Great, another time waster

[zinfamous]

As always, it behooves you to research as much as possible on your own.

EDIT: Also, since it's an active science, you can blaze new paths. Seems like shellfish aren't very popular - maybe you can figure out how to do them successfully. Fresh oysters whenever you want.

You really need a natural marsh/tidal system to do sessile critters like oyster or clams, which are very popular, of course. Too much nutrient exchange required to do it in a small, captive environment.

Plus, why not just let the ocean do the work for you? You also aren't going to be growing many plants off of such a system. You might be able to produce some algae, but this would also have to be done in a protected natural environment (though, growing algae like that would be a huge problem in an open water system)

 

[Kaido]

I came very close to buying this

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2142509221/home-aquaponics-kit-self-cleaning-fish-tank-that-g

It's available on Amazon for $59 now:

http://www.amazon.com/Back-Roots-Aqu...dp/B00CN52TRM/

 

[Kaido]

It's available on Amazon for $59 now:

http://www.amazon.com/Back-Roots-Aqu...dp/B00CN52TRM/

Found a more expensive model from another company called Endless Food Systems (I like that name) for $170:

http://www.amazon.com/Tabletop-Aquap...dp/B00GSHOJT2/

They have larger systems on their website:

http://www.endlessfoodsystems.com/

Also ran across some LED grow lights, didn't know you could do that with LED bulbs!

http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-605038.../dp/B007AM9FV6

I've been eating more of a Vegan diet lately and this would be a really neat system to setup for stuff like kale, Bibb lettuce, collard greens, etc. instead of having to run to Whole Foods all the time to get fresh stuff. Tomatoes apparently do pretty well too:

http://portablefarms.com/2012/aquaponics-tomatoe/

 

[RossMAN]

It's available on Amazon for $59 now:

http://www.amazon.com/Back-Roots-Aqu...dp/B00CN52TRM/

Curse you!

 

[BurnItDwn]

I was tempted to set up a little aquaponics area in one of the spare bedrooms, but fiance said nonononononono!no

 

[Uppsala9496]

Curse you!

https://backtotheroots.com/shop/aquafarm
Free shipping direct from the company.

 

[RossMAN]

https://backtotheroots.com/shop/aquafarm
Free shipping direct from the company.

Thanks, any online reviews?

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

 

[sdifox]

only if you live somewhere subtropical. If I remember correctly, some ATOTer's father does that for a living.

 

[Leros]

https://backtotheroots.com/shop/aquafarm
Free shipping direct from the company.

I hate how they call it self cleaning because that's not true. Assuming it works very well, the plants and the growing medium simply replace the filter. You still have to perform the same maintenance as you would with any other aquarium.

 

[edro]

Search craigslist for hydroponics equipment. There is usually a lot.
It's a fun little hobby for a little while, but people generally get rid of everything after a few months.

They usually stop after the first harvest because the fruit it either small/malformed, not good, etc. and it is much easier to buy perfectly grown fruit from the grocery. If you are growing herbs, how many herbs do you really need anyway? Just buy some at the grocery.

Hydroponics takes some effort, even if you have a fully automated setup.
You still need to refill, check for ph, add fertilizer, clean the system, check for pests, etc.
Oh, and it takes electricity (needs lots of light).

 

[Kaido]

Really really interesting indoor farm project:

http://inhabitat.com/the-worlds-largest-indoor-farm-produces-10000-heads-of-lettuce-a-day-in-japan/

More info at GE:

http://www.gereports.com/post/91250246340/lettuce-see-the-future-japanese-farmer-builds

* Located at a former Sony semiconductor plant in Japan
* World's largest indoor farm
* Produces 10,000 heads of lettuce a day
* 25,000 square feet (roughly half the size of a football field)
* 17,500 LED lights, developed by GE to emit optimal plant growth wavelengths
* LEDs use 40% less power than florescent lights & also last longer
* 18 cultivation racks reaching 15 levels high
* Controls day/night cycle via LED grow lights, plus temperature, humidity, irrigation
* Cuts water usage to just 1% of the amount needed by conventional outdoor farming
* Allows the farm to grow lettuce 2.5x faster than an outdoor farm
* Wasted produce is reduced from 50% down to just 10%

That's pretty incredible!

 

[Kaido]

Parrot has a new plant sensor & automatic watering pot. The watering pot can irrigate for up to 3 weeks & the smartphone app has 8,000 plants in its database:

http://www.engadget.com/2015/01/04/parrot-h2o-pot/

Plant & food-growing technology is really heating up - LED grow lights really booming, just need to get the prices cut to 1/10th what they are now:

http://kindledgrowlights.com/

Now we just need some robotic arms with trimmers & computer vision to do the pruning & harvesting. Screw expensive organic produce, I want robot-harvested food :awe: