Converting Swimming Pool Into Small Scale Fish Farm For Winter

[jaideeguy]

Every year, starting in Oct to march my swimming pool remains useless and just eating up big baht in electricity and chemicals for nothing, too cold to swim. Last year, I did an experiment and shut it down and when test proved that no cholorine was present, I added a few fish, Koi and talapia just to see if they would survive and after three months, they did.

after removing the fish, restoring the pool to swimable was no big chore with supershock cholorine and flocculant to remove dead algae, heavy brushing and running the pool with filter for a couple of days and it cleared.

My pool has 55 sq mtrs of surface area [80 cu mtrs] and wonder what kind of fish would be recomended. I like the red talapia in floating nets fed with pellets.....but maybe a few catfish for bottom fish?? How many cages of talipia can I squeeze into my pool?? and how many fish should I start with??

last year, I posted this same topic on the swimming pool forum and got no decent replies....so this year, I'm posting on the farm forum, hoping that some fish farmers could provide experienced advise.

[rfukata]

Keeping Tilapia in aquariums

One of the reasons why tilapia is such a popular fish among fish farmers world wide is that is sturdy, adaptable and will eat almost anything. These traits also makes it an excellent aquarium fish, provided of course that you have a large enough aquarium. Many tilapia species can be kept even by beginner aquarists. Tilapia can also be kept in outdoor ponds, but most species are sensitive to cold and can only be housed outdoors during the warmest months of the year unless you live in the tropics.

Many different species of tilapia have been successfully kept by aquarists, but the most commonly kept species are Zebra tilapia / Tiger tilapia (Tilapia buttikoferi) and Spotted tilapia (Tilapia mariae). In order to create the perfect aquarium for your tilapia you need to find out more about the natural habitat of the specific species you’re interested in keeping. It is impossible to provide guidelines that will be true for all sorts of tilapia. Before you purchase fish for your aquarium it is also very important to find out about its temperament and maximal size.

Small tilapia can be housed in 150 L (40 gallon) aquariums, while larger tilapias will require at least 250 L (70 gallon). It is also important to keep in mind that it is more difficult to keep the water quality up in a small aquarium than in a big one. A skilled aquarist might be able to house tilapia in a fairly small aquarium, but if you are a beginner you should always opt for a larger tank than the absolute minimum since it will give you a safety margin.

Using plants in a tilapia aquarium can become problematic because many species of tilapia eat plants and these fishes can also be fond of digging. It is therefore common to use rocks, roots and similar types of aquarium decoration to create hiding spots for tilapia. Cover the bottom with gravel and sand and ideally include flat rocks in the set up. If you are willing to risk the life of a few plants your tilapia will greatly appreciate it. Choose hardy and inexpensive plants and cover their roots with rocks to prevent digging. Examples of plant types that have been successfully kept with tilapia in aquariums are Java fern, Anubias, Crinum and some Cryptocoryne species.

Several tilapias can be housed together but they are territorial, especially during the breeding period, and it is therefore a good idea to create natural borders in the aquarium. Tilapias of the genus Tilapia tend to be more territorial than the members of the genera Sarotherodon and Oreochromis (these fishes are still referred to as tilapias for historical reasons). Sarotherodon and Oreochromis species will often live in schools and are therefore less territorial.

Quite a few tilapia species might eat small fish in the aquarium and are therefore not suitable tank mates for such fishes. Tilapias can instead be combined with catfish, barbs and semi-aggressive cichlids. (All tilapias belong to the cichlid family.)

As mentioned above, most tilapias are sturdy and highly adaptable. When it comes to water values, they are known to acclimatize themselves to most conditions as long as you avoid the extremes. Most species will tolerate both acidic and alkaline waters (pH 6-8) and will stay happy as long as the water temperature exceeds 23 degrees C / 74 degrees F. Poor water quality will make the fish more prone to illness.

[RedBullHorn]

If you're looking for suitable fish to rear in 3-4 months period and getting rid of the whole lots by then, try pla duk Big Oui (hybrid catfish) or in 1.5- 2 months,Pla duk Lat sia(Claris macrocephalus or boardhead catfish)....all depends on your area market demand, rears the wrong specis and you'll be in trouble when you decide to sell the whole lots off....you don't rear big oui while your area is demanding lat sia, you'll get the idea.

I'm not worry about the cholorine because it gas off in 1-2 days.....but rather the cold tempreature in the concrete pool at this time for young fingerlings. We usually introduce them in (4'' fingerlings)not later than middle of November so when the cold spell comes, they would be about 6-7" inches by then. As for earthen pond, you could bring them in anytime because during cold season, sunlight in the afternoon warm the pond water, those sunlight energy are absorb and kept in soil of pond's bed so in the night, the top half of the pond water are cold and the bottom half are warm as those energy are release. Recommend you get 4-5" inches fingerlings for your pool. 55 m sq X 1.2 m high= 66 cubic meter, about 3-4000 fingerlings, you want to get rid of them in time, half that amount to 2000 fingerlings at max (the bigger space you fishes have, the faster they grow!)

Tilapia take 8-9 months in semi-intensive earthen pond without much aeration, i believe no wholesalers is willing to buy a 2-3" inches plus tilapia rear 3-4 months short period. Red Tilapia needs intensive farming for big volume stocking with constant aeration, that why red tilapia are rear in cages in constant flowing water body like river and lake...That's a poster name Tilapia rear them in concrete tanks with constant pump aerator and water filters(multi-millions Baht huge operation) Your pool's pump can do the aeration but consider the electricity bill.

Regards

RBH

P/s : You wrote in the farming forum and not the Aquarium section so hope this reply is decent enough......^^'

Edited December 1, 2009 by RedBullHorn

[ozzydom]

A lot depends on what size stock you anticipate putting in initially.

If you intend to use fry, then hapa,s made from the fine blue mesh are required ,but this material is of no use in growing on so with Tilapia , you will need possibly 3 different mesh sizes.

The alternative is to buy advanced fingerlings of a size able to go directly into growing on size nets and these dont come cheap.

The problem with your theory is that the fine mesh does not allow water transfer and also blocks up with fish poo and other debris requiring weekly transfer net to net and cleaning of the used hapa.

In such a small pool ,filtration and regular water change will be necessary, using treated town water comes with its own set of problems.

Economies of scale come into play and the high cost of overheads and intensive feeding will I feel make it an uneconomical venture.

There was a person (as mentioned by RBH ) doing a similar thing on a large scale, but I think you will find it has now closed.

[jaideeguy]

It looks like I missed the temperature 'window' this year, as temps are now quite cold in my cement/tile pool in Chaing Mai. I do hear what you guys are saying about temps, as I've tried koi, talapia and other fish in cement rings and they didn't do so well during the cold months......but you're saying it can be done if fingerlings are introduced earlier [Oct?] when the water is not too cool??

What about trout???

I will try to get temp readings and research conditions trout need.....trout being my favorite fresh water fish. I suspect my pool water is less than 70f.

Any other suggestions for different, but easy to obtain fingerlings or other fresh water critters that could be raised in my pool??

I just hate to waste all thse chemicals and electricity for nothing.......

anyone wanna buy a swimming pool. cheap!!

Edited December 1, 2009 by jaideeguy