Want to give your living room that special wow factor? Check out this neat project! It’s a miniature aquaponic living wall that you can build yourself! Simply follow our step-by-step guide …

Okay, we’re going to build an organic, aquaponic living wall in no time at all! Aquaponics means that we feed the fish in a tank, and their poop is pumped up to the plants. The plants feed and filter the nutrient rich water, and the glorious cycle continues. The plants are going to grow in sphagnum moss. It’s very pleasant to work with, and the plants love it! The water from the aquarium provides them with all the high quality organic fertilizer they need.

Supplies:

• Culture tray — 31″ l x 16″ w x 1.5″ h (79 cm x 40 cm x 4 cm)
• Thirty flat-head nuts (4 mm x 16 mm) and bolts
• 6.5 feet (2 m) plastic net
• 2 pounds (0.9 kg) of sphagnum moss
• 6.5 feet (2 m) irrigation pipe – 0.5″ (13 mm)
• A pipe elbow and cap
• 4 adjustable flow emitters
• A submersible aquarium pump – 250 gallons (946 l) per hour
• A complete aquarium
• Twenty small plants in 2 inch (5 cm) pots

Tools:

• A drill and a 0.1575″ (4 mm) drill bit
• 5 gallon (19 l) container
• A screwdriver
• A pair of sharp scissors

Step by step:

Our goal is to install a vertical hydroponic garden above a small fish tank. As already mentioned, besides being a beautiful decorative feature, the plants will act as a water filter for the fish, regularly consuming nitrates and other compounds from the fish droppings. This is the cornerstone principle of ‘aquaponics.’ The plants should maintain an acceptable nitrate level in the water to keep the fish happy without having to replace the aquarium water so frequently.

Set up

First, let’s take a look at the heart of the system: the culture tray, plastic net and sphagnum moss growing media.

The main task is to move water from the fish tank to the top of the vertical wall and arrange it so that the wall is irrigated evenly. We will achieve this using a pump, some irrigation pipe, some dripper holes and emitters. To mount the irrigation pipe, cut a section of pipe roughly the same width as the tray. Connect one end to an elbow joint and the other to a stopper cap. Drill a series of evenly spaced holes in a straight line along the bottom side of the pipe and fix the emitters.

After spacing the emitters, drill four holes into the tray so the emitters can clip into place.

Place the culture tray above the aquarium and secure it to the wall with two mounting brackets. You can also add extra stability with side hooks if you wish.

The irrigation line is now completed. Arrange the pump and pipe so that the pump is at the bottom of the aquarium.

Now it’s time to prepare the substrate. Crumble the sphagnum moss and place it in a watertight container.

After the moss is broken into small pieces, give it a heavy watering, then press it lightly to drain off any excess liquid.

Once the moistened sphagnum moss has changed color and has drunk a large quantity of water, you will notice that it becomes spongy. In fact it almost recovers the elasticity of living sphagnum!

Insert the sphagnum moss into the culture tray and press down on it firmly to remove any lingering excess water.

Continue to push the moss into the tray until it’s uniformly filled.

When the tray is full, press the moss down again. It’s really important to ensure that it’s consistently distributed throughout the tray. The level of the moss should be slightly higher than the edges of the tray—your aim is to have the moss pressed down firmly when you fix the plastic netting in place over the top. After all, you don’t want any moss falling out of the wall into the tank!

Cut a piece of screen, slightly larger than the tray (this will make your life easier,) and lay it on top.

Fix the net to the rim of the tray by drilling holes in the rim (roughly 4″ (10 cm) apart.) Once all the holes are made, fix the mesh on to the tray with nuts and bolts or, alternatively, some wire.

After attaching the upper edge, fix the sides in the same way. When fixing the net, proceed from the parts that are already fixed as this will give you a better fit. After completing one side, fix the opposite side in place too, stretching out the screen in both directions, horizontally and vertically. The elasticity of the plastic netting can be used to your advantage. Tightening properly will prevent the substrate from collapsing but do not over tighten or the stitches in the netting will tear.

Finally, fix the netting into the bottom edge of the tray—it should be positioned in the same way as the top edge. Once the net is fixed all around the edges of the tray, cut off any excess net from the edges of the tray.

The tray is ready to receive plants!

Figure out how you are going to arrange your plants first. Here we’ve chosen Alocasia (elephant ear), Nephrolepis (fern), Scindapsus (pothos), Ficus pumilla (creeping fig), Chlorophytum (spider plant) and Asparagus.

To prepare the plants, wash off as much existing media from their roots as possible. This can be done by soaking the root-ball of each plant in water and moving it back and forth.

Cut a square in the netting just large enough to insert the root-ball.

Press a hole into the moss by inserting two fingers right down to the bottom of the tray.

The hole is now ready to receive the plant. The only job that remains is to introduce the plants into the tray. Once planted, pack the base of the stem with sphagnum moss to properly secure the plant in place and ensure proper hydration. Repeat this process until all your plants are inserted. Don’t overcrowd the installation—you should think positively and leave room for some growth!

When the installation is finished, straighten the tray and check that all the plants are securely in place.

It’s now time to put the table above the aquarium, fix it to the wall, and connect the irrigation pump! Exciting times indeed! The first watering cycle will serve to re-moisten the moss and ensure that the water is effectively running. All the run-off should make its way back into the aquarium of course!

Now most of the remaining work is up to Mother Nature! The plants should be irrigated a few minutes per day, just long enough to let the water flow from the top to the bottom and back into the aquarium. When water starts to drain from the tray, it means that you have sufficiently watered your plants. It should take around three or four minutes to complete this process.

Maintenance

The water will become slightly orange in color because of the sphagnum moss. To minimize this coloration, you can add some active carbon for aquariums into the sphagnum moss if you wish.

The sphagnum moss is acidic and can affect the pH level of the water. So, to run an aquaponic system properly, the pH should be monitored and maintained at level seven. This is also something that should be considered when choosing the type of fish for your aquarium.

The water temperature should be held in a range of 64°F to 71°F (18°C to 22°C).

Consider using a light foliar spray for your plants once a week to keep them in tip top condition.