Backyard aquaponics: DIY system to farm fish with vegetables
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ส.ค. 2011
- Rob Torcellini bought a $700 greenhouse kit to grow more vegetables in his backyard. Then he added fish to get rid of a mosquito problem and before long he was a committed aquaponic gardener.
Now his 10 by 12-foot greenhouse is filled with not only vegetables but fish. And the best part is: the poo from that fish is what fertilizes his garden. Aquaponics combines fish farming (aquaculture) with the practice of raising plants in water (hydroponics).
It's organic by definition: instead of using chemical fertilizers, plants are fertilized by the fish poo (and pesticides/herbicides can't be introduced to kill pests because they could harm the fish). Since the plants don't need dirt, aquaponics allows gardeners to produce more food in less space. And in addition to the vegetables they can grow, most aquaponics gardeners cultivate edible fish as well.
In this video, Rob shows us the aquaponics greenhouse in his Connecticut backyard, that he built mostly from scavenged parts, as well as his DIY indoor system where he's growing lettuce under a grow light.
Bigelow Brook Farm: www.bigelowbrook.com
Original story on *faircompanies:
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So simple and smart. He's clearly a very 'handy' person but this is something we could all do in our backyards like he mentioned. Thanks Kirsten and Rob.
And f..k up capitalsim by the way!
I'd love to see you make some follow-up videos for folks like this that were interviewed more than a few years ago to see what changes they've made to their systems and any lessons they learned along the way.
I got dizzy when he said he can LOG IN to his green house. GEEK LEVEL 1000!!! I love it!!! How can I start my own?! 250 kuques in 1 year?!!! You sir, have won the internet!!!
Just a nice tip for your greenhouse :). In terms of pest control, you can actually release praying mantis or lady bugs which act as a completely natural and predatory pest controller! Praying Mantis can actually eat almost all size pests including aphids, spiders, flies, etc while lady bugs will eat aphids and larvae. Great bonus and both are bit harmful to us. In fact, praying mantis can even be pets, and lady bugs are of course nothing but friendly.
not harmful*
Brizzy10180 I love lady bugs! Do pet stores sell them? Or do we have to gather them randomly?
Stephanie Mitchell Sorry for the late reply, I've never seen them in stores... You can order batches of them online :)
+Brizzy10180 Praying Mantis as a pet? How about NO!
Dufffaaa93 Not really as a pet per se, they're natural past controllers and many have them as pets and such as they're not really aggressive towards us. All you need is one, maybe 2, for a small greenery/greenhouse. How come, "NO!"? Just curious :) Do you not like them or..?
This is an amazing young man. I am sure his parents are incredibly proud of him, and I can see that he is also pretty darn proud, too - he deserves nothing but praise for this endeavor. Well done!!
I was fortunate enough to have a really good conservation teacher in highschool. He let me and a team of my choosing, build an A frame. WOW what an experience! We had Talapia in tanks, the whole 9.
By the end of the year our aeroponics system was outperforming the flood and drain hydro guys. We had a few setbacks at the start, the misters wouldn't fire a few times over the weekend due to small leaks, the pump wasn't kicking on and we'd comeback to lettuce pasted to the side of the frame lol.
Once we got it down though... the growth was incredible! We had a fish fry and salad harvest at the end of the year. Good times!
I use to have a large 19'x10' Koi pond that I discovered aquaponic gardening with. I was really frustrated with all the filter systems I tried with this pond. Then I simply built an upper pond with a lot of my pond plants and a waterfall system to return the clean water to the main pond. All the fish waste fed the plants and the plants cleaned the water, and soon I was growing herbs and veggies in the upper pond and the waterfalls. I'm dying to get back to doing this...
ddland45 make a video
advise me, do you use small gravel as substrate for the plants. I hav the same but want to replace my soil rather with small gravel
do you have a video of what you did?
Did you get back too it?
@@bradklein3519 Unfortunately, we moved and were renting an apartment for a while, but we recently moved again to our new house where we plan to install another koi pond at some point in the future (yes, there will be a video this time.).
Very creative 🇵🇸❤️🕊
Incredible work
Respect and love from Jerusalem, the capital of 🇵🇸 Palestine
It really impressed me that you automated everything! It's really inspiring how you stumbled upon Aquaponics, and really ran with it! It's so cool that you made a unique system that works for you. I know I'll have a greenhouse system after I leave college, and I'll use yours as an example to work towards!
