What is the best temperature for tilapia in aquaponics systems?
Before we begin, keep in mind that tilapia are definitely warm water fish.
But there are a few reasons they are the most common fish in aquaponics.
Tilapia are feed tolerant
For starters, they’re very tolerant of poor water quality and they eat almost anything you can feed them.
While some folks use traditional fish food, a practice most commercial growers use, others choose to supplement this type of feed with duckweed.
Heck, you could probably feed them grass clippings if you want. (Just because you can doesn’t mean you should; don’t go mow your yard and dump the clippings in your aquaponic system.)
Tilapia are temperature sensitive
While they’ll eat just about anything, the issue with tilapia is that they’re very temperature sensitive.
Remember, these fish are primarily coming from Africa or other historically tropical environments.
For most tilapia, when the water temperature drops down to about 55 degrees (Fahrenheit), they will go into a stress-induced dormant state.
You’ll know this is happening because one day you’ll walk in and those tilapia will be bumping into the walls and swimming around like they’re drunk.
As you can imagine, this isn’t a great state for your fish. It’s actually really dangerous for their biology. Once your water temperature drops down to 50°F you’ve probably killed them.
There are very few tilapia varieties that can withstand those types of temperatures.
I’ve played around with various hybrid species before as well.
There’s actually a hybrid called a Rocky Mountain White that’s tolerant of cooler temperatures; supposedly this is a fish that can get down around 50°F without croaking.
I’ve also played with some tilapia varieties that aren’t supposed to be cold tolerant at all, like the Nile-based Florida Reds. I say Nile-based because there’s almost no truly pure stock.
What I’ve found is that often times the hybrids that are bred for cold tolerance are just poor feeders and gain weight slower than most.
I prefer fish that will feed voraciously up until the time that they die over fish that are tolerant of lower water quality.
Adaption to water temperatures
I will say that by exposing your fish to more extreme variables over time, they will adapt.
We’ve got a number of generations in our system and I’d be willing to bet that they could occasionally tolerate water temperatures down in the high 40’s.
We’ve got this crazy mutt tilapia breed now that seems to tolerate almost all the abuse we throw at them.
However, if you’re just starting off with tilapia that you order through the mail or get from a friend, you need to keep those water temperatures above 60°F minimum.
And, if you want good production, you need to keep your temperatures between 70°F and 85°F.
So what’s the optimal temperature for tilapia then?
You’re going to get maximum production in the 70 to 85ºF range.
Have other questions about tilapia in aquaponics?
Ask them in the comments below!
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What books would you recommend to read on aquaponics? Also, I’d like to grow shell fish, is that doable?
what if it exceeded the 75 to 85 ºF then what will happen?
do you also consider the amount of food that you give to the fish when the temperature exceeded?
Tilapia like warm water—they are tropical fish. So if they’re in water that is too cool they’ll get stressed and become more susceptible to disease and infection. In general, you should feed fish less when they’re stressed, but the idea is to feed in accordance with what they’re eating.
Is there a water heater for a 200 gallon fish tank for tilapia And where can I buy one online, Amazon?
I am looking for an economical way to heat a 2000 gal tilapia pond
I need to raise the water temp 15 degrees f.
Great piece, very informative… it’s just a shame Americans use the nonsensical fahrenheit scale instead of something more international.
Please can you recommend any book
Hi Alfred,
This link has some great recommendations.
http://aquaponicsdefinition.com/best-aquaponics-books/
This is useful information regarding tilapia fish, they are temperature sensitive. I would like to have one.
We plan to start raising Tilapia and Bluegill in our 12′ outdoor swimming pool. In addition we are using the fish waste to feed our aquaponic vegetables. I have a 35′ deep cistern with water that stays 64 degrees year around here in Kentucky. I plan to use this water source with an underwater homemade non-metal radiator to regulate the water temperature year around. I realize 64 degrees will not harm either fish type.
My question is how will it affect their speed of growth?
Hi Don,
64º is a little cold for achieving optimal growth rates for both of these fish species.
What is the maximum temperature Tilapia can survive?
Shams—
The lethal temperature for Nile tilapia is ~107ºF (42ºC), but growth and feeding slow significantly over 90ºF.
I have a 140 gallon tank currently with goldfish and am considering switching to tilapia. The tank is in a classroom. Do you have a recommendation for a good heater?
Hi there,
Eheim Jager will work nicely. 250w if the room is around 72º F or warmer, 300w if it is colder than 72º or the room experiences larger temperature fluctuations.
what happens when the temperature rises above 85?
I have a large pond stocked with Tilapia, about 30′ x 100′ x 7.5′ at the deepest center. We are in central AZ, where we get about 30 days per year below 20 degrees, and maybe 6-8 days below 10 degrees. I do have an aerator at the deepest point. There are some portions (shallower) of the pond that get some thin ice coverage on the coldest days. Is there a practical way to keep the deepest section above 45 degrees with a submersible heater?
Practical? No. You’d be better off selecting fish breeds that can tolerate your conditions, rather than trying to heat a pond for tropical fish. I live in central Florida, where we generally get frost maybe 2 or 3 nights each winter, with warm days in between. I don’t consider Tilapia viable here, unless I plan to harvest them all in the Fall and restock in the Spring. I’d suggest catfish, bluegill, or whatever else is native to your area. Trout, perhaps?
The last live Tilapia was last Monday which was only 1 pound, so I gave it to Paul Hardy and just told him to keep.
I still walk around the pond several times a day because I’ve always found at least a dozen at ice out. I never knew when they died and stunk very bad so I tossed the in the woods.
This morning before Church I found two 2.5 pound tilapia that were dead but were still limber the eyes were partially cloudy and seemed to smell ok. They came out of water that has stayed between 35-45*.
I put in freezer because I didn’t have any Ice.
The fish definitely surfaced sometime last night, their jaws, gills and bodies were still limp. Do you think they are still ok to eat




can the tilapia lives with Basa fish in the same pool ,if the pool is so big such as dam pool