- Turn a complete system design into a supplier specification.
- Separate priced equipment, unpriced functions and recurring costs.
- Use commissioning evidence before adding fish.
System parts & cost planner
Choose a method, include the parts you need and enter your own quantities and quotes. This is a purchasing worksheet; it does not calculate safe stocking, oxygen demand, structural capacity or pump size.
Nothing is saved automatically. Download your worksheet before leaving. Changing currency relabels your estimates; it does not convert prices. The component list comes from the teaching model and may omit fittings or equipment your real installation needs.
Houses fish and receives the pumped return. Feed is an input to this living system.
Intercepts settleable waste before it accumulates in later treatment and growing components.
Provides wetted surface for nitrifying organisms. This teaching layout shows a separate biofilter.
Holds plants above water after solids handling and biofiltration. Roots hang below the raft.
Collects gravity drainage and pumps water to the fish tank, closing this particular circuit.
A separate air pump supplies diffusers to the fish tank, biofilter and growing bed.
Known parts subtotal: $0.00
0 included components · 0 unpriced. Unpriced items are excluded from the subtotal. Add taxes, shipping, fittings, consumables and labor separately.
Estimate the electricity for one load
Use measured watts or the rating for a defined load. Calculate devices with different schedules separately. The example uses 30 days and excludes fixed utility charges.
Enter valid watts, hours (0–24) and a nonnegative electricity rate to see the estimate.
Formula: quantity × unit estimate; electricity = watts ÷ 1,000 × hours/day × 30 × price/kWh. CSV and printouts exclude shopping links. Reopen this page to compare current supplier options.
01 / Plan the living system before the shopping list
Choose the fish species, crop, growing environment and operator routine before collecting equipment quotes. A tank volume alone does not determine a safe fish load. Feed input, oxygen delivery, solids removal, biological filtration, water quality and backup arrangements have to work together. The planner is an equipment and cost worksheet; it does not certify those capacities or select a stocking rate.
The raft and media-bed teaching models provide different starting lists. Both retain accessible solids handling and biological treatment so their functions are visible. A real installation may combine functions, add separate treatment or use different plumbing. Select the components relevant to your documented design and list any missing items separately. Follow the system chapters for the physical and biological connections.
Reading: Aquaponics—Integrating Fish and Plant Culture (SRAC 454) ↗ · Aquaponics (HLA-6721) ↗
02 / Give every quote a working specification
For the tank and sump, record material suitability, actual operating water level, drainage access, screening and space around the vessels. For the pump, specify installed head and delivery rather than selecting by the largest flow printed on the box. For filters, request the conditions behind the supplier’s capacity claim: feed or waste loading, water temperature, flow, oxygen, media and service interval. A filter’s container volume is not a verified ammonia-processing capacity.
For aeration, record operating depth, tubing, diffuser layout, measured dissolved oxygen and the backup response. The same nominal air-pump rating can describe different delivery under different resistance. Ask for the relevant performance data and confirm it during commissioning. Keep instrumentation, calibration materials and replacement reagents on the equipment list even when the growing model does not illustrate them.
| Function | Evidence to obtain before buying |
|---|---|
| Containment | Material, working volume, drain and access details |
| Circulation | Pump curve and planned installed duty |
| Solids removal | Waste capture method and cleaning access |
| Biological treatment | Capacity basis and commissioning procedure |
| Aeration and backup | Delivery at depth and tested backup operation |
| Measurement | Test basis, range, calibration and recurring supplies |
Reading: Aquaponics—Integrating Fish and Plant Culture (SRAC 454) ↗ · Important Water Quality Parameters in Aquaponics Systems (CR680) ↗
03 / Price the whole installation
Include a component, enter the quantity and add a unit estimate from your own quote. Record whether the quantity means individual items, packs or another purchasing unit. Leave a missing price blank so it remains visible as an unpriced component. The known subtotal cannot include parts, services or shipping that have not been entered.