Despite some of the negative comments below regarding the treatment of fish in your system (and there were also some good suggestions instead of straight out bashing), this is an amazing way to grow vegetables. Imagine the possibilities and how systems like this will revolutionize farming and fill starving stomachs.
+Patrick Edward Brown this isn't a new technique.
I just discovered this today lmfao. So cool how the fish help the plants.
its farming, if people are upset about the fish they really need to get a look at what they're eating at a fast food restaurant before they open their mouths about farming fish.
This isn’t new. Many Asian countries have similar systems that use fish to grow crops. Most rice is grown this way
egypt and asia discovered river hydroponics around the same time as each other. I know egypt used the Nile and China used Huang He river and the Yangtze River before they started to make actual fields made with man made rivers and marsh land for rice.
Watching is so nice. She cuts her questions and let them speak. Naturally. I love your videos Kirsten.
The production of this backyard aquaponics video is absolutely the finest on you tube.
Aquaponics is a great growing system and it will probably be the city farming system of the future.
100%!
Sadly one more strain on the ever shrinking water table.
@@perfectstranger1152 no it won't be. it uses 90% less water than traditional farming since the water is filtered and purified by the plants and then goes back into the fish pond. it's a self contained system that repeats in a cycle. you rarely have to replace the water.
Its still a finite resource. We may be able to farm water from other planets/asteroids in the future, but overpopulation will catch up to us before we can efficiently reach any more water.
@@perfectstranger1152 People gotta eat. This system uses way less water than any other system known to man. India desalinates ocean water for most of their drinking water. The water don't disappear it just gets moved around... Wasteful practices are the cause of aquifers draining, not efficient processes like aquaponics.
'Did you grow this cucumber in yucky fish poop?'
No, I grew this one especially for you, it's made in the old fashioned way with a lot of chemical fertilizers and poisons. Enjoy!
exactly. lol
yup, this is the exact thought bubble that was in my head when he said that... god it would be great if people knew where there food came from.
TheBushdoctor68 - Laughed my belly full. Thank you. BRStr
Well, that is just like, your opinion... man
Yucky fish poop! Give me the food grown with cow poop!
when people work on their own they can accomplish extraordinary ideas but it's when people begin to come together that wonders are truly within plausible grasp. good luck sir and thank you for promoting this miraculous concept
I love the way you're explaining everything.
I love this system. I might just have to build one myself. Something very relaxing about it
ty Kirsten...appreciate it ! having knowledge of carpentry and spent years in gardening and farming ...... I lost track of advancements and my dire need to return to that life....these videos open my eyes..... I was at one time very self sufficent ,,,,,but I was outdated in comparison to some of your videos..lol..again TY
+edsemaj me I don't think you always need the most modern techniques to be self sufficient. In fact, I think sometimes they can get in the way. There's nothing like seeds, soil and rain for easy gardening. The other stuff is just to extend seasons, conserve water, difficult climates, etc.
+Kirsten Dirksen hi, great job, any chance you can help with controller system, what is the brand, it is complete system or?
Not certain about the points made but ,if anyone else wants to uncover aquaponics at home try Morundan Total Aquaponics Mastery ( search on google ) ? Ive heard some interesting things about it and my work buddy got great success with it.
Yes.
Awesome how it started from solving one problem after another until aquaponics solved it completely. The kids are entertained too!
I've been looking at aqua vids for a few months and this is the best most concise most informative and SIMPLE explanation of design fundamentals Ive seen yet. Why would anyone not want to try this after seeing this vid? THANK YOU!
Inspired to make a greenhouse system now lol that lil gurl is adorable
Wow leave kids alone
@@joblount4787 She is adorable, and you are a weirdo.
@@oldtimergaming9514 nah you're the odd ball looking at kids that way
@@joblount4787 no one was doing that except you accusing someone of looking at them that way fuck off weirdo
@ugkcdrock I didn't ask him in the interview, though I have heard some aquaponics gardeners talk about how for some seeds that germinate quickly (e.g. lettuce, carrots) they plant them directly in the growing media and others that need a bit more nurturing/time (e.g. tomatoes, spinach) they plant in a starter media.
