapia. Fingerlings are best they can learn to adapt to the way you do things. If you use good feed and feed 4-6 times a day, you can start eating at about the 6 mos time frame. If all goes well, then start thinking about breeding. I had a lot of encouragement and helpful discussions, before I started breeding. I am not competition to anyone. I do think it is alot easier to just buy fish from Sarah at http://tilapiasource.com 

But I will be off the grid next year. So I want to know how to do.

Comment by Jon Parr on May 29, 2012 at 3:55pm

Bob, your fish tank does not dictate the number of fish you may raise, so long as they are comfortable and peaceable. Crowding actually sometimes keeps the peace, and with all the right stuff, you could potentially keep 200 lbs of fish in a 200 gallon tank. But again, the tank is not your weakest link.

A common Max stocking ratio is 1 lb of fish, to 5 gal FT, to 10 gal media, perhaps pushing the GB limit to 7.5 gal (1 cubic ft) per lb of fish in a seasoned, stable system. So, 12 sq ft of grow bed could support 12 lbs if fish, MAX. For tilapia, I would stock 20 fingerlings. 20 fingerlings will fit in the palm of your hand, and by no means tax your biofilter for many months. You can start eating them any time you want, most wait til they are a pound or so. I would start the barbecue when the biggest hits a pound, and keep eating to maintain less than 10-12 lbs of total fish weight, and save back a male and a few females to breed next spring. If you're going to grow all year, then establish a breeding colony this fall and breed as needed to maintain 10 lbs of fish. It's easier to cull a few if you have too many, than it is to "wish" you had more.

Comment by Phil Slaton on May 29, 2012 at 2:15pm

Bob - I believe that you can go 35 fingerlings no problem.  But then again, I use 1000 gal/hour pumps in my system.

I would like to read more comment on this subject.

Comment by Sheri Schmeckpeper on May 29, 2012 at 1:00pm

Bob, it depends on many variables. If you're raising tilapia, the best you can do is as good as the commercial producers. They raise male only, under very specific, highly monitored conditions, and can get fish to market in 6 months. In a home system, it tends to be much longer.

The amount of food, type of food, temperatures, breeding activity, water condition, space, circulation, and aeration all play into the mix. We're finding a year is more realistic, and depending on conditions, longer. One gentleman we know is growing his quite large and quickly, and he monitors his system very closely.

As for how many fish, a rule of thumb for tilapia is one fish per 5 gallons, which would be 40 in your system. But, as they grow older, if they conditions are not optimal, the fish will slow down their eating and subsequent growth.

The more fish you have, the more growbed space you need. With 20 fish, as they grow, you will probably be able to (and may need to) handle another growbed. With 40 fish, which is what we did in our first system, we needed a lot more growbed. We're expanding now, and will have 3 growbeds and two half-barrels with 40 1' fish. Along with any increase in fish, you also have to increase circulation and aeration. So, if you want to stay with a single growbed, keep your fish population smaller.

Comment by Bob Vento on May 29, 2012 at 11:27am

Ok ya'll I am at a point where my system is cycled up and ready for some fish. I have a 200 gallon tank with a 12 square foot grow bed.

It was suggested that I get no more than 20 fingerlings for my system. Does that sound right?

When do we get to the point of eating Tilapia? How long does it take? When should I begin breeding fish?

Thanks in advance for any and all advise and direction.

Regards,

Bob

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