The Hobby That is Taking Over Our Life

We learned about aquaponics from an in-flight magazine in April of 2010. Unemployment stopped us from experimenting with the newfound technology right away, but we did alot of reading and surfing to learn all we could. In June this year, within two weeks of moving into our new home we purchased our first IBC tanks. Then we went on vacation. Returning from our trip back to Mo. with the flu, didn't stop us from setting up our system right away.
A month later we had fish, bacteria growing happily, nitrites becoming nitrates and a system waiting for its first plants! So exciting!
Our plants were grown for us by Brendan Bradley, a new friend with a head full of knowledge about plants and permaculture. In went the tomatoes, happily soaking up the red and blue spectrum from 8 T5 grow bulbs.
This is where the hobby gets out of control...
Bry and I went to Florida! If you think that a weekend at Disney World was the plan, or something romantic was in the air you would be wrong. (well romance was at least thought of ;)

We attended the first annual Aquaponics Association Conference! It WAS AWESOME.
Friday we visited two aquaponic farms. One a research farm and another a full blown commercial farm built in a greenhouse on top of a three story building. Totally cool.
Saturday we spent in classes taught by the "experts". The cool thing is that the experts have only been doing this for three to four years! We learned alot!
In fact, we learned so much we have to take apart our system and start over! Oh darn!
We also spent some fun time meeting people and at the book signing for Sylvia Bernsteins new book, Aquaponic Gardening. Got our copy!!

We came home really wanting to involve the kids in our crazy new hobby. What better way to do that than to make it part of the school day! So, I found the Disney PlanetChallenge to help in this endeavor. The kids and I will be creating a basement system for your schoolroom and learn all the science behind how and why aquaponics works! The hook for the kids is the all expense paid trip to Disney World if we win the challenge! (I wouldn't mind heading back to Florida for a more relaxing vacation too!)

Bryan stayed up all night fixing our system last night, so we wouldn't lose our plants or fish. We mainly had to fix the filtering.  Here is our system before

and here it is now, awaiting some more gravel and our little lettuce and chard plants.

We cut two 55 gallon barrels in half to create 4 grow beds. This is a use what you have system. Bryan is enjoying the challenge of the unique plumbing. These tomatoes have been in the system for about a month. When we got them they were 3 or 4 inches tall.