Bathtub System Plumbing Kit

A Bathtub Aquaponics System is a great little system for people just getting into aquaponics or for those with only a small space for a system. 

It's a good way to re-use old bathtubs, too!  Or any similarly-sized tubs.  'Re-use, Recycle!'

A simple bit of plumbing runs the water from the fish tank (also acting as sump) to the media bed and then back to the tank/sump. 

The grow-bed has about 1 m-sq (~10 sq-ft) of area, if you are using a standard bathtub.  As with any aquaponics media bed, you can grow just about any type of plant you want in this Bathtub System, from herbs and leafy greens, to tomatoes, cucumber, beans, pumpkin - whatever you like, really!  A delicious, freshly-grown addition to your regular shopping!

You can raise about 10 medium-sized fish, such as Silver Perch, in the bottom tub.

To help you build this compact aquaponics system, we have put together a kit containing all the plumbing parts, including the water pump!

The Bathtub Plumbing Kit contains:

• One plug & waste fitting (also called Drain Waste) to seal the bottom bath tub
• One Autosiphon kit
• One pump
• Hose and various fittings
• Instructions for setting up the system using this kit

You will need to provide the following materials to build the Bathtub System:

• Two bathtubs - average size is about 250 L (66 Gal)
• Six concrete blocks (Besser/cinder blocks)
• A quantity of timber or plywood to make a cover for the fish tank.
• Growing medium - gravel (limestone-free) or expanded-clay pebbles (such as the Canna clay we carry)

The Kit does not contain an air pump.  The water draining back to the fish tank from the media bed is usually enough to stir up the water and create adequate aeration.  However, it can still be a good idea to add an air pump.  You'd want something that could provide at least 5 Lpm (~1 Gpm).  Our PondMAX PA20 would well and truly cover that.

Prefer to get all the parts yourself?  You can find the materials and instructions in Murray Hallam's Aquaponic Gardening Book of Plans.