Excellent Backyard aquaponics: DIY system to farm fish with vegetables
8 yrs old video but cannot like this enough. One of the best videos out there because it demonstrates how software can be used with nature and a basic understanding of bio-chemistry can become an example of an Autonomous Scalable technology. Often technology and nature is pitted against each other which is un-neccessary. Additionally with the space larger Greenhouses take up one could combine with Aeroponics which is somewhat what he has done with the vertical tubes. For the aphids, companion planting or a Biol-101(once tested with fish) would deal with this.
This was quite impressive. Good show.
the automation and data collection is really cool
You are frikkin Genius, I love the way you are so laid back, and at the same time monitor your crop with little to no worry. Please post more vids on how YOU built this empire with more detail???
You do realize that the guy your trying to address is not the person who posted this... don't you?
Hah by far my favorite comment on the page so far^^^^^ it's ok though at least we know that
This... is just genius. With the right plants and the right fish this system could be viable for mainstream, commercial, agricultural production.
this is great, i'm putting up my green house next week, i'm really looking froward to it!... i'll be growing aquatic plants for peoples aquariums rather than food though
This is awesome!!
Funny seeing you here, love your plants and channel!
Love it! Much respect from LA, California
I enjoyed the way you're explaining everything.
What is the software and brand of equipment used to fully automate your greenhouse?
I’m wondering this as well
🤣😂🤣💚👽💜
7 years later…. question still unanswered
don't know what the guy in the videos uses but i use node-red its free and relativity easy to setup
@@ziozzot “most useful reply award!” 🥇
Dude you make Dexter look bad, great vid!
Thank you for the great information on aquaponics. Interesting story about how you got started and then seeing the level you have taken it to is great. Loved seeing the variety of produce you are growing. Nice.
i love the modest scale of your setup. It looks do-able and it doesn't take over your whole yard! I am impressed with the practicality and the simplicity. :)) it is inspirational.
Hey Brother,
Awesome job automating your system.
God Bless!
What a great set up (and durable Laptop)! I love all the automation and would love to see some elaboration/schematics of the system.
I also wondered what fish food do you use? Anything special, organic, etc.?
(I apologize if it's answered in the comments below). Again, great work and use of space!
This is a brilliant system, I am amazed how it works so well.
I love this! Simple and a closed food system. I really would love to try it in my garden, growing fertilizer, protein and vegis in a closed loop system.
Sorry to say but it's not a closed food system - the fish food is the input and it's highly unsustainable and not remotely vegan.
"This is a little weed!"
Look up Bigelow Brook Farm (Web4Deb). This guy, Rob Torcellini is awesome
Holy smoke,what a great, system, Thank you Kirsten
That is an awesome system... And automated 😍.
Perfect for someone to adapt a Raspberry Pi to run rather than a whole laptop.
U are awesome
**
I think this is brilliant! He & other hydoponic backyard growers may be the future of food growing for our families.
I LOVE THIS STUFF. I'M so passionate about organic food, organic growing, and building this stuff in my home. I want to farm fish to eat, and Asian fruit to eat.
Hello Rob. I love how you have automated everything! Would you provide more information on how you have automated everything? For example, is there a specific software you purchased to run the environmentals in the greenhouse?
The garden system is beautiful. Why not treat your fish tank a little better lol, like so much design went into this, give em a nice home
kerrystolcenberg right? Watching this I felt so sorry for those fish!!!
You think they'd like a sunken pirate boat to play in?
Big thanks for taking the time to make a video and help spread your insight on how to make a great aquaponics farm. Loved it :D
damn its easy to forget how good decade old home footage can look
what program are you using for your greenhouse and where can I buy it. Very interesting thank you for sharing
I think having your system automatically ran is genius! what program did you use with ur puter to do this? how did you get ur water to the strawberry plants and how is your bottle set up for draining? can you make a video showing this?
I'm not sure how Rob does his but you can write your own program using Python or Boa in Linux or Ubuntu software. I'm sure someone has a program that can be downloaded somewhere; I may even go find one. In essence it's basically on off switches that are sensitive to temperature control readings, water levels and something that reads the chemistry of the soil - that is the naturally occurring chemicals plants needs, nitrogen, phosphates, potassium etc.
