Metal stock tank?

[Adam Shivers]

I have read somewhere (and don't remember where) that it isn't good to keep fish in a metal container. Is this true in whole or in part? (certain kinds of metal) and does the same go for grow beds in an AP system?

[Adam Shivers]

ok. I will most likely get 100 gal rubbermaid stock tanks and put them on blocks or something like that :-)

seriously that is the best idea I have seen implemented yet!

[Adam Shivers]

oh yeah TC,... you use those for growbeds right?   I'll be starting off with those for stock tanks (is the plan)

hey how do you breed fish? right in your stock tank... and separate babies?

[TCLynx]

Yep I use the 100 gallon RMST.

Depends on what type of fish. 

 

I'm not breeding my own catfish, I get fingerlings about once a year, there is a fish farm about an hour away that I can get them from.

 

If you go with mixed gender tilapia..... Normally the question is how do you stop them from breeding.  Here are a couple articles about my experiences with tilapia.  I need to add another about tilapia and domestic violence too.

TCLynx-Tilapia

[Adam Shivers]

are catfish good for you to eat? now I know they taste good but I have a slight interest in kosher living. I don't scoff and will eat a pepperoni pizza or crabmeat here and again, just to explain my position -I just think this way first. I don't want to invest my efforts into something that I later find I get a conviction about and have to sacrifice my whole operation. Obedience is better than sacrifice

TCLynx said:

Yep I use the 100 gallon RMST.

Depends on what type of fish. 

 

I'm not breeding my own catfish, I get fingerlings about once a year, there is a fish farm about an hour away that I can get them from.

 

If you go with mixed gender tilapia..... Normally the question is how do you stop them from breeding.  Here are a couple articles about my experiences with tilapia.  I need to add another about tilapia and domestic violence too.

TCLynx-Tilapia

[TCLynx]

I know of some people who don't believe that catfish raised how we do it in aquaponics should be counted as "not-kosher" but some people just won't go there and to each their own so no worries.

 

Now a system that can grow catfish can certainly switch to growing other types of fish so it isn't like sacrificing the whole operation, perhaps just some fish if you decide you can't eat them anymore and switch to a different variety.

 

I've heard of people breeding bluegill but don't know how that would need to be done.

[Adam Shivers]

ok. I just wasn't sure if they were completely different environments or something.

in my small system, I was wondering if a plecostomus would help with algae. is it a warm water only fish?

is warm best for breeding tilapia? you said above 70 degrees. is that considered warm water, persay?

-by the way I apologize if I annoy. I won't go away until you stop answering my questions. lol. seriously -I have never had so many questions or cared about something in the natural this much in my life.

TCLynx said:

I know of some people who don't believe that catfish raised how we do it in aquaponics should be counted as "not-kosher" but some people just won't go there and to each their own so no worries.

 

Now a system that can grow catfish can certainly switch to growing other types of fish so it isn't like sacrificing the whole operation, perhaps just some fish if you decide you can't eat them anymore and switch to a different variety.

 

I've heard of people breeding bluegill but don't know how that would need to be done.

[TCLynx]

only really major difference between a system to grow catfish and a system to grow tilapia would be that tilapia will die if you let the water get much below 50 F.  You can reasonably grow tilapia out in a smaller tank while growing a catfish to 2-3 pounds should be done in a larger fish tank.  Blue gill will happily grow where either of those fish will grow but tend to take longer to grow out and might not get all that large though they can take cooler water than tilapia can survive.  All three grow best in warm water.

[Adam Shivers]

ok - yeah I'm aiming to keep things warm enough -I am curious about depth of water and fish survival over the winter. I have a neighbor that has fish outside (ohio) all winter because it's deep enough - I need to talk to him I just heard that he does back yard aquaponics. if he has a computer I am going to invite him here!

[TCLynx]

oh please do.

I know of ornamental ponds that keep fish surviving even under snow and ice.  The important thing is to make sure that there is still some means of gas exchange so that bad gasses don't build up in the water over winter and kill the fish.  It usually seemed to be the biggest fish that would die in my mom's ornamental pond cause there was no way to keep a hole melted in the ice there over winter.

[Adam Shivers]

wow. u know, my parents kept a small fountain going all winter for the wild birds with a small bird bath heater and it was cold at the Shivers residence!

TCLynx said:

oh please do.

I know of ornamental ponds that keep fish surviving even under snow and ice.  The important thing is to make sure that there is still some means of gas exchange so that bad gasses don't build up in the water over winter and kill the fish.  It usually seemed to be the biggest fish that would die in my mom's ornamental pond cause there was no way to keep a hole melted in the ice there over winter.

[Adam Shivers]

Hey does anyone know the most direct rout to figuring out how to grow/produce enough food to feed a 5 member family? plan ideas, etc.?

 I have some ideas and yet have NEVER done anything this complete before.

     My family is in a transition that will turn everything around for us. My wife has the rent covered and it is my job (not that she doesn't help with everything) to calculate plan and implement something to cover all food + enough to sell to cover the rest of the bills. this way we have a plan in place for if the savings are deminished. This is something I will post several places to explain for redundancies as I am raising the chances that I catch someone that has a solution, has done this very thing, or has any ideas.

By the way, this is an exciting thing for our family and not a scary one. I have a lot of support from people as we are making this transition as they see the importance of this and what it can do for others that have less support than we do!

They may also not have support like this community in APG that I have been blessed with and we want to "teach them to fish". Thank you everyone!

[Nate Storey]

Hi Adam,

I've used galv. steel tanks before, just painted them with a good coat of industrial epoxy paint.  It's cheap and it works.  If you're looking for super cheap ways to do it though, wood frame beds with a PE sheet liner is cheapest.  When I first started I used almost entirely salvaged/scavanged/dumpsterdived supplies that I rummaged up, from PVC to Poly tubing.  I even got some used solar panels and deep cycle batteries (gave that up after about a month of frustration).  Anyway, you can do it cheap, you just have to be creative and learn to fix stuff when it breaks instead of buying new stuff.

 

Nate