The AQUARCO idea began to take shape in February this year. As part of trying to eat heathy ourselves we were trying to grow organic vegetables, fruits and herbs at home and we became very interested in the principles of aquaponic systems that connect growing crops and herbs with fish farming.
Today more and more people want to grow their own crops and herbs but often encounter problems when they forget to water the plants or have no room for planting. The advantage of the AQUARCO system is that plants need not be watered because they are irrigated by water from the aquarium, which is enriched with nutrients thanks to the fish. In return the plant roots purify and filter the water that flows back into the aquarium and thus it remains clean for a long time. Through this collaboration the system is easy to care for and at the same time beautiful and extraordinary to behold. This original link and cooperation between fish and plants interested us so much that we decided to come up with a unique system that will act as a design piece which will hold the attention of the host’s visitors and will also be used for easy growing of herbs which have many uses in the kitchen.
Currently we are trying to incorporate technology that will monitor changes in water temperature, pH and water quality in the aquarium. It will also be linked with a simple mobile application which will report on any changes in the aquarium and it will enable easy adjustment of different functions.
Customers will be given the opportunity to design their own AQUARCO; they can choose a design that will blend in with their interior, add a favorite quote or choose a logo if it is for a restaurant or a hotel.
In our early days, participating in the Impact Academy was very helpful. We had the opportunity to work on the initial ideas and slowly improve the project. Impact Academy helped us to think about the whole concept and push it in the right direction. It also helped in the creation of a website and the first Facebook tests thanks to which we could measure peoples’ interest in the product.
We are currently working in Elite Solutions’ offices; they are very supportive and help us with the implementation of the project as well as giving valuable advice. Currently we are working on a prototype which we would like to introduce to the public within the next few weeks.
Another important step for us was a training placement in Portugal, for which we would like to thank Petra Marko and DreamjobSupport; this is going to be a great asset to us. In Portugal we will have the opportunity to meet with an expert on aquaponic systems and at the same time we would like to present our project at various co-working centers in Lisbon and get to know the local start-up community.
Author : Patrícia Žitňaková
Project AQUARCO is showing a great potential, get-up-and-go attitude and an idea DreamJobSupports team believes in. You have our whole support.Let’s do this! 🙂