KUNIA COUNTRY FARMS
Sustainable Agriculture and Aquaponics in Hawaii
FARM FACTS:
We built Kunia Country Farms for simplicity and efficiency. The system uses gravity to move the water from the fish tanks through the filters and the troughs, and a single pump to move it back uphill. One blower provides all the aeration needed for the system.
The planting and harvesting process was designed to allow one supervisor to manage the entire operation with limited part time assistance. The seedling nursery, pump house, rinse house, and troughs were all built without using outside labor.
100,000 Gallons in System
- 4 Fish Tanks Plumbed In-system
- 20 Grow Troughs
- 1 Sump Tank
Our system, with three fish tanks, eighteen grow troughs, and one sump tank, recirculates at 60 gallons per minute or 86,000 gallons per day. So about 86% of the water in the system is recirculated every day.
Reusable Farm Materials
- 30,000 net pots planted in-trough
- Over 800 four foot square floats
- Growing media - coconut husk
Net pots, styrofoam floats, and coconut husk (coco coir) are all reused in the growing process.
Construction materials like untreated lumber, polyethylene tanks and liners, and schedule 40 PVC pipe are all organic compliant.
Water Usage
Minimal - Typically Zero
Pictured above is our sump tank, twelve feet in diameter and buried 11 feet into the ground. Water collects here after flowing downhill through the grow troughs, and is then pumped back uphill to the fish tanks. With a covered sump tank and styrofoam floats covering every trough, there is very little evaporation.
On rainy days, water will overflow from the system.
Electricity
- Pump - Pentair IntelliFlo
- Blowers - Sweetwater (x2)
- Reefer - Walk-in 14' x 14'
The Farm operates on one Pentair IntelliFlo variable speed pump, two Sweetwater blowers that aerate the fish tanks and all of the troughs, and one 14' by 14' refrigerator cooled to 38 degrees Farenheit to chill the produce prior to delivery or pickup
Electrical needs are basic, but still very costly in Hawaii. Our planned 20 KW photovoltaic buildout will generate enough solar power to make the Farm electrical grid-neutral. Our goal is Zero Impact Farming!