I’ve been looking for something like this to foolproof an aquaculture system. (Fish/Hydroponic) I haven’t built anything yet, but as a truck driver with an indoor wife, I want to build a walipini aquaculture system that will essentially run itself with only minor, occasional input. I will heat the system with a rocket stove fed by pellets made from grass clippings and waste plant material. The beds are essentially three tiered with the bottom layer of sand heated by the rocket stove. The second layer is an water storage for the grow bed drainage. It is the primary warm water heat sink and contains duckweed for the fish and is kept clean by tiger shrimp. Florescent bulbs will be the light source for this layer. The third layer is the grow bed itself, consisting of expanded shale with air bubblers every 4 feet and using organic cotton balls as a starting medium. Walipinis are mostly underground so heating and cooling in extreme weather is reduced dramatically. A simple solar powered pump will push the drainage water up into the fish tank and gravity will deliver it to the clarifying tank, biofilter and finally to the grow bed again. I think I’ll use 1x2 fencing under the plastic roofing to make it a Faraday cage preventing EMP damage. I’d love to hear of any other concepts that could improve the design.
Sounds like a cool plan! Are you thinking about using a FarmBot on top of the third layer?
Yes. I’m familiar with arduino but haven’t worked with it.
The idea is to make this work as independently as possible.
Cool, well let us know if you need any support when you start implementation! Feel free ot ask any questions here on the forum 