Think if i were a plant what would be my idea of paradise? then attempt to recreate those conditions. Many years ago I used Aquaponics/hydroponics but I wasn't growing veggies or fruit then ;) .
Yeah you can do almost anything through a serial port and a break out box not even really have to be a hardcore math nerd or shop stoner to do it.
There's also short cycle timers it's just like the ones your grandparents used to have for lamps and whatnot for both security and safety reasons but instead of a timer say on at 6pm off at 10pm it goes (x) minutes out of every hour. I know a guy who set up aquaponics with airstones this way with amazing results.
Thank you for the video. I am learning to become a hydroponic farmer on TH-cam and this is at the top of my video list. Simple explanation and personality is top notch.
Respect! You greatly inspired me... I'm digging a pond and try to plan a greenhouse. THANK YOU.
Real life farmville :). I like the idea!
get ladybugs for the aphids. be careful where you buy them. want them to be from the area where you live
this is awesome! starting my own aquaponics system inside my house!
This is what they should be teaching us in school
4:30 not a weed, Portulaca oleracea (common purslane)
i had no idea john malkovich was into aquaponics
i came to the comments looking for this comment
I was thinking the same way hahaha
this is amazing!!! what a beautiful fusion of nature and tech. i hope i can do this one day. great vid 💫🌱💕
What a cute little aquaponics greenhouse!
Why would there be 56 "thumbs down". when all he does was trying to be self sustain? I think this guy is amazing! I like to learn more, Does he has a web site?
Thank you.
Begilow Brook Farms
BeeeHonest it's the leftist bullies.
BeeeHonest the thumbs down came from Woolworths managerial staff members I reckon.
Because, as a co-irker used to say, 'the masses are asses.'
what software do you use the monitor your system(s)? Would like to incorporate that into my design that I'm working on. Thx.
he doesn't know
Jaw was dropped for five minutes before I noticed. Well done!!
now we need to use this knowledge and processes to save the earth by planting plants everywhere. green roofs and green walls and urbans forests. lets go!
your fishes need a garden aswell! read: MORE SPACE
Excellent, what do you do in winter?
The same thing.
Im impressed at how "high tech" you made your greenhouse, also inspired
I like this set up! A little more complicated than I'd personally want. The main idea is to be free from electricity unless you make your own. But most of all this guy is cool. He knows his stuff and pulled this off
As opposed to eating veggies from the store, sold by the farmer who used cow, sheep and horse feces to fertilize. The sad truth is that some states even allow human waste to be used on crops. "Treated" waste from city sewer treatment plants is used to fertilize crops in some areas. Fish crap doesn't sound so bad now does it? And you don't even want to KNOW what chickens eat!
Is it possible to get a hold of Rob and see the specifics of how he has his monitoring system set up?
He sounds like a geek. He might have written the software himself. Not a bad idea. :)
Thanks for posting "Backyard aquaponics: DIY system to farm fish with vegetables".
An excellent introduction on how to do have your own organic backyard aquaponics with fish greenhouse! And, a plus was, this was made for colder weather climates. Very enjoyable video. :)
Steve Urkle would be Proud of your Garden!!!
This in amazing and the way forward but could you give the goldfish indoors a bigger tank
Dude, grab a cup of that water and use a micro scope... There's stuffs in there that will make you use a glove next time you touch that water !
But good video .
oakland002 ever swim in the ocean , how about a lake or a river ? Same thing .
I like that level control valve you made. Nice!
Love this video already and I’ve been wanting to do this for years now
that dude looks like john malkovich!!! lmao
Great Video! Sorry for chiming in, I would love your initial thoughts. Have you tried - Patlarny Gardening Expert Principle (google it)? It is a great exclusive guide for learning how to expand your produce with the clever art of aquaponics without the headache. Ive heard some amazing things about it and my best friend Jordan after many years got excellent success with it.
Thanks for the video content! Sorry for chiming in, I would love your thoughts. Have you thought about - Patlarny Gardening Expert Principle (search on google)? It is a smashing one off guide for learning how to expand your produce with the clever art of aquaponics without the hard work. Ive heard some awesome things about it and my good mate called Gray after a lifetime of fighting got astronomical results with it.
