Aquaponics is not well known to the general public, and it is often confused with hydroponics which is a little better known. Although the system is quite basic in the sense that it required little technology to function, the question that begs to be asked is just how basic is it and can it also be high tech?
When talking about the how basic it is, it is as basic as a fish tank that is interconnected with a few tubes in the middle, to a grow bed for plants, all driven by a single pump. That’s it!
Now, this may seem quite unsophisticated, and at this level it is! In fact, the most sophisticated part of the whole apparatus is the electric pump. The rest is big troughs and tubes.
But, take a step further into the world of aquaponics, and there are people that have made their systems highly sophisticated.
This brings us back to the question posed in the first paragraph.
Can an Aquaponics system be high tech?
The system, if well designed, needs to be checked every day or so for a couple of hours to make sure that all is well. This can be personal therapy time for some and a chore for others. Depending on the level of sophistication one desires, automation can be added to the system. With an older laptop to keep an eye on things (temperatures -ambient and water-, Ph. levels, etc.), one can follow the system and even control it from anywhere, anytime, directly on their cellphone. If they have the mind to do so, they can even watch the whole system via cameras as well.
Is it necessary to make an Aquaponics system complicated?
Absolutely not!
There are thousands of systems that are working worldwide with nothing more than the classic natural mechanical means, such as auto-siphons, and single water pump and perhaps an air pump working. Investing in technology is something a person does when they wish to experiment with optimizing their system incrementally or keep an eye on it remotely. It can also serve the function of collecting data on the system’s performance throughout the years. Other than these reasons, an aquaponics system is simple and efficient in its most basic form.
