Looking for advice at a high school setup near west Tampa

[Anthony Leotta]

Hi all-  I'm new to the site, and been looking through the groups, forums, advice, etc.  All looks great and very informative.

 

I've gotten a few grants from the state to setup aquaponics at the high school I teach at.  We currently have one 1,500 gallon concrete pond for our fish which runs into a greenhouse employing a variety of growing media (hydroton, pearlite, cococoir).  We also have two 650 gallon setups with deep culture trays designed after aquatic ecosystems mini fish farm (over 3 times the size for half the price). 

So basically we've built the setups and they've been running for about 2 years without any real knowledge of if it's running properly.  My background is in fish, not plants. I have an EC meter coming this week so that should help.

 

Soooooo- The students and I are getting ready to replant, but before we do I was wondering if any of you would be willing to stop by and take a look at our setup and offer any advice. I'll be posting pics on my page to give you an idea of what it looked like last year at its peak.

 

The setup is at Sickles High School about 15 min north of Tampa Airport on the Veterans expressway or about 15 min south of SR54 on the Vets

 

Thanks

 

Tony

[TCLynx]

Sorry to give you the bad news but an EC meter is of no real used in Aquaponics other than a "not very accurate" way to check for salt levels.  A hygrometer would be better for testing salt levels.

 

The primary tools for testing in Aquaponics is usually a freshwater aquarium master test kit.  some other tests can be added if you have the budget and desire to track other levels but.....

Temperature

pH (and high range pH depending on the test kit)

Ammonia

Nitrite

and

Nitrate

 

Those are the most important tests.  And then your eyes, observe the plant growth for signs of nutrient deficiency.  Iron and potassium being the most common issues.

 

I don't have any time for side trips for quite some time but I would love to hear more details of the operation of the systems and to see pictures.

[Anthony Leotta]

OK- Thanks

 

I also have a hydroponics setup in the classroom so the EC meter won't be a waste.

We also have a class set of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, pH  test kits (bought through the grant) so that's good

 

Thanks for the advice- will keep my eyes open for Fe and K

[TCLynx]

Yea, so you will want to have students look up signs and pictures that would indicate Iron and potassium deficiency and also look up causes (with Iron it can often be too high a pH and not an actual lack of iron and with potassium it can sometimes be caused by an overabundance of Calcium if the source water is really hard water.)  Nate and Rupert are both good sources of more information to do with the chemistry since I'm not so good at that part.

[Ron Thompson]

Hi Tony,

 

You might want to talk to the following teachers in Citrus County. They have experience in both aquaculture, hydroponics and aquaponics.

 

Randy Kegler, Agriculture, Citrus High School -- [e-mail]

Gene Trescott, Science, Citrus High School -- [e-mail]

Steve Richardson, Agriculture, Lecanto High School -- [e-mail]

 

Kegler started teaching aquaculture in the 90's and still has a limited setup. Trescott runs a varied hydroponic and aquaponic setup outside his classroom. Richardson has a aquaculture setup, not sure if he has aquaponics or not (even though I teach at the same school as him and we are buds.. go figure).

 

The principal at Lecanto High, Kelly Tyler is also a former Ag teacher who had a large aquaculture setup  in the 90's- [e-mail]

 

I'd love to stop by the school sometime. It may be a while since we are in classes at the same time. Maybe Spring break or early next summer since we start 2 weeks before your district.

[Dustin Holzberger]

Hi, I am in Tampa and have been doing aquaponics for about two years. I would love to share ideas with you or help you in any way possible. I have a system at my home that you can see at www.sideyardaquaponics.com and I also am experimenting with an indoor system in Odessa, FL using artificial lighting.