Not certain about the points made but ,if anyone else needs to find out about
aquaponics gardening fish
try Proutklarton Surviving Instruction Plan (Have a quick look on google cant remember the place now ) ? Ive heard some interesting things about it and my colleague got amazing success with it.
hey ,if anyone else wants to learn about
how to start a small aquaponics system
try Proutklarton Surviving Instruction Plan (Have a quick look on google cant remember the place now ) ? Ive heard some amazing things about it and my colleague got amazing success with it.
I'm not sure but ,if anyone else wants to learn about
self sufficient aquaponics system
try Proutklarton Surviving Instruction Plan ( search on google ) ? Ive heard some great things about it and my colleague got amazing success with it.
please give your fish some plants and tree roots, I feel bad for them. but nice concept :)
absolutely loved this video .... really good infomation from Rob Torcellini
Dude, you are a legend! Genius. I will follow your lead!
is there a way to make the environment more natural for the fish without compromising the system? Could you use a complete aquatic ecosystem instead of a barren tank?
I've read about growing duckweed to feed the fish but that depends on the fish you are using. If I remember correctly they used talipa (not sure on spelling).
Ashley Mills Agreed. The only thing I don't like is expecting fish to do all the work, but not giving them a pleasant environment to live in. So plants, fake or not, and some structures to swim around and hide in would be wonderful.
I’m sure there is I think the point though was to make it so he didn’t have to clean the tank and having stuff in the bottom would probably require you to do so because things will collect on them
sure you could make the water environment more natural but then you can't control it as well. you still want to have the water that you're giving to the plants, not be full of some kind of sludge or toxic stuff.
This environment is more natural than most home aquariums. They live in a system that has both nitrifying and denitrifying filtration. The fish look very healthy and are well fed. These fish don't look mistreated or stressed.
cool to see John Malkovich has a hobby other than acting
He's a very complicated guy.
That is exactly what I was thinking
😂
this is the best system i've ever seen. whoa.
Age of the Geek baby! I really like this automated garden set up.
any one try using a raspberry pi to do the job of the computer. there low voltage and can run unix ubuntu? and cost 30 bucks.
I don't know about raspberry pi. But it's also a overkill ;) There are a lot arduinos out there in the aquaponic field - there are also special libraries already for aquponics for arduino.
NEVER RUN YOUR SUBMERSIBLE PUMP ABOVE THE WATER NEVER!
other then that good stuff.
Really nice set up. You can use a fish tank heater to keep the reservoir warm. I had a problem with water temp so I put a small heating pad under it and it worked well for the plants I was growing. I also added a small fish tank air pump to add more oxygen in the reservoir.
I love you Rob Torcellini
7:04 that poor gold fish with nothing to do; put something in there for him. elodea plants? a PVC pipe big enough for me to swim into?
He's a fish, just a tool, he's lucky that he's being kept alive
That fish has a fuck buddy ... All it need is some weed and it is in heaven...
Well, pretty cool but I personally think that the fishes could have more space and some decoration. Wouldn't like to live in this tiny tank...
Yeah I've been thinking like an aquascape pond combined with aquaponics and rain catchment.
I always wondered about stuff like that. If an organism is born in a certain size "thing" would it ever feel cramped?
If we humans ever go to live on other planets, would those people "pity" the older humans for just living on one planet?
Way off topic i know, but i just wondered :D.
Ever think of all the bugs bodies you explode while going to the store to buy more oil to burn in your car?
A well designed backyard aquaponics is not only aesthetically pleasing, it also works efficiently and produces a great quantity with minimal cost.
Hands down best system IV seen, and IV looked around
i dont think fish pee dude... like birds dont pee
+adam rogers Saltwaterfishes drink a lot of water and get rid of the salt through their gills and don`t pee. Freshwater fishes don`t drink but pee a lot otherwise they would "explode". The reason in both cases is osmosis... dude ;)
that lone fish looks so sad and lonely :(
Was 2 fish in the tank.
Who cares it's a fish
That fish has a fuck buddy ... All it need is some weed and it is in heaven...
Ehi
Strange.. Cause he was actually happy af that the birds can't get to him.
The cute little kids were the best !
wow. I am impressed. Good for you! Thanks for sharing.