An original arithmetic example uses one vessel quoted at $160, two diffusers at $18 each and one air pump at $74. The known subtotal is $160 + (2 × $18) + $74 = $270. If the biofilter is unpriced, $270 is only a partial subtotal. These are invented calculation inputs, not current retail prices, equipment recommendations or a budget for a functional aquaponic system.
Build a separate allowance for fish, feed, seeds, water preparation, test reagents, replacement pumps, netting, quarantine, electrician or structural work, shipping and taxes. Do not count a spare aeration device as a proven backup until its delivered air and runtime have been tested. A low initial quote that leaves no means to measure or respond to failure is incomplete.
04 / Separate monthly costs from capital costs
Use the electricity tool for loads that share an operating schedule. An illustrative 60 W circulation pump running continuously uses 0.060 × 24 × 30 = 43.2 kWh over 30 days. At an assumed $0.15/kWh that costs $6.48. A separate 25 W air pump uses 18 kWh, costing $2.70 at that rate. Their combined example is $9.18, before heating, cooling, lighting or other devices.
A heater’s nameplate watts do not tell you how many hours it will run. Measure actual energy use under representative weather rather than assuming a convenient duty cycle. Record feed mass, water added, reagents and service time alongside electricity. Keep capital purchases separate from recurring expenses so a monthly operating report does not confuse a one-time tank purchase with the cost of maintaining the fish that month.
05 / Commission against an explicit acceptance record
Export the CSV to take your quantities, estimates and specification notes to suppliers. It contains no shopping links. A share link contains method, quantities, estimates and currency, but excludes your notes and power inputs. Keep the detailed downloaded file when you need those notes; nothing is saved automatically by the planner.
Before adding fish, prove containment, pump-off recovery, circulation and independent aeration. Establish the biofilter using the documented cycling procedure and record water tests. OSU’s cycling guidance calls for daily checks of pH, temperature, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate during establishment. That test schedule is evidence gathering, not a promise that a system is ready after a fixed number of days. Review the results and species requirements before agreeing a fish delivery.
- Inspect materials, supports, screens, electrical installation and service access.
- Leak-test the loop and record operating and pump-off levels.
- Measure delivered water flow and oxygen under the relevant operating conditions.
- Establish and verify biological treatment with the cycling procedure.
- Rehearse backup operation before fish depend on it.
- Keep water, feed, maintenance and supplier records with the final installed parts list.
FIELD QUESTIONA tank and pump are fully priced but filter capacity and backup delivery are unknown. Is the system ready for a fish order?
No. A purchasing subtotal is not a biological commissioning result. Obtain the missing design evidence, establish treatment, measure water conditions and test the backup before stocking.
Reading: Nitrification and Maintenance in Media Bed Aquaponics ↗
Parts & buying criteria
Build your own parts & cost worksheet →
Showing aquaponic raft system. Quantities describe the teaching model. Specify real working volume, support, fittings and instruments for your installation.
01Fish tank1 · illustrated quantity+
Houses fish and receives the pumped return. Feed is an input to this living system.
Inspect: The fish are generic silhouettes, with no species or stocking-rate recommendation. Cutaway reveals the tank interior.
Maintain: Observe behavior and feeding response; keep a record of water tests and changes.
Smooth accessible tank, secure cover and species-appropriate volume determined by an aquaculture design.
Check size, materials and operating conditions with your chosen supplier before ordering.02Solids separator1 · illustrated quantity+
Intercepts settleable waste before it accumulates in later treatment and growing components.
Inspect: Open the front of the vessel. Brown particles beneath the central baffle represent collected waste, not a settling simulation.
Maintain: Inspect accumulation and remove it on an observation-based schedule without flushing it into the growing bed.
Accessible waste drain, removable internals and a design matched to expected solids and flow.
