Slough Shark Posted December 27, 2008 Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 I am trying to figure out what fish will produce the most amount of waste while being compatible with plants in a 20 Gallon tank. I would like to try aquaponics, and it requires a fish that produces large amounts of waste. Obviously a goldfish or tilapia would be ideal, but I need something smaller (and which works with plants). Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted December 27, 2008 Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 BN pleco They poop like crazy and are fine with plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted December 27, 2008 Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 (edited) Aquaponics? Growing Aquatic Plants? Or, are you growing terrestrial plants using an hydroponics set-up rin thru the aquarium? Are you just wanting one fish? What size system are we talking? Just curious as to your requirements, as I have a few ideas but not really sure what you're wanting. If I were to do what I'm thinking Aquaponics is, I'd grow the plants in either a sump under the tank, or run some water thru a trough over the top of the tank. As for fish, I'd go with an African cichlid tank, overstocked. Or, maybe some big SA cichlids. Edited December 27, 2008 by jvision Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slough Shark Posted December 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 Aquaponics is similar to Hydroponics but usually on a much larger scale and with fish instead of fertilizers. I am going to try it out on my 20 Gallon. I will either use a trough and pump water through it or use styrofoam and dangle the roots into the water with a pump to move the water across them. Thanks for the suggestion degrassi, I will definitely add a few BNs. I was thinking of a dwarf Channa or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted December 27, 2008 Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 Get something that eats a lot - Snakehead would do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snaggle Posted December 27, 2008 Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 Any catfish/pleco that will fit in to a 20 will produce lots of waste. Even dwarf cichlids can produce lots of waste. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baos Posted December 27, 2008 Report Share Posted December 27, 2008 I did this for 9 months. You need to monitor your iron levels. As well as getting a good source of nutrient. The bacteria the fish produce attach to the roots of the plants and aid in the uptake of nutrients. When I did this I had a pretty weak bio load and the plants grew like weeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slough Shark Posted December 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 29, 2008 Thanks for all of the help/suggestions guys. I will go with my dwarf channa and a few BNPs. Baos- I can monitor the iron easily enough, thanks for the tip. What do you mean by a good source of nutrient? Does this mean dosing with liquid ferts or can I just add peat? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted December 29, 2008 Report Share Posted December 29, 2008 You may end up having to dose ferts to keep plant growth up, but see how it goes with just healthy feeding. Good WCs will also help keep things ballanced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baos Posted December 31, 2008 Report Share Posted December 31, 2008 Thanks for all of the help/suggestions guys. I will go with my dwarf channa and a few BNPs. Baos- I can monitor the iron easily enough, thanks for the tip. What do you mean by a good source of nutrient? Does this mean dosing with liquid ferts or can I just add peat? I'm sorry, I meant your fish will supply you with a good source of nutrient. I could also add that it seemed my charcoal only lasted 50% of it's usual life. I would imagine it picked up the plant waste. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slough Shark Posted December 31, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 31, 2008 Okay, so I guess I just need to monitor my levels and possibly dose with ferts. I don't ever use charcoal, so I won't have to worry about that issue. Thanks for the help everyone, I hope I can find some dwarf channa soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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