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Saltwater Aquaponics? (9 posts)

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Windowfarms said 2 years, 1 month ago:

Guys- This is Britta. Is it possible to do aquaponics with a saltwater tank? I’m super nervous about messing with the delicate balance of my Fiji liverock system, but I’m just curious. . . .

(I know, I know it’s the least environmentally sustainable kind of tank to keep but I’ve had it for a long time and what i have learned from it provided inspiration for starting the windowfarms project in the first place).

However, I recently heard from an oldschool hydro guy that they sometimes use sea salt mix as a nutrient. High magnesium content, which is great for some varieties. I was wondering if adding some plants would allow me to keep more fish in the tank? We often use saltwater plants/algae in an external refugium as an additional natural filtration system– why not (say) basil instead?

Also, is it cool to use clay pellets with an aquaponic system? Are they inert enough for aquatic ecosystems?

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xdh10 said 2 years, 1 month ago:

Possible, yes. Advisable… probably not. I would assume that for most plants the salt content of a saltwater tank would be too high, I’m not sure of how the whole chemical reaction thing occurs, but I’d also be worried about changing the chemistry of the tank as saltwater tanks can be a bit finicky.

I’d suggest attempting a trial where you use your typical set up and introduce a saltwater solution comparable to your tank set up (or you might use water taken from your tank during a water change), and see what happens this way you’re only using a few plants and won’t harm your tank if it doesn’t work. .

Clay pellets I believe would be inert enough for an aquatic system. I think clay adds a few minerals (beneficial to plants) but shouldn’t change pH.

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owen said 2 years ago:

You could grow, say, dulse, or any other sea weeds quite well.
With other plants I would also suggest a small scale trial. You could just take a scoop of water out and add it to a 3 plant WF, and see if your plants die. I’m guessing they will, but if some don’t it would be really great.

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samenrahmen said 2 years ago:

Salsola soda, Honckenya peploides, Aster tripolium, Salicornia bigelovii, Atriplex halimus, Limonium angustifolium … why don’t you just build sub-irrigated planters from a few more soda bottles, put some of those in and see what happens ?

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emacartoon said 2 years ago:

You could probably get away with it if you set up a desalinator (removes the salt) in a reservoir above the reservoir that drips onto your plants. Tomatoes soak up a lot of salt, but strawberries wither quickly.

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Meeker said 2 years ago:

That’s alot of work to desalinate the water only to have to rebalance it once you put the water back into the tank (else your salinity is going to drop rather fast!) Of course if you grow plants which are salt adapted it would be much easier… Can we say Seaweeds and Mangroves?

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emacartoon said 2 years ago:

I know it’s a lot of work, but I meant to point it out more that it was possible to grow terrestrial plants. Seaweed is certainly the more simple solution. Sushi in a box? Now THAT would be convenient.

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izzy said 1 year ago:

Britta, this is 100% possible. The only real problem you run into is, what plants will you grow? Otherwise, it’s essentially the same as freshwater aquaponics.

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letsaddfish said 9 months, 1 week ago:

Might be possible, but I wouldn’t risk your Fiji LiveRock to try it and find out. Is there a way you could set up a small tank with some less expensive guinea pig fish? There are so many variables with saltwater aquariums I have never even wanted to try and keep one. They are expensive and finicky.
Good luck if you do try it and keep us posted please. It is a fascinating idea.

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