Check size, materials and operating conditions with your chosen supplier before ordering.03Biological filter1 · illustrated quantity+
Provides wetted surface for nitrifying organisms. This teaching layout shows a separate biofilter.
Inspect: The blue carriers indicate surface area; cyan flow does not measure nitrification or oxygen availability.
Maintain: Protect the established community during service. Verify nitrogen readings before and after changing loading or equipment.
Media and aeration matched to the intended feed load, water conditions and an independently reviewed design.
Check size, materials and operating conditions with your chosen supplier before ordering.04Raft growing bed1 · illustrated quantity+
Holds plants above water after solids handling and biofiltration. Roots hang below the raft.
Inspect: Compare the depth of this growing section with the shallow channels in the hydroponic lesson.
Maintain: Keep drains accessible and inspect root congestion. Remove crop debris without sending it downstream.
Cleanable bed, supported raft, access to drains and a root-zone aeration plan.
Check size, materials and operating conditions with your chosen supplier before ordering.05Sump & return pump1 · illustrated quantity+
Collects gravity drainage and pumps water to the fish tank, closing this particular circuit.
Inspect: This is the lowest collection point. The tank, filters and bed have progressively lower illustrative water levels.
Maintain: Check sump level, intake and leaks. Test whether drainage can be contained when power stops.
Usable reserve volume, pump service access, level protection and verified delivery at the required head.
Check size, materials and operating conditions with your chosen supplier before ordering.06Air supply1 · illustrated quantity+
A separate air pump supplies diffusers to the fish tank, biofilter and growing bed.
Inspect: White bubbles indicate air delivery only; bubble count is not a dissolved-oxygen reading.
Maintain: Check air lines, diffusers and backup arrangements. Verify oxygen with suitable measurement.
Airflow at operating depth, compatible diffusers and resilience reviewed for the living load.
Check size, materials and operating conditions with your chosen supplier before ordering.Evidence beside the lesson.
Source checks: September 2026. The geometry, inspection exercises and worksheets are original teaching material. The named organizations have not endorsed or reviewed this site.
Published recipe rates and planning ranges retain their source context. Calculator equations are accounting tools; they do not predict uptake, yield, toxicity or safe stocking. Model dimensions, water speeds, roots and fish counts are illustrative. Verify species, crop, source water and product labels for a real system.
- Southern Regional Aquaculture Center · hosted by OSU ExtensionAquaponics—Integrating Fish and Plant Culture (SRAC 454) ↗
Tank-to-treatment-to-growing-to-sump layout and production tradeoffs.
- Oklahoma State University ExtensionAquaponics (HLA-6721) ↗
Coupled fish, microbes and plant needs.
- New Mexico State University ExtensionImportant Water Quality Parameters in Aquaponics Systems (CR680) ↗
Fish-system water chemistry, oxygen, temperature and nitrification.
- Oklahoma State University ExtensionNitrification and Maintenance in Media Bed Aquaponics ↗
Biofilter establishment, nitrogen testing and maintenance.
The next useful connections.
Feeding, biomass and stocking
Use fish mass and actual feed intake as operating inputs, with capacity checked independently.
Interactive tool · 6 min + guided practice →Cycling & water balanceFishless cycling: prove the biofilter works
Establish nitrification with a known input and repeated measurements before stocking.
6 min + guided practice →Operation & resilienceOxygen and outage resilience
Measure oxygen where it matters and rehearse a recovery plan before fish depend on it.
6 min + guided practice →ComparisonsMedia bed, raft or decoupled: choose by treatment and service
Choose an aggregate bed, a raft trough or a separated plant loop by where solids and nitrification happen, what the published depths and ratios imply, and what each demands when you service it or the pump stops.
8 min + guided practice →Buying guidesChoosing an air pump for DWC and aquaponics: DO, depth, backup
An air pump is bought against a dissolved-oxygen reading at your diffuser depth, not against the litres per minute printed on its box.
8 min + guided practice →