GROUU · Projects · Aquaponics
Active · fabrication stage

Aquaponics

A home aquaponics unit for aromatics — fish and plants in one closed loop — built around a recovered fish tank with a CNC-fabricated structure. In the fabrication stage; its sensing and automation reuse the GROUU basic node and sensor set, reporting into the same server stack.

Recovered tank CNC fabrication Reuses the basic node WiFi + MQTT
01 · Overview

What it is

Aquaponics couples a fish tank to a grow bed: fish waste feeds the plants, the plants clean the water. This V3 build grows aromatics at home from recovered material and digital fabrication; GROUU's role is to watch the loop — the same sense → node → stack pattern as every other node. It grows out of the earlier fishTank auto-feeder rather than starting from scratch.

Goal: close a small food loop with low inputs, and use it as a design-research exercise in reuse and digital carpentry. The node keeps the loop in view and, later, in range.

Overview
One loop, sensed and served

The closed loop, and the reused sensing path into the shared stack.

Fish tank
recovered · cork-insulated
Grow bed
plants (aromatics) · biofilter

◄ clean water returns — a closed loop.

sensed
Sensing
Water + climate probes
greenhouse sensor set
WiFiMQTT
Node
Basic sensor node
reused template
Stack
Edge server
store + visualise
02 · Design

Recovered tank, digital carpentry

Built around a recovered fish tank, insulated with CNC-milled cork, on a CNC-fabricated structure — 2D digital carpentry + 3D-CAM molds. The precursor electronics (a NodeMCU + ESP-01 with a 3D-printed auto-feeder) are being folded into the GROUU nodes.

🐟📐Structure model & CNC files — to add.
03 · Hardware

Tank, sensing, structure

Design-level so far — a mix of recovered material and digital fabrication; sensing follows the greenhouse library (water temperature/level, ambient climate) reusing calibrated GROUU drivers. Models and calibration land here once selected.

PartRoleSource
Recovered fish tankThe grow / rearing container
CNC-milled corkInsulation for the tank
CNC-fabricated structure2D digital carpentry + 3D-CAM molds
NodeMCU + ESP-01 + 3D-printed feederPrecursor electronics & auto-feederfishTank ↗
Sensors (TBD)To follow the greenhouse sensor setsee Greenhouse
04 · Software

Reuses the basic node

Sensor and control code follow the completed basic sensor node and the actuator module (pumps, feeder), both publishing over MQTT — not written from scratch. Node-specific config lands here.

💻🐟Node config & UML — once the node is chosen.
05 · Process

Done, how, and what's left

Concept and loop are set and the structure is being fabricated; electronics reuse the reference nodes. Reproduction mirrors the other nodes — fabricate the structure, flash the reused basic-node firmware, wire the sensors and feeder, point it at a broker — with detailed steps filled in as the sensor set finalises.

Concept & loopFish → plants → clean water, watched by a reused node.✓ Done
StructureRecovered tank + CNC cork & carpentry.◑ In fabrication
PrecursorfishTank auto-feeder, being folded in.✓ Exists
What's leftSelect sensors, wire the node + feeder, add a dashboard view.○ Next
Gallery

Build

Fabrication photos and the 3D model are added as the build progresses.

📷🐟Build photos — to add.