So I've recently had 5 weeks off work, I was initially fishing but moved on to getting some bathtubs up from Brisbane, where they were making bathtub-shaped holes in my mate's lawn. Having no proper elecrtics on the tow-bar this inevitably involved braking more of Australia's road transport laws, but you know, totally worth it and whatnot.
Last year I got a bathtub kit from Murray Hallum at aquaponics.net.au and I used this in the bathtubs, it was dead simple to install, the most challenging bit was moving these 100kg beasts off the trailer and under the house single-handedly, then up onto 3 bessa blocks - sounds easy but excrutiatingly painful and time consuming.
From there it was a matter of loading them up with gravel, getting the system cycling, and eventually adding a simple fluoro light screwed into a fence paling running down the middle in order to provide some extra light - really dark in there, flirting wit the idea of moving it all, but $25 at Bunnings solved the problem.
The system is a self-peretuating plant-growing beast at the moment, just throw seeds in with careless abandon and they can't help but germinate as the water floods and drains.
Eventually it'll have fish in it but for now its being powered with human wee, my wee to be precise. Recently the thought of infecting dinner guests with E.Coli occured to me but we'll see how it goes!
At the moment its growing lettuce and parsley, just added some chives and random seeds from the kitchen. Early days but the signs are that the whole bathtub system could be the way of the future for me. considering I've never successfully grown a lettuce yet, also something that actually works for me.
