Size of pump for 300 gal fish tank and 6 100 gal beds

[World traveler]

Hi folks...anyone can help me with size and quality of pump needed? We are building a greenhouse for aquaponics in Bali.  

The property has a rectangular concrete pad 13x20.  At the moment, I can expand if this is not large enough.

How do I calculate for a 300 gal fish tank, pump and 6 100 gal grow beds and all the other space needs for the plumbing please? How much space for the rest of the equipment with 4' isles.  

We are timid....so considering starting with Earthworm humus and moving up to fish once we have the humus working well.

Thanks in advance for any advice or help given.  Newbie

[Rex Byrns]

Your question is a little short on details to give an answer.  To get the answer you need to determine several things.

A partial list for example:

1. How much water do you need to circulate an hour? or minute

2.  How far do you need to move it?

3.  How high do you have to get it?

4. What methods are you going to use? DWC, NFT, EF, etc... 

One can use brute force to flow their system, or you can use some finesse to get the water and gravity to do a lot of the work.  Sequencing or indexing a system using ebb and flow for example can buy you time to different grow beds and allow you to use a smaller capacity pump in many situations.

Unfortunately from my experience even engineering calculations are a guess in the end and you are never entirely sure you have it right until you fire it up.  Remember that you can use several methods to slow a pump, but at the end of the day it will only do so much.

Good luck!

[George]

I'm using a Quiet One 4000 to handle a 400 gal tank and six 100 gal beds and you can look at my page to get an idea of what I'm doing with it.  However, with the next pump I'll probably pump twice as much for half the length of time and use the same amount of electricity.  My first pump has been running for a year now, stopping for a minute each ten minutes.  Good luck.

[Author Charles L. Sargent]

My understanding is that you need a pump that will empty your 300 gal. tank in a hour.Then you need enough fish to feed your 6 grow beds.

Good luck Charles Sargent

[World traveler]

Thanks Charles.  

Author Charles L. Sargent said:

My understanding is that you need a pump that will empty your 300 gal. tank in a hour.Then you need enough fish to feed your 6 grow beds.

Good luck Charles Sargent

[World traveler]

Hi George,

Thanks.  We didn't set it up yet.  So what pump would you buy next?  what size? price? why?  Still new to all of this. d

George said:

I'm using a Quiet One 4000 to handle a 400 gal tank and six 100 gal beds and you can look at my page to get an idea of what I'm doing with it.  However, with the next pump I'll probably pump twice as much for half the length of time and use the same amount of electricity.  My first pump has been running for a year now, stopping for a minute each ten minutes.  Good luck.

[Rob Nash]

for a 300 gallon tank, go with a 1000 gallon/hr pump... Sylvia has them on her site - The Aquaponic Source.com

unless you use an index valve you may drain too much water out of the fish tank to fill the 6 100 gal grow beds.

the normal recommendation for a 300 gallon tank is two 32sft (4'x8'x12") grow beds... only after the first two are well established can you start to expand to more beds using an index valve.

you should read the book - Aquaponic Gardening, by Sylvia Bernstein... it will answer a lot of the questions you have.

[World traveler]

Thanks Rob.... let me know if you ever get to come to BAli.  Any particular pump Brands?

Rob Nash said:

for a 300 gallon tank, go with a 1000 gallon/hr pump... Sylvia has them on her site - The Aquaponic Source.com

unless you use an index valve you may drain too much water out of the fish tank to fill the 6 100 gal grow beds.

the normal recommendation for a 300 gallon tank is two 32sft (4'x8'x12") grow beds... only after the first two are well established can you start to expand to more beds using an index valve.

you should read the book - Aquaponic Gardening, by Sylvia Bernstein... it will answer a lot of the questions you have.