What is Aquaponics?

My interest in Aquaponics started when I was surfing the Internet to search for information on how to maintain a healthy planted aquarium. It was then that I learnt about the nutritional needs of plants and, interestingly, how an aquarium of "fishes with plants" requires less water change than a "fish only" aquarium.

My planted aquarium -
a simple setup without using CO2 tank;
3x1.5x1.5(feet) tank;
Tetras and water plants.















My hobby was in aquarium, well it still is and I have moved on to monster fishes!

My 422(feet) tank setup (no plants);
1x RTG, 2x EBH, 3x TFB, 2x IT, 1x soon hock, 1x pleco, 1x catfish.











Since then, I have gathered more information on Aquaponics and started DIY setup suitable for apartment home.

What is Aquaponics?

If you are new to Aquaponics and like to know more, well, you can easily find many definitions on the internet (just google) and there are now a lot of resources available on forums and commercial websites.

One common definition is "Aquaponics = Aquaculture + Hydroponics".
If that definition seems "large scale" to you, then let's change to "Aquaponics = Aquarium + potted plants".

I started out as an aquarist, maybe it is easier for me to appreciate the concept of aquaponics. From my perspective, to maintain a healthy "fish only" aquarium, you need to take care of 3 things - Fishes, Beneficial bacteria, and Water.

In "fish only" aquarium, the beneficial bacteria will help to convert fish waste into less toxic substance so that the fishes can stay healthy and happy. But over time, the less toxic substance can become harmful if there are too much in the water, and this is where you will need to do partial water change to remove them.

Now, change this setting to an aquaponics setup, you need to consider 1 additional thing - Plants.

If these 4 things (Fishes, Beneficial bacteria, Water and Plants) are setup properly and in equilibrium, this ecosystem should be sustainable as the plants absorb the less toxic substance as nutrients. Ok, lol, easier said then done? Well, there's a lot more into it but it's not rocket science.

I am experimenting with various setup and hopefully I can design a small setup (<100L) that can be sustainable and requires minimal water changes, suitable for apartment.

In the meantime, if you want to find out more, a good source for you to start is to go visit Backyard Aquaponics forum, lots